"Motives are rarely pure or purely wicked, but a muddle of ambition,
ambivalence, misperception, and sometimes desperation. If our own
motives are often unclear, the motives of a pope or a painter five
hundred years ago are at best conjecture. I have tried not to ascribe
or assume motive and suggest it only when I can quote someone's own
words. Since even these can be misleading, proceed with a generous
mind."
Basilica The Splendor and the Scandal: Building St. Peter's
R.A. Scotti