John H, Roinoehl 194.9
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THE JANSENIST MOVEMENT IN FRANCE TO 1713 Thai: for fine Dam of M. A. MiCHlGAN STATE COLLECR. John H, Roinoehl 194.9 I ‘-.l . THE JANSENILLT HOVELENT IN FREQCE 1‘0 1713 BY John H. Reinoehl A THESIS Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies of Michigan State College of Agriculture and Applied Science in partical fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of l-IAS’I‘ER OF ARTS Department of flietory and Political Science 1949 Acknowledgement I wish to express my thanks to Professor John B. Harrison for his helpful suggestions and constructive criticism in both the research and writing done in the completion of this essay. TABLE OF CONTENTS m m IntrOdUO‘ion o c c c c c c c c c 1. I. Boginningn......... l. II. The Controversial Period . 20. III. False Peace and Destruction. 1668.171} 0 O O O O C O O 7". IV. Conclncionc I O O O O I ‘ O 97. Introduction Man's religious beliefs have always been ideas for which he would fight and die .. they have been vital to him in revealing a reason for his existence and in giving him a suggestion of what is to happen to him in a new life. Religion has been a serious business with man; and he who has strayed from the accepted trail of his co-religionists has ever been punished. These heretics have suffered the greatest variety of punishment; from mild ostracism to a violent and tortured death; from short to long prison terms; from a day in the stocks to death on the rack. Heretics and schismatics have had difficult lives. The Sixteenth Century was the period of schism with- in the Western Christian world. Martin Luther. John Cal- via, and Henry VIII wereall able to break from Roman Cath- olicism in a lasting and 'suceessful' manner. although con- siderable blood was shed in the process. The Counter-Re- formation followed. with more bloodshed. as Roman Cathol- icism fought in an attempt to regain its status at the head of the Christian countries. .But the Protestant relig- ions lived on. This essay is the story of a Seventeenth Century group who strayed from the path of the many in religion. but did not desire to be sohismatic; a group who sought to purify a religion from within rather than follow others, with sim- ilar beliefs into a different church organisation. Their desire to remain within the old institution while profess- ing to have a.more true religion was fatal. But their ideas for their faith.did not die as readily as their abbey sue. cumbedto planned destruction; neither were the ideas scat- tered and dissipated in.exile as were the leaders of the movement. Jansenism came into existence as a purifying movement within the Roman Catholic Church.in France during the first half of the Seventeenth.century: it was pronounced dead hy the preponents of‘the Bull.ggigenitus with the promulgation of that document in 1713. The ideas remained, however; some- what different from the ideas of Jansen and St. Cyran; less well expressed than the thoughts of Pascal: less spectacu~ lar than the drama enacted by the nuns who were scattered when'Port Royal was destroyed. A reviewer said of an author's research for 'Later Jan- senists' in 1891: “wherever he comes upon priests who combined austerity of morals with.learning and.liberality of thoughts; magis- trates who were characterised by integrity, independence, and a passionate love of’Justice: statesmen. politicians, public functionaries, who. in spite of limitations and faults, conscientiously placed the interests cf’their counp try above every other consideration; there he assures him- self of being on the right scent. The Latent Jansenist is there; all that remains is to discover either in his own parentage or education. or more remotely in the social re- lations or literary tastes of his ancestors, or some poss- ible channel through.which the spirit of Port Royal may in a.neasure have reincarnated itself in him. That found. the crown is put on the quest; the roll of the later Jansenists ll is enriched by a new member of unimpeachable genuineness. 1- This statement refers to the more political Jansenism of the Eighteenth.and Nineteenth Centuries and is hardly . applicable as a.detinition for the Jansenists discussed in this paper. The Jansenist movement of the Seventeenth Cane tury is confined to the struggle within the Roman Catholic Church, highlighted by the trouble between.Jesuit and Janu senist. It is the movement of Pascal and Arnauld. rather than the movement of Frondeurs de Bet; and Madame de Long~ neville. According to the description given above. the Vol. taire who would defend snother's right to make a statement. whether he agreed‘with it or not, was a Jansenist; the stands ards of St. Cyran.and Mother Ang‘lique would hardly agree with.such a loose description. Their movement was religious. Politics entered only within the organisation.ot the Church 1tnue l. Anon.. “Les Dernier Jansfinistes. despuis la Ruins do Port Royal Jucqu'a nos Jours (lTlO~1870) Par Leon Sechfi , uarterl* Rev w . Vol. 173 (July. 1891). pp. 21694317.. 