The Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 3

III. Release of Treatise Stirs Two Continents

The turmoil created by the publication of the Lacunza treatise, and its really profound effect on two continents, is best seen by a rapid survey of the two decades following the initial printing. Assailed in 1813 by Friar Martinez in Italy, it nevertheless made proselytes in Italy and Spain. Opinion was sharply divided among the Jesuits, the Father General prohibiting the publication of opinion. Father Bestard, commissary general of the Order of St. Francis, in the Indies, warned vigorously against it, and attempted to stop its circulation in the various languages, becoming the arch foe of the acunzan (cachings and hook. But. it continued to be read and copied surreptitiously. A three-volume manuscript from Italy reached Havana, and marked Mexican interest developed in the neiv Spanish edition, while manuscript copies circulated continuously. The Cortes, or national legislature in Spain, expelled the bishops and banished the nuncio, and the second and third printings of the Tolosa, or Cadiz, edition appeared. PFF3 310.3

After Napoleon’s reversal in Spain, Ferdinand VII returned and declared the decrees of the Cortes null and void, and re-established the Inquisition and the Jesuits. In 1816 the four-volume London edition of La Vanida was printed at the expense of General Belgrano, diplomatic representative of the Argentine Republic, for distribution in his homeland. Mean time it was translated into other European languages. In 1818 the Mexican Inquisition ³ investigated copies circulated in Mexico but did not condemn them because of their popularity. The French 120-page compendium of Lacunza appeared, made by the Fansenist Agier, president of the Court of Appeals of Paris and writer on prophecy. The Paris (l)ironique Religieuse in 1819 recommended the acquisition of the book as full of light, and noted a Latin translation circulating in Italy. PFF3 311.1

By 1819 the Council of the General Inquisition of Spain ordered all copies collected, with reading prohibited pending full examination. Then the Mexican Inquisition prohibited the work “until properly certified,” and the Spanish Inquisition warned against copies printed without permission of superiors. Nevertheless some copies were preserved in insubordination. The Peruvian Inquisition was also stirred over the Lacunzian doctrine, intense discussion ensuing in Mexico, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay. PFF3 311.2

In 1820 the citizens of Cadiz secured renewal of the 1812 liberal constitution by a revolt which spread throughout the country. The Inquisition was again abolished-the prohibition of the Lacunza work having been one of its last acts. The con vents were closed, and the freedom of the press was again established. PFF3 311.3

In 1821-22 an edition appeared in Puebla, Mexico, and a new Spanish edition was attempted at Granada, Spain. Arch bishop de Palma’s “reprobation” stressed Lacunza’s violation of the principle of the superiority of tradition, of not following the church Fathers and the laws of the church. In 1823 he was compelled to disclose in writing his reasons for censure. He gave this censure in the form of five “Observations.” “Sad days for the Church of Spain,” was the Catholic historian’s lament. Nevertheless, numerous priests accepted Lacunza’s views, and the book was received with favor in both religious and literary circles. PFF3 312.1

The partisans of Lacunza were called new reformers, and Lacunza was labeled an “innovator” and his contention a “new idea.” Meantime, Ferdinand VII (1808-20 and 1823-33), a virtual prisoner since 1820, was released by the French army, which suppressed liberalism and liberal constitutional govern ment in Spain. Then, in 1824, Valclivieso’s Defense of Lacunza, written at Ravenna, was published in Mexico. Next, the Franciscan monk Bestard’s vicious attack on Lacunza was printed and a copy sent the pope, complaining that Lacunza insinuated that the tulfillment of Revelation 13 and 17 is to be found in the Roman priesthood and church. On the other hand, prominent Spanish theologians defended the book. PFF3 312.2

Then occurred the famous Cordova, Argentina, incident. A well-known priest-probably Dean Funes-while preaching, recommended Lacunza’s book. A theological professor instantly reproved the preacher, declaring the work heretical. The incident was denounced to the Sacred Congregation of the Index, which received the informer and reproved the cathedral up roar. The Congregation of the Index appointed an official examining committee of four. Fifteen censures resulted-the leading ones being that Lacunza had exalted Scriptures above radition, had taught Antichrist was not a future individual, had not acceptably venerated Catholic exposition, and had invited criticism by writing in the vulgar tongue. The delicacy and difficulty of the decision was increased because Lacunza was dead. ⁴ But the solemn sentence was passed by the Congregation of the Index, and Pope Leo XII, on September 6, issued the formal decree-“Forbidden to be published in any language whatsoever.” ‘”’ ⁵ By September 25 the decree was published and posted in the stipulated places. PFF3 312.3

But the conflict did not subside. The book was condemned by the Spanish friar Dos-Barrios, but commended by Vicar General Encina, of Toledo, seat of the primate of the Spanish church, with a favorable review by a Carmelite father. Secret societies read it with delight.” ⁶ Then the five-volume Cham-robert edition appeared in Paris in 1825, and the five-volume Valdes edition in Mexico. Bestard’s attempts to stop the circulation of the book were blessed by the pope, and Bestard was supported by eighty Spanish celebrities-archbishops, government officials, military and naval officers, educators, doctors, and noblemen. PFF3 313.1

In 1826 Edward Irving of London was profoundly affected by reading the 1812 Spanish edition, having on the previous Christmas preached his first sermon on the second advent. He then began to translate it into English. Then, later in 1826, the Ackermann London edition appeared, the best and most exact to be issued. ⁷ The Lacunza book became the subject of much discussion at the Albury Park Prophetic Conference. Secret societies in Spain continued to read the prohibited Lacunza, and it could not be silenced in South America. PFF3 313.2

In 1827 the Irving two-volume English translation was published from the 1812 Cadiz printing, but checked with the 1826 Ackermann edition. In this way it became well and influentially known in Britain. Thus it had been translated into leading languages of Europe and had shaken the continent of South America, according to Ricci, while Chaneton says there was not an important town “from Havana to Cape Horn” to which Lacunza’s book had not come. A one-volume abridged English edition was published in Dublin in 1833. And opinions in Mexico and South America continued to appear for and against Lacunza. Such was the turbulent career of this book, once having a really remarkable circulation, but now largely a forgotten volume. (Several early title pages, including a manuscript copy, reproduced on page 316.) PFF3 313.3