PROTESTANTISM
AND
CATHOLICITY
COMPARED IN THEIR
EFFECTS ON THE CIVILIZATION OF EUROPE.
WRITTEN IN SPANISH
BY THE REV. J. BALMES.
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH.
Second Edition.
BALTIMORE:
PUBLISHED BY JOHN MURPHY & CO.
No. 178 MARKET STREET.
PITTSBURG: GEORGE QUIGLEY.
_Sold by Booksellers generally._
1851.
ENTERED, according to the Act of Congress, in the year eighteen
hundred and fifty, by JOHN MURPHY & CO., in the Clerk's Office of the
District Court of Maryland.
AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
Among the many and important evils which have been the necessary
result of the profound revolutions of modern times, there appears a
good extremely valuable to science, and which will probably have a
beneficial influence on the human race,--I mean the love of studies
having for their object man and society. The shocks have been so rude,
that the earth has, as it were, opened under our feet; and the human
mind, which, full of pride and haughtiness, but lately advanced on a
triumphal car amid acclamations and cries of victory, has been alarmed
and stopped in its career. Absorbed by an important thought, overcome
by a profound reflection, it has asked itself, "What am I? whence do I
come? what is my destination?" Religious questions have regained their
high importance; and when they might have been supposed to have been
scattered by the breath of indifference, or almost annihilated by the
astonishing development of material interests, by the progress of the
natural and exact sciences, by the continually increasing ardour of
political debates,--we have seen that, so far from having been stifled
by the immense weight which seemed to have overwhelmed them, they have
reappeared on a sudden in all their magnitude, in their gigantic form,
predominant over society, and reaching from the heavens to the abyss.
This disposition of men's minds naturally drew their attention to the
religious revolution of the sixteenth century; it was natural that they
should ask what this revolution had done to promote the interests of
humanity. Unhappily, great mistakes have been made in this inquiry.
Either because they have looked at the facts through the distorted
medium of sectarian prejudice, or because they have only considered
them superficially, men have arrived at the conclusion, that the
reformers of the sixteenth century conferred a signal benefit on the
nations of Europe, by contributing to the development of science, of
the arts, of human liberty, and of every thing which is comprised in
the word _civilization_.
What do history and philosophy say on this subject? How has man,
either individually or collectively, considered in a religious,
social, political, or literary point of view, been benefited by the
reform of the sixteenth century? Did Europe, under the exclusive
influence of Catholicity, pursue a prosperous career? Did Catholicity
impose a single fetter on the movements of civilization? This is the
examination which I propose to make in this work. Every age has its
peculiar wants; and it is much to be wished that all Catholic writers
were convinced, that the complete examination of these questions is
one of the most urgent necessities of the times in which we live.
Bellarmine and Bossuet have done what was required for their times; we
ought to do the same for ours. I am fully aware of the immense extent
of the questions I have adverted to, and I do not flatter myself that I
shall be able to elucidate them as they deserve; but, however this may
be, I promise to enter on my task with the courage which is inspired
by a love of truth; and when my strength shall be exhausted, I shall
sit down with tranquillity of mind, in expectation that another, more
vigorous than myself, will carry into effect so important an enterprise.
PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.
The work of Balmes on the comparative influence of Protestantism
and Catholicity on European civilization, which is now presented to
the American public, was written in Spanish, and won for the author
among his own countrymen a very high reputation. A French edition
was published simultaneously with the Spanish, and the work has
since been translated into the Italian and English languages, and
been widely circulated as one of the most learned productions of the
age, and most admirably suited to the exigencies of our times. When
Protestantism could no longer maintain its position in the field of
theology, compelling its votaries by its endless variations to espouse
open infidelity, or to fall back upon the ancient church, it adopted
a new mode of defence, in pointing to its pretended achievements as
the liberator of the human mind, the friend of civil and religious
freedom, the patron of science and the arts; in a word, the active
element in all social ameliorations. This is the cherished idea and
boasted argument of those who attempt to uphold Protestantism as a
system. They claim for it the merit of having freed the intellect of
man from a degrading bondage, given a nobler impulse to enterprise
and industry, and sown in every direction the seed of national and
individual prosperity. Looking at facts superficially, or through the
distorted medium of prejudice, they tell us that the reformers of the
16th century contributed much to the development of science and the
arts, of human liberty, and of every thing which is comprised in the
word _civilization_. To combat this delusion, so well calculated to
ensnare the minds of men in this materialistic and utilitarian age, the
author undertook the work, a translation of which is here presented
to the public. "What do history and philosophy say on this subject?
How has man, either individually or collectively, considered in a
religious, social, political, or literary point of view, been benefited
by the reform of the 16th century? Did Europe, under the exclusive
influence of Catholicity, pursue a prosperous career? Did Catholicity
impose a single fetter on the movements of civilization?" Such is the
important investigation which the author proposed to himself, and
it must be admitted that he has accomplished his task with the most
brilliant success? Possessed of a penetrating mind, cultivated by
profound study and adorned with the most varied erudition, and guided
by a fearless love of truth, he traverses the whole Christian era,
comparing the gigantic achievements of Catholicity, in curing the evils
of mankind, elevating human nature, and diffusing light and happiness,
with the results of which Protestantism may boast; and he proves, with
the torch of history and philosophy in his hand, that the latter, far
from having exerted any beneficial influence upon society, has retarded
the great work of civilization which Catholicity commenced, and which
was advancing so prosperously under her auspicious guidance. He does
not say that nothing has been done for civilization by _Protestants_;
but he asserts and proves that _Protestantism_ has been greatly
unfavorable, and even injurious to it.
By thus exposing the short-comings, or rather evils of Protestantism,
in a social and political point of view, as Bossuet and others had
exhibited them under the theological aspect, Balmes has rendered a
most important service to Catholic literature. He has supplied the
age with a work, which is peculiarly adapted to its wants, and which
must command a general attention in the United States. The Catholic,
in perusing its pages, will learn to admire still more the glorious
character of the faith which he professes: the Protestant, if sincere,
will open his eyes to the incompatibility of his principles with the
happiness of mankind: while the scholar in general will find in it a
vast amount of information, on the most vital and interesting topics,
and presented in a style of eloquence seldom equalled.
"The reader is requested to bear in mind that the author was a native
of Spain, and therefore he must not be surprised to find much that
relates more particularly to that country. In fact, the fear that
Protestantism might be introduced there seems to have been the motive
which induced him to undertake the work. He was evidently a man of
strong national as well as religious feeling, and he dreaded its
introduction both politically and religiously, as he considered that it
would be injurious to his country in both points of view. He thought
that it would destroy the national unity, as it certainly did in other
countries.
"A very interesting part of the work is that where he states the
relations of religion and political freedom; shows that Catholicity
is by no means adverse to the latter, but, on the contrary, highly
favorable to it; and proves by extracts from St. Thomas Aquinas
and other great Catholic divines, that they entertained the most
enlightened political views. On the other hand, he shows that
Protestantism was unfavorable to civil liberty, as is evidenced by the
fact, that arbitrary power made great progress in various countries
of Europe soon after its appearance. The reason of this was, that the
moral control of religion being taken away, physical restraint became
the more necessary." The author, on this subject, naturally expresses
a preference for monarchy, it being a cherished inheritance from his
forefathers; but, it will be noticed that the principles which he lays
down as essential to a right administration of civil affairs, regard
the substance and not the form of government; are as necessary under a
republican as under the monarchical system; and, if duly observed, they
cannot fail to ensure the happiness of the people. This portion of the
volume will be read with peculiar interest in this country, and ought
to command an attentive consideration.
In preparing this edition of the work from the English translation by
Messrs. Hanford and Kershaw, care has been taken to revise the whole of
it, to compare it with the original French, and to correct the various
errors, particularly the mistakes in translation. A biographical notice
of the illustrious writer has also been prefixed to the volume, to give
the reader an insight into his eminent character, and the valuable
services he has rendered to his country and to society at large.
BALTIMORE, November 1, 1850.
NOTICE OF THE AUTHOR.