'L ' """"L'9"'“ ill . .1. Beginning: The century After the foundationuor Protestantism round the Gellieen Church with many nrobleme on ite hende. Added to the threat of the Protestant: were diesentione within ite own ranke. The main eplit. between the ultre— montane group end the group favoring e etate church. could not but weaken the inner structure of the Church; While no formal statement of the .Gallioan Liberties had been made at this time. they oneted ea surely then as they did etter their listing by sum» in 1682. ' Gnllioaniem added definitelyto the strength of the .onown in France, had. mturally. thie etrength use derived tron the Chnroh. The Libertiee consisted or tour chief . points: 1) Papal Bulle could not enter- Franne without the eoneent of theorem; 2) Roman congregation deeieione held no'veight in Frances.” French eubJeete could not be eited before a. Roman Tribunal; end 4) French civil courts could look into Church affairs it they thought the ram lee had been broken. 1 The lettw of these points wee interc- pretod very loosely by the French Parlemonte; at time they went so tar as to adminieter uoramente by adjudication to lndividuale who-.3 the Church had refneed benefit. 2 Then 1. Ward. Prothero, Leathias, eds... W m New York. (1908). V, T . 2. 121a,. v. 74. practices were by no means ordinary, however. The Gallican Liberties did, however, practically free the government of France from any Jurisdiction of the pap- acy when the French government was in the hands of e Rich- elieu. The French Cardinal could and did take both Prat- estant and nonoChristien elliee in his fight against the Catholic Hapeburgss it was outside the power of the papacy to influence him enough to bring him into harmony with his fellow Catholics. While to later Catholics. at least on the surface, the Liberties gave the idea. or being good Cath- alias as well as good Frenchmen, to the contemporary of Louie XIII they were regarded as a weapon to be used against Rome when political expediency deemed it necessary. 3 The French Glory derived positions from crown appoint- ments; again-political expediency raised its head. The crown controlled both position and puree, certainly e. dou- ble handicap to a tree church. Gifts could be demanded. pensions allotted from clergy revenues, appointments given to minors or sold m- rawors w money. The ma, whereby the revermes or e. vacant see were paid to the king. exitin- ed at this time. Thus it can be seen that the church. at least at the upper levels, was directly dependent upon the crown. The Pope was to dominate in spiritual matters, but with the clergy dependent upon the crown, this supremacy 3. m" V, 75. 4 . was more one of word than of action. Moral looseness in thc«court seeped into the upper levels of the clergy, making an unbecoming and lax group at the head of the French church. Two of the greatest con- tributors to this weakness in the upper strata of the clergy were the practices of pluralism and non-resident offices. Pluralism, the holding of several orfnzos simultaneously, added to, but did not necessarily force fine second and greet- er evil, non-resident office holding. The upper clergy lived at the court a their connection with their bishoprice was largely monetary. Their titles as 'eeoular‘ clergy, as com- pared with the regular clergy. was certainly a deserved one; they were secular in.the extreme. 5 it the lower levels the clergy was more well-meaning. ‘ but it was largely powerless to carry out its desires. Ill. iteracy among the lower clergy declined during the first part or the seventeenth Century due to the efforts of St. Vincent de Paul, but still contributed to their lack of effect- iveness. Many could not read their prayer books or devotion- al guides; some travelled through the country begging. cocaeo ionally preaching a sermon in an abbey whore they might be' housed for a short time. 6 The abbsys were also floundering in a state of spiritual 3‘- LQLQH V0 77° 50 me. vs "’78. 5- m" V! 78° decay. Throughout the country they housed nuns who knew or cared little for runes of poverty, chastity. or obedience. They were. to a great extent. daughters of wealthy persons who had had a position purchased for them in one of these abbeys as an alternative to a successful marriage.