NEOPLATONISM AND FRENCH RELIGIOUS THOUGHT IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY

NEOPLATONISM AND FRENCH RELIGIOUS THOUGHT IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
Thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Oxford by J.P. Dray, Christ Church, Hilary Term, 1987.
-Abstract-
This thesis is a heuristic and argumentative study of the significance of Neoplatonism in the religious thought of the French Catholic revival of the seventeenth century. Taking the broad corpus of Neoplatonic thought - classical, patristic, mediaeval and, especially, that of the Florentine Renaissance - as its starting-point, it deals briefly with the reception and exploitation of Neoplatonic ideas by the French Humanists, before proceeding to consider the seminal influence of the cercle Acarie in the late sixteenth century. It is in this spiritual group of distinctly mystical bent that we discern the beginnings of a profound movement of religious thought greatly inspired by Neoplatonism, with its ultimate origins in the years predating the Reformation, and which continued to play an important part in seventeenth- century philosophy and theology. This Neoplatonic movement is exemplified by the Order of Capuchins and the Congregation de 1'Oratoire, and the main part of the thesis concerns these two religious groups in which the continuity, consistency and, indeed, inescapability of the Neoplatonic tradition are readily apparent. Amongst the Capuchins, the development away from abstract mysticism towards more Humanistic apologetics directly influenced by the Florentines is charted. With regard to the Oratoire, we have attempted to illustrate and demonstrate its pervasive spirit established by its founder and the nature of the Neoplatonism of its members whose fundamental thought and spirituality were informed by Dionysian mysticism and Augustino-Platonic idealism; the problems raised by the thought of Descartes are also considered in our survey of later Oratorians. The final three chapters are devoted to Malebranche, Bossuet and Fenelon, respectively, three major thinkers of the seventeenth century who embody the philosophical, the Humanistic or apologetic and the mystical strains of Neoplatonism that we have identified and which we believe are essential to the Catholic reform of the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
NEOPLATONISM AND FRENCH RELIGIOUS THOUGHT IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
Thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Oxford by J.P. Dray, Christ Church, Hilary Term, 1987.
-Longer Abstract-
This thesis is a study of the importance of Neoplatonism in
the religious thought of the period generally known as the
French Counter-Reformation taking the term in the broader
sense of the Catholic revival extending from the late
Renaissance to the end of the Grand S iecle. Its aim is
twofold. First, it is heuristic in that it seeks to identify
a more significant presence de Platon in seventeenth-century
France than is commonly accepted, concentrating on two
religious groups in particular, namely the Order of Capuchins
and the Congregation de 1'Oratoire, both of which were newly
established in France during the Counter-Reformation. Second,
it argues that Neoplatonism was central and even essential to
the thought of the spiritual and intellectual renewal of the
period, both as a feature of a long-term process going back
to the Florentine Renaissance and as source of special
inspiration for many, if not all, of the leading theologians
and philosophers of the Counter-Reformation and beyond.
Chapter I sets out the nature of the broad corpus of
Neoplatonic ideas inherited by seventeenth-century France.
Passing quickly over classical Neoplatonism and the ancient
tradition of the prisca theologia, it concentrates on the
Christian Neoplatonism of Augustine and the pseudo-Dionysius,
both of whom were major authorities in the seventeenth
century and, as such, were important vehicles for the
dissemination of Neoplatonism, and of the quattrocento
Florentine scholars, Marsiglio Ficino and Giovanni Pico della
Mirandola, who were the immediate source of many Neoplatonic
ideas, not least because of the former's Latin translations
of Plato and the Neoplatonists which made their works widely
available in Western Europe for the first time. Consideration
of the particular emphasis of Ficino's thought especially his
apologetic purpose centring on the nature of the soul, its
divinity and immortality, serves to establish the character
of the Neoplatonism handed down to succeeding generations.
Chapter II deals with the sixteenth-century background to
our main theme. It indicates the ways in which Florentine
Neoplatonism was received by the early French Humanists and
traces, in general outline, the various avatars and progress
of Neoplatonic thought in the French Renaissance. Without
treating its aesthetic or literary forms in any detail, it
considers the philosophical and theological preoccupations of
the pre-Reformers, the importance of the many translations of
Neoplatonic texts and the increasing tendency towards
exploitation of Neoplatonic doctrines for apologetic and
spiritual ends. Above all, a sense of continuity and
community of purpose in the Neoplatonic tradition from the
early Renaissance to the Counter-Reformation is stressed.