James Balmes was born at Vich, a small city in Catalonia, in Spain,
on the 28th of August, 1810. His parents were poor, but noted for
their industry and religion, and they took care to train him from his
childhood to habits of rigid piety. Every morning, after the holy
sacrifice of mass, his mother prostrate before an altar dedicated to
St. Thomas of Aquin, implored this illustrious doctor to obtain for
her son the gifts of sanctity and knowledge. Her prayers were not
disappointed.
From seven to ten years of age, Balmes applied himself with great
ardor to the study of Latin. The two following years were devoted to a
course of rhetoric, and three years more were allotted to philosophy;
a ninth year was occupied with the prolegomena of theology. Such was
the order of studies in the seminary of Vich. While thus laboring to
store his mind with knowledge, Balmes preserved an irreproachable line
of conduct. Called to the ecclesiastical state, he submitted readily
to the strict discipline which this vocation required, and he was seen
nowhere but under the parental roof, at the church, in some religious
community, or in the episcopal library. At the age of fourteen he was
admitted to a benefice, the revenue of which, though small, enabled
him to complete his education. In 1826, he went to the University
of Cervera, which at that time was the centre of public instruction
in that part of Spain. It numbered four colleges, in all of which
an enlightened piety prevailed, affording the young Balmes a most
favorable opportunity of developing his rare qualities. Here, the frame
and habit of his mind were observable to all, in his deep and animated
look, in his grave and modest demeanor, and in his method of study. He
would read a few pages over a table, his head resting upon his hands;
then, wrapt in his mantle, he would spend a long time in reflection.
"The true method of study," he used to say, "is to read little, to
select good authors, and to think much. If we confined ourselves to
a knowledge of what is contained in books, the sciences would never
advance a step. We must learn what others have not known. During my
meditations in the dark, my thoughts ferment, and my brain burns like a
boiling cauldron."
Devoted to the acquisition of knowledge, he cultivated retirement as
a means of facilitating the attainment of his object. His thirst for
learning was so intense, that it held him under absolute sway, and he
found it necessary at a later period to offer a systematic resistance
to its exclusive demands. Pursuing his favorite method of study,
Balmes remained four years at the University of Cervera, reading no
other works than the Sum of St. Thomas, and the commentaries upon it
by Bellarmine, Suarez and Cajetan. If he made any exception from this
rule, it was in favor of Chateaubriand's _Génie du Christanisme_.
"Every thing," said he, "is to be found in St. Thomas; philosophy,
religion, politics: his writings are an inexhaustible mine." Having
thus strengthened his mind by a due application to philosophical and
theological studies, he proceeded to enlarge his sphere of knowledge
by reading a greater variety of authors. In taking up a work, he first
looked at the table of contents, and when it suggested an idea or fact
which seemed to open before him a new path, he read that part of the
volume which developed this idea or fact; the rest was overlooked.
In this way, he accumulated a rich store of varied erudition. At
the age of twenty-two he knew by memory the tabular contents of an
extraordinary number of volumes; he had learned the French language;
he spoke and wrote Latin better than his native tongue, and had been
admitted successively to the degrees of bachelor and licentiate in
theology. The virtues of his youth, far from having been weakened
by these studies, had acquired greater strength and maturity. As he
approached the solemn period of his ordination, he became still more
remarkable for the gravity and modesty of his deportment. He prepared
himself for his elevation to the priesthood by a retreat of one hundred
days. After his promotion to the sacerdotal dignity, which took place
in his native city, he returned to the University of Cervera, where he
continued his studies, and performed the duties of assistant professor.
Here also he began to manifest his political views; but, always with
that discretion and moderation for which the Spanish clergy have been
with few exceptions distinguished during the last twenty years. At that
period Spain was agitated by two conflicting parties, that of Maria
Christina and the other of Don Carlos. Balmes avoided all questions
which were rather calculated to encourage the spirit of faction than
promote the general interest of the country. In 1835 he evinced this
circumspection in a remarkable degree, when the doctorate which had
been conferred upon him, required him to deliver an address in honor
of the reigning monarch. Maria Christina was then the queen regent,
and civil war was about to commence in the mountains of Catalonia; but
Balmes performed his task without allusion to politics, and without
offending the adherents of either party.
After two years of study at Cervera, where he applied himself to
theology and law, our author returned to Vich, where he determined
to spend four years more in retirement, for the purpose of maturing
his character and knowledge. In this solitude, he devoted himself to
history, poetry and politics, but principally to mathematics, of which
he obtained a professorship in 1837. During all these literary labors,
Balmes was actuated by a lively faith, and a sincere, unassuming piety.
Religious meditation, intermingled with scientific reflections, was
the constant occupation of his mind; he did not neglect, however, the
exterior practices of devotion. Besides the celebration of the holy
sacrifice, he frequently visited the blessed sacrament, and paid his
homage to the B. Virgin in some solitary chapel. The _Following of
Christ_, the _Sum_ of the angelic doctor, and the Holy Scriptures,
were always in his hands, and he took pleasure in reading the ascetic
writers of his own country. In this way did he prepare himself, until
the age of thirty, to become one of the most solid and gifted minds
of our time, and to act the important part to which he was called by
Divine Providence.
The first literary effort of Balmes before the public, was a prize
essay which he wrote on clerical celibacy. This was soon followed by
another production of his pen, entitled "Observations on the Property
of the Clergy, in a social, political, and commercial point of view,"
which was elicited by the clamoring of the revolutionary army under
Espartero for the spoliation of the clergy. The learning, philosophy
and eloquence of the writer in this work, excited the wonder and
admiration of the most distinguished statesmen in the country. Some
months after, he published his "Political Considerations on the
Condition of Spain," in which he had the courage to defend the rights
of both parties in the country, and to suggest means of a conciliatory
nature for restoring public order and tranquillity.
Amidst these political efforts, Balmes did not lay aside his peculiar
functions as a minister of God. The edification of the faithful, the
religious instruction of youth, and the defence of the faith against
the assaults of heresy and rationalism, were constant objects of his
attention. During the same year, 1840, he translated and published
the "Maxims of St. Francis of Sales for every day in the year;" he
also composed a species of catechism for the instruction of young
persons, which was very extensively circulated. At the same time he
undertook the preparation of the present work, in order to counteract
the pernicious influence exerted among his countrymen by Guizot's
lectures on European civilization, and to neutralize the facilities
offered under the regime of Espartero for the success of a Protestant
Propagandism in Spain. The occasion and object of this work rendered it
expedient that it should be published simultaneously in Spanish and in
French, and with this view our author visited France, and afterwards,
to extend his observations, passed into England.
On his return to Barcelona, towards the close of 1842, Balmes became a
collaborator in the editing of the _Civilizacion_, a monthly periodical
of great merit, devoted to literary reviews, and to solid instruction
on the current topics of the day. His connection with this work lasted
only eighteen months. He then commenced a review of his own, entitled
the _Sociedad_, a philosophical, political, and religious journal,
which acquired a great reputation during the one year of its existence.
Driven soon after into retirement by the disturbances of the times,
Balmes composed another philosophical work, _El Criterio_, which is a
course of logic adapted to every capacity.
From the national uprising that overthrew the government of Espartero,
there arose a general feeling of patriotic independence, which called
for the cessation of civil strife, and the harmonizing of the two
parties that divided the nation. Many of the adherents of Maria
Christina, who were the nobility and the bourgeoisie, recognized the
excesses of the revolutionary faction which they had called to their
aid, while the Carlists were not all in favor of absolute monarchy, and
numbered an imposing majority among the lower classes. All these men of
wise and moderate views longed to see a remedy applied to the wounds
of their afflicted country; and with one accord they turned their
eyes upon Balmes, as the only individual capable of conducting this
important affair. He had already, in his _Political Considerations_,
indicated the principal idea of his policy for putting an end to the
national evils; it was a matrimonial alliance between the Queen and
the son of Don Carlos. Under these circumstances he commenced in
February, 1844, a new journal, entitled _Pensamiento de la Nacion_,
the object of which was to denounce the revolutionary spirit as the
enemy of all just and peaceful government, and to inspire the Spanish
people with a proper reverence for the religious, social and political
inheritance received from their ancestors, and with a due respect for
the reasonable ameliorations of the age. In this spirit the different
questions of the day were discussed with energy and calmness, and
especially the project of an alliance between the Queen and the son
of Don Carlos, which Balmes considered of the utmost importance.
