and sat talking some time. She gave us an introduction to a sœur de
la charité, by whom we were partly taken and partly shown over their
large establishment in the Rue du Bac. The chapel is neat, and has a
series of nice pictures: this is pointed out as the place where the
Blessed Virgin appeared to one of the sisters or a novice; her image
at the appearance is represented on the miraculous medal: it was
before the picture over the altar on the right hand. The name of the
sister is kept secret, and will be so till she is dead; but the
other circumstances have been disclosed by the priest who received her
confession, M. Aladel, one of the Pères Lazaristes, who direct the
Sisters of S. Vincent de Paul. They have 300 sisters, who are
dispersed hence all over France, and continually replenished; they are
erecting a very handsome building, which will accommodate 300 novices.
The vows are not perpetual, but for terms of years; but it is rare
that any who have once taken them fail to renew them. Went to
Toulouse--curious bookshop; he has sometimes 100,000 volumes in his
possession. M. found Justinianus there. Notre Dame outside struck me
very much; its west front only wants lofty spires on its towers to be
perfect. The interior, with all its spaciousness, is deficient in
grace, and after S. Ouen we felt quite discontented with it.
S. Germain des Près is a fine church, especially the choir and
apse--Norman work. In the evening we saw M. Bonnetty, and had some
talk with him. We were running about nine hours to-day.
_Friday, July 4._--Went to breakfast with Miss Young, and had a long
talk with l'Abbé Carron, formerly secretary to the archbishop. He was
very polite and cordial, and offered us every thing in his power. From
him we obtained an account of the day's occupations in the Séminaire
de S. Sulpice, which I took down from his mouth as follows,
incorporating with it some further information given me by M. Galais,
professor of canon law therein:--
5 a.m. They rise; recite the "Angelus" (angelic salutation).
5 to 5½. Dress, come down stairs; the most pious go for two or
three minutes before the Holy Sacrament.
5½ to 6½. Vocal prayer for ten minutes, and then prayer for the
rest of the hour, each by himself, kneeling, without
support.
The Professor says his prayer aloud, in order to
teach the pupils, on his knees, in the hall.
6½ to 7. Mass; those who have communicated attend another mass
for returning thanks, which may last to 7¾. The
rest mount to their rooms.
7. Reading of Holy Scripture in private.
8 to 8¼. Breakfast,--dry bread, wine, and water; nothing else
allowed, save that in case of necessity milk or soup
is sometimes given. Each reads in private.
8¼ to 9½. Preparation of theological lesson in their rooms.
9½ to 10½. Lesson in theology. Morale.
10½ to 10¾. Visit to the Holy Sacrament.
10¾ to 11¾. Deacons have a lesson in theology; the rest a singing
lesson for half an hour, and then go up to their
rooms.
11¾ to 12. Private examination of conscience. During seven
minutes, meditation, kneeling, on some fact of the
New Testament; and for the next seven, Tronson read.
12 to 12½. Dinner. For three minutes a chapter of the Old
Testament read aloud, then the life of a saint, or
ecclesiastical history. They end with the Roman
Martyrology for the morrow. Then a visit to the Holy
Sacrament for a minute: recitation of the Angelus.
Dinner consists of a little soup; one dish of
meat, potatoes, or "legumes." For dessert, an apple,
or such like. Drink, wine and water.
12½ to 1¾. Recreation. At 12¾ talking is allowed for the first
time in the day. Letters are delivered. The
Professors are bound by their rule to take their
recreations with their pupils: they make a great
point of this.
1¾. Recitation of the "Chapelet;" sixty-three Paters and
Aves.
2 to 3½. Private study in their rooms. From 2 to 3½, class of
ecclesiastical singing four times a-week. From 2 to
5¼ adoration of the Holy Sacrament by each person
for half-an-hour.
3½ to 4½. Theological class. Dogma.
4½ to 4¾. Visit to the Holy Sacrament.
5¼ or 5½. According to the season, bell for all in holy orders
to say their breviary. Time for conferences.
6½ to 7. "Glose,"--spiritual reading by the Superior.
7 to 7½. Supper. One dish of meat, "legumes," salad, wine and
water. Reading at all meals. Talking never allowed
but at the Archbishop's visit once a-year. A chapter
of the New Testament read; a verse of the "Imitation
of Jesus Christ."
7½. They go before the Holy Sacrament; recite the Angelus.
7½ to 8½. Recreation.
8½ to 8¾. Evening Prayers; litanies, vocal, with private
examination of conscience. Mount straight to their
rooms, or go first before the Holy Sacrament. The
Superior remains in his place: each, in passing
beside him, accuses himself of any outward faults
committed during the day against the rules.
9 to 9¼. Bed time; at 9¼ to be in bed. Each has a room to
himself; a table, a bed, a candlestick, and
fire-place. A priest sleeps in each corridore.
