i BRUNO'S DEFENCE 75 



On the 29th Mocenigo made another deposition, Third d epo - 

 the result of further reflections, at the request of the Moceni g o. 

 Father Inquisitor, on the utterances of Bruno against 

 the Catholic faith. Bruno had said that the Catholics 

 did not act on the model of the apostles, who taught 

 by example and good deeds, converting through love, 

 not force ; that he preferred the Catholic religion to 

 others, but it also stood in great need of reform ; that 

 he hoped great things from the King of Navarre ; that 

 it was a mistake to allow the friars to remain so rich 

 (in Venice) : they should do as in France, where the 

 nobles enjoyed the revenues of the monasteries, the 

 friars living on soup, as befitted such " asses." This 

 was a powerful stroke of diplomacy on Mocenigo's part. 

 It was also hinted that Bruno's life was not pure, that 

 he said the Church erred in making a sin of what was 

 of great service in nature, and of what he (Bruno) 

 regarded as a high merit. 



Next day (Saturday) Bruno continued his account 

 of his life, the first note of defence being struck in an 

 appeal to the famous doctrine of the " twofold truth." Thetwo- 

 " Some of the works composed by me and printed I do 

 not approve, because I spoke and discoursed too much 

 as a philosopher rather than as an ' honest ' l man and 

 good Christian, and in particular I know that in some 

 of these works I taught and believed on philosophic 

 grounds what ought to have been referred to the 

 potency, wisdom, and goodness of God, according to 

 the Christian faith, basing my doctrine on sense and 

 reason, and not upon faith/ 7 On Tuesday, June 2, a 

 deposition was read from Fra Domenico da Nocera Fra Do- 

 confirming Bruno's appeal to him, and his desire for " 

 the favour of the Pope and a reconciliation with the 



1 i.e. orthodox, right-thinking. 