This measure, such as he proposed it, was, to use the language of
his biographer, "the reconciliation of the past and the future, of
authority and liberty, of monarchy and representative government."
Such was the patriotism, dignity and force, with which our author
conducted his hebdomadal, that it won the esteem of a large portion of
the most distinguished men among the Carlists, while it also acquired
favor among an immense number in the opposite party. To support its
views, a daily journal, the _Conciliador_, was started by a body of
young but fervid and brilliant writers, and nothing it would seem was
wanting to insure a triumph for the friends of Spain. Prudence, energy,
moderation, reason and eloquence, with a majority of the people on
their side, deserved and should have commanded success; but they could
not prevail against diplomatic influence and court intrigue. Balmes
learned with equal surprise and affliction, in the retirement of his
native mountains, that the government had resolved to offer the Queen
in marriage to the infant Don Francisco, and the infanta to the Duke
of Montpensier. This was a severe stroke to the sincere and ardent
patriotism of Balmes. He might have resisted this policy with the power
and eloquence of his pen, but he preferred a silent resignation to the
heat of political strife, and the _Pensamiento de la Nacion_, although
a lucrative publication, was discontinued on the 31st of December, 1846.
During that same year, our author collected into one volume his
various essays on politics, as well for his own vindication as for
the diffusion of sound instruction on the condition of Spain. The
following year he completed his "Elementary course of Philosophy."
But his physical strength was not equal to these arduous labors. To
re-establish in some degree his declining health, he travelled in Spain
and France, and remained several weeks in Paris. The intellectual and
moral corruption which was gnawing at the very vitals of the French
nation, and threatened all Europe with its infection, filled him with
increased anxiety. He predicted the dissolution of society, and a
return to barbarism, unless things would take some unexpected turn
through the special interposition of Providence. This last hope was
the only resource left, in his opinion, for the salvation of society
and civilization, and he exulted when he beheld Pius IX opening a new
career for Italy, and consecrating the aspirations and movements of all
who advocated legitimate reform and rational liberty. The political
ameliorations, however, of the sovereign Pontiff appeared to the
opponents of liberalism in Spain, at variance with the great opposition
which Balmes had always exhibited to the revolutionary spirit. Hence,
it became necessary for him to pay the just tribute of his admiration
to the illustrious individual who sat in the chair of Peter, and to
proclaim the eminent virtues of the prince and the pontiff. This he
did with surpassing eloquence, in a brochure entitled _Pius IX_, the
brilliant style of which is only equalled by its wisdom of thought. In
this work, he sketches with graphic pen, the acts of the papal policy,
showing that the holy see is the best guide of men in the path of
liberty and progress, that Pius IX shows a profound knowledge of the
evils that afflict society, and possesses all the energy and firmness
necessary to apply their proper remedy. Balmes was full of hope for the
future, in contemplating the course of the great head of the church,
and he cherished this hope to the last moment of his life. His essay on
the policy of Pius IX was the last production of his pen. His career
in literature was brief, but brilliant and effective. Eight years only
had elapsed since his appearance as a writer, and he had labored with
eminent success in every department of knowledge. The learned divine,
the profound philosopher, the enlightened publicist, he has stamped
upon his age the impress of his genius, and bequeathed to posterity
a rich legacy in his immortal works. In the moral as well as in the
intellectual point of view, his merit may be summed up in those words
of _Wisdom_: "Being made perfect in a short space, he fulfilled a long
time." chap. iv.
This distinguished ecclesiastic, the boast of the Spanish clergy and
the Catalan people, died at Vich, his native city, on the 9th of July,
1848, in the same spirit of lively faith and fervent piety which had
always marked his life. His funeral took place on the 11th, with all
the pomp that could be furnished by the civil and ecclesiastical
authorities. The municipality decreed that one of the public places
should be named after him.
Balmes was little below the middle height, and of weak and slender
frame. But the appearance of feeble health which he exhibited, was
combatted by the animation of his looks. His forehead and lips bore
the impress of energy, which was to be seen also in his eyes, black,
deep-set, and of unusual brightness. The expression of his countenance
was a mixture of vivacity, openness, melancholy and strength of mind.
A careful observer of all his sacerdotal duties, he found in the
practices of piety, the vigor which he displayed in his intellectual
labors. The distribution of his time was extremely methodical, and his
pleasures consisted only in the society of his friends. To the prospect
of temporal honors and the favor of the great, he was insensible;
neither did he seek after ecclesiastical dignities or literary
distinctions. His aim was the diffusion of truth, not the acquisition
of a great reputation. These qualities, however, with his eminent
talents, varied erudition, and invaluable writings, have won for him a
universal fame.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
THE NAME AND NATURE OF PROTESTANTISM, _Page_ 25
CHAPTER II.
THE CAUSES OF PROTESTANTISM.
What ought to be attributed to the genius of its founders--Different
causes assigned for it--Errors on this subject--Opinions of Guizot--Of
Bossuet--True cause of Protestantism to be found in the social
condition of European nations, 28
CHAPTER III.
EXTRAORDINARY PHENOMENON IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.
Divinity of the Catholic Church proved by its relations with the human
mind--Remarkable acknowledgment of M. Guizot--Consequences of that
acknowledgment, 38
CHAPTER IV.
PROTESTANTISM AND THE HUMAN MIND.
Protestantism contains a principle of dissolution--It tends naturally
to destroy all faith--Dangerous direction given to the human
mind--Description of the human mind, 42
CHAPTER V.
INSTINCT OF FAITH IN THE SCIENCES.
Instinct of faith--This instinct extends to all the
sciences--Newton, Descartes--Observations on the history of
philosophy--Proselytism--Present condition of the human mind, 46
CHAPTER VI.
DIFFERENT RELIGIOUS WANTS OF NATIONS--MATHEMATICS--MORAL SCIENCES.
Important error committed by Protestantism, with regard to the
religious government of the human mind, 50
CHAPTER VII.
INDIFFERENCE AND FANATICISM.
Two opposite evils, fruits of Protestantism--Origin of fanaticism--The
Church has prepared the history of the human mind--Private
interpretation of the Bible--Passage from O'Callaghan--Description of
the Bible, 53
CHAPTER VIII.
FANATICISM--ITS DEFINITION--FANATICISM IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.
Connexion between fanaticism and religious feeling--Impossibility of
destroying it--Means of diminishing it--The Church has used these
means, and with what result?--Observations on the pretended Catholic
fanatics--Description of the religious excitement of the founders of
orders in the Church, 57
CHAPTER IX.
INCREDULITY AND RELIGIOUS INDIFFERENCE IN EUROPE THE FRUITS
OF PROTESTANTISM.
Lamentable symptoms of these from the beginning of
Protestantism--Remarkable religious crisis in the latter part of the
seventeenth century--Bossuet and Leibnitz--The Jansenists--Their
influence--Dictionary of Bayle--The epoch when that work
appeared--State of opinions among the Protestants, 60
CHAPTER X.
CAUSES OF THE CONTINUED EXISTENCE OF PROTESTANTISM.
Important question with regard to the continuance of
Protestantism--Religious indifference with respect to man collectively
and individually--European societies with relation to Mahometanism and
idolatry--How Catholicity and Protestantism are capable of defending
the truth--Intimate connexion between Christianity and European
civilization, 64
CHAPTER XI.
THE POSITIVE DOCTRINES OF PROTESTANTISM ARE REPUGNANT TO THE INSTINCT
OF CIVILIZATION.
Doctrines of Protestantism divided into positive and negative--Singular
phenomenon: one of the principal dogmas of the founders of
Protestantism repugnant to European civilization--Eminent service which
Catholicity has done to civilization by defending free will--Nature of
error--Nature of truth, 68
CHAPTER XII.
EFFECTS WHICH THE INTRODUCTION OF PROTESTANTISM INTO SPAIN WOULD HAVE
PRODUCED.
Present state of religious ideas in Europe--Victories of
religion--State of science and literature--Condition of modern
society--Conjectures on the future influence of Catholicity--Is
it probable that Protestantism will be introduced into
Spain?--England--Her connexion with Spain--Pitt--Nature of religious
ideas in Spain--Situation of Spain--How she may be regenerated, 70
CHAPTER XIII.
