On Saturday I went to a local event for the Stronghold of Hellsgate, called "Commander's Crucible." The theme for A&S was "the heat of the crucible, or the cool of the quench." One of my long-term projects is to better understand the world view of my persona (upper middle class, 1500's Florence), so I decided that an indulgence would be appropriate, with the idea that people sought indulgences as a "Get out of Hell Free" card. As it turned out, I (and most people) completely misunderstood what an indulgence is. So it was less appropriate to the fire theme, but I learned a lot about something that would have been very important to someone living in late medieval Europe. I'm very much a beginner when it comes to calligraphy, so the finished product wasn't the most beautiful (one of the judges implied that she would have suspected the priest of having been a bit drunk), but I stepped completely out of my comfort zone, and I learned a lot about a new topic.
The appendix that I included with the original documentation had large pictures of several surviving indulgence certificates. I wasn't comfortable simply copying a bunch of photos of someone else's stuff, so I stripped those out. If you'd like to see the images, just follow the links to the original sources.
Indulge Me
an indulgence created in the style of those issued by Johann Tetzel in Germany in 1517
Lady Simona della Luna
Hellsgate Commander’s Crucible
28 March 2015
What did I make?
In keeping with the cheaply-produced character of mass-market indulgences, I have written my indulgence simply on paper, without special decoration, as might have been done if a priest ran out of the pre-printed blanks. I used an informal variation of Gothic textura script, based on the writing found in a German psalter from about 1500 (Tillotson, “Gothic Textura”). I used cotton paper, black ink, and a steel dip pen calligraphy nib. Surviving indulgences were produced on either vellum or paper (see examples in appendix). Priests would have purchased their ink the same way they purchased paper or vellum. I have chosen to use modern steel calligraphy nib for expediency - I have not yet learned how to make and write with a quill pen.
The text is modeled after a simplified version of the indulgences included in the appendix, and reads:
In the name of Almighty God, amen. Unto Johann Ricke is hereby granted the Apostolic Blessing and a Plenary Indulgence. This is done by Xemplum Monachus, in faithful service to the Sovereign Pontiff, to whom the dispensation of the whole spiritual treasury of the Church has been entrusted by Christ our Lord. So written on this 27th day of May, 1517.
What is an indulgence?
According to Catholic doctrine, which was the prevailing religious doctrine of western Europe in 1517, when a person commits a sin there are a number of consequences. In addition to whatever secular punishment might descend, the person must confess the sin to a priest and receive absolution. However, this did not completely resolve the problem.
According to church teaching, even after sinners are absolved in the confessional and say their Our Fathers or Hail Marys as penance, they still face punishment after death, in Purgatory, before they can enter heaven. In exchange for certain prayers, devotions or pilgrimages in special years, a Catholic can receive an indulgence, which reduces or erases that punishment instantly, with no formal ceremony or sacrament.
There are partial indulgences, which reduce purgatorial time by a certain number of days or years, and plenary indulgences, which eliminate all of it, until another sin is committed. You can get one for yourself, or for someone who is dead. You cannot buy one — the church outlawed the sale of indulgences in 1567 — but charitable contributions, combined with other acts, can help you earn one. There is a limit of one plenary indulgence per sinner per day. (Vitello, “Door to Absolution”)
Contrary to the claims of Protestant detractors (and the occasional overzealous promotions of salesmen), indulgences are not “Get Out of Hell Free” cards. The intent was to reduce the time a soul might spend in Purgatory. The indulgence did nothing to prevent a soul from going to Hell if that was its ultimate destination. After falling out of favor for many years, indulgences were revived by Pope John Paul II in celebration of the year 2000, and then were further promoted by Pope Benedict. (Vitello, “Door to Absolution”) Upon the occasion of his election to the papacy in 2013, Pope Francis extended a plenary indulgence to all who watched his speech either in person or on television or other media, provided they met the other requirements for a plenary indulgence. (Malloy, “Pope’s Gift”) In modern practice either partial or plenary indulgences may be received for a variety of pious acts, without the requirement for a physical certificate. The Enchiridion Of Indulgences is the book that details modern Catholic policy regarding indulgences. (Ferretto, “Enchiridion”) One commonly-known indulgence is the plenary indulgence granted as part of the Last Blessing, administered to a dying person. The text is “By the power the Apostolic See has given me, I grant you a plenary indulgence and pardon for all your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” (Stravinskas, “Sunday”)
What were historic indulgences like?
