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Alarassis Biasse |
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Translated by David Burr, History Department, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. |
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Again she said that these two friars, one of whom was a relation of hers, stayed in her home dressed in secular garb from Easter into the month of June, just after the wheat was harvested. She and her mother provided for their needs. She added that two other apostate friars of the Franciscan order, whom she named, came to her house dressed in blue clothing and visited the first two. They stayed in the house with them, wearing secular clothing over their Franciscan habits. She gave one of them four canne of blue cloth out of which he made a tunic. Later they returned to Toulouse, where, as has been said, the six had stayed together for some time disguised as seculars.
Again, she received in her home and gave drink to two men who said they had come from Sicily in search of the aforesaid apostate Franciscans who did not dare to go about or show themselves in public. Their aim was to bring these friars to Sicily. In order to discern whether she could trust these two men enough to reveal the presence of the aforesaid friars, who were then hiding in her solar, she went to Toulouse and consulted Pierre Trencavel. He replied that she could trust the two and that the hidden friars could confidently leave and cross the sea with them. Once she had heard this, she returned to Sauvian and relayed all that she had learned from Pierre Trencavel to the fugitive friars. Fifteen days later the two men returned with a boat and came to her house. Later four more friars (whom she named) arrived and on a certain Saturday night all six friars boarded the boat along with the two men and they all left. Once they arrived in Majorca two of the friars returned to Sauvian and told her all that had occurred.
Again, she received in her home many other beguins (whom she named).
Again, she sometimes heard Pierre Trencavel say that the Franciscan friars burned at Marseilles were condemned unjustly and were holy martyrs. Asked if she believed what Pierre had said, she responded that women are of such a nature that whenever they hear something new they believe it easily, and thus she believed what she heard said about the friars condemned and burned at Marseilles, namely that they had been unjustly condemned and were saints. She said she did not know or remember how long she continued to believe it.
Again, she heard from one of the aforesaid apostates that the aforesaid friars were considered unjustly condemned saints.
Again, she said that after she had believed this for some time she confessed to the rector of the church at Sauvian. In the process, among other things, she revealed her conscience to the rector, saying she did not know whether to believe the aforesaid friars were justly or unjustly condemned, since some said they were justly condemned, while other said unjustly and thought them saints. The rector told her that our Lord Jesus Christ had given his power to the Blessed Apostle Peter, and that whatever the latter did on earth was done in heaven. Thus, since the aforesaid friars were condemned by the church, she should believe that they were condemned justly. And thus from that moment on she cast off her former belief and persevered in it no more, as she said.
Asked what she thought about the writings and person of friar Pierre Déjean, she replied that henceforth she would believe whatever the church should decide or will decide.
The aforesaid did all this four years and more before she confessed it during the judgment process, nor did she ever during the intervening time reveal what she knew about the aforesaid apostates or beguins to anyone who might capture them or wish to do so; nor did she confess all this until she was captured, brought to Carcassonne, and placed in prison. She says she repents.
Alarassis was among a series of heretics sentenced on March 1, 1327. She is included among those sentenced to imprisonment. Nevertheless, another sentence delivered on November 1, 1328 begins with a list of people who are to be released from prison and given the lighter penance of going on pilgrimages and wearing crosses. One of the names on this list is "Aladayci Biassa de Saluiaco," which one can assume is our Alarassis. The new arrangement, though substantially better than prison, was still rigorous. It included wearing crosses sewn on her clothes front and rear, inside and outside the home; going on pilgrimage at least once to each of a long list of churches in France, Spain, Italy and England; going to her cathedral church every year for the major feast day; confessing to her own parish priest three times per year, namely before Easter, Pentecost and Christmas; taking communion at these feasts unless told to abstain by the priest; attending mass on Sundays and feast days; presenting herself to the priest at these masses with rods in hand for discipline; following processions with rods in hand,to receive discipline at the final stop; and aiding in the pursuit of heretics or their supporters.
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