Gerberon, Garrikl, an iudefatigaljle Benedictine author, was born at St. Calais, in the province of Maine, France, Aug. 12, 1628. He became a Benedictine in the congregation of St. Maur in 1649. After teaching theology with reputation for several years, he declared himself in favor of Jansenism, and for this he was or- dered to be arrested in 1682 by Louis XIV. He es- caped to Holland, and in 1703 was seized by the bishop of Mechlin and imprisoned at Amiens, and afterwards at Vincennes, for no crime but following strictly the Augustinian theory of grace. He died at the abbey of St. Denis March 29, 1711. His chief work is the Histoire Generale du Jansenisme (General History of Jansenism, Amsterd. 1703, 3 vols. 12nio), but he wrote ver}- largel)' also on the Jansenist and other contro- versies.— Herzog, Real-Encyhlop. v, 31 ; Hook, Eccles, Biog. V, 299 ; Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Genir. xx, 194 sq. Gerbert. See Sylvester II, Pope. Gerbert, Martin, baron of Homau and Benedic- tine alibot of St. Blasien, one of the most learned Roman Catholic prelates of the last century, was born at Ilorb, on the Neckar, Aug. 13, 1720. He was educated at the Jesuits' college in Freiburg, and at the cloister of St. Blasien, where he became priest in 1744, and abbot in 1764. He enlarged his mind by travel and varied cul- ture, and his works bear every mark of industry' and learning. He died iMay 3, 1793. His principal works are Historia nigrce sylvm ord. St. Benedicti (Colon. 1783- 88, 3 vols. 4to) : — Priiicipia theoolgim (St. Blasien, 1757 -59, 7 vols.): — Theologia Vetus et Nova circa Preesen- tiam Christi in Eucharistia (Freiburg, 1756, 12mo) : — Monumenia Veteris Liturg'ue Alemannicm, ex antiquis MSS. collecta et digesta (St. Blasien, 1777-79, 4to) :— De Cantu et Musicd Sacra a primd Ecclesice uEtate usque ad prcsens Tempiis (1774, 2 vols.). Gerbert divided his history of church music into three parts : the first ends at the pontilicate of St. Gregory' ; the second goes as far as the fifteenth century ; and the tliird to his own time. In 1784 he published a work of more im- portance, under the title of Scriptorcs Ecclesiastici de Musicd Sacra, potissimum ex variis Italia', Gallice, et Germanio' Cndicibus collecti (3 vols. 4to). This is a col- lection of all the ancient authors who have written on music, from the 3d centurj' to the invention of print- Ill.— F F F
ing, and whose works had remained in manuscrfpt.— Herzog, Real-Encyklop. v, 33 ; Hook, Eccles. Biog. vol. V. ; Choron, Dictionnaire des Muslcitns ; Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Generale, xx, 198 sq.
Gerbillon, Jean Frani,"ots, a French Jesuit mis- sionary to China, was born at Verdun Jan. 11, 1634. He studied at Nancy under the Jesuits, and was, with five others, sent as missionary to China, where he arrived March 25, 1686. The missionaries at once sought an audience from the emperor, who refused to admit the new religion, on the ground that as the sects of Fo, Tao-sse, the Lamas, and the Ha-changs taught men to do good and avoid evil, tliere Avas no need of a fourth for the same purpose, which would only lead to doctrinal disputes. Yet, bj' special edict, he retained at his court the missionaries Gerbillon, Pereira, and Bouvet, with permission to practice the religion, but not to teach it. He commanded them to learn the Chinese and other dialects, and sent them on several diplomatic missions. In 1692 Christian worship was finally permitted in China ; but Gerbillon's attempts to introduce the Roman Catholic religion, and to open the country to European commerce, failed through the jealousy of the divers other orders of Roman mission- aries. He was for some time rector of the French College of China, and died at Pekin March 25, 1707. He wrote Elements of Geometry in Chinese and Tartar (Pekin) : — Theoretical and Practical Geometry, in the same languages, and published also at Pekin : — Obser- vations histonques sur la grande Tartaric (in Du Halde's Description de la Chine, t. xxxiii) : — Rdation de hiiii Voyages en Tartaric (in Du Halde). He is also con- sidered by some as the author of the Elemenfa Linguce Tartaricce, which others attribute to the missionaries Couplet or Bouvet. See Lettres edijiantes, tom. xviii; Hist, gener. des Voyages, t. vii and viii. — Hoefer, Nouv. Bing. Generale, xx, 203 sq.
Gei'des, Daniel, a learned German divine, and member of the Berlin Academj', was born at Bremen April 19, 1698. He took his doctor's degree at Utrecht, after whicli (172G) he became professor of theology and ecclesiastical history at Duisburg. He removed to Groningen in 1735, and died Feb. 11, 17G5. His works are accurate, and of great utility for the historj' of the Reformation. Among them are Historia Refor- mationis, sive Introductio in historiam evangcVi saculo xvi j)assim per Europam renovati, etc. (Gron. 1744-52, 4 vols. 4to) : — Florilegluni historico-criticum librorum variorum (Gron. 1763, 8vo) : — Meletemata Sacra (Gron. 1759, 4to) : — Sjiecimen Italim Refoi'mcttm (L. Bat. 1765, 4to) : — Doctrina gratue sice compendium theologia dog- maiiccB (Duisb. 1734, 4to). — Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Gene- rale, XX, 206 ; Herzog, Real-Encyklop. v, 34,
Geidil, Hyacinthe Sigismond, a Roman Catho- lic theologian, and cardinal of the Congregation of St. Paul, was born at Samocns, in Savoy, June 23, 1718. In 1732 he entered the order of the Barnabites, and studied at Bologna, where his talents attracted the notice of the cardinal archbishop Lambertini, who se- cured his aid in the preparation of his great work on Canonization. He was sulisequently made professor of philosophj' and theology, first at Macerata (1737) and afterwards at Turin (1749). In 1777 pope Pius VI made him cardinal, with the title of St. Cecilia, and afterwards prefect of the Propaganda. He would probably have been elected pope on the death of Pius VI but for his great age. He died August 12, 1802. Gerdil was undoubtedly a man of considerable intel- lect and of large acquirements. His writings on met- aphysical subjects, especially against Locke's philoso- phy, have secured the admiration of many Protestants as well as of Roman Catholics. He also wrote largely on the evidences of Christianity, and against Bayle and the Encj'clopedists. Editions of his works were pub- lished by P. Toselli (Bologna, 1781-1794, 6 vols.), and by Fontana and Grandi (Rome, 1806 sq., 20 vols.). Iij