Gerardo Segarelli

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gerardo Segarelli , also Gherardo Segarelli or Segalleli , (* around 1240 in Segalara in the province of Parma , † July 18, 1300 in Parma) founded the sect of the Apostle Brothers (Latin Apostolici ). The Catholic Church did not recognize them as an order ; Segarelli was burned at the stake as a heretic .

Life

Early years

Gerardo Segarelli worked as a craftsman in Parma. In the 1250s the idea of going to a Franciscan monastery matured in him . However, the Order did not accept him into its ranks because of extreme views. Nonetheless, he stayed near the monastery and visited its church to sit in it and kneel in front of the altar. Possibly influenced by an image of the Twelve Apostles above the altar, he grew his beard and hair, went barefoot, and dressed in a white tunic to imitate the habitus of the early Christians. In 1260 he began to roam the city as a penitential preacher, simply dressed as an apostle. He sold his belongings and distributed the proceeds to the poor in the city. About three years later, others joined him and he gathered around him a community of about 30 people who called themselves "Apostle Brothers".

Apostolic

The Apostle Brothers sought to restore the simple form of apostolic communion. They preached the near end of the world and urged their fellow citizens to repent. Segarelli asked his listeners for food and alms , which he always shared with the poor. He posed as an apostle and indicated that he would be in contact with the late Francis of Assisi . When a group was formed, Segarelli was chosen to be its leader after initial excuses. She went singing through the streets and was welcomed from the ranks of the poor. Segarelli began to preach in other cities. The movement soon spread mainly in northern Italy, but the Brothers of the Apostles were also active in Germany, France, Spain and England. The sect also had female members.

Conflicts with the official church

In 1280 the Bishop of Parma had Gerardo Segarelli captured. During interrogation, the interrogators found nothing criminal in his sermons or activities, which is why he was released. He was classified as a poor, confused visionary. Pope Honorius IV tried to counter the spread of Segarelli's ideas with a bull of March 11, 1286 by condemning the teachings of the apostolics. After the unpleasant attention of the Apostle Brothers and Sisters, Segarelli was banished from his diocese by the bishop as a fanatic in 1286 . A council in Würzburg in 1287 forbade the apostolics from begging and preaching. The other believers were asked not to support sect members with food or water.

Segarelli again took over the leadership of the Apostle Brothers and from 1290 became particularly excited against the secularization of the clergy and the conditions in the church. Pope Nicholas IV confirmed the rejection of the sect in a bull on March 7, 1290 . When Segarelli returned to Parma, contrary to the ban, he was arrested in 1294. The penitential preacher recanted his teachings as erroneous before Bishop Obizzo Sanvitale and was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment . Four of his followers who were also captured were burned alive. In 1300 another trial was brought against Segarelli. He was found guilty of heresy by the Inquisitor Manfredo da Parma as a recidivist and burned after the sentence. Then indignant people broke into the inquisitor's building and ravaged rooms.

Segarelli's pupil Fra Dolcino took over the leadership of the Apostle Brothers after his execution . He led a great peasant uprising in northern Italy, continued Segarelli's work and was cruelly executed in 1307.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Otto Schiffler: Heretics and Witches . BoD - Books on Demand, Norderstedt 2003, ISBN 3-8311-4694-2 , p. 178 (344 p., Limited preview in Google Book search).
  2. ^ Karl Julius Weber: The monkery or historical representation of the monastery world . tape 2 . Stuttgart 1834, p. 307 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
  3. ↑ Order of the Apostles . In: Heinrich August Pierer , Julius Löbe (Hrsg.): Universal Lexicon of the Present and the Past . 4th edition. tape 1 . Altenburg 1857, p. 613 ( zeno.org ).
  4. ^ Joseph Ignaz Ritter : Handbuch der Kirchengeschichte , Volume 2, Page 292. Bonn 1828 , queried on November 13, 2010
  5. ↑ see also Italian Wikipedia
  6. ↑ Josif R. Grigulevic: heretics, witches, inquisitors . Ahriman-Verlag 2000, ISBN 3-89484-500-7 , page 167 , accessed on November 13, 2010
  7. ↑ Josif R. Grigulevic: heretics, witches, inquisitors . Ahriman-Verlag 2000, ISBN 3-89484-500-7 , p. 168 f.
personal data
SURNAME Segarelli, Gerardo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Segarelli, Gherardo; Segalelli, Gerardo
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Parmesan penitential preacher and sect leader
DATE OF BIRTH around 1240
PLACE OF BIRTH Segalara, Parma Province
DATE OF DEATH July 18, 1300
Place of death Parma