SPECIAL LECTURES.
Hebrew; two courses.
Moral Theology; a great course. Young men admitted who have already
studied the elementary course--about forty or fifty.
Canon Law; a special course.
From Easter to the vacation they are instructed in the duties of a
pastor in great detail.
Private study of the Holy Scriptures by each half an hour a day.
At three o'clock on Sundays, at S. Sulpice, the young men exercise
themselves in catechising, except from Easter to the vacation.
Before the first communion there is catechising at S. Sulpice for two
months thrice a-week, (not by the pupils).
OBSERVATIONS.
There is much sickness: (the building has not gardens or sufficient
space for recreation attached to it).
Not time enough for study.
The vacation is from Aug. 15. to Oct. 1.
The cassock is always worn.
They confess themselves every week, ordinarily in the morning during
the meditation. They choose their own confessor among the masters, who
are at present twelve, but the number is not fixed. As to communicating,
they are free; but are exhorted to do it _often_. Often is all the
Sundays and festivals. Some communicate besides two, three, four,
five, times a week, especially as the time of their ordination
draws near. The priests every day. After the communion twenty minutes
"action de grâces." On entering the seminary a general confession of
the whole past life is made. At the commencement of each year, after
the vacation, in October, a confession of the year is made. At the
beginning of each month there is a retreat for one day, ordinarily the
first Sunday. _Direction_ is twice a month. It is intercourse between
each young man and his director for the purpose of making known his
inward state. There is a general _retreat_ after the vacation for
eight days; in this no visits allowed; no letters received; no going
out into the city. There are recreations, but the rest of the day is
consecrated to prayer, to confession, and to sermons. Each has his own
rule (règlement particulier), which he draws up in concert with his
confessor.
The day, the hour, and the mode of using the following exercises, to
be determined on with the director.
Private examination of oneself.
Confession.
Holy Communion.
Direction.
The monthly retreat.
La Monition.[4]
Any special reading.
Accessory studies.
What has been determined on by the director, relatively to the
preceding exercises, is to be written in the "règlement particulier"
of each.
The main resolution necessary to insure the fruits of the seminary is
fidelity to the "règlement," and especially to silence at the
prescribed times, and to the holy employment of one's time.
The virtues to be studied are, collectedness, the thought of the
presence of God, modesty and good example, charity and humility,
religion and fervour in the exercises of piety.
The order of exercises for a day in the annual _retreat_ is as
follows:--
5 a.m. Rise; preparation for prayer; short visit to the Most
Holy Sacrament.
5½. Prayer.
6½. Messe de communauté.
7. Preparation for general confession, or for that of the
annual review, and especially for that of the time
spent in the vacation.
8. Breakfast.
8¼. Petites heures.
8¾. Reading, or "direction."
9¼. Visit to the Holy Sacrament.
9½. "Entretien."
10½. "Délassement," during which there may be either
reading or "direction."
11. Writing of one's resolutions, and then reading the
prescribed chapters of Holy Scripture.
11¾. Private examination.
12. Dinner, followed by the Angelus, and recreation.
1¾. Vespers and Compline; recollecting of oneself, to
examine how one has done the morning's exercises.
2¼. Reading, with meditation, of the chapters of the
Imitation.
3¼. Visit to the Holy Sacrament.
3½. "Entretien."
4½. Matines and Lauds; writing of resolutions. Then
"délassement," as in morning at 10½.
6. Recitation of "chapelet," meditated.
6½. A spiritual lecture.
7. Supper, followed by the Angelus, and recreation.
8½. Prayer; examination of conscience.
9. Bed; making preparation for (the morning's) prayer.
The following means are recommended for profiting by the "retreat."
1. From its commencement have your "Règlement particulier" approved by
your Director; agree with him on the employment of your time, on the
subject of your reading, on the manner of preparing your confession.
2. Read the chapter of the Holy Scripture and of the Imitation marked
in the "Manual of Piety," and never omit this reading.
3. Observe silence carefully, save at the time of recreation, and if
you are obliged to speak, ask leave to do so.
4. Do not read or write any letter.
5. If you experience dryness, disgust, repugnance, discouraging
thoughts, as generally happens in retreats, communicate them
immediately to your Director, and follow his advice, as the most
assured means of overcoming temptations.
6. If you have already made a general confession at the Seminary,
employ the time after mass till breakfast in examining yourself on the
manner in which you have done your actions in the Seminary the past
year, how you have combated your defects and your ruling passion, and
how you have practised the virtues which you proposed to acquire.
7. Study especially inward recollectedness, confidence in our Lord,
and in the Most Holy Virgin, serious and deep examination of your
conscience, and a great desire "de faire un bon Séminaire."
8. After the Retreat tell your Director your feelings and resolutions,
and busy yourself immediately with drawing up your "règlement
particulier."
