ABSTRACT
Scholars have made much of the contributions of Cardinal Francisco Jimenez de Cisneros to fostering a reform-oriented climate of spiritual renewal in early sixteenth-century Spain. But we have been slower to appreciate the content of the texts Cisneros commissioned, and we are only beginning to address the extent to which such texts produced gendered models of spirituality. This is an urgent task for several reasons. First, we know that the translation of medieval mystical texts constituted a central part of the reforming interests of Cisneros and the humanist university of Alcala. A revival of spirituality and mystical experience was consistent with the notion of reform in the early sixteenth century: change the inner person and gradually Christendom would be renewed and revitalized. Second, several of these texts address areas of religious experience of primary importance to spiritual women of the sixteenth century. Catherine of Siena in particular was a medieval mystic who had extensive visionary experiences, produced texts, and engaged in church reform, overcoming scrutiny, resistance, and even opposition to her role as a reformer. Most female reformers in sixteenth-century Spain had similar experiences and could look to the model of Catherine's life for support and even in self-defense. In replicating Catherine's prayer experiences later women found continued justification for their public reforming roles.In this paper I would like to begin to explore how a medieval model of female holiness which integrated intercessory prayer, visions, ecstasy, and humility was translated into the milieu of sixteenth-century Spain by considering the influence of the Castilian translation of Raymond of Capua's Life o f Catherine o f Siena on three Spanish women and their defenders: Maria de Santo Domingo, Teresa of Avila, and Francisca de los Apostoles. Capua's Life o f Catherine was translated into Castilian by Antonio de la Pena and published at Alcala in 1511 as part of Cisneros's program of religious reform. A second edition of the same translation was published in Medina del Campo in 1569.