PROTESTANTISM AND CATHOLICITY IN THEIR RELATION TO SOCIAL
PROGRESS--PRELIMINARY COUP D'ŒIL.
Commencement of the parallel--Liberty--Vague meaning of the
word--European civilization chiefly due to Catholicity--East
and West--Conjectures on the destinies of Catholicity amid the
catastrophies that may threaten in Europe--Observations on
philosophical studies--Fatalism of a certain modern historical school,
79
CHAPTER XIV.
DID THERE EXIST, AT THE TIME WHEN CHRISTIANITY APPEARED, ANOTHER
PRINCIPLE OF REGENERATION?
Condition, religious, social, and scientific, of the world at
the appearance of Christianity--Roman law--The influence of
Christian ideas thereon--Evils of the political organization of the
empire--System adopted by Christianity; her first care was to change
ideas--Christianity and Paganism with regard to the teaching of moral
doctrines--Protestant preaching, 84
CHAPTER XV.
DIFFICULTIES WHICH CHRISTIANITY HAD TO OVERCOME IN THE WORK OF SOCIAL
REGENERATION--SLAVERY--COULD IT HAVE BEEN DESTROYED MORE SPEEDILY THAN
IT WAS BY CHRISTIANITY?
The Church was not only a great and productive school, but she was
also a regenerating association--What she had to do--Difficulties
which she had to overcome--Slavery--By whom was it abolished?--Opinion
of M. Guizot--Immense number of the slaves--Caution necessary in the
abolition of slavery--Was immediate abolition possible?--Refutation of
the opinion of M. Guizot, 90
CHAPTER XVI.
IDEAS AND MANNERS OF ANTIQUITY RESPECTING SLAVERY--THE CHURCH BEGINS
BY IMPROVING THE CONDITION OF SLAVES.
The Catholic Church not only employs her doctrines, her maxims, and
her spirit of charity, but also makes use of practical means in
the abolition of slavery--Point of view in which this historical
fact ought to be considered--False ideas of the ancients on the
subject--Homer, Plato, Aristotle--Christianity began forthwith to
combat these errors--Christian doctrines on the connexion between
master and slave--The Church employs herself in improving the
condition of slaves, 94
CHAPTER XVII.
MEANS USED BY THE CHURCH TO ENFRANCHISE SLAVES.
1st. She zealously defends the liberty of the
enfranchised--Manumission in the churches--Effects of this
practice--2d. Redemption of captives--Zeal of the Church in practising
and extending the redemption of captives--Prejudices of the Romans on
this point--The zeal of the Church for this object contributes, in an
extraordinary degree, to the abolition of slavery--The Church protects
the liberty of the free, 102
CHAPTER XVIII.
CONTINUATION OF THE SAME SUBJECT.
3d. System of the Church with regard to slaves belonging to
Jews--Motives which actuated the Church in the enfranchisement of
her own slaves--Her indulgence to them--Her generosity towards
the freed--The slaves of the Church considered as consecrated to
God--Salutary effects of this way of viewing them--4th. Liberty is
granted to those who wish to embrace the monastic state--Effects of
this practice--Conduct of the Church with regard to the ordination of
slaves--Abuses introduced in this respect checked--Discipline of the
Spanish Church on this point, 106
CHAPTER XIX.
DOCTRINES OF ST. AUGUSTIN AND ST. THOMAS OF AQUIN ON THE SUBJECT OF
SLAVERY--RECAPITULATION.
Doctrine of St. Augustin on this subject--Importance of this
doctrine with respect to the abolition of slavery--Refutation of
M. Guizot--Doctrine of St. Thomas on the same subject--Marriage
of slaves--Regulation of canon law on that subject--Résumé of the
means employed by the Church in the abolition of slavery--Refutation
of M. Guizot--The abolition of slavery exclusively due to
Catholicity--Protestantism had no share therein, 111
CHAPTER XX.
CONTRAST BETWEEN THE TWO KINDS OF CIVILIZATION.
Picture of modern civilization--Civilizations not
Christian--Civilization is composed of three elements: the individual,
the family, and the society--The perfectness of these three elements
depends on the perfectness of doctrines, 115
CHAPTER XXI.
OF THE INDIVIDUAL--OF THE FEELING OF INDIVIDUALITY OUT OF
CHRISTIANITY.
Distinction between the individual and the citizen--Of the
individuality of barbarians according to M. Guizot--Whether
in antiquity individuality belonged exclusively to the
barbarians--Twofold principle of the feeling of personal
independence--This feeling infinitely modified--Picture of barbarian
life--True character of individuality among the barbarians--Avowal of
M. Guizot--The feeling of individuality, according to the definition
of M. Guizot, belongs in a certain way to all the ancient nations,
118
CHAPTER XXII.
HOW THE INDIVIDUAL BECAME ABSORBED BY THE ANCIENT SOCIETY.
Respect for _man_ unknown to the ancients--What has been seen
in modern revolutions--Tyranny of public power over private
interests--Explanation of a twofold phenomenon, which presents itself
to us in antiquity and in modern societies not Christian--Opinion of
Aristotle--Remarkable characteristic of modern democracy, 126
CHAPTER XXIII.
OF THE PROGRESS OF INDIVIDUALITY UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF CATHOLICITY.
The feeling of true independence was possessed by the faithful of the
primitive Church--Error of M. Guizot on this point: 1st, dignity of
conscience sustained by the Christian society; 2d, feeling of duty;
language of St. Cyprian; 3d, development of the interior life; 4th,
defence of free will by the Catholic Church--Conclusion, 131
CHAPTER XXIV.
OF THE FAMILY--MONOGAMY--MARRIAGE-TIE INDISSOLUBLE.
Woman ennobled by Catholicity alone--Practical means employed by
the Church to raise woman--Christian doctrine on the dignity of
woman--Monogamy--Different conduct of Catholicity and Protestantism on
this point--Firmness of Rome with respect to marriage--Effects of that
firmness--Doctrine of Luther--Indissolubility of marriage--Of divorce
among Protestants--Effects of Catholic doctrine with regard to this
sacrament, 135
CHAPTER XXV.
THE PASSION OF LOVE.
Pretended rigor of Catholicity with respect to unhappy marriages--Two
systems of governing the passions--Protestant system--Catholic
system--Examples--Passion of gambling--Explosion of the passions
in time of public troubles--Of the passion of love--Its
inconstancy--Marriage alone is not a sufficient control--What is
wanted to make it a control--Of the unity and fixity of Catholic
doctrine--Conclusion, 140
CHAPTER XXVI.
OF VIRGINITY IN ITS SOCIAL ASPECT.
Of the ennoblement of woman by virginity--Conduct of Protestantism on
this point--Close analysis of the heart of woman--Of virginity with
respect to population--England--Serious thoughts required for the mind
of woman--Salutary influence of monastic customs--General method of
appreciation, 146
CHAPTER XXVII.
OF CHIVALRY, AND THE MANNERS OF THE BARBARIANS IN THEIR INFLUENCE ON
THE CONDITION OF WOMAN.
The life of feudal lords according to M. Guizot--The passions and
faith in chivalry--Chivalry did not ennoble woman, it supposed her
to be ennobled--Of the respect of the Germans for woman--Analysis
of a passage of Tacitus--Reflections on that historian--It is
difficult thoroughly to understand the manners of the Germans--Action
of Catholicity--Important distinction between Christianity and
Catholicity--That the Germans of themselves were incapable of giving
dignity to woman, 150
CHAPTER XXVIII.
OF THE PUBLIC CONSCIENCE IN GENERAL.
What the public conscience is--Influence of the feelings on the
public conscience in general--Education contributes to form the
conscience--State of the public conscience in modern times--What has
been able to form the public conscience in Europe--Successive contests
maintained by Christian morality, 157
CHAPTER XXIX.
OF THE PRINCIPLE OF THE PUBLIC CONSCIENCE ACCORDING TO
MONTESQUIEU--HONOR--VIRTUE.