The surviving indulgences show a wide variety of craftsmanship and style, and appear to have had no set format. Many were hand written in the traditional method, but by 1517 printing presses had also become quite common for mass-market indulgences:
For the printer, indulgences could have meant cash, paid for by the Church, much needed during or after a capital intensive venture. For the Church it meant a rationalisation of an otherwise labour-intensive bureaucratic procedure: thousands of identical letters of indulgence could be required at a single visit to a town. Compared with writing them out by hand, they could now be produced at much reduced cost. Printing provided an efficient solution to a bureaucratic problem.
… By the end of the century, one indulgence was said to have been printed in as many as 142,950 copies. (British Library, “Indulgences”)
The University of Edinburgh holds a printed mass-marked indulgence from 1497. For an image of this indulgence and several others, see the appendix.
Print runs for indulgences were huge and often ran in the thousands, though very few of them survive as they were considered disposable documents. Printed indulgences were widely popular for those that issued them as the body of the text would remain largely the same from indulgence to indulgence, meaning that spaces could be left to fill in the information pertinent to the purchaser, eliminating the need to physically write a new indulgence for each customer. (Edinburgh,“Wynkyn de Worde")
There is a handwritten indulgence that purports to be written by Johann Tetzel, but I was unable to find convincing evidence of its authenticity.
The fragment of a printed indulgence below, which lists Albert of Mainz as the cleric under whose authority it was printed, would have been created with the intent that Johann Tetzel or some other priest would sell it to a faithful congregant. Note the blank spaces where information specific to the parishioner could be written in. It was printed on vellum by Melchior Lotter around 1513, but apparently it was never sold - its current physical condition shows that it may have been recycled as a component of a bookbinding. Lotter was also the printer for Martin Luther’s 95 Theses. Image from Live Auctioneers, from its sale in 2009. http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/6822618
Who was Johann Tetzel?
Born in Pirna in Meissen (north-east Germany) in 1465, Johann Tetzel became a Dominican priest. Starting in 1503 he received permission to preach about and sell indulgences in defined regions of Germany. These permissions were re-issued a number of times, with each instance allowing him to preach about and sell indulgences in a specific geographic area and for a specific number of years. (Ganss, “Johann Tetzel”) In 1517 he was working under the authority of Albert of Mainz. (Chisholm, “Albert”)
Albert of Mainz had obtained the electorate of Mainz in 1514, and in securing his position he had followed the era’s commonly accepted practice of buying his way into power. He had incurred large debts to the banker Jakob Fugger (who is considered to have been one of the richest individuals in history), and to pay back those debts he sought and received the permission of Pope Leo X to sell indulgences in the areas he controlled. (Chisholm, “Albert”)
What were the consequences?
Frederick III the Wise, elector of Wittenburg, had forbidden the sale of indulgences in his city. He had amassed a collection of relics at the Church of All Saints, and he hoped to prevent outside competition. Tetzel was selling indulgences in neighboring Jüterbog, and residents of Wittenburg flocked to Jüterbog to buy them. When they brought these indulgences back home, they attracted a great deal of attention. (Encyclopædia Britannica, “Ninety-five Theses”)
Doctor Martin Luther was a professor of biblical theology at the University of Wittenberg. He had for some time developed a number of objections to the situation of the church. Indulgences were a particularly thorny problem. On October 31, 1517 Luther posted his now-famous 95 Theses (formally titled “Disputation of Doctor Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences”) on the door of the University church door. He also sent a copy to Archbishop Albert of Mainz. (Whitford, “Luther” ) A number of the theses are devoted to denouncing indulgences:
45. Christians are to be taught that he who sees a man in need, and passes him by, and gives [his money] for pardons, purchases not the indulgences of the pope, but the indignation of God.
The Protestant Reformation is now considered to have started with this act. (Encyclopædia Britannica, “Ninety-five Theses”)
Tetzel’s detractors were bent on discrediting him in the quickest and most complete manner possible, and they enjoyed a particularly casual relationship with the truth. He was accused of a number of immoral and unethical acts, including adultery, embezzlement, (Ganss, “Johann Tetzel”) and speaking vulgarly about the Virgin Mary: Luther’s 75th thesis accuses “To think the papal pardons so great that they could absolve a man even if he had committed an impossible sin and violated the Mother of God—this is madness.” All these accusations were shown to be completely fabricated, but the damage was done. Tetzel was broken in spirit and health, and he retired to his monastery in Leipzig in 1518. He died there the next year at the age of 54 and received an honorable burial. (Ganss, “Johann Tetzel”)
Bibliography
British Library. “Indulgences”, accessed March 26, 2015, http://www.bl.uk/treasures/gutenberg/indulgences.html.
Chisholm, Hugh, editor. “Albert (1490-1545).” Originally appearing in Volume V01, Page 497 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica. Accessed March 26, 2015, http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/AJA_ALL/ALBERT_14901545_.html.
