Anti-Trinitarianism and the Virgin Birth in La Lozana andaluza¹⁰

Kent State University

Abstract: In sixteenth-century Spain, reference to the idea of three in one and one in three became sufficient in itself to designate the dogma of the Holy Trinity without naming it directly. In La Lozana andaluza, Francisco Delicado, who mocks that idea repeatedly, often in obscene terms, illustrates the concept through prostitutes because non-Christians saw the origin of Trinitarianism, which they regarded as polytheistic, in the birth of Christ. In their opinion, His Mother was an unfaithful wife who had made the illogical and therefore false claim that she was a virgin and that her Son had been fathered by God.

Key Words: Delicado (Francisco), La Lozana andaluza, 16th century Spanish novel, Holy Trinity, anti-Trinitarianism, Virgin birth, New Christians, conversos, marranos

In La Lozana andaluza Francisco Delicado, a converso who had lived in Rome for many years, gives his protagonist, a prostitute, three names that are really one, and frequently mocks the idea of three in one and one in three in a tripartite manner, no fewer than three times in a row, often in obscene terms. Moreover, Delicado concentrates most of his invective in the third part of a book which is itself divided in three parts. This violent attack on the dogma of the Holy Trinity probably stems from Delicado's converso background. Undoubtedly, the notion of a Trinitarian God -that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are at the same time three distinct entities and one being- is the basic, if most difficult, tenets of Christianity. This dogma also formed one of the major stumbling blocks in converting Jews, for it caused them to perceive Christianity as a polytheistic religion. Indeed, the idea of three in one and one in three appeared so frequently in Jewish polemical documents of the Middle Ages that it became sufficient in itself to designate the Christian dogma of the Holy Trinity without naming that dogma directly (see Lasker 46, 65, 67-68, 70, 74, 79-81). Since even devout Christians had difficulty with the idea that three are one and one is three, it is easy to understand why the inherited Jewish doubts about the Holy Trinity that early conversos manifested in their writings continued to plague many of their descendants (see Fraker 61-62). This was so well known among Italians, in whose country thousands of marranos sought refuge after the establishment of the Inquisition in Spain (1481), that they ironically referred to the doubts of their Spanish guests with a diminutive, peccadiglio di Spagna (Bataillon 60), as if their problem with Trinitarianism could be easily dismissed as a venial, unimportant sin.

As the three examples of La Lozana andaluza's veiled mockery of the Holy Trinity and the Virgin birth discussed here indicate, Delicado was one of those individuals. The first two examples are extremely important because they constitute the first and second instances of the attack on the idea that three are one and one is three. Moreover, the first example alerts readers already familiar with such codes to the fact that there is a hidden message throughout the book. In the third example, Delicado encloses yet another statement, for he contrasts the monotheism of Jerusalem with the alleged polytheism of Rome. Taken as a whole, these three examples also suggest that Delicado's anti-Trinitarianism is inextricably related to his rejection of the dogma of the Virgin birth.

Born in Córdoba, Lozana, whom the text portrays as a conversa, travels extensively in the Levant with Diomedes, an Italian merchant.

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During a sojourn in Marseilles, Diomedes' father arranges for her abduction in order to separate her from his son. Lozana makes her way to Rome, where she comes upon the Spanish colony, largely of converso extraction, settled in that city. Rampín, a young man who is to become Lozana's constant companion, leads her to the house where she is to live. The narrator intercalates a «mamotreto» (No. xvii)¹¹ entitled «Información que interpone el autor para que se entienda lo que adelante ha de seguir» (250)¹², in which Rampín visits the «auctor», who is in the process of writing Lozana's story, and falls down the stairs as he is leaving the house. The concerned «auctor» offers the boy a piece of cloth to put around his head, which he refuses, replying that he will ask Lozana to cure him with the following incantation for the «mal francorum»:

