That great
king and crazy relic-hunter, Philip II., saw this rag in his time with
profound emotion,--this tiger heart, who could order the murder of a
thousand innocent beings without a pang.
There is another chapel in this Cathedral which preaches forever its
silent condemnation of Spanish bigotry to deaf ears. This is the
Mozarabic Chapel, sacred to the celebration of the early Christian rite
of Spain. During the three centuries of Moorish domination the
enlightened and magnanimous conquerors guaranteed to those Christians
who remained within their lines the free exercise of all their rights,
including perfect freedom of worship. So that side by side the mosque
and the church worshipped God each in its own way without fear or wrong.
But when Alonso VI. recaptured the city in the eleventh century, he
wished to establish uniformity of worship, and forbade the use of the
ancient liturgy in Toledo. That which the heathen had respected the
Catholic outraged. The great Cardinal Ximenez restored the primitive
rite and devoted this charming chapel to its service. How ill a return
was made for Moorish tolerance we see in the infernal treatment they
afterwards received from king and Church. They made them choose between
conversion and death. They embraced Christianity to save their lives.
Then the priests said, "Perhaps this conversion is not genuine! Let us
send the heathen away out of our sight.
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