[Michael de Molinos. Biographisches.]^[1]

Translation from the German by Robert Hutwohl

It is now over two hundred years since a Neapolitan monk named Albertini came to Rome with the intention of publishing a work he had written on theology, and through the employment of the Secretary of State, Cardinal Cibo, was given a room in the Vatican for lodging. But his work did not receive the approval of the ecclesiastical college, so he procured a printing press to secretly print it himself. It was one of the hottest days of August 1685 when Albertini was engaged in this work, and because of the heat, he had dressed only scantily. Then he saw that a detachment of papal police was taking possession of the entrance to his apartment, and in his fear, he fled without further ado through a window onto the roof and from there into the next hatch, which he found open, into the room behind it. This happened to be the dwelling of the “penitents,” a sort of prison in which the “donne male maritate,” i.e. women and girls of an ambiguous character, were imprisoned, and among these, the sudden appearance of a man so scantily clad, understandably caused a great stir, the more so as Albertini was not unknown with one of the inmates, and they naturally assumed that he had come to pay a visit. Be it out of dismay or jealousy, the monastery bell was rung, and the room soon filled with curious and noisy women. At length, he succeeded in explaining the matter and was allowed to return unmolested to his dwelling by the same route, which he hastily exchanged for a safer residence outside the sphere of the papal police.

          Albertini had been unnecessarily frightened, for the attention of the police was not with him, but with another monk, named Michael de Molinos, who also resided in the Vatican and was even an intimate friend and adviser of the then Pope Innocent XI, but because of his enlightenment and truer piety was a thorn in the flesh of the Jesuits and the “Holy Inquisition.” He was the author of a work called “Der Geistliche Führer,” [“The Spiritual Guide”] which, though misunderstood by many, gave rise, through this misunderstanding, to the formation of the sect of the “Quietists,” nevertheless, to all who can rightly comprehend its contents, always will remain one of the finest guides on the path to true self-knowledge.

          Michael de Molinos was of a noble family in Aragon, born December 21, 1627, studied theology and published his book in 1675, which appeared in twenty editions in six years, was translated into various languages, and the contents made it clear that man should seek God primarily within himself and not in external things. Perhaps it can be summed up as follows: “If God, as every Christian must admit, is unique, omnipresent, and the true and supreme being in all things, so also is he our true and supreme self-consciousness, which is eternal, all-encompassing, and limitless, and no external mediator is needed between us and our true self-consciousness; it is only a question of letting this slumbering Divine Consciousness within us awaken and unfold, which happens through the influence of divine grace (the holy spirit of Self-knowledge). For this, it is necessary above all to keep the heart and mind clean from all self-conceit, passions and selfish desires. In a loving and purified heart, the truth reveals itself. Priests and teachers can only be our guides to the light, but they cannot give away or sell divine grace to us.”

         It goes without saying that this teaching, however true it may be, was not designed to promote the interests of the Church and to encourage the sale of sacraments and indulgences. Therefore Molinos, like many others who had taught similar things, had to be rendered innocuous, and that he was not burned alive but only imprisoned for life is probably only due to his enemies’ fear of his great popularity.

         In fact, not only the most outstanding men and women in Rome, but enlightened people from all nations sought to make the acquaintance of the author of the “Spiritual Guide,” although he taught nothing else than what many other mystics and Christian “saints” before him had taught. St. Bonaventure, St. Theresa, John of the Cross, St. Francisco de Sales [François de Sales] and numerous others had also said. The “Spiritual Guide” was initially examined and “approved” by five outstanding Doctors of Theology, four of whom were Inquisitors, and generally introduced in churches, monasteries and schools. In Naples alone, according to Bishop Gilbert Burnet, Molinos was said to have had more than twenty thousand followers.

