The Forbidden Book

Francisco had not lacked opportunities to escape, but he had never taken advantage of them, convinced that his innocence would be vindicated in that proceeding and, above all, desirous that the jailer not be sanctioned because of him. However, the firmness he had felt until then now began to crumble almost every hour, and he decided..."

The life of Francisco de Enzinas was an example of a well-directed youth. To his passion for knowledge, his desire to advance in education, and his eagerness to learn, he added a clear vision of what was most important in this life, of the goals towards which he should direct his present and future. What was important was not fame, money, or popularity, but rather faithfulness to an ideal, purity of heart, and following Jesus, no matter the cost.

From the author's note:

All the events recounted in the preceding pages rigorously correspond to historical truth. Real is the beginning of the Church reform that arose in Alcalá de Henares under the auspices of Cisneros; also real is the repression to which its defenders were subjected after the cardinal's death. The story of Pedro de Lerma, Francisco de Enzinas's uncle, was just one of many that show the extent to which humanists who had wanted to bring the Bible closer to the people were silenced or physically eliminated without any consideration by people who, appealing to orthodoxy, in many cases only sought their personal gain.

However, for decades, the future of the Church was not obvious. For many - like Enzinas - there was hope that a deep knowledge of the New Testament would serve to purify it without the need for an internal rupture with fatal consequences.

Pages: 128
ISBN: 9781576588673