Pope Joan Page #4

And all the brothers

took her to be... a young man.

Impressed by her linguistic ability,

the Abbot assigned Johanna the task...

of translating the collection

of Greek manuscripts on medicine.

Thus she was able to study the works

of Hippocrates and other scholars.

Johanna had retained her mother's

knowledge of healing plants and herbs.

And she so impressed Brother Benjamin,

the monastery's medicast,

that he made her his pupil.

As a woman, her intelligence

and her thirst for knowledge...

had brought her delusion and content.

Here in the monastery Johanna was praised

and rewarded for this very same qualities.

Yet Johanna was constantly aware of

the danger she faced... everyday.

Brother Johannes?

Are you wounded?

A small cut. Nothing more.

Johanna knew that exposure

meant certain death.

She suffered most

during the reading of chapters.

If a brother had found her out

or merely harbored the suspicion,

she would hear about it there.

Brothers, before we discuss the

temporal concerns of our monastic life,

- are there any transgressions to confess?

- Yes, father.

What offence have you committed,

Brother Thedo?

I fell asleep

while working in this scriptorium.

Again?

I am unworthy and sinful, Father.

Please bring the harshest of

punishments upon my head.

For three days you will

not be allowed at meals.

You're too lenient, Father.

In light of the severity

of my transgressions,

I beg you to extend it to a week.

God does not appreciate pride,

Brother Thedo, not even in suffering.

Does anyone else have any

shortcomings to confess,

or any misconduct to the brethren?

It upsets me, but I must report

that a terrible sin...

has been committed

within these very walls.

A most heinous crime!

Will the sinner not come forward?

This brother intends to secretly

leave the monastery,

thereby breaking the holy oath

he made to God.

It was my father's oath, not mine!

Your father placed you

in the service of God.

To take such a gift away

from the Almighty...

would be an unforgivable sin.

Is it not also a sin to bind a man into a

life contrary to his very nature and will?

Your soul is in rebellion, Valentinus,

and therefore in terrible danger.

In order to find your way back to God

in quiet and solitude,

you will not take meals

with the brethren for 30 days...

and you will not be allowed

in the auditorium.

Why do you not just free me and

cast me out of the monastery?

You will also thank Brother Odilo

for his concern about your salvation...

and wash his feet with due humility.

It is not faith that rules

within these walls, it is your tyranny.

The sickness of disobedience

has taken hold of you, Valentinus.

For your own good, we must

banish it from your body.

I hereby forbid you from entering

any public places.

I forbid you to eat or drink

in the presence of other people.

I forbid you from washing

in any stretch of water...

and from touching children

or giving them anything.

I beseech you, Abbot!

Let me go home!

Four fatherless children

are waiting for me.

- Heaven will care for the innocent.

- How, venerable Father, how?

If I did not go home they will die!

You may be dead

in the eyes of the world,

but still you live

in the eyes of the Lord.

Forgive me, Reverend Father.

This woman is not a leper.

What're you talking about?

Her lesions are different, and must

therefore have a different origin.

God has marked her.

We must not contradict his will.

She is marked,

but not by leprosy.

Will God be pleased, if we consign

to a living dead one...

who He Himself has not elected?

Let me treat this woman,

so we do not make a sinful mistake.

How do we know you have correctly

interpreted God's sign?

Is your pride so great

that you place it above your brothers'?

For if you administer to this woman,

you put the entire brotherhood at risk.

Not if you would allow me

to leave the monastery with her.

I will vouch for Brother Johannes,

Reverend Abbot.

He is pious and upstanding, and will

withstand all temptations.

Thank you, brother!

God bless you.

Mama!

Give me the baby, Arn!

- What is your name?

- Arn.

Arn, there is much work

to be done here. Will you help me?

Here!

- What is still missing?

- St. John's word, for itching.

And?

- And maybe some yarrow.

- Very good.

You learn quickly.

I can write my name too.

The priest showed me how.

If it were possible and

your mother allowed it,

would you like to attend

the monastic school?

Fulda lay far in the East. So the people

there were spared the struggle over...

succession to the Emperor's throne,

that had devastated other parts

of the Frankish Empire.

Before his death, Emperor Louis

divided the empire among his three sons.

When the eldest, Lothair, tried to

claim the entire realm,

his two brothers rose up against him.

Lothair lost the Battle of Fontenoy,

yet he retained a dominion...

stretching from the coast in the North

all the way down to Rome.

Show your face, woman!

- Praised be the Lord.

- Praised be the Lord.

So the years passed,

and Johanna was convinced...

she had found her rightful place

in the world.

She perfected the art of disguise

and felt safe among the brothers.

But then,

the fever came to the monastery.

Johannes!

Sit down.

We have to lower the fever.

- We have to get you undressed.

- No... no!

We must apply cold linen.

Lift the shoulders.

- Let me go!

- Gernot, Thedo!

Brother Johannes buried his father

only a few days ago.

Give him time to calm himself.

Start searching fresh linen.

You're too weak to walk far.

Take the rowing boat

hidden in the weeds by the ford.

You have to leave right away.

The brothers revere you.

To cure you, they will undress you

by force, and then...

their reverence will not save you.

- How long have you known?

- For many years.

Why didn't you tell?

And rob God of one of His

most precious instruments?

Tell the brother at the gate

he's needed here.

That will give you time.

May God protect you...

sister.

You must hurry.

Come quickly, she's awake!

- How are you feeling?

- I'm hungry.

This is a good sign! It has been two days

since we're able to feed you a bit of soup.

- Where am I?

- Count Riculf's estate.

50 miles downstream from Fulda. Your boat

got tangled in the weed along the shore.

- You were half mad with fever.

- So you saved my life.

And I thank God for

giving me the chance

to repay you for what you did

for me and my family.

Arn?

Pardon me, but...

But how should I address you?

Now... now that we know

what we know.

Johanna. My name is Johanna.

Johanna!

This is my wife, Bona.

And this is our daughter, Arnalda.

God bless the three of you.

Tell me what happened.

My mother got married again,

to a saddle-maker.

As his apprentice, I accompanied him

here to the count's estate.

Because I knew how to read and write,

thanks to you,

he invited me to stay on the estate

and help his steward.

The steward died two years ago,

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