Chapter III examines the real beginnings of the French
Counter-Reformation and the role of the many prominent
spiritual writers and thinkers who constitute the
cercle Acarie. Having indicated the composition of this
circle of religious reformers and outlined their common aims
and interests, this chapter largely concerns two major
figures who are taken as representatives of the basic
directions of the group as a whole. The first is the
Capuchin, Benoit de Canfield, who exemplifies the tendency of
the French Catholic reformers towards abstract mysticism and
also stands at the head of a long line of Capuchin
spirituality in the seventeenth century. The second is Saint
Francois de Sales, a central figure of the Catholic revival
in both theory and practice; the spirituality of Francois de
Sales has a different, more personal emphasis and represents
the tradition of Christian Humanism with its fundamental core
of Neoplatonic doctrines and which inspired much seventeenth-
century devotional and apologetic writing, whilst providing
a practical ideal of the religious life.
Chapter IV examines the development of Capuchin thought.
It begins with the spirituality of Laurent de Paris which
already marks a departure from Canfieldian mysticism and
inaugurates the evolution of Capuchin theology and philosophy
away from abstract mysticism towards the position of
Christian Humanism following the example of Saint Francois de
Sales. This development culminates in the work of Yves de
Paris where the influence of Ficinian Neoplatonism is quite
overt, but throughout the first half of the seventeenth
century numerous Capuchin authors evince an increasingly
scholarly disposition and a distinct preference for
Neoplatonism which manifests itself in apologetic and
spiritual works greatly indebted to the Florentines in
particular.
Chapter V treats the foundation and early years of the
Congregation de 1'Oratoire. It begins with an assessment of
the personal philosophy of its founder, Pierre de Berulle,
his mysticism, his Christocentrism and his indebtedness to
the Neoplatonic thought of Augustine and the pseudo-
Dionysius. In his formation of the Congregation, Berulle
established the spirit of the Oratoire with its profound
piety and atmosphere of intellectual freedom with a distinct
preference for the idealist, exemplarist, spiritualist
philosophy of the Neoplatonists. Moreover, the impact of
Berulle's spirituality was inescapable within the Oratoire
and informed the thinking of all his disciples; his
successor, Charles de Condren, continued and reinforced his
work, and also helped to extend his already considerable
influence outside the Congregation, not least in such
parallel institutions as Jean-Jacques Olier's Compagnie des
Pretres de Saint-Sulpice . The notion of continuity and
consistency within organized institutions inspired by the
spiritual ideals of the Catholic revival is of considerable
importance as it serves to confirm and perpetuate the line of
Neoplatonic thought.
Chapter VI continues the study of Oratorian Neoplatonism
in the work of authors from Gibieuf to Lamy, concentrating on
such eminent figures as Andre Martin and Louis Thomassin. It
notes a progression from a general Neoplatonic spiritual
atmosphere to specific Neoplatonic scholarship and a tendency
for Oratorians to pursue radical philosophical and
theological interests, developing logically and
systematically the essential Augustinianism and Dionysianism
of Berulle and increasingly adopting the thought of
Descartes, and which were to involve many members of the
Congregation in prolonged controversies.
seems preferable to regard the role of Descartes as providing
less a radical new point of departure than a method of
metaphysical speculation that is fully in accordance with the
long-term movement of intellectual and spiritual renewal,
especially its fundamental idealism. Accordingly, whilst not
underestimating the importance of Descartes in redefining the
real questions of philosophy and the terms in which they were
to be answered, the thought of Malebranche is examined in the
perspective of the Oratorian tradition. His philosophical
preoccupations give his work a character very different from
that of Berulle, but the spirit of Berulle nonetheless
underlies Malebranche's attempt to place God at the very
centre of the universe and all human activity in his theories
of vision in God and occasional causes. If not a mystical
system, le malebranchisme is thoroughly idealist and reflects
Oratorian spirituality, and, if the direct influence of
Neoplatonism is no longer discernible in Malebranche's
original synthesis of Augustino-Platonic thought, it is
certainly still compatible with it.
Chapter VIII is devoted to Bossuet. Although the Bishop
of Meaux lies outside our strict terms of reference, his
significance in the history of seventeenth-century French
religious thought is such that, like Saint Francois de Sales,
his position and contribution cannot be overlooked. Bossuet's
limited acceptance of Cartesianism is considered, but the
emphasis is rather on the consequences of his Augustinianism
and his thorough acquaintance with the thought of Plato
himself for his spirituality in which he reveals himself as
the inheritor of the religious spirit of the Counter-
Reformation and its Neoplatonism. Neoplatonic themes recur
throughout Bossuet's work and one can discern the persistence
of the tradition of optimistic apologetics inspired by
Renaissance concerns and motifs which, whilst no longer
forming part of a total grandiose system in the Ficinian
manner, nonetheless make Bossuet something of a theological
and philosophical conservative.