Institution of censors according to Montesquieu--Two kinds of
prejudice in the author of the _Esprit des Lois_--He assigns
honor as the principle of monarchies, and virtue as that of
republics--Explanation of the feeling of honor--What is required
to strengthen this feeling--The censorial power replaced by the
religious--Examples--Contrasts, 161
CHAPTER XXX.
ON THE DIFFERENT INFLUENCE OF PROTESTANTISM AND CATHOLICITY ON THE
PUBLIC CONSCIENCE.
Catholicity considered as a creed--As an institution--Ideas, in
order to be efficacious, must be realized in an institution--What
Protestantism has done to destroy Christian morality--What it has
done to preserve it--What is the real power of preaching among
Protestants--Of the sacrament of penance with relation to the public
conscience--Of the degree to which the Catholic religion raises
morality--Of unity in the soul--Unity simplifies--Of the great
number of moralists within the bosom of the Catholic Church--Of the
peculiar force of ideas--Distinction between ideas with respect to
their peculiar force--Whether the human race is a faithful depositary
of the truth--How the truth has been preserved among the Jews--The
native power of Schools--Institutions are required, not only to
teach, but also to apply doctrines--Of the press with relation to the
preservation of ideas--Of intuition--Of discourses, 165
CHAPTER XXXI.
OF GENTLENESS OF MANNERS IN GENERAL.
Wherein gentleness of manners consists--Difference between gentle
and effeminate manners--Influence of the Catholic Church in
softening manners--Pagan and Christian societies--Slavery--Paternal
authority--Public games--Reflections on Spanish bull-fights, 172
CHAPTER XXXII.
OF THE AMELIORATION OF MANNERS BY THE ACTION OF THE CHURCH.
Elements adapted to perpetuate harshness of manners in the bosom of
modern society--Conduct of the Church in this respect--Remarkable
canons and facts--St. Ambrose and the Emperor Theodosius--The Truce of
God--Very remarkable regulations of the ecclesiastical authority on
this subject, 175
CHAPTER XXXIII.
OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF PUBLIC BENEFICENCE IN EUROPE.
Difference between Protestantism and Catholicity with respect to
public beneficence--Paradox of Montesquieu--Remarkable canons of the
Church--Injury done by Protestantism to the development of public
beneficence--The value of philanthropy, 184
CHAPTER XXXIV.
OF TOLERANCE IN MATTERS OF RELIGION.
The question of intolerance has been examined with bad faith--What
tolerance is--Tolerance of opinions--Of error--Tolerance in the
individual--With religious men--With unbelievers--Two kinds of
religious men--Two kinds of unbelievers--Tolerance in society--What
is its origin?--Source of the tolerance which prevails in society at
present, 189
CHAPTER XXXV.
OF THE RIGHT OF COERCION IN GENERAL.
Intolerance is a general fact in history--Dialogues with the
partisans of universal tolerance--Does there exist a right
of punishing doctrines?--Researches into the origin of that
right--Disastrous influence of Protestantism and infidelity in this
matter--Of the importance which Catholicity attaches to the sin of
heresy--Inconsistency of certain timid Voltairians--Another reflection
on the right of punishing doctrines--Résumé, 196
CHAPTER XXXVI.
OF THE INQUISITION IN SPAIN.
Institutions and legislation founded on intolerance--Causes of the
rigor displayed in the early times of the Inquisition--Three epochs in
the history of the Inquisition in Spain: against the Jews and Moors;
against the Protestants; against the unbelievers--Severities of the
Inquisition--Causes of those severities--Conduct of the Popes in that
matter--Mildness of the Roman Inquisition--The intolerance of Luther
with respect to the Jews--The Moors and Moriscoes, 203
CHAPTER XXXVII.
SECOND PERIOD OF THE INQUISITION IN SPAIN.
New Inquisition attributed to Philip II.--Opinion of M.
Lacordaire--Prejudice against Philip II.--Observations on the work
called _Inquisition Dévoilée_--Rapid _coup d'œil_ at the
second epoch of the Inquisition--Trial of Carranza--Observation on
this trial, and on the personal qualities of the illustrious
accused--Why there is so much partiality against Philip II.--Reflections
on the policy of that monarch--Singular anecdote of a preacher who was
compelled to retract--Reflections on the influence of the spirit of the
age, 210
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS IN THEMSELVES.
Conduct of Protestantism with respect to religious
institutions--Whether these institutions have been of importance
in history--Sophism on the subject of the real origin of religious
institutions--Their correct definition--Of association among the early
faithful--The faithful dispersed in the deserts--Relations between the
Papacy and religious institutions--Of an essential want of the human
heart--Of Christian pensiveness--Of the need of associations for the
practice of perfection--Of vows--A vow is the most perfect act of
liberty--True notion of liberty, 219
CHAPTER XXXIX.
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS IN HISTORY--THE EARLY SOLITARIES.
Character of religious institutions in a historical point of view--The
Roman empire--The barbarians--The early Christians--Condition of the
Church when Christianity ascended the throne of the Cæsars--Life of
the fathers of the desert--Influence of the solitaries on philosophy
and manners--The heroism of penance saves morality--The most
corrupting climate chosen for the triumph of the most austere virtues,
229
CHAPTER XL.
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS IN THE EAST.
Influence of monasteries in the East--Why civilization triumphed
in the West and perished in the East--Influence of the Eastern
monasteries on Arabian civilization, 234
CHAPTER XLI.
RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS IN THE HISTORY OF THE WEST.
Peculiar character of religious institutions in the West--St.
Benedict--Struggle of the monks against the decline of things--Origin
of monastic property--The possessions of the monks serve to
create respect for property--Population becomes spread over the
country--Science and letters in cloisters Gratian--arouses the study
of law, 238
CHAPTER XLII.
OF RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS DURING THE SECOND HALF OF THE MIDDLE AGES IN
THE WEST--THE MILITARY ORDERS.
Character of the military orders--Opinion of the Crusades--The
foundation of the military orders is a continuation of the Crusades,
242
CHAPTER XLIII.
CONTINUATION OF THE SAME SUBJECT--EUROPE IN THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY.
Transformation of the monastic spirit in the thirteenth
century--Religious institutions arise every where--Character of
European opposed to that of other civilizations--Mixture of various
elements in the spirit of the thirteenth century--Semi-barbarous
society--Christianity and barbarism--A delusion common in the study
of history--Condition of Europe at the beginning of the thirteenth
century--Wars become more popular--Why the intellectual movement
began in Spain sooner than in the rest of Europe--Ebullition of
evil during the course of the twelfth century--Tanchème--Eon--The
Manichees--Vaudois--Religious movement at the beginning of the
thirteenth century--The mendicant and preaching orders--The character
of these orders--Their influence--Their relations with the Papacy,
244
CHAPTER XLIV.
RELIGIOUS ORDERS FOR THE REDEMPTION OF CAPTIVES.
Multitude of Christians reduced to slavery--Religious orders for the
redemption of captives were necessary--The Order of the Trinity and
that of Mercy--St. Peter Armengol, 256
CHAPTER XLV.
UNIVERSAL ADVANCE OF CIVILIZATION IMPEDED BY PROTESTANTISM.
Effects of Protestantism on the progress of civilization in the world,
beginning with the sixteenth century--What enabled civilization,
during the middle ages, to triumph over barbarism--Picture of Europe
at the beginning of the sixteenth century--The civilizing missions
of the 16th century interrupted by the schism of Luther--Why the
action of the Church on barbarous nations has lost power during
three centuries--Whether the Christianity of our days is less
adapted to propagate the faith than that of the early ages of the
Church--Christian missions in the early times of the Church--What the
real mission of Luther has been, 260
CHAPTER XLVI.
THE JESUITS.
Their importance in the history of European civilization--Causes of
the hatred which has been excited against them--Character of the
Jesuits--Contradiction of M. Guizot on this subject--Whether it be
true, as M. Guizot says, that the Jesuits have destroyed nations in
Spain--Facts and dates--Unjust accusations against the Company of
Jesus, 268
CHAPTER XLVII.
THE FUTURE OF RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS--THEIR PRESENT NECESSITY.