There are, moreover, retreats for eight days before each ordination.
Exposition of the pontifical is given. Before the ordination of any
individual is decided on, there are two "appels" to be gone through;
1st, that of outward conduct; 2d, that of inward conduct, decided by
all the masters in common. If these are passed there is a third
examination of himself and his fitness for the ministry to be gone
through by the pupil in private. Fourthly, if he is thoroughly
persuaded of his vocation, his confessor finally decides whether he
shall be accepted for the ministry or rejected. The ordinary payment
made by each pupil is 700 francs a year, but this, in case of
necessity, or of promising persons, especially when recommended by
bishops, is reduced to 400.
In Lent one meal and one collation (a half meal) are allowed: the
first at mid-day. Meat is permitted on Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays, and
Thursdays, by the archbishop's "mandement." Fridays and Saturdays are
maigre days through the year, but not fasts. The other fasts of the
year are very few, the greater number having been abolished by the
Concordat. They are Christmas Eve, Whitsun Eve, St. Peter's Eve,
the vigils of the Assumption and All Saints.
M. Gaduel told me that the good professors of S. Sulpice receive no
salary whatever. They live, he said, as children in a father's house,
provided with everything they want, but they are not given money. If
one has need of a coat, he asks for it, and has it. Should they be
taken ill, and be unable to continue their functions, they will be
supported and tenderly provided for all their days. They take no vows,
and can leave when they please; and they retain whatever private
property they may possess. Those who have none receive 100 francs a
year for their charities; for you know, he said, they cannot go into
the city without a sou. Thus their life is entirely detached from the
cares of this world, from the desire of wealth, and all that attaches
to it. Yet is it, from its sedentariness and severely abstract
pursuits, as well as from the continued pressure on the heart and
conscience, a trying life. Health, I imagine, is only maintained by
the weekly relaxation of Wednesday, and the annual vacation of two
months in August and September.
We talked on many other subjects with M. l'Abbé Carron. He was very
desirous to explain the honour paid to the Blessed Virgin Mary. One
and all reject with horror anything like adoration being offered
to her, or that she is anything more than the most favoured _channel_
of grace.
At two we went to M. Bonnetty, who took us to the house of the
Benedictines, then in Rue Notre Dame des Champs, where we saw the Abbé
Guéranger, a very pleasing person. Talked of editions of the Fathers,
the labours of the Benedictines, the movement in England. He struck me
as very mild and charitable. In the library M. de Montalembert was
sitting writing. We did not know who it was at the time.
On the opposite side of the street, through a private door, we entered
into a most beautiful little chapel just erected in the style of the
thirteenth century. It belongs to some religious garde-malades,
connected with the sisters of charity, who were saying their office as
we came in. The architecture is exceedingly rich: all the windows of
painted glass. I have never seen anything so exquisite as this chapel.
The apse was richly painted and decorated. Afterwards we set off for
S. Denis, but gave it up. Looked into S. Eustache, an imposing church
of the _renaissance_, very lofty and spacious. Also S. Germain
l'Auxerrois, which is interesting. It has been restored since the
riots, and is being filled with painted glass.
_Saturday, July 5._--Set off for S. Denis: the abbey has been
wonderfully restored since I was there, and is now exceedingly
imposing and interesting. The aisles round the choir have been most
richly painted and decorated, the central roof not yet. All the
windows are of stained glass, forming a complete sketch of French
history, wherein Dagobert and S. Louis, Napoleon, Louis XVIII. and
Louis Philippe, strangely figure. The tombs of François I. and Louis
XII. are very beautiful. The western front resembles Mantes in
character; very beautiful; pinnacles of the spire curious and most
pleasing. We went to drink tea with Miss Young, her mother, a French
lady, and an Irish priest, M. Macarthy, who assists at S. Sulpice. He
said the seats there were let to a woman for 35,500 francs per annum.
