LAMENNAIS
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LAMENNAIS
The July revolution completed, the Church must now be saved by bringhig it into harmony with the demands of civil liberty, and to serve such an end Lamennais enters upon the second period of his career. With the co-operation of Lacordaire (q. v.) and ]\Iontalembert (q. V.) he founded the journal UA veiiir, which had for its motto " God and Freedom," and for its guiding thought concerning the Church that the latter can save itself from the ruin which waits on political absolutism only by freeing itself from all relations with the state, and from the corruptions of hierarchical luxury, while it is to riourish only through the voluntary devotion of its adherents, and in harmony with laws which secure for the people freedom of education and worship. He preached such a doctrine enthusiastically, and believed that Rome would receive it. He was present at Rome in 1831 with Lacordaire and :Montalembert, and sought to win the representatives of the French, Russian, Aus- trian, and Prussian courts to his views. An audience was granted by the pope only on contUtion of silence concerning the matters agitated. When, however, La- cordaire had presented a scheme of these views in writ- ing, the French bishops, ou April 2-2, 1832, presented an outspoken opposition to them. A few extracts from an encyclical letter condemnatory of such principles which ■was issued by Gregory XYI on Aug. 15, 1832, best ex- plains the peculiar position assumed by the writers of LWvenir: "From this infectious source of indiflferent- ism," says the encyclical, '■ Hows that absurd and erro- neous maxim, or, rather, tliat madness, which would insure and guarantee to all liberty of conscience. The way is prepared for this pernicious error by the free and unlimited liberty of opinion which is spreading abroad, to the misfortune of civil and religious society, some asserting with extreme imprudence that it may be pro- ductive of certain advantages to religion." And after- wards it adds : '• With this is connected that lamentable liberty whicli we cannot regard with too much horror, the liberty of the press to publish all sorts of writings, a liberty which some persons dare to demand and extol with so much noise and ardor." A copy of it was sent with special exjalanations to Lamennais by cardinal Pacca, who urged him to render submission to the au- thority he had himself so highly extolled, and, as if to make even more explicit the meaning of the encyclical of which he was the transmittcnt, addeii, " The doc- trines of the LW venir upon the liberty of worship and the liberty of the press are very reprehensible, and in ojjposition to the teaching, tlie maxims, and the policy of the Church [the italics are ours]. They have ex- ceedingly astonished and afflicted the holy lather; for if, under certain circumstances, prudence compels us to tolerate them as lesser evils, such doctrines can never be held up by a Roman Catholic as good in themselves, or as things desirable." Strangely enough, as it must appear to Protestiant ideas, the tliree editors of U A venir — Lamennais and his two younger coadjutors, Lacor- daire and Jlontalembcrt — submitted to tlie papal see, and, of course, to evince their sincerity, discontinued the pul)lication oi UAvtnlr. But Lamennais having after- wards, in certain smaller articles, expressed himself in a spirit contrary to the views of the encyclical, he received a letter from the pope on the subject, and thereupon, in a formal way, subscribed a submission, Dec. 11, 1833, at the palace of the archbishop of Paris. In the Affaires de Rome (see below), however, he declared that this sub- mission on his part had been made only for the sake of peace, and that, in truth, the welfare of the people must be considered before that of the Church. In 1834 Paroles cVun croi/ant appeared, Avhich passed in a fcAV years through 100 editions, and was translated into many languages. In this work a new spirit is mani- fest. In earnest language the former and existing evils of society are deplored, while in a style of prophetic ar- dor the future is anticipated. A new Christianity, based on the principles of the New Testament, in a rev- olutionized democratic state is sought. A certain