         “This Molinos,” says the bishop, “wrote a book in which he teaches that we should completely turn our minds away from all earthly things in our prayers and devotional exercises, and thereby refrain from all our own willing and doing, so that God [the Higher Self] can come through in us, and can work his spirit and his power. But the Jesuits are greatly incensed against him, finding that these teachings increase the power of the empire, which superstition has established, will weaken them by turning religion from a very complicated system into a most simple thing which anyone can get at no cost. Therefore they accuse him of heresy and seek to antagonize the Pope, who knows little about the matter but is very fond of the sanctity of Molinos.”

         In fact, the followers of Molinos were seen less often in churches and were less willing to pay money for the masses or donate their fortunes to the church. This state of affairs could no longer be tolerated. If people went directly to God instead of seeking the mediation of the priests, the Church’s income would suffer significantly. So the alarm was sounded, saying that religion (which people so easily mistake for ecclesiastical interests) was in danger, and through the influence of Cardinal d’Estrées, commissioned by King Louis XIV of France, Molinos was imprisoned and subjected to the Inquisition.

         Queen Christina of Sweden was one of Molinos’ followers. If she had understood his teaching correctly, she would not have renounced her crown and changed her religion of her own accord, but would have fulfilled the duties assigned to her by God, and thereby spared herself a ridiculous end. Whoever wants to renounce earthly things must above all be above their own personal wishes and desires. Christina’s abdication was not a sacrifice demanded by God, but a smug gimmick.

         Before his capture, Molinos had countless friends who raised him to heaven; but when the “Holy Inquisition” seized him with their slimy polyp arm, there were few who had the courage to stand up for him. Pope Innocent XI was seventy years old, sickly, suspicious and powerless. Numerous followers of Molinos were imprisoned and perished in the dungeons. Many were tortured into alleged confessions and sent to the gallows or galleys. The prisons were overcrowded, and the inquisitors even had the gall to suspect the Pope himself, whose kindness towards Molinos was known, of heresy, and to send a commission to prosecute against him, not in his capacity as successor to St Peter, but by Benedikt Odescalchi [Benedetto Erba Odescalchi], to initiate an investigation.

         Finally, after languishing for twenty-two months in a cramped dungeon, having been repeatedly tortured with the intention of extracting a confession from him, and having used every possible means to induce even the semblance of guilt against him, he was brought before the court of the Inquisition to hear his verdict.

         On the morning of September 3, 1687, the church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva in Rome was crowded with spectators early on. The lodges were owned by the nobles and prelates. The College of Cardinals, the General of the Inquisition, and his officials were seated on a raised platform. One fought for admission; for several days earlier it had been announced to the people that anyone who would attend this ceremony of the auto da fé would receive a fifteen-year indulgence from purgatory. Silk robes rustled and fans moved; it was a jubilee of clergy such as had not been seen since the day the Church celebrated its triumph over Galileo’s doctrine of the rotation of the earth. Greetings were exchanged among acquaintances, jokes cracked, new acquaintances made, courtesies and flattery exchanged, and the real purpose of the meeting almost forgotten.

       Suddenly everything fell silent, the fans stopped playing and all eyes were directed to a side door by the stage. An elderly monk, accompanied by a jailer, entered and approached the stage with a steady step. His hands were tied in front of his chest and in one of them he held a lighted candle. Without a sign of excitement, he took his place in front of the Cardinals and the Grand Inquisitors.

         Molinos, on whom all eyes were now drawn, was about 60 years old, of handsome build and dignified, with a majestic appearance. An expression of resignation could be read on his face. He wore the robe of the order to which he belonged, and the soiled and torn state in which it was attested that he had not been allowed to change it during his nearly two-year imprisonment. His exposure seemed to make no other impression on him than that of pity for his pursuers. The expression on his face said with more eloquence than words could have said, “This is the hour when stupidity reigns supreme.”

       The entire scene is accurately described by Estiennat, who was present as a spectator. The following is just an excerpt from his description.

