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Maarten Janssen, 2014-

PS6157

1706. Carta de Blas Martín Pingarrón para fray Francisco Fernández y Villegas, religioso de Nuestra Señora del Monte Carmelo.

Author(s) Blas Martín Pingarrón      
Addressee(s) Francisco Fernández y Villegas      
In English

Letter from Baptista, pseudonym of Blas Martín Pingarrón, to Fray Francisco Fernández y Villegas, religious of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

The author tells Fray Francisco Fernández y Villegas about the Carmelite priests´ murmurings on his marriage to Manuela Ramos and informs him about other matters.

Following an accusation of alumbrados, dishonesty and having been imbued in the errors of Molinos, a process occurred between 1708 and 1711 against Manuela Ramos, alias Manuela Sánchez or Manuela de Santa Leocadia. Manuela Ramos was born in Novés (Toledo) in 1679 and had a Catholic upbringing. She declared herself Old Christian and a descendant of Old Christians. She lost her mother at age eleven and she moved to Illescas (Toledo) where she began to serve in a convent of the Concepción Francisca. After five years her father died and her brother had her transferred to Santa Isabel convent in Toledo where she learned to read and write. She was devoted to Our Lady of Mount Carmel and had as a confessor Fray Manuel de Santa Leocadia from 1700 to 1704, a Discalced Carmelite who also lived at the convent. In November 1704 Manuela moved to Madrid for three months in order to flee the harassment and threats of a carpenter named Francisco who wanted to marry her. During her time in Madrid, she stayed in Diego de las Cuevas´ house and had as her confessor Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas, a Discalced Carmelite and Prior of Valdemoro. She married Blas Martín Pingarrón in Toledo in 1707.

During the Holy Office´s process against her, she was tried for heresy, alumbradismo and dishonesty. Specifically, she was accused of: faking visions and divine revelations; premarital relations; and an unlawful carnal knowledge with her confessor, Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas. 48 letters (PS6143-PS6191) were provided to the process and used as incriminating evidences for the aforementioned crimes. The letters are sewn together in a notebook attached to the documentation of the process. Inside this notebook two epistolary collections can be distinguished: 18 letters written by Blas Martín Pingarrón and addressed to Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas, and 28 letters written by Manuela Ramos and addressed to Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas. There is also a letter signed by Diego del Amor, alias Diego de las Cuevas, and another one from Cristobal de Alfaro (PS6164) to Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas. There is also a copy of a letter from Pedro Pablo Díez, an apothecary from Yepes, to Manuela Ramos (PS6178). Within the process, two other letters which do not appear in the notebook and addressed to Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas are mentioned: one of them written by Fray Francisco Salazar, a Carmelite from Valdemoro convent, and another one written by Manuela Ramos.

Regarding Blas Martín Pingarrón’s letters, he admitted they were his and in his confession to the Holy Office he explained the reason why he had written them. Villegas frequently visited Manuela Ramos in Toledo because of her visions and hallucinations and asked to be informed about her in his absence. Therefore, the letters from Blas Martín Pingarrón were "basically to tell Villegas of how Manuela Ramos was being tormented by the devil and of her visions" (f. 188r). The correspondence between Blas Martín Pingarrón and Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas took place approximately from 1706 to 1707 and its content was used as incriminating evidence to prove that either Manuela Ramos or Villegas were "deluded, deceiver, hypocrite and feigner of supernatural favours" (f. 231r). In the letters, Blas Martín Pingarrón used to sign as "Baptista" and refer to Manuela Ramos as "M" or as "Rosa".

Regarding Manuela Ramos’ letters, she did not admit to being their author in her confession to the Holy Office. Instead, she argued they were written by a María Basagutia, with whom the defendant had lived for a while in Toledo. During the process, this statement was proved to be false and it was also proved that the letters belonged to Manuela Ramos. She was accused of trying to deceive the Court by changing her handwriting: "[...] neither is less worthy of reflection the changing variety of handwriting which the defendant tries to deceive us with (although unsuccessfully) since she has proved many times this handwriting is hers. She may have thought that she could scape blame for being the author of the letters by deceiving this tribunal into thinking it was not her handwriting. Nevertheless, before she was arrested she recognised that the signatures on the documents and denouncements were hers. On these documents the capital letters found in the signatures indicate she writes with great agility. After she was imprisoned and being suspicious over the use of the letters as exhibits, she began to simulate different handwritings in the signatures of the hearings. She was trying to demonstrate clumsiness and difficulty either in the sluggishness she was signing on or the hesitation about whether or not would be able to begin with capital letters" (f. 557r-v)." These suspicions, together with the opinion of four handwriting experts, show that Manuela Ramos is the author. The correspondence between Manuela Ramos and Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas was exchanged approximately from 1704 to 1706 and it was used as incriminating evidence to prove their relationship was not just spiritual. Some of the reasons to believe so were the following ones: there were crosses and zeros representing kisses and hugs in many of the letters; the cautious way they were writing, withholding their names and; lastly, some of the treatment formulas they employed (for instance: my soul´s husband). Manuela Ramos used to sign her letters as "Manuela de Santa Leocadia" or "Manuela Bautista".

