In all this,
indeed, they were successful, and the thing happened according to
their wishes.
Before I reached Soissons, however, these two rivals of mine so
foully slandered me with both the clergy and the public that on the
day of my arrival the people came near to stoning me and the few
students of mine who had accompanied me thither. The cause of their
anger was that they had been led to believe that I had preached and
written to prove the existence of three gods. No sooner had I
reached the city, therefore, than I went forthwith to the legate;
to him I submitted my book for examination and judgment, declaring
that if I had written anything repugnant to the Catholic faith, I
was quite ready to correct it or otherwise to make satisfactory
amends. The legate directed me to refer my book to the archbishop
and to those same two rivals of mine, to the end that my accusers
might also be my judges. So in my case was fulfilled the saying:
"Even our enemies are our judges" (Deut. Xxxii, 31).
These three, then, took my book and pawed it over and examined it
minutely, but could find nothing therein which they dared to use as
the basis for a public accusation against me.
Pages:
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76