Chapter IX is devoted to Fenelon. As a product of the
seminary of Saint-Sulpice, Fenelon belongs closely to the
tradition of spirituality engendered by the Catholic revival
and has much in common with the early Oratorians. Again, the
problems raised by the philosophy of Descartes cannot be
avoided, but of greater interest is Fenelon's status as a
spiritual epigone, an outstanding example of Counter-
Reformation spirituality in an age when the religious life
was in decline. Two aspects of his work are stressed in
particular. The first is his profound Humanist erudition and
direct knowledge of the philosophy of Plato and his
followers. The second is his mysticism which, for all the
unorthodox implications of his doctrine of pure love, is
inspired by the pseudo-Dionysius and represents the logical
conclusion of a spiritual tradition inaugurated by Benoit de
Canfield and Berulle.
In conclusion, our final three authors can be said to
represent the aboutissements of the three main strains of
Neoplatonism that we have discerned in the religious thought
of the French Counter-Reformation. All three indicate the way
in which the impact of Descartes was inescapable, but equally
they exemplify the importance of preoccupations that predate
the advent of Cartesianism - Malebranche in the realm of pure
philosophy, Bossuet in apologetics, and Fenelon in mystical
spirituality. In all three domains, Neoplatonism is seen to
have been of fundamental significance particularly within the
organized institutions of the Oratoire and the Order of
Capuchins, but also in the religious thought of the age as a
whole and it is this that, besides the identification of
instances of Neoplatonic philosophy and theology, is our main
conclusion, namely that the spiritualism and idealism of
Neoplatonism corresponded to the deepest needs of the
Catholic revival in France and served to provide an
intellectual framework for a reinvigorated faith.
7
IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
Thesis presented for the
Hilary Term, 1987.
CONTENTS
Abbreviations vii
Introduction 1
2. The Sixteenth-Century Background 44
3. "Le Cercle Acarie" 72
4. The Capuchins 109
6. The Oratoire from Gibieuf to Lamy 180
7. Malebranche 214
8. Bossuet 263
9. Fenelon 305
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
My thanks must go first of all to my supervisor, Dr D.C.
Potts of Keble College, Oxford, who, by introducing me to
Malebranche as an undergraduate and later suggesting that I
might like to look at the works of Ficino, originally
inspired me to examine the fate of Neoplatonism in
seventeenth-century France; he has been a source of constant
advice and encouragement throughout the writing of this
thesis. I should also like to express my deep gratitude to my
undergraduate tutor, Dr A.J. Krailsheimer of Christ Church,
Oxford, who has been a stimulating friend and mentor for many
years now and whose informal guidance has always been of the
greatest benefit. Of the many members of staff of various
libraries both in England and in France who have provided so
much invaluable assistance, I should particularly like to
thank P. Regis-£tienne Carton, librarian of the Bibliotheque
des Freres Mineurs Capucins in Paris, and PP. Join-Lambert
and Calamy, Pretres de 1'Oratoire, for their great kindness
in making rare books and archival sources available to me,
and I am greatly indebted to the Governing Body of Christ
Church and to the Taylor Institution, Oxford, for their
considerable financial contributions towards the cost of
frequent visits to Paris to consult such material.
IV
The bibliography at the end of this thesis indicates those
editions of both primary and secondary sources that were
actually consulted; where relevant, full bibliographical
details of important primary sources, in particular the place
and date of publication of the first edition, have been
included in the notes to the text. Wherever possible, either
modern, critical editions of primary sources or the first
definitive sixteenth- or seventeenth-century edition have
been used. Occasionally, however, my choice of edition has
been wholly determined by the available resources of the
nearest library; a comparison of the bibliography with the
catalogues of the Bodleian and British Libraries, and the
Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, will frequently reveal
precisely where a particular book was read. Otherwise, it may
be helpful to note that certain works by Capuchin or
Oratorian authors have been found only in the Bibliotheque
des Freres Mineurs Capucins, 32, rue Boissonade, 75014 Paris,
and the Bibliotheque de 1'Oratoire, 75, rue de Vaugirard,
75006 Paris, respectively.
the spelling of the edition used, except that I have
distinguished between "i" and "j", "u" and "v", and inserted
accents on final "e" and on "a" in the interest of clarity;
v
for the same reason, I have modernised the punctuation of
primary sources wherever it seemed unnecessarily obscure.
VI
ABBREVIATIONS
been used to denote Oeuvres completes and Correspondance
respectively where there could be no confusion as to the
author concerned; this applies particularly where a chapter
is devoted wholly or in large part to a single author.