According to Bruno M. Damiani and Giovanni Allegra, the Franquilano of the incantation could have some connection with «francorum», but it could also be an allusion to a previously mentioned prostitute named «Franquilana» (their ed. of La Lozana andaluza 171, n. 44). Claude Allaigre agrees with their interpretation (256, n. 38). Rather than referring to any specific character, however, «Franquilano» is another name for syphilis, the «mal francorum» that the spell is supposed to cure. In other words, Rampín is syphilitic, just like Lozana. Lozana's syphilis first manifests itself through a «star» on her forehead, eventually causing her to become flat-nosed («roma»); the image points to her Jewish background and identifies her with the «Roma putana» where she lives¹⁴. Since such an obviously syphilitic woman would have been able to attract few if any customers, Lozana's disease, as indeed her career in Rome, constitute an allegory. Consequently, it is not too far-fetched to surmise that Rampín's syphilis is as «real»; in all probability, the illness serves to emphasize his converso extraction as well¹⁵. The three friends or companions of the three courtesans refer to the manner in which the syphilis that afflicts these three women affects each of them. Everyone knows that the first one is infected: «la una lo tiene público». The second one has managed to hide her condition thus far, which would seem to indicate that she was trying very hard not to scare away customers: «y la otra muy callado». The third lady seems to have been in the early stages of the disease, for the symptoms only appear when she is having a period: «a la otra le vuelta con el lunario». The three friends of the three courtesans, then, are really one. They are «pajes de Franquilano» because they refer to the manner in which syphilis afflicts the three women. Thus, the three pages stand for one single entity, which manifests itself through the three of them. Since the three pages are one, syphilis, and the three women really have the same «friend», rather than three separate lovers, three is one and one is three. As is often the case, here Delicado mocks the doctrine of the Holy Trinity no less than three times in a row, that is, in a tripartite manner: there are three courtesans, three pages, and the prayer must be said no less than three times a row: «tres veces a rimano».

The last verse, «cuando nace sea sano», is ambiguous. If the reader supplies a missing subject, the present «nace» can refer to the initial manifestation of syphilis in an infected person, which makes sense. Otherwise, the subject of the verb is «quien esta oración dijere», which does not make any sense, since one could not possibly say the spell on one's own behalf upon being born. Indeed, Rampín, rather than using the prayer for his own sake, wants Lozana to «bless» him with it. The prayer would therefore seem to be intentionally illogical. In filling it with three successive references to the number three, Delicado may therefore have meant to suggest that the dogma of the Trinity was equally illogical. Since the prayer parodies similar Christian folk spells for a variety of ills that amount to nothing but superstitious nonsense¹⁶, Delicado probably also implied that the dogma of the

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Trinity was as nonsensical.

The Jews knew better, however. In their strict, uncompromising monotheism, they could not possibly accept the logically untenable idea that three are one and one is three. That is why, in the previous «mamotreto», Trigo, a Spaniard, swears by «el Dio» (246), rather than by the supposedly plural «Dios» that Christians use. Given its position just before such an attack on Trinitarianism, Trigo's oath was probably meant to contrast the concept of a single, indivisible God, with the idea of a triune God.

As Claude Allaigre indicates (250, n. 1), the «mamotreto» under scrutiny appears out of chronological sequence. Rampín invites the «auctor» to go to Lozana's house, where he could find «más de diez putas» (251), as if she already were well established in business. It is only in the next «mamotreto», however, that Lozana finally arrives in the house that Trigo has rented for her. This obviously intentional lack of temporal sequence suggests a folly alluded to by the engraving of a ship of fools in the frontispiece of the book. As Francisco Márquez has shown, many conversos were able to touch upon subjects «vedados a la expresión cuerda» («Literatura» 505; see also his «Jewish "Fools"») through a systematized language of madness which availed itself of obscure allusions. Besides its surprising transformation of the narrator into one of the characters, the break in narrative sequence has the undeniable effect of jolting the reader. Through this break, the text becomes unexpectedly self-reflexive, calling attention to itself. The principle of folly is even more evident towards the end of the «mamotreto». To begin with, it was undoubtedly foolish for Rampín to prefer the spell to a piece of cloth with which to make a band for his apparently broken head. Given the nature of its veiled message, the foolish spell also constitutes an act of folly in itself. Thus, Delicado meant to alert knowing readers already familiar with similar codes, that is, conversos like himself, that there was a «secret message» encoded throughout his book. The title of the «mamotreto» suggests that it contains information needed to understand what follows, and, as we have seen, the incantation itself suggests that the work deals with the question of a triune God. This first attack on Trinitarianism is then repeated time and again throughout the rest of the book.

The next example appears shortly afterward. Not long after accompanying Lozana to the house that he has rented for her, Trigo, who, as we have seen, swears by the one «Dio» rather than by the supposedly plural «Dios», sends Lozana her first paying customers -no more or less than three. One woman with three men, and vice-versa. This constitutes another graphic, obscene mockery of the idea of three in one and one in three, but there is more. As Allaigre pointed out (261, n. 1), these three clients, with whom Lozana begins to earn her living, in no place other than Rome, capital of the contemporary Trinitarian faith, were not chosen by chance. The first customer is a «mastresala», the chief waiter who tasted what was served at the table of his master so as to protect him from being poisoned. The second client is a «macero», «mace bearer», «el que lleva la maza delante de los cuerpos o personas autorizadas que usan esta señal de dignidad» (Real Academia de la Lengua, Diccionario). The third customer is a «valijero», «letter carrier», who informs Lozana that his «valija» happens to be «full» (266). Since the «mastresala» evokes the tongue and mouth, the «macero» stands for the phallus, and the «valijero» with the full bag represents the testicles, the three men could well stand for just one man, here represented by the parts used in sexual activity. Once again, three is really one.