Ultimately, the content of the letters filed in the process documentation were used as exhibit not only to prove that the relationship between Manuela Ramos and Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas did not reflect "a spiritual love, on the contrary [...] it was human love, sensitive and very close to the sensuality, which probably was, and at least very dangerous and leading to spiritual ruin against honesty" (f. 231r); but also to accuse Manuela Ramos and Fray Francisco Fernández de Villegas of eluded and alumbrados.

In the trial sentence against Manuela Ramos the judgment was: the defendant should lose half of her properties; she should walk to the scaffold as a penitent, candle in hand, to publicly abjure of the errors and heresies she was accused of; she should be exiled for four years from the court of Madrid and eight leagues from the villages of Novés and Illescas; she should pass the first of those four years in prison, wearing the sanbenito, the garment of public humiliation, on her clothes.

The defendant admitted this letter was written by her husband. When asked about its content Manuela Ramos explains that there is a reference in the letter of a loan that Fray Francisco Fernández y Villegas took out from Cristobal de Alfaro in which Blas Martín Pingarrón acted as a mediator. The letter also refers to the murmurings of the Carmelite priests about the marriage between Blas Martín Pingarrón and Manuela Ramos and the conversations on the subject hold by Fray Francisco de Salazar and Fray Pedro de Frutos, the Provincial of the Order.

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jhs Padre y sor mio

Rezivimos la de Vm y con ella el conssuelo q siempre pues no es dudable q en la Pressentte Aussenzia sirven de mucho las Razones de Vm para conssuelo d esta Pobre en qto a componer el oratorio dize Manla que es pra Rezar el rossario sin ottro fin y assi q Vm no aga diliga de Buletto porque no es nezesario. en horden al dinero dispondra Vm q el hermo dn Diego lo enttregue a Juan Po de hermossa q en la calle mayor daran Razon donde vive y que no se tome en boca q es Vm quien lo ymbia sino el mesmo hermo y tomara un Rvo del dho que me le remitira Vm por el correo que d esta forma lo tendre en mi poder dentro de ocho dias. en quanto a lo q fr Bapta escrive a Vm sobre q El provinzial dessea tratar a Manuela se la ofreze dezir q fr frano nos a a ymbiado la carta q Vm le escrivio el dia 19 del passado. abochornado de tantos enrredos como le deven de Aver escrito a este convento y en quanto a la Ressoluzion en q Vm esta de yr a la suprema nos pareze que no estamos en paraje de dar semejantte canpanada pues no es para cada dia andar en lenguas de todos. y lo que manuela dize es que mejor sera poner los medios mas sigilossos y q no se la ofreze repugnanzia en ver al Probinzial y ablarle y dezirle los ningunos fundamenttos q estos Pes tienen para ablar tantos dessatinos y q si es menester le Manisfestara su yntterior pero q Vm no tenga cuidado ninguno q fia de Dios q si el Probinzial la escucha a de ser muy suyo: El medio para ablarle la pareze que es ymbiarle un Recado con Maria de jhs diziendo q tiene q ablarle q elija hora para q baje y q estara con el no dandosse por enttendida de q yo se tantos dichos de los Pes ni de q yo se que baja a ablar a su Revn q le dira q el motivo que tiene para ablarle es el que ataje tanttas mormuraziones prque no lleguen a mis oydos porq sabiendo como se la vida y Milagros de los Persseguidores puedo hazer Manifestazon d ella en toledo para q d ellos agan el juizio q merezen y nos den assensso a los enrredos q an ablado contra nuestro puntto. q d esta forma fia en Dios q attaje en algun modo tanto ynbolismo o por lo menos sepan q el probinzial no los cree sus enbustes. y q los tiene pr enrredadores y malos Religiosos; tambien dize q Vm no escriva nada al Probinzial nada pr si resuelbe bajar o no antes q benga la cartta de Vm. vien conozemos lo q Vm nos dize tocantte al cassamto ojala y ellos lo supieran) pues vien zierto es que pra ser muy santta no es obstaculo ninguno el Mattrimonio y q la virginidad No haze santos si no se juntan a ella las virtudes adquiridas con la grazia de Dios pues la virginidad sin este exerzizio es arta Vazia. El correo passado se nos passo de la memoria escrivir a Vm los dias de su santo xavier y assi los dara pr Rdos que en Dios se los damos con toda el Alma pidiendo a su Magd le deje ver muchos pra enplearlos en Amarle mucho. a los hermos dara Vm finas memas de ntra partte y a Dios pe mio q nos abrasse en su Amor

toledo y dize 3 de 1706 hijos de Vm q de corazon le Aman en xpto Blas y Manuela

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