Falsembiante
«Molti buon' santi à l'uon visti morire
E molte buone sante glorïose,
Che fuor divote e ben religïose
E robe di color' volean vestire:
Né non lasciâr perciò già di santire;
Ma elle non fur anche dispittose,
Anz'eran caritevoli e pietose
E sofferian per Dio d'esser martìre.
E s'i' volesse, i' n'andrè' assà' nomando;
Ma apressoché tutte le sante e' santi
Che·ll'uon va per lo mondo og[g]i adorando,
Ten[n]er famiglie, e sì fecer anfanti;
Vergine e caste donne gîr portando
Cotte e sorcotti di colori e manti.
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False Seeming
"Many good male Saints have been seen to die,
as well as many good and glorious female Saints
who were devout and very religious,
and wanted to wear colored clothing:
they did not for this reason stop becoming Saints.
But they were never spiteful;
rather, they were charitable and devout
and suffered to become martyrs for God.
And if I wished, I would proceed to name many of them;
but almost all the female and male Saints
that are revered in the world today
had families and produced children;
virgins and chaste women went about wearing
colorful dresses and outer-garments and cloaks."
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Falsembiante
«L'undicimilia vergini beate
Che davanti da Dio fanno lumera,
In roba di color ciaschedun' era
Il giorno ch'elle fur martorïate:
Non ne fur per ciò da Dio schifate.
Dunque chi dice che·ll'anima pèra
Per roba di color, già ciò non chera,
Ché già non fiar per ciò di men salvate:
Ché 'l salvamento vien del buon corag[g]io;
La roba non vi to' né non vi dona.
E questo sì dé creder ogne sag[g]io,
Che non sia intendimento di persona
Che que' che veste l'abito salvag[g]io
Si salvi, se nonn-à l'opera bona.
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False Seeming
"The eleven thousand holy virgins
who are resplendent before God,
each one was clothed in a colorful dress
on the day they were martyred:
they were not for this reason rejected by God.
Thus, the one who says that the soul perishes
because of colorful clothing, should not believe it,
for they will not be any less saved because of this.
Salvation comes from a good heart;
clothing neither gives nor takes anything away from you.
And this every wise man must believe:
namely, that it should not be anyone's belief
that whoever wears unadorned clothes
is saved, if he has not performed good deeds."
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Falsembiante
«Chi della pelle del monton fasciasse
I·lupo, e tra·lle pecore il mettesse,
Credete voi, perché monton paresse,
Che de le pecore e' non divorasse?
Già men lor sangue non desiderasse,
Ma vie più tosto inganar le potesse;
Po' che·lla pecora no'l conoscesse,
Se si fug[g]isse, impresso lui n'andasse.
Così vo io mi' abito divisando
Ched i' per lupo non sia conosciuto,
Tutto vad' io le genti divorando;
E, Dio merzé, i' son sì proveduto
Ched i' vo tutto 'l mondo og[g]i truffando,
E sì son santo e produomo tenuto.
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False Seeming
"Do you think that if someone were to dress
a wolf in the skin of a ram and then put it
among the sheep, the wolf would not
devour the sheep because it appeared to be a ram?
It would not desire their blood any less,
but rather could deceive them more rapidly,
and since the sheep would not recognize the wolf,
if it were to go away, they would follow.
Thus, I change my appearance,
so that I may not be recognized as a wolf,
even though I go about devouring people.
And, thank God, I am so wise
that I go around cheating everyone
and yet am considered a saint and a good man."
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Falsembiante
«Sed e' ci à guari di cota' lupelli,
La Santa Chiesa sì è malbalita,
Po' che·lla sua città è asalita
Per questi apostoli, c[h]'or son, novelli:
Ch'i' son certan, po' ch'e' son suo' rubelli,
Ch'ella non potrà essere guarentita;
Presa sarà sanza darvi fedita
Né di traboc[c]hi né di manganelli.
Se Dio non vi vuol metter argomento,
La guer[r]a sì fie tosto capitata,
Sì ch'ogne cosa andrà a perdimento:
Ed a me par ch'E' l'à dimenticata,
Po' sòfera cotanto tradimento
Da color a cui guardia l'à lasciata.
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False Seeming
"If there are many of these young wolf cubs,
Holy Church is in bad shape,
since her city is attacked
by these young, newly-ordained apostles.
For I am certain, since they are her enemies,
the Church cannot be defended;
she will be taken without a single attack
launched by catapults or war machines.
If God does not wish to offer a remedy for this,
the war will soon be over,
and everything will go to ruin:
but it seems to me that God has forgotten her,
since He tolerates such betrayal
by those in whose care He's left her."
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Falsembiante
«Sed e' vi piace, i' sì m'andrò' posando
Sanza di questi fatti più parlare;
Ma tuttor sì vi vo' convenenzare
Che tutti i vostri amici andrò avanzando,
Ma' che comeco ciascun vada usando;
Sì son e' morti se no'l voglion fare;
E la mia amica convien onorare,
O 'l fatto loro andrà pur peg[g]iorando.
Egli è ben ver ched i' son traditore,
E per ladron m'à Dio pezz'à giug[g]iato,
Perch'i' ò messo il mondo in tanto er[r]ore.
Per molte volte mi son pergiurato;
Ma i' fo il fatto mio sanza romore,
Sì che nessun se n'è ancora adato.
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False Seeming
"If you like, I will refrain
from saying any more about these matters;
but still I want to promise you
that I will show favor to all your friends,
on condition that they be friends with me.
If they don't want to do it they'll die;
they must honor my friend,
or their situation will get much worse.
It's quite true that I'm a traitor,
and for some time God has judged me to be a thief,
because I have put the world in so much error.
On many occasions I have sworn falsely,
but I do my business without fanfare,
so that no one has ever noticed it."
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