When the «macero» and the «valijero» arrive together after the «mastresala's» departure, Rampín paraphrases Christ's sermon on the Mount when he repeats Lozana's reply to the two men's request. «Dice que no podéis servir a dos señores» (264; cf. Matt. 6.24). The «valijero», whom the text logically identifies as a servant of the «macero» (266), is told to return in the evening. Nevertheless, although the three men are really one, at another level Lozana ends up sleeping not just with two, but with «tres señores», at three different times. Since these three men stand for the mouth, penis, and testicles, it is obvious that this constitutes another extremely violent, obscene

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attack on the dogma of the Holy Trinity. As if this were not already more than enough in itself, Delicado's attack is, once again, tripartite: Lozana has three clients, the three men are really one, but, at another level, they take three separate turns. The implication, of course, is that the situation is as illogical and paradoxical as the dogma of the Holy Trinity.

The two examples above appear in the first part of La Lozana andaluza but, as stated, the attacks on Trinitarianism are concentrated in the third part of a book which is itself divided in three parts. The third example occurs in Part III, when Lozana is already well-established as a prostitute in Rome. Sagüeso, a vagrant who «tenía por oficio jugar y cabalgar de balde» (417), tries to seduce Lozana by stating that another prostitute, Celidonia, surpasses her in almost everything. Lozana, who is too astute not to realize that Sagüeso is hoping that she will attempt to prove the contrary to him, free of charge, merely replies: «¿Sabes con qué me consuelo? Con lo que dijo Rampín, mi criado: que en dinero y en riquezas me pueden llevar, mas no en linaje ni en sangre» (418). Sagüeso pursues his goal by saying that, although he agrees with her, «será menester sangrar a todas dos, para ver cuál es mejor sangre» (418). In other words, he would have to sleep with both women in order to be absolutely sure. Rather than falling for this bait, Lozana goes on to declare herself superior to Celestina herself, stating that Celidonia ought to suffer the same fate that the Romans imposed on the people of Jerusalem.

The story to which she alludes goes as follows: In reply to the Romans' demand, when they first conquered the Levant, for twelve first-born sons as tribute -an obvious reference to the twelve tribes of Israel-, the Jews had sent opulently dressed boys bearing a placard that read: «Quis mayor unquam Israel?» (419). Seeing this, the Romans sent their children with a banner inherited from Constantine that displayed a white cross on a red field, under which were three letters, SPQ. The Roman children replied to those from Jerusalem: «Senatus Populusque Romanus» (419). Lozana adapts the story to the situation by simultaneously asking and replying: «-¿Quién mayor que Celidonia? -Lozana y Rampín en Roma» (419).

This episode begins with a derisive commentary on blood and lineage that reflects the attitude of many conversos toward the Old Christian concept of limpieza de sangre¹⁷. Consequently, the text calls attention to the invisible barrier that separated Old Christians from New Christians, a barrier that was based on the fact that the latter were of Jewish extraction¹⁸. The juxtaposition of Rome and Jerusalem, of course, alludes to the victory of Christianity over Judaism and the continuing rivalry between the two faiths. Even in their defeat, however, the Jews believed that their religion was superior (i. e., the only true one). Hence the apparently quixotic question of the defeated Jewish children whom the Romans demanded as tribute: Quis mayor unquam Israel?

The allusion to Constantine recalls the role of that Roman emperor in the eventual triumph of Christianity, which he adopted as the official religion of the empire. The fact that it was Pompey who conquered Jerusalem in 63 BC, long before Rome became Christian, suggests a deliberate anachronism. Clearly, Delicado was thinking in spiritual, rather than in historical terms. Although the placement of the three letters under the cross carried by the Roman children is meant to indicate the superiority of the people and senate of their city, their number brings to mind the Holy Trinity that constitutes the basis for the faith that the cross represents. The elimination of the fourth letter in the Roman abbreviation -the standard form was SPQR- shows that Delicado also used the number three deliberately in this instance. The replication of the Roman motto in a comparison between two whores, Lozana and Celidonia, with three corresponding nouns, «Lozana y Rampín en Roma», suggests yet another mockery of the dogma of the Holy Trinity, for Lozana's and Rampín's careers in Rome and the bond that united them was far from pious.

