Acting on Faith: The Confraternity of the Gonfalone in Renaissance Rome by Barbara Wisch and Nerida Newbigin (review)

A new book of great visual impact, because of the many wonderful illustrations, and cultural significance—for the accurate reconstruction of the history of the Gonfalone, one of the most important and ancient confraternities of Rome—is the result of the fruitful partnership between Barbara Wisch, an art historian, and Nerida Newbigin, a historian of Italian theater.

As the fifteen chapters of the book show (as well as two appendices, an introduction, an epilogue, and a rich bibliography), the aspects taken into consideration range from artistic and theatrical ones to the devotion, liturgy, and charity of the brotherhood. It relies on extensive documentation, as well as the most recent historiography related to the Gonfalone, to examine the devotional life of Rome and the history of the Italian confraternity in general.

The Gonfalone was founded around 1260, and its members were known as “Raccomandati della Vergine” (that is, devoted to the Virgin). Later, various small brotherhoods of “disciplinati” joined the Gonfalone, so that, by the end of the fifteenth century, it included five confraternities. In the early-sixteenth century, two additional brotherhoods affiliated with it and brought particular religious and philantropic interests. The result was a complex and articulated organization, dedicated to responding appropriately and efficiently to the needs of a growing membership of men and women from all social strata. More than other Roman brotherhoods of the sixteenth century, the Gonfalone carried out a wide range of devotions (first of all to the Virgin Mary, then to the saints from which the original brotherhoods had taken their name, particularly Santa Lucia). Various philanthrophic activities also were carried out: assisting the infirm in hospitals, distributing food to poor families, providing doweries to impoverished girls, and attending to the annual emancipation of two prisoners at the feast of Maria Assunta (the Assumption).

A novel initiative of this brotherhood was the staging of the Passion of Christ at the Colosseum on Good Friday, employing scripture, music, and set design in an evocative ceremony. The texts of these productions sometimes contained passages of a strong antisemitic character, which led to violent conflicts with the local Jewish community and to Pope Paul III abolishing this type of religious theater in 1539.

The authors draw on well-known documentation and comprehensive literature to discuss the staging of religious theater by the Gonfalone, presenting significant and original interpretations. For its detailed use of documentation and in-depth analysis, the book stands not only as an instrument for understanding the spirituality, the artistic interests, and the theatrical performances of Rome in the Renaissance but also offers a model to anyone wishing to study the confraternal institutions.