Present state of religious institutions--Picture of society--Inability
of industry and commerce to satisfy the heart of man--Condition
of minds with respect to religion--Religious institutions will
be necessary to save existing society--Nothing fixed in that
society--Means are wanting for social organization--The march of
European nations has been perverted--Physical means of restraining the
masses--Moral means are required--Religious institutions reconcilable
with the advancement of modern times, 274
CHAPTER XLVIII.
RELIGION AND LIBERTY.
Rousseau--The Protestants Divine law--Origin of power--False
interpretation of the divine law--St. John Chrysostom--On paternal
authority--Relations between paternal authority and civil power,
281
CHAPTER XLIX.
THE ORIGIN OF SOCIETY, ACCORDING TO CATHOLIC THEOLOGIANS.
Doctrines of theologians on the origin of society--The character
of Catholic theologians compared to that of modern writers--St.
Thomas--Bellarmin--Suarez--St. Alphonsus de Liguori--Father
Concina--Billuart--The _Compendium_ of Salamanca, 288
CHAPTER L.
OF DIVINE LAW, ACCORDING TO CATHOLIC DOCTORS.
On the divine law--Divine origin of civil power--In what manner
God communicates this power--Rousseau--On pacts--The right of life
and death--The right of war--Power must necessarily emanate from
God--Puffendorf--Hobbes, 298
CHAPTER LI.
THE TRANSMISSION OF POWER, ACCORDING TO CATHOLIC DOCTORS.
_Direct_ or _indirect_ communication of civil power--The
distinction between the two opinions important in some respects; in
others, not so--Why Catholic theologians have so zealously maintained
the doctrine of mediate communication, 305
CHAPTER LII.
ON THE FREEDOM OF LANGUAGE UNDER THE SPANISH MONARCHY.
Influence of doctrines on society--Flattery lavished on power--Danger
of this flattery--Liberty of speech on this point in Spain during the
last three centuries--Mariana--Saavedra--In the absence of religion
and morality, the most rigorous political doctrines are incapable
of saving society--Why the conservative schools of our days are
powerless--Seneca--Cicero--Hobbes--Bellarmin, 311
CHAPTER LIII.
OF THE FACULTIES OF THE CIVIL POWER.
Of the faculties of civil power--Calumnies of the enemies of the
Church--Definition of _law_ according to St. Thomas--General reason
and general will--The venerable Palafox--Hobbes--Grotius--The
doctrines of certain Protestants favorable to despotism--Justification
of the Catholic Church, 317
CHAPTER LIV.
ON RESISTANCE TO THE CIVIL POWER.
Of resistance to the civil power--Parallel between Protestantism
and Catholicity on this point--Unfounded apprehensions of certain
minds--Attitude of revolutions in this age--The principle
inculcated by Catholicity on the obligation of obeying the lawful
authorities--Preliminary questions--Difference between the two
powers--Conduct of Catholicity and Protestantism with regard to the
separation of the two powers--The independence of the spiritual
power a guarantee of liberty to the people--Extremes which meet--The
doctrine of St. Thomas on obedience, 324
CHAPTER LV.
ON RESISTANCE TO DE FACTO GOVERNMENTS.
Governments existing merely _de facto_--Right of resistance to
these governments--Napoleon and the Spanish nation--Fallacy of the
doctrine establishing the obligation of obedience to mere _de facto_
governments--Investigation of certain difficulties--Accomplished
facts--How we are to understand the respect due to accomplished facts,
330
CHAPTER LVI.
HOW IT IS ALLOWED TO RESIST THE CIVIL POWER.
On resistance to lawful authority--The doctrines of the Council
of Constance on the assassination of a king--A reflection on the
inviolability of kings--Extreme cases--Doctrine of St. Thomas of
Aquin, Cardinal Bellarmin, Suarez, and other theologians--The Abbé
de Lamennais' errors--He is wrong in imagining that his doctrine,
condemned by the Pope, is the same as St. Thomas of Aquin's--A
parallel between the doctrines of St. Thomas and those of the Abbé
de Lamennais--A word on the temporal power of the Popes--Ancient
doctrines on resistance to power--Language of the Counsellors of
Barcelona--The doctrine of certain theologians on the case of the
Sovereign Pontiff's falling into heresy in his private capacity--Why
the Church has been calumniously accused of being sometimes favorable
to despotism, and sometimes to anarchy, 336
CHAPTER LVII.
ON POLITICAL SOCIETY IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The Church and political forms--Protestantism and liberty--Language of
M. Guizot--The state of the question better defined--Europe at the end
of the fifteenth century--Social aristocracy, and democracy, 343
CHAPTER LVIII.
ON MONARCHY IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The idea entertained of monarchy at this period--The application of
this idea--Difference between monarchy and despotism--The nature of
monarchy at the commencement of the sixteenth century--Its relations
with the Church, 346
CHAPTER LIX.
ON ARISTOCRACY IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The nobility and the clergy--The differences between these two
aristocracies--The nobility and monarchy--Differences between them--An
intermediate class between the throne and the people--The causes of
the fall of the nobility, 348
CHAPTER LX.
ON DEMOCRACY IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
The opinion entertained of democracy--The prevailing doctrines
of that epoch--The doctrines of Aristotle neutralised by the
teaching of Christianity--On castes--A passage from M. Guizot on
castes--Influence of the celibacy of the clergy in preventing an
hereditary succession--The consequences resulting from a married
clergy--Catholicity and the people--Development of the industrial
classes in Europe--The Hanseatic Confederation--_Establishment of
the trades-corporations of Paris_--Industrial movement in Italy and
Spain--Calvinism and the democratic element--Protestantism and the
democrats of the sixteenth century, 350
CHAPTER LXI.
VALUE OF DIFFERENT POLITICAL FORMS--CHARACTER OF MONARCHY IN EUROPE.
Value of political forms--Catholicity and liberty--Monarchy was
essential--Character of European monarchy--Difference between
Europe and Asia--Quotation from Count de Maistre--An institution
for the limiting of power--Political liberty not indebted to
Protestantism--Influence of Councils--The aristocracy of talent
encouraged by the Church, 356
CHAPTER LXII.
HOW MONARCHY WAS STRENGTHENED IN EUROPE.
Monarchy in the sixteenth century is strengthened in Europe--Its
preponderance over free institutions--Why the word _liberty_ is a
scandal to some people--Protestantism contributed to the destruction
of popular institutions, 361
CHAPTER LXIII.
TWO SORTS OF DEMOCRACY.
Two sorts of democracy--Their parallel march in the history
of Europe--Their characters--Their causes and effects--Why
absolutism became necessary in Europe--Historical
facts--France--England--Sweden--Denmark--Germany, 364
CHAPTER LXIV.
CONTEST BETWEEN THE THREE SOCIAL ELEMENTS.
Contest between monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy--How monarchy
came to prevail--Fatal effects of the weakening of the political
influence of the clergy--Advantages which might have arisen from this
influence to popular institutions--Relations of the clergy with all
powers and classes of society, 370
CHAPTER LXV.
POLITICAL DOCTRINES BEFORE THE APPEARANCE OF PROTESTANTISM.
Parallel between the political doctrines of the eighteenth century,
those of modern publicists, and those which prevailed in Europe before
the appearance of Protestantism--Protestantism has prevented the
homogeneity of European civilization--Historical proofs, 374
CHAPTER LXVI.
OF POLITICAL DOCTRINES IN SPAIN.
Catholicity and politics in Spain--Real state of the question--Five
causes contributed to the overthrow of popular institutions in
Spain--Difference between ancient and modern liberty--The _Communeros_
of Castille--The policy of her kings--Ferdinand the Catholic and
Ximenes--Charles V.--Philip II., 377
CHAPTER LXVII.
POLITICAL LIBERTY AND RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE.
Political liberty and religious intolerance--Europe was developed
under the exclusive influence of Catholicity--Picture of Europe from
the eleventh to the fourteenth century--Condition of the social
problem at the end of the fifteenth century--Temporal power of the
Popes--Its character, origin, and effects, 382
CHAPTER LXVIII.
UNITY IN FAITH RECONCILED WITH POLITICAL LIBERTY.
It is false that unity of faith is opposed to political
liberty--Impiety is allied with liberty or despotism, according to
circumstances--Modern revolutions--Difference between the revolution
of the United States and that of France--Pernicious effects of the
French revolution--Liberty impossible without morality--Remarkable
passage from St. Augustin on forms of government, 388
CHAPTER LXIX.
INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF CATHOLICITY.
Catholicity in its relations with intellectual development--What
is the influence of the principle of submission to
authority--What are the effects of this principle with
respect to all the sciences--Parallel between ancients and
moderns--God--Man--Society--Nature, 392
CHAPTER LXX.
HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT.
Historical investigation of the influence of Catholicity on the
development of the human mind--Refutation of one of M. Guizot's
opinions--John Erigena--Roscelin and Abelard--St. Anselm, 398
CHAPTER LXXI.
RELIGION AND THE HUMAN INTELLECT IN EUROPE.
Religion and the human intellect in Europe--Difference between the
intellectual development of the nations of antiquity and those
of Europeans--Causes that have accelerated this development in
Europe--Origin of the spirit of subtilty--Service which the Church
rendered to the human mind by her opposition to the subtilties of the
innovators--Parallel between Roscelin and St. Anselm--Reflections on
St. Bernard--St. Thomas of Aquin--Advantage of his dictatorship in the
schools--Advent of St. Thomas in the middle ages of immense advantage
to me human mind, 404
CHAPTER LXXII.
PROGRESS OF THE HUMAN MIND FROM THE ELEVENTH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT
TIME.
Progress of the human mind from the eleventh century to our own
times--Different phases--Protestantism and Catholicity in their
relations to learning, to criticism, to the learned languages, to the
foundation of universities, to the progress of literature and the
arts, to mysticism, to high philosophy, to metaphysics, to ethics, to
religious philosophy, and to the philosophy of history, 412
CHAPTER LXXIII.
SUMMARY OF THE WORK--DECLARATION OF THE AUTHOR.
Summary of the work--The author submits it to the judgment of the
Roman Church, 419
NOTES
APPENDIX
INDEX
TABLE OF NOTES.
NOTE PAGE
1 421. Gibbon and Bossuet's History of the Variations.
2 421. Intolerance of Luther and the other Coryphæi of
Protestantism.
3 421. Origin of the name Protestantism.
4 422. Observations on names.
5 422. Of abuses in the Church.
6 423. Of the unity and harmonious action of Catholicism--Happy
idea of St. Francis of Sales.
7 423. Acknowledgments of the most distinguished Protestants with
regard to its weakness--Luther, Melancthon, Beza, Calvin,
Grotius, Papin, Puffendorf and Leibnitz--Of a posthumous
work by Leibnitz on religion.
8 424. On human knowledge--Louis Vives.
9 425. On mathematics--Eximeno, a Spanish Jesuit.
10 425. Heresies of the early ages--their character.
11 425. Superstition and fanaticism of Protestantism--Luther's devil,
Zwinglius's phantom, Melancthon's prognostics, Mathias
Harlem, the Tailor of Leyden, King of Sion; Hermann, Nicholas
Hacket, and others, visionaries and fanatics.
12 427. Visions of Catholics--St. Theresa, her visions.
13 428. Bad faith of the founders of Protestantism--Passages proving
this--Ravages committed by incredulity after that
time--Gruet--Remarkable passages from Montaigne.
14 429. Extravagance of the early heresies, a proof of the state of
knowledge in those times.
15 430. Canons and other documents which shew the solicitude of the
Church to improve the lot of slaves, and the various means
which she used to complete the abolition of slavery.
§ 1. Canons intended to improve the lot of slaves.
§ 2. Canons intended to defend the freed, and to protect
those who were recommended to the Church.
§ 3. Canons and other documents relating to the redemption
of captives.
§ 4. Canons relating to the protection of the freed.
436. § 5. Canons concerning the slaves of Jews.
§ 6. Canons concerning the enfranchisement of the slaves of
the Church.
§ 7. Conduct of the Church with regard to modern
slavery--Apostolic letters of St. Gregory XVI.--Slave
trade--Doctrine, conduct, and influence of the Church
with regard to the abolition of the trade, and of
slavery in the Colonies--Passage from Robertson.
16 442. Doctrines of Plato and Aristotle touching infanticide--Their
doctrine on the rights of society.
17 444. Degradation of woman in ancient times, especially in Rome.
18 444. The Germans of Tacitus judged according to subsequent events.
19 445. Corruption of ancient manners.
20 445. Different opinions of religion and philosophy on the power of
ideas--How far it is true that every idea requires an
institution.
21 446. Christianity is still in our days the source of mildness of
manners.
22 447. Influence of the Church on barbarian legislation--Councils of
Toledo--What the indulgence of the criminal code among the
barbarians proves.
23 449. Constant intervention of the Church in the administration of
public beneficence--Regulations of the Council of Trent on
this subject--Property of hospitals considered as that of the
Church.
24 450. Reference to the following note.
25 450. Distinction between civil and religious intolerance--Error of
Rousseau on this point--False doctrine of the _Contrat
Social_.
26 452. Passages from old laws relative to the Inquisition--Pragmatic
sanction of Ferdinand and Isabella--Laws of Philip II. and
III.--Pragmatic sanction of Ferdinand and Isabella concerning
the relations of the Spanish Inquisition with Rome--Passage
from Don Antonio Perez, which mentions the anecdote of the
preacher at Madrid--Letter from Phillip II. to Arias Montano,
on the subject of the library of the Escurial.
26 456. (_Appendix._) A few words on Puigblanch, Villeneuve, and
Llorente.
27 458. Religious institutions in an historical point of view--Last
_coup-d'œil_ at their origin and development--Details with
respect to the vow of chastity which virgins and widows made
in the early ages of the Church.
28 459. Remarkable texts explaining the passage of St. Paul in the
13th chapter of his Epistle to the Romans--Cicero--Horace.
29 462. A remarkable fact.
30 463. Quotations from P. Fr. John de Ste.-Marie, and from
P. Zeballos.
31 470. St. Thomas reminds princes of their duties.
32 471. The opinion of D. Felix d'Amat, bishop of Palmyra, on the
obedience due to _de facto_ governments.
33 471. Remarkable passages from St. Thomas and Suarez, on the
disputes which may arise between governors and the
governed--Father Marquez on the same subject.
34 475. Charter of _Hermandad_ between the kingdoms of Leon and
Galicia and that of Castille, for the preservation and
defence of their _fueros_ and liberties.
35 476. A remarkable passage from Capmany on the organization of the
industrial classes--The origin and salutary effects of the
institution of trades-corporation.
36 480. Reflections of Count de Maistre on the causes which render
the celebration of General Councils less frequent.
37 480. Indication of historical sources for the confirmation of
certain facts.
38 480. Texts of St. Thomas on political forms--Other texts of
St. Thomas to prove that the law, and not the will of man,
should govern--Opinions of P. Mariana--Opinions of the
venerable Palafox on the subject of imposts, taken from his
Memoir to the King--Severe language of the same author
against tyranny and those who advise or excuse it--Passage
from P. Marquez on the right of levying tributes in general;
its particular application to Castile--The opinion of the
same author relative to the right of the supreme authority to
the property of its subjects--A case in which, according to
him, that authority may dispose of this property.
39 484. Reference to historical sources to ascertain the march of the
development of monarchical power in the different provinces
of Spain.
40 484. A just observation of Count de Maistre on the conduct of the
Popes compared to that of other sovereigns.
41 485. Passages in which St. Anselm expounds his views on religious
subjects--Intellectual movement arising in the bosom of the
Church without transgressing the bounds of faith--Another
passage proving that the demonstration applied by Descartes
to the existence of God had been discovered by
St. Anselm--Corroborative Documents in support of a
refutation of M. Guizot's errors on the doctrines of Abelard.
PROTESTANTISM COMPARED WITH CATHOLICITY.
CHAPTER I.
NAME AND NATURE OF PROTESTANTISM.
There is a fact in existence among civilized nations, very important
on account of the nature of the things which it affects--a fact of
transcendent importance, on account of the number, variety, and
consequence of its influences--a fact extremely interesting, because it
is connected with the principal events of modern history. This fact is
Protestantism.