The chief duty of a Catholic is not to go to mass, but to confess and
receive absolution. Before marriage every one is compelled to confess,
but they do not necessarily receive absolution. This priest's
conversation gave one a notion that to common minds the confessional
would often be as it were wiping off an old debt, and beginning a new
score. "He said there were about 14,000 or 15,000 communicants at
Easter in that parish out of a population of 50,000. He seemed to
think many might be people who would fall back again into grievous
faults, but nearly all at the time had good intentions. I rather
thought he made too little a matter of the probability of many falling
back: but I may have been mistaken. He said, however, that
S. Sulpice was not a measure of Paris, being the most pious parish in
the city. He said also, that there was very little temptation to
hypocrisy, religion being rather at a discount in public opinion. I
should hope from this and other accounts, that there was a very
considerable leaven of true piety in this place, bad as it is."--_M._
_Sunday, July 6._--The heat excessive. We went to Bishop Luscombe's
chapel: many staid to the Holy Communion. "There was a discontented
French priest there, who, I fear, is going to set up for himself. I
had a little talk with the Bishop between services. He has, if I am
not mistaken, a totally false view of the position of the French
Church. He thinks it is falling to pieces, as a man might think Oriel
was coming down, if he did not know there was a live Provost and
Fellows inside to repair it when necessary. The discontented go to him
and tell him their tale, as the college weapons might fall on the head
of any one in quad; and of course they do their best to make him think
that all is as rotten as they are. The Roman Catholic clergy, I
believe, do not know much of him, or he of them, and he is shut out
from the sight of what is best among them."--_M._
At five dined with M. Bonnetty. We found there two priests, one of
whom, M. D'Alzon, was going to preach at Notre Dame des Victoires that
evening for the archiconfrèrie du sacré Cœur de Marie. He seemed an
able man, was vicaire general of Nismes, a person of property, who was
bent on taking orders. He could not understand how we could preach
with a book before us; said no one would listen in France. The other
priest, M. Jacquemet, was a very pleasing modest person. We adjourned
to the garden of the missions étrangères; met there M. Drach, who had
been chief rabbin. He has written a book on the harmony of the
Synagogue and the Church; seemed to think he could settle the
difficulty concerning the day of the Passover by Jewish traditions.
M. Bonnetty took us to Mrs. Ryon's in the Place belle Chasse. The heat
excessive.
_Monday, July 7._--We called on M. Defresne; much struck by his
conversation. He said all that was best in religion was at Paris: out
of a million of inhabitants there were 300,000 going to mass, and
50,000 _practising_ Christians; this was the kernel of religion in
the country, the pure gold. He justified the shops being left open by
the government on Sunday, for the people generally being without
belief, it would be an act of sheer tyranny to shut them. Louis
Philippe was now employing against the Jesuits the same arbitrary
power he had used to expel l'Abbé Châtel. On religious matters he did
not seem to understand how an instructed person could remain
with good faith out of the Roman Church. The Puseyites, he seemed to
think, did not belong to the Establishment. M. Defresne speaks with
remarkable energy; we both wished to have another talk with him.
Thence we went to the Pères Lazaristes; M. Aladel received us, gave us
the rules of the sisters of charity. Their chief work being the relief
of the sick, &c. they have no office, properly so called, and their
hours are subject to variation. They rise, winter and summer, at 4 to
4½; 4½ to 5½ meditation, prayer, a subject for meditation given the
evening before; 5½ hear mass--this is the ordinary time, but it
varies: for instance, they would attend the church in their immediate
neighbourhood at whatever hour it might be. Every day spiritual
reading,--the Chaplet: it lasts a long half hour; has many special
prayers added by their founder, which cannot be seen. In the evening a
second meditation for half an hour, always before six o'clock. Vocal
prayers before bed time, at half-past eight. Subject of meditation
given. These exercises of piety are never given up, as in cases of
extreme sickness the sister attending waits till the others have done,
and is then relieved by them. They do not go out after nightfall.
Dinner at half-past eleven. Supper at six. Their duties are,
1. visiting the sick; 2. attending hospitals; 3. dressing the sick at
their own house; 4. keeping schools at their own house. Each
school belongs to a sister, who is generally the same; one takes care
of the linen, another of the kitchen, and so on. M. Aladel then
attacked us on matters of controversy; could not conceive persons of
intelligence and good faith remaining out of the pale of the Roman
Church. Indeed, this is universally the _first_ thing with them--to
be in communion with Rome. Without unity they can conceive no
holiness, nor self-devotion, nor even sincerity. We said we admitted
the primacy of Rome, but not an absolute power; and referred back to
the times of the early Patriarchs, as St. Athanasius. His reply was,
that the Pope allowed them to institute their own Bishops, and where
this permission was not openly expressed it was implied; a mode of
assumption which soon puts an end to all difficulties. The Greeks and
Russians were schismatics, but far nearer than we. To him, as to every
other Roman Catholic with whom we conversed, the English Church is
simply a mass of heresy and schism. We regretted the controversial
language of this conversation. Called on M. Labbé, and had a friendly
talk with him. He describes the actual state of the Colleges of the
University as horrible in point of morality. He is now, at forty-five,
sitting down to the study of Greek, to pass his degree of M.A. at the
University, in order that he may be privileged to teach under it. At
Lady Elgin's in the evening, whither M. Bonnetty conducted us,
we found a lively party in the garden. The chief conversation was on
magnetising, there being a young man of great powers that way present,
but he declined giving us any specimen of his power: he said it took
too much out of him, and sometimes bestowed on him the maladies he
relieved others from. Thus, he succeeded in transferring a lady's
headache to himself. The heat very great to-day.