The Family - Mario Puzo [100]
At that moment Alexander saw that the man was sincere, that he truly did believe. So, with the gaiety of a gambler, Alexander asked for double the amount he had planned. “Our fund for the Crusade needs five hundred thousand ducats,” he said. “Then the Christian world can sail for Jerusalem.”
Baldo Rosamundi’s body seemed to jump into the air, as if struck by lightning. For a moment he pressed his hands over his ears as if not to hear, but he was concentrating his mind and trying to answer. Then he became calm, and a beautiful serenity transformed his face. “Thank you, Holy Father,” he said. “But you must come to Venice personally to dedicate her shrine and perform the necessary ceremonies.”
Alexander said quietly, “That was my intent. A saint is greater than any Pope. And now we will pray together to ask her to intercede for us in heaven.”
17
CESARE AWOKE THAT morning with mounting excitement. He could already feel the change in himself. Today was the day he was to appear before the consistory of cardinals who had been selected by the Pope to “consider” releasing him from his vows, and allowing him to resign his status as cardinal.
A commission of fifteen was appointed, and all but two were present. A Spanish cardinal had fallen ill with malaria, and one of the Italian cardinals had fallen from his horse.
None of the remaining cardinals had ever before faced such a request, for to be a cardinal was the dream of most men throughout Italy. To be selected was to rise high in the ranks of the church, and to be held in the greatest esteem, for each was in a position to be considered as a future Pope. Most of the cardinals present had committed themselves to long years of exhaustive work, prayer—and occasional sin—to reach their position, and so Cesare’s request was considered both puzzling and an impertinence. To lay down the purple voluntarily was an affront to their honor.
Each member of the commission sat stiffly on a high-backed, ornately carved wooden chair in the Hall of Faith. Dressed in their formal vestments, the long line of red hats appeared as a huge ribbon hung before the portrait of the Last Judgment, the faces of the cardinals masks contorted with disbelief: stark, white, and ghostly.
Cesare rose to address them. “I stand here before you in order that you understand why I am about to ask your indulgence in this matter. I must confess that I have never wished a life in the church. My own father, his Holiness Alexander VI, made this choice for me with every good intention. Still, it has never been my choice and will never be my vocation.”
The cardinals looked at each other nervously, surprised by his candor. Now Cesare explained. “My choice is to lead the papal army, to defend the church and Rome. And to that I must add that I wish to marry and have legitimate children. This being my true vocation and my greatest conviction, my colleagues, I ask humbly that you free me from my vows and permit me to resign.”
One of the Spanish cardinals protested. “If this is allowed, there may be a danger. For what if the cardinal becomes a prince and then feels able to form new alliances, serve a new king, and become an enemy of the present church and Spain?”
Alexander stood impassively before them, unmoved. The cardinals had been made aware of his wishes, but now each looked to him for confirmation in this important decision. He spoke. “It is only for the good of his soul that my son makes this request. For, as he confessed, his true calling is to marry and to be a soldier, not to be a man of the cloth. His temporal appetites and worldliness have caused the papacy universal scandal, for he seems unable to subdue his passions. And we must agree that does not serve the Holy Mother Church or Rome. We must consider also that on the cardinal’s resignation over thirty-five thousand ducats in