John Matthew Rispoli (17 August 1582 – 6 April 1639) was a major Maltese philosopher of great erudition. He was held in high esteem by the Grand Masters of the Knights Hospitaller Order, the Bishops of Malta, the Viceroys of Sicily, cardinals, bishops, inquisitors, and the common people. Perhaps the most eminent Maltese philosopher of the Middle Ages, the various extant writings of his are witness to his philosophical aptitude and dexterity as to his high calibre as a philosopher. These qualities were highly appreciated during his lifetime, in Malta as in France and Italy. He lived a busy life, both as an intellectual and as an administrator. He was professor of philosopher at various institutions of high education, an able preacher, and an official at various posts within the Dominican Order, of which his was a member. He was an avid aficionado of music, and was talented with playing musical instruments. Though the fame of holiness accompanied him in his life, this did not deter the Inquisition from suspecting him of heresy, and keeping him in its dungeons for fourteen months. When he died, he was given an almost state funeral. Life Birth and education Rispoli was born in Senglea, Malta, on 17 August 1582, to John Vincent and Catherine. He was christened John Mary. His father was a pilot on one of the galleys of the Knights Hospitaller. This suggests that the family enjoyed a decent financial income. In fact, Rispoli was given a good education from an early age. A Dominican friar At sixteen years of age, in 1598, Rispoli joined the Dominican Order at the Annunciation Priory of Vittoriosa. He was formally admitted a year later, and given the name John Matthew as a sign of his new religious status. Thereafter, he was sent to Palermo, Sicily, to begin and complete his institutional education at the Dominican Studium Generale there in philosophy and theology. At Paris Rispoli's initial studies ended seven years later, in 1606. Though he returned to Malta to commence his academic and pastoral work, he came under the eye of Alof de Wignacourt, Grand Master to the Knights Hospitaller, who conceded him protection. Most probably, this was due to Rispoli's intellectual capabilities as much as the high esteem in which the Grand Master held his father, whom, as recompense for his thirty-seven years in the service of the Knights Hospitaller, had been elected