Like a clap of thunder, it attracted at once the attention of all
Europe; on one side it spread alarm, and on the other excited the most
lively sympathy: it grew so rapidly, that its adversaries had not time
to strangle it in its cradle. Scarcely had it begun to exist, and
already all hope of stopping, or even restraining it, was gone; when,
emboldened by being treated with respect and consideration, it became
every day more daring; if exasperated by rigour, it openly resisted
measures of coercion, or redoubled and concentrated its forces, to
make more vigorous attacks. Discussions, the profound investigations
and scientific methods which were used in combating it, contributed to
develop the spirit of inquiry, and served as vehicles to propagate its
ideas.
By creating new and prevailing interests, it made itself powerful
protectors; by throwing all the passions into a state of fury, it
aroused them in its favor. It availed itself, by turns, of stratagem,
force, seduction, or violence, according to the exigencies of times and
circumstances. It attempted to make its way in all directions; either
destroying impediments, or taking advantage of them, if they were
capable of being turned to account.
When introduced into a country, it never rested until it had obtained
guarantees for its continued existence; and it succeeded in doing so
everywhere. After having obtained vast establishments in Europe--which
it still retains--it was transported into other parts of the world, and
infused into the veins of simple and unsuspecting nations.
In order to appreciate a fact at its just value, to embrace it in
all its relations, and to distinguish properly between them, it is
necessary to examine whether the constituting principle of the fact can
be ascertained, or at least whether we can observe in its appearance
any characteristic trait capable of revealing its inward nature.
This examination is very difficult when we have to do with a fact of
the kind and importance of that which now occupies our attention. In
matters of this sort, numbers of opinions accumulate in the course of
time, in favor of all which arguments have been sought. The inquirer,
in the midst of so many and such various objects, is perplexed,
disconcerted, and confounded; and if he wish to place himself in a
more advantageous point of view, he finds the ground so covered with
fragments, that he cannot make his way without risk of losing himself
at every step.
The first glance which we give to Protestantism, whether we consider
its actual condition, or whether we regard the various phases of its
history, shows us that it is very difficult to find any thing constant
in it, any thing which can be assigned as its constituent character.
Uncertain in its opinions, it modifies them continually, and changes
them in a thousand ways. Vague in its tendencies, and fluctuating in
its desires, it attempts every form, and essays every road. It can
never attain to a well-defined existence; and we see it every moment
enter new paths, to lose itself in new labyrinths.
Catholic controversialists have pursued and assailed it in every
way; ask them what has been the result? They will tell you that they
had to contend with a new Proteus, which always escaped the fatal
blow by changing its form. If you wish to assail the doctrines of
Protestantism, you do not know where to direct your attacks, for
they are unknown to you, and even to itself. On this side it is
invulnerable, because it has no tangible body. Thus, no more powerful
argument has ever been urged, than that of the immortal Bishop of
Meaux--viz. "You change; and that which changes is not the truth." An
argument much feared by Protestantism, and with justice; because all
the various forms which are assumed to evade its force, only serve to
strengthen it. How just is the expression of that great man! At the
very title of his book, Protestantism must tremble: The History of the
Variations! A history of variations must be a history of error. (See
note [1] at the end of the vol.)
These unceasing changes, which we ought not to be surprised at finding
in Protestantism, because they essentially belong to it, show us
that it is not in possession of the truth; they show us also, that
its moving principle is not a principle of life, but an element of
dissolution. It has been called upon, and up to this time in vain, to
fix itself, and to present a compact and uniform body. How can that be
fixed, which is, by its nature, kept floating about in the air? How can
a solid body be formed of an element, the essential tendency of which
is towards an incessant division of particles, by diminishing their
reciprocal affinity, and increasing their repellent force?
It will easily be seen that I speak of the right of private judgment in
matters of faith, whether it be looked upon as a matter of human reason
alone, or as an individual inspiration from heaven.
If there be any thing constant in Protestantism, it is undoubtedly
the substitution of private judgment for public and lawful authority.
This is always found in union with it, and is, properly speaking,
its fundamental principle: it is the only point of contact among the
various Protestant sects,--the basis of their mutual resemblance. It is
very remarkable that this exists, for the most part, unintentionally,
and sometimes against their express wishes.
However lamentable and disastrous this principle may be, if the
coryphæi of Protestantism had made it their rallying point, and had
constantly acted up to it in theory and practice, they would have
been consistent in error. When men saw them cast into one abyss after
another, they would have recognised a system,--false undoubtedly;
but, at any rate, a system. As it is, it has not been even that: if
you examine the words and the acts of the first Reformers, you will
find that they made use of this principle as a means of resisting
the authority which controlled them, but that they never dreamed of
establishing it permanently; that if they labored to upset lawful
authority, it was for the purpose of usurping the command themselves;
that is to say, that they followed, in this respect, the example
of revolutionists of all kinds, of all ages, and of all countries.
Everybody knows how far Luther carried his fanatical intolerance; he
who could not bear the slightest contradiction, either from his own
disciples or anybody else, without giving way to the most senseless
fits of passion, and the most unworthy outrages. Henry VIII. of
England, who founded there what is called the liberty of thinking, sent
to the scaffold those who did not think as he did; and it was at the
instigation of Calvin that Servetus was burnt alive at Geneva.
I insist upon this point, because it seems to me to be of great
importance. Men are but too much inclined to pride; and if they heard
it constantly repeated, without contradiction, that the innovators
of the sixteenth century proclaimed the freedom of thought, a secret
interest might be excited in their favor; their violent declamations
might be regarded as the expressions of a generous movement, and
their efforts as a noble attempt to assert the rights of intellectual
freedom. Let it be known, never to be forgotten, that if these men
proclaimed the principle of free examination, it was for the purpose of
making use of it against legitimate authority; but that they attempted,
as soon as they could, to impose upon others the yoke of their own
opinions. Their constant endeavour was, to destroy the authority which
came from God, in order to establish their own upon its ruins. It is
a painful necessity to be obliged to give proofs of this assertion;
not because they are difficult to find, but because one cannot adduce
the most incontestable of them without calling to mind words and deeds
which not only cover with disgrace the founders of Protestantism, but
are of such a nature, that they cannot be mentioned without a blush on
the cheek, or written without a stain upon the paper.[2]
Protestantism, when viewed in a mass, appears only a shapeless
collection of innumerable sects, all opposed to each other, and
agreeing only in one point, viz. in protesting against the authority
of the Church. We only find among them particular and exclusive names,
commonly taken from the names of their founders; in vain have they made
a thousand efforts to give themselves a general name expressive of a
positive idea; they are still called after the manner of philosophical
sects. Lutherans, Calvinists, Zuinglians, Anglicans, Socinians,
Arminians, Anabaptists, all these names, of which I could furnish an
endless host, only serve to exhibit the narrowness of the circle in
which these sects are enclosed; and it is only necessary to pronounce
them, to show that they contain nothing universal, nothing great.
Everybody who knows any thing of the Christian religion must be
convinced by this fact alone, that these sects are not truly Christian.
But what occurred when Protestantism attempted to take a general name,
is singularly remarkable. If you examine its history, you will see
that all the names which it attempted to give itself failed, if they
contained any positive idea, or any mark of Christianity; but that it
adopted a name taken by chance at the Diet of Spires; a name which
carries with it its own condemnation, because it is repugnant to the
origin, to the spirit, to the maxims, to the entire history of the
Christian religion; a name which does not express that unity--that
union which is inseparably connected with the Christian name; a name
which is peculiarly becoming to it, which all the world gives to it by
acclamation, which is truly its own--viz. _Protestantism_.[3]
Within the vast limits marked out by this name, there is room for
every error and for every sect. You may deny with the Lutherans the
liberty of man, or renew with the Arminians the errors of Pelagius. You
may admit with some that real presence, which you are free to reject
with the Calvinists and Zuinglians; you may join with the Socinians
in denying the divinity of Jesus Christ; you may attach yourself to
Episcopalians, to Puritans, or, if you please, to the extravagances
of the Quakers; it is of no consequence, for you always remain a
Protestant, for you protest against the authority of the Church; your
field is so extensive, that you can hardly escape from it, however
great may be your wanderings; it contains all the vast extent that we
behold on coming forth from the gates of the Holy City.[4]