Bonaventure

Lore & Background

Bonaventure was born at Civita di Bagnoregio, near Viterbo, then part of the Papal States. Almost nothing is known of his childhood, other than the names of his parents, Giovanni di Fidanza and Maria di Ritella. He reported that in his youth he was saved from an untimely death by the prayers of Francis of Assisi, which was the primary motivation for his later writing of Francis's biography. He entered the Franciscan Order in 1243 and studied at the University of Paris, possibly under Alexander of Hales and certainly under John of Rochelle. He held the Franciscan chair at Paris in 1253, but a dispute between seculars and mendicants delayed his reception as Master until 1257, when he received his degree alongside Thomas Aquinas. He was also a friend of Cardinal Hugh of Saint-Cher. He lectured on Peter Lombard's *Four Books of Sentences* and became a master in 1255. After defending his order against anti-mendicant reproaches, he was elected Minister General of the Franciscan Order. He was selected for the post of Archbishop of York in 1265 but never consecrated, resigning the appointment in 1266. During his tenure, the General Chapter of Narbonne in 1260 prohibited publishing without permission, a decree later rescinded in Roger Bacon's favor. Bonaventure helped secure the election of Pope Gregory X, who made him Cardinal Bishop of Albano and insisted on his presence at the Second Council of Lyon in 1274. There, after contributing to a union of Greek and Latin churches, he died suddenly under suspicious circumstances; some sources suggest he was poisoned. He steered the Franciscans on a moderate, intellectual course, making them the most prominent order until the Jesuits. His theology integrated faith and reason, viewing Christ as the one true master who offers knowledge beginning in faith, developed through rational understanding, and perfected by mystical union with God. His body was moved in 1434, and his head was found entirely incorrupt; the people of Lyon chose him as their patron. In 1562, Huguenots burned his body in a public square. During the French Revolution, the urn containing his incorrupt head was hidden and never recovered. The only extant relic is the arm and hand with which he wrote his *Commentary on the Sentences*, conserved at Bagnoregio in the parish church of St. Nicholas.

Reader's Guide

Bonaventure steered the Franciscans on a moderate and intellectual course, making them the most prominent order until the Jesuits. His theology integrated faith and reason, viewing Christ as the 'one true master' who offers knowledge beginning in faith, developed through rational understanding, and perfected by mystical union with God. He wrote on almost every scholastic subject, with no exclusively philosophical work, illustrating the interpenetration of philosophy and theology. His thought shows Augustinian influence, with Aristotelian principles added, and contrasts with contemporaries like Roger Bacon and Thomas Aquinas by emphasizing mystical and Platonizing speculation. His major work is the Commentary on the Sentences, written at age twenty-seven. The only extant relic is the arm and hand with which he wrote his Commentary on the Sentences, conserved at Bagnoregio.

Did You Know?

• Bonaventure was saved from an untimely death in his youth by the prayers of Francis of Assisi, which motivated him to write Francis's biography.
• The only extant relic of Bonaventure is the arm and hand with which he wrote his Commentary on the Sentences, now at Bagnoregio.
• Many medieval writings once attributed to him are now reclassified under the name 'Pseudo-Bonaventure.'