t in
no small degree be attributed. His learning, his eloquence, his
affability and his piety deeply impressed the Greeks. They marked
their appreciation of his great ability by bestowing on him {101} the
name of "Eutychius". He surpassed the high opinion which Pope Gregory
had formed of him. His extraordinary gifts filled the whole Council
with admiration. The facility and precision of his diction, the
prudence and moderation of his counsel, the breadth and depth of his
learning, his skill in controversy and his wonderful power of
dispatching most weighty matters made him the most prominent figure in
the whole of the assembly. At the same time, his humility and meekness
and the cheerful sweetness of his disposition won all hearts. His
words were listened to with sympathetic attention and never failed to
produce the desired effect. It is recorded that he preached twice
during the Council: first when it was officially announced that the
Greeks were sending representatives to Lyons, and, secondly, when the
reunion had been accomplished. A large number of his sermons are
extant, but amongst them is not found either of these discourses.

Whilst our gaze is fixed on Bonaventure as the central figure in that
grand assembly of the Christian Church we can read with interest the
pen-portrait of him left to us by an old chronicler. This writer,
[Footnote 43] after insisting at much length on the spiritual
endowments of the Saint, continues thus:--

[Footnote 43: Peter Rodulph, fol. 92. Cf. Wadding, Tom. IV, Anno 1274.
No. 20.]

"Such beauty of soul was matched by exterior {102} comeliness; of
imposing appearance, tall in stature, and with a certain nobility of
bearing. His features were handsome and of serious expression. His
words were calm and his conversation kind and gentle. He rarely
suffered from ill health. His disposition was more than admirable. His
appearance cannot be described other than like that of an angel sent
from Heaven, for in his day there was no one more beautiful, holier,
or more wise. Such affability and grace shone forth in his countenance
that he was to all not only an object of love but of admiration. Those
who once beheld him felt themselves drawn instinctively to admire and
venerate him as one especially designed to further the interests of
religion."

The description is evidently that of an ardent admirer of
Bonaventure, but making all due allowance for its palpable
exaggerations we are justifie