In support of this last interpretation one might note that Delicado entitles the «mamotreto» that follows (liii), one including three interlocutors, Lozana, a prostitute, Divicia, a still unsatisfied old whore, and Sagüeso, the rogue whose main endeavor in life is to

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gamble and «cabalgar de balde», «Lo que pasa entre todos tres?» (420). This indicates that the number three was indeed prominent in his mind, and in a very base context, at that. It must also be observed here that together with the three letters used to abbreviate the Roman motto and the three nouns in Lozana's final reply, this last reference to the number three makes this renewed attack on Trinitarianism tripartite, thus matching the structure found in the first two examples. It is also interesting to note that although there are three mottos, the one proffered by the children from Jerusalem does not have anything to do with the number three.

The obscene character of the three examples examined here does not constitute a matter of coincidence. The illustration of the idea of three in one and one in three through three syphilitic courtesans in the first example, and a syphilitic prostitute, Lozana, in the second and third examples, echoes a charge made by some conversos taken before the Inquisition, according to whom the Blessed Mother was really a «puta judihuela» (Beinart 389)¹⁹. Those conversos thought that a woman who had become pregnant by a man other than her husband -Mary was still betrothed to Joseph at the time- was little better than a prostitute, and that her claim to bear God's seed, through the Holy Ghost, amounted to nothing but sheer deceit. Without Mary's illogical, obviously false claim, Trinitarianism would never have even existed, for she had given birth to Christ, the second person of the Holy Trinity²⁰. The third example, of course, is also meant to re-emphasize the superiority of an uncompromisingly monotheistic faith over one which had accepted the illegitimate Son of a loose woman as being the same as his own Father and the Holy Spirit, as if God, who was clearly one, could be divided into three and still remain one. In Delicado's opinion, besides being inferior to the humanly understandable concept of a single, indivisible God, the illogical idea of a triune God amounted to utter nonsense. In the last analysis, it was based on the false, equally illogical claim of a single, pregnant woman who claimed to be a virgin.

The complexity of the text suggests that Delicado exercised great caution, and with good reason, because such a corrosive attack on Christianity could not be perpetrated with impunity, even from Venice, where he published his book. He had sought refuge there shortly after the sack of Rome by the imperial army of Charles V in December 1527, leaving that city «a diez días de febrero por no esperar las crueldades vindicativas de naturales» (508). Paradoxically, these native Romans blamed the marranos in their midst for the catastrophe (Pérez 100), as if the marranos had been responsible for the sack of a city that had become a second home to them.

There may not have been any Spaniards in Venice at the time, as the text claims (508), but many Venetians who, after all, were also Catholic, were keenly interested in Castilian books (Damiani 15-16). Moreover, Delicado had a much broader audience in mind. Although the hidden assault on Trinitarianism was meant for the conversos whose familiarity with similar codes enabled them to understand what he had to say, Delicado at one point addressed his book to all of his fellow Spaniards, for he says that he wrote it so that they could learn about other countries without having to leave their own, a boon which, in his opinion, «cierto es una grande felicidad no estimada» (486).

Nevertheless, Delicado probably came to fear that readers other than the initiated could decipher his text. La Lozana andaluza is not mentioned in any of the indices of forbidden books (Bubovna 56-57). Even read just on the surface, such a scandalous work would have drawn a lot of attention, yet Delicado's contemporaries do not even mention La Lozana andaluza. In fact, it disappeared until the nineteenth century, when Ferdinand J. Wolf discovered the single surviving copy in Vienna's Imperial Library. All of this suggests that Delicado decided to withdraw the book from circulation immediately after publication²¹, restricting its distribution to just a few close friends.

Notwithstanding this reasonable precaution, the very act of writing La Lozana andaluza still enabled Delicado, justifiably embittered by his exile from Rome, to exercise his human need to say

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what he thought about a cruelly imposed faith and the circumstances in which he and many other unconverted conversos had to live. In the three examples presented in this paper, Delicado mocks the most basic tenet of Christianity and, to add insult to injury, the attack is invariably undertaken in a tripartite manner, no less than three times in a row. This ingenious feat was obviously planned, requiring a considerable amount of thought. Since Delicado's three tripartite attacks on Trinitarianism always refer to prostitutes, he also meant to suggest, together with the conversos who used the word «prostitute» to describe the Blessed Mother, that Christianity had its origin on the desperate, illogical claim of a single pregnant woman who maintained that she was a virgin, and that her illegitimate child had been fathered by God through the Holy Ghost. With that he, Mary had managed to deceive her future husband and, even worse, she had given birth to the so-called second person of the Holy Trinity and to a new, obviously false religion in the process²².

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Hispania [Publicaciones periódicas]. Volume 76, Number 2, May 1993