Similarly, once introduced, long titles of works under
discussion have frequently been abbreviated to a convenient,
but clear, form, especially in the notes (for example,
Recherche stands for Malebranche's De la recherche de la
verite). The following standard abbreviations for the titles
of reference books and periodicals have also been used:
APC Annales de la philosophie chretienne
BHR Bibliothegue d^humanisme et Renaissance
BLE Bulletin de litterature ecclesiastigue
PS Dictionnaire de spiritualite
DSS XVII 6 siecle
EF Etudes franciscaines
PG Patrologia graeca
PL Patrologia latina
RHLF Revue cThistoire litteraire de la France
RHR Revue de l^histoire des religions
RIP Revue internationale de philosophie
RLC Revue de litterature comparee
RMM Revue de metaphysigue et de morale
RTF Revue de theologie et de philosophie
RFN Rivista di filosofia neo-scolastica
Vlll
INTRODUCTION
"Few of the movements that have shaped Western culture and
thought have remained as little known as Neoplatonism . Nor,
one might add, as little understood or even explored. As
Wallis goes on to suggest, the reasons for this are manifold,
from the very difficulty of ancient Neoplatonism itself to
the relative lack of scholarship devoted to this important
intellectual movement until recent years. The former will, of
course, forever be an obstacle for all but a rare few who can
combine a profound knowledge of Greek and a trained
philosophical mind with a religious sensitivity of distinctly
mystical bent. With regard to the latter problem, the opioneering efforts of scholars at the turn of the century
have, if now outdated and somehow simplistic, nonetheless
served to generate significant modern research in later-
classical studies, concentrating particularly on Plotinus
and Proclus. Much of this work has, however, been of a highly
specialist nature. In his book Neoplatonism, Wallis has
provided an accessible, popular account superseding that
1 R.T. Wallis Neoplatonism (London, 1972), p. ix. 2 C. Bigg, Neoplatonism (London, 1895); £. Brehier, La
Philosophie de Plotin (Paris, 1928); E.R. Dodds, Select Passages Illustrating Neoplatonism (London, 1923); C. Elsee, Neoplatonism in relation to Christianity (Cambridge, 1908);R. Bucken, Die Lebensanschauungen der grossen Denker (Leipzig, 1890); W.R. Inge, The Philosophy of Plotinus, 2 vols. (2nd ed. , London, 1929); L. Grandgeorge, Saint Augustin et le Neoplatonisme (Paris, 1896); T. Whittaker, The Neoplatonists (2nd ed., Cambridge, 1918).
of Whittaker, until then the last general study, but, of
necessity, its scope is limited, and the inevitable omission
is that it neglects to provide an adequate survey of the
influence of Neoplatonism in the post-classical world.
Such an omission is doubly unfortunate. For, the
influence of the Neoplatonic tradition on Western
civilization has been both profound and wide-ranging, and -
perhaps more significantly - more or less continuous, if in
varying guises. Few would now dispute the first contention;
in art, philosophy, and literature, the significance of
classical Neoplatonism in succeeding ages has been widely
illustrated and the Neoplatonism of the Renaisssance, in
Italy, France, or England, stands fully documented, not to
mention that of, say, the circle of Alcuin, the eleventh
century, or the Romantic era. And yet, there has been a
tendency to regard such moments in isolation, as pinnacles of
artistic or intellectual achievement almost in reaction
against a prevailing ignorance or even barbarism.
Certainly there is no doubt that the Neoplatonic moment
has frequently coincided with the finest flourishes of
European culture, but, if one is to maintain the relative
continuity of an undercurrent of Neoplatonic influence, then
one must also seek it where one might almost least expect it.
A re-examination of certain pre-conceived ideas about
historical periods and intellectual "-isms" would therefore
appear desirable and indeed necessary. In this, the master is
6tienne Gilson who, in his prodigious and truly magisterial
output, has done so much to undermine what might be termed
the monolithic conception of the history of European ideas,
arid it is his work that has inspired a primary aim of this
thesis, namely to combat the "intellectual isolationism" of
much earlier scholarship.
and modern thought, between Scholasticism and the "Cartesian
revolution", perpetuating D'Alembert's view of Descartes as
"un chef de conjures, qui a eu le courage de s'elever le *
premier centre une puissance despotique et arbit^raire". w
Gilson's early work on Descartes has done much to rectify
such a distorted view of the history of philosophy engendered
by the Enlightenment's faith in the achievements of the
modern age which tended to dismiss the achievements of the
past. 2 Instead, Gilson, and in his wake Henri Gouhier, takes
a longer view of the history of philosophy, particularly with
regard to the status of the seventeenth century in France
when the modern age had hitherto been presumed to have been
born almost ex nihilo. This is not to question the
originality of the cogito, which in its explicit rejection
of existing philosophical systems posed an entirely new
problem with which succeeding generations had to come to terms, but to place it in a proper perspective: in his
reaction against scepticism and attempt to establish valid
criteria for philosophical and scientific knowledge,
Descartes did demolish the edifice of Scholasticism, but in
building his own philosophical…