ALUMBRADOS (ILLUMINATI). - Name used to designate those Spanish pseudo-mystics who in the 16th and 17th centuries boasted of acting constantly under the influence of a direct and immediate "illumination" of the Holy Spirit. The term "iluminados," understood in this sense, appears for the first time in 1494, in a letter written by the Franciscan Antonio de Pastrana to Card. Ximenes de Cisneros, his provincial minister.

The doctrine of the a. taught that man can arrive here below at the vision of the very essence of God, that is, at the highest possible degree of perfection; which, once reached, can no longer be lost and renders vain all external means of sanctification, such as vocal prayer, the use of the Sacraments, the practice of charity toward one's neighbor, any bodily sacrifice, etc. The perfect one is bound only to mental prayer, to the aesthetic contemplation of the divine essence, which unites him to God so intimately as to deprive him even of his own freedom and individuality. In this state of complete annihilation he becomes impeccable, in the sense that those very actions which in the imperfect would be most grievous offenses against God are not imputed to him as a fault, not even venial. Fully consistent with this last principle, the a. often abandoned themselves to the most unbridled licentiousness. The action carried out by the Inquisition against such abuses was so rigorous as to strike with its condemnations even those who led a retired and contemplative life: St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Francis Borgia, St. Teresa and St. Joseph Calasanz were accused of illuminism.

Supported by men of high worth, the a. spread rapidly, recruiting numerous followers not only among the humblest classes but also among educated people, nobles and the clergy. They reached their greatest expansion in the dioceses of Cadiz and Seville, where they managed to maintain themselves until the middle of the 17th century. Their errors then reappeared in quietism, spread in Italy by Michele Molinos (v.).

Bibliography6 works

BIBL.: H. Heppé, Geschichte der quietistischen Mystik in der katholischen Kirche, Berlin 1875; M. Menéndez y Pelayo, Historia de los heterodoxos españoles, II, Madrid 1880, p. 521 ff.; L. Schutz, Erleuchtete, in Wetzer-Welte's Kirchenlexikon, IV, pp. 795-98; E. Colunga, Intelectualistas y místicos en la teología española del siglo XVI, in La Ciencia Tomista, 12 (1915), pp. 5-21; A. Colunga, s. v. in LThK, I, pp. 326-27; F. Cayré, Patrologie et histoire de la théologie, II, 2nd ed., Paris 1933, p. 785 ff.

Emanuele Chietini

@incollection{ec1_alumbrados_illuminati, author = {Chiettini, Emanuele}, title = {Alumbrados (Illuminati)}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {I}, pages = {945--946}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1948}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/alumbrados-illuminati} }

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