         “There was no more room to be found in the church. We counted over fifty boxes filled with gentlemen and ladies from the highest nobility. The rest were taken over by prelates, clergy, seminarians, and the like. Molinos stood before the Supreme Court of the Inquisition and the Cardinals. In his bound hands, he held a burning candle. Beside him stood a security guard who from time to time wiped the sweat from his forehead. From the pulpit near him, a Dominican friar read aloud the allegations against Molinos. This lasted about three hours; however, Molinos’ facial expression showed no change, nor did he lose his composure when, several times during the reading, the crowd erupted in shouts, “To the fire! To the fire!” (fuoco, fuoco). He did not even bow his head when the names of Jesus and Mary were mentioned.

         Most of the allegations against Molinos, namely 86 points of dogmatics and other personal suspicions, are nothing short of ridiculous. For example, he became accused of not having confessed in 22 years because he was allegedly not aware of any sin. Furthermore, he is said to have not always observed Friday as a fast day, to have made predictions to his disciples and to have given one of them a piece of clothing, with the remark that he should keep it, since it would have value as a relic after his death. It was also said that he kissed two women and that he once said that the Holy Inquisition did not have the wit and experience to understand his writings.”

      It would be a waste of time and paper to revisit today the 86 points of dogmatics which Molinos is said to have violated. His alleged “recantation” was that he said he recognized that the Holy Inquisition was mightier than its teachings and that he submitted to the Church in all things. He was then condemned to be locked up in a small chamber (in piccola camera) [in a small room] for the rest of his life, to wear the penitential robe with the sign of the cross throughout his life, to pray aloud the Apostles’ Creed daily and the third part of the Rosary each week to confess four times a year and to receive “communion” with the permission of the confessor. This is how this tragic comedy ended. All his writings were banned and condemned.

       After the judgment had been pronounced, the religious habit was removed from him and the penitential habit was put on. He was then led before the officials of the Inquisition, before whom Molinos is said to have recanted his errors, and then to the dungeon of the Inquisition, which he never left until, ten years later, death put an end to his suffering. The decision of the Inquisition Court was immediately confirmed by Pope Alexander VIII.

       The whole teaching of Michael de Molinos deals with nothing other than submission to the divine will, i.e., not a surrender to an unknown nothing, but a merging of the personal will to the self-assured will of the deity, which reveals itself without any human help in a loving and purified heart. But since only a few people are inclined to take the first step towards this inner union and to fulfil the first and indispensable condition, without which the will of God [the Higher Self, Monad] in us cannot come to our consciousness and no inner enlightenment can take place, so too the teachings of Molinos are misunderstood today, as then, by many who apply to his followers. Thus a sect of “Quietists” had formed among his alleged successors, who believe that one need not do anything or move one’s hands, even in external matters, but can confidently leave everything to “God.”

     This error has its origin in the fact that most people think of God as an external, unknown, distant being who, as it were, is in charge of everything and looks after the affairs of men, instead of recognizing in him the law which is in them themselves that is to be revealed, so that they may carry out the will of God as conscious instruments and in accordance with the divine nature. No one can surrender to a divine will which he does not know; neither does God communicate his will to men by outward commands and ordinances; but where the stubbornness of man is silent and the soul, free from all earthly desires, rises to eternity, there the divine will becomes evident. Molinos showed us the way to this in his “Spiritual Guide.”^[2]

Notes:

^[1] Michael de Molinos. Biographical [Michael de Molinos. Biographisches. Franz Hartmann, M.D. Lotusblüten 13, no. 80 (May 1899), 297-310] {This article was reformatted from the original, but with the content unchanged other than fixing minor typos, other than, the portrait of Michael de Molinos was added by the translator. Translation from the German by Robert Hutwohl, ©2025}

^[2] Soon to appear at the publishing house of Wilhelm Friedrich in Leipzig: Der geistige Führer, welcher die Seele frei macht und sie auf dem inneren Wege zur Erlangung vollkommener Anschauung führt und der reiche Schatz innerlichen Frieden [“The spiritual guide, which frees the soul and leads it on the inner path to attaining perfect perception and the rich treasure of inner peace,”] written by Dr. Michael de Molinos, priest. Printed in 1699. Translated from English.”