The story of the Confraternità del Pio Monte Della Misericordia and Caravaggio’s painting is a fascinating example of how art and charity can intertwine to convey a powerful mission.

In 1602, seven idealistic noblemen founded the Confraternità del Pio Monte Della Misericordia in Naples, Italy.  Their mission was ambitious, and no doubt the product of multiple feverish strategic planning sessions. Rather than focus on one charitable purpose – for example, feeding the hungry – this organization was dedicated to the seven acts of mercy mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew. But how to communicate this radical mission? In 1606 they commissioned a massive painting for their new chapel. The artist they hired was a murderer on the lam from Rome who was the greatest painter of his age, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio.

In 1607, Caravaggio delivered one of the most bizarre and affecting works of 17th century art, which to this day hangs over the alter in a small chapel on a Neapolitan side street. He depicts all seven charitable purposes of the charity in one painting, although it takes a bit of deciphering to identify them all.  This Google Arts & Culture link is a good cheat.

Seven Acts of Mercy

But as much as I love Caravaggio in general and specifically this Baroque painting, my focus is the acts of mercy, and what they mean in terms of the development of the western tradition of charity.  The acts are:

1. To feed the hungry
2. To give water to the thirsty
3. To clothe the naked
4. To shelter the homeless
5. To visit the sick
6. To visit the imprisoned
7. To bury the dead.

Matthew 25 only named the first six acts, and burying the dead was included in the Middle Ages, likely because of the plague.  (Charity law has always made great leaps forward in response to cataclysmic social upheaval.)  I’m not aware of any other historical organization that dared to take on the whole lot.

Marketing that Conveys Ambition

As an act of marketing, I would argue that few charities have surpassed this Caravaggio painting.  The oil became famous across Europe and the church a place of pilgrimage because of its haunting power, yet it is also a bold expression of a radical charitable mission.

Caravaggio depicts human suffering, and the acts taken to mitigate it, as completely intertwined.  No act or person sits alone or apart.  Poverty can’t be relieved by just food, housing, and treating sickness.  Human dignity isn’t about just clothing or support for the imprisoned.  All these elements are interconnected in a way that echoes contemporary ideas like intersectionality or the social determinants of health.  The acts are corporeal, not spiritual.  The scale and complexity of the problem is wicked.   The Confraternità’s focus was social, human, and practical, even if their made the acts were divinely inspired.  Trying to reduce human suffering – physical pain and loneliness – was a progressive idea in 17^th century Europe.

With marketing as bold and aspirational as this, it is no wonder that the actual activities of the charity were perhaps more focussed, at least in the early years.

Boardroom Table with Purpose

The Confraternità had a governing board of seven, and by 1604 every Friday they would meet around a heptagonal or seven-sided table.  It was an operational board, and very hands on.  Each governor had an assigned task, and they would rotate every six months.  Engraved in ivory on each side of the table was a charitable work, which echoed, but did not fully align with the seven acts of mercy.  The seven portfolios were: visiting the sick, burying the dead, visiting prisoners, redeeming captives, helping the shameful, lodging pilgrims, and weight of heritage.  The mission was front and centre.

I find it interesting, but not surprising, that they focused on compassionate rather than curative acts.  Hunger, drink, and clothing were deemphasized, and in 16^th century society just too omnipresent to address fully. Basic human support and connection was the focus.

The curiosity of the seven is “redeeming captives”, which is related to the act of visiting prisoners, but it reflected a pressing social need in early 17^th century Naples.  Islamic, north African slavers conducted frequent raiding parties in Europe, and were active as far north as England.  Naples was especially vulnerable.  The so-called Barbary slave trade transported more Europeans to work as indentured slaves in North Africa in 1620 than there were Europeans in America.  They could, occasionally, be repatriated in exchange for ransom, and that became a pillar of the charitable mission of the Confraternità, at least until this social crisis passed in the 19^th century.

Mission Evolution

Perhaps the most extraordinary part of this story is that, over 400 years later, the Confraternità del Pio Monte Della Misericordia is a large and active human services charity in Naples. It focuses on youth employment, access to education and skills development, early diagnosis of disease and access to healthcare, children in poverty, support for disabled persons, temporary support for those in poverty and need, and finally, capacity building of other charities.  It is still an ambitious list that reflects the interconnected nature of human need.  The goal is still to tackle complex social needs.

The Governors, seven in number, and since 1965 including women, still meet every Friday around a seven-sided table.  The table is grander, but the basic mix of practical, hands-on action continues to animate the organization.  The charitable mission has evolved, but at least in spirit, isn’t far removed from Caravaggio’s compassionate, intertwined vision.