Edinburgh, University of. “Wynkyn de Worde Papal Indulgence, Westminster, 1498.” Curator notes accompanying an exhibit, author’s name not given. Accessed March 26, 2015, http://images.is.ed.ac.uk/luna/servlet/detail/UoEgal~2~2~41958~103000:Wynkyn-de-Worde-Papal-Indulgence,-W#
Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "Ninety-five Theses", accessed March 26, 2015, http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/415676/Ninety-five-Theses.
Ferretto, Cardinal Joseph, editor. “The Enchiridion Of Indulgences; Norms and Grants, Authorized English Edition.” Issued by the Sacred Apostolic Penitentiary, 1968, Vatican City. Formatted into electronic text June 2, 1998. Accessed March 26, 2015. http://www.2heartsnetwork.org/The.Enchiridion.of.Indulgences.pdf.
Ganss, Henry. "Johann Tetzel" The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912, accessed March 26, 2015. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14539a.htm.
Luther, Doctor Martin. “Disputation of Doctor Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences”, accessed March 26, 2015, http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/274/pg274.html.
Malloy, Bishop David J. “The New Pope’s Gift to You: A Plenary Indulgence.” Website of the Diocese of Rockford, accessed March 26, 2015, http://www.rockforddiocese.org/Pope-Francis-Plenary-Indulgence.
Stravinskas, Reverend Peter M.J., editor. “Our Sunday Visitor’s Catholic Encyclopedia, Revised Edition.” Huntington Indiana: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division. 1998, p. 160, accessed March 26, 2015, https://books.google.com/books?id=vJ78Vd4O9d4C&pg=PA160&lpg=PA160&dq=catholic+indulgence+text+our+sunday+visitor&source=bl&ots=n2ARIEVF3w&sig=hOUQHO8B7Wzo3Y8AZTgJEETJXhA&hl=en&sa=X&ei=BF8VVaf7D8froAS0g4HwDA&ved=0CB4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=catholic%20indulgence%20text%20our%20sunday%20visitor&f=false.
Tillotson, Doctor Dianne. “Gothic Textura - relatively informal grade”, accessed March 27, 2015, http://medievalwriting.50megs.com/scripts/examples/textura5.htm/
Vitello, Paul. “For Catholics, a Door to Absolution Is Reopened.” New York Times, February 9 2009, accessed March 26, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/nyregion/10indulgence.html?ref=us&_r=0.
Whitford, David M. “Martin Luther”, accessed March 26, 2015, http://www.iep.utm.edu/luther/.
Image credits:
The imaginary receipt on the title page was created at http://www.customreceipt.com/index.php
Credits for all other images, both here and in the appendix, are given beside the image.
Appendix: Images of Historic Indulgences
As previously mentioned, indulgences seem to have had no set form. They might be very ornate and large, intended for public display. Or they might be quite simple, meant to give private reassurance.
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This handwritten indulgence dates from Calixtus III, 1455-1458. It is held in the collection of Siena College, in the Standish Library, in Loudonville, New York. The image comes from their website. http://www2.siena.edu/pages/2448.asp
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This handwritten indulgence was written in 1643, under the authority of Pope Urban VIII. It is handwritten in Latin on vellum, and measures 16” x 6”. The image is from James Cummins Bookseller. As I write, it is currently for sale for $350. You may not be able to purchase a new indulgence any more, but you can buy this very old one. http://www.jamescumminsbookseller.com/pages/books/243154/pope-urbanus-viii-maffeo-barberini/manuscript-papal-brief-granting-an-indulgence
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The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America archives hold a 1516 indulgence issued by Pope Leo X. This large (27” x 17”) with its wax seals (the tin seal holders remain) may have been intended for public display. This image is from their website.
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This indulgence was printed on paper in Westminster in 1498. It is held by the University of Edinburgh. Funds from the sale of this indulgence helped finance the pilgrim shrine of St. James, Compostella in Spain. The printer, Wynken de Worde, “died in 1534 and is currently known as one of the most prolific early printers in England and is especially noted for his frequent use of woodcut illustrations in the texts that he produced.”
The image comes from their website. http://images.is.ed.ac.uk/luna/servlet/detail/UoEgal~2~2~41958~103000:Wynkyn-de-Worde-Papal-Indulgence,-W#
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This indulgence, issued to finance a crusade against the Turks who had conquered Constantinople in 1543, is the earliest surviving document a fixed date printed with movable type. It was issued at Erfurt on October 22, 1454. The month and day are completed by hand, but the year is printed. The document was probably printed by Johannes Gutenberg.
This image comes from the website of Jeremy Norman’s History of Information, found at http://www.historyofinformation.com/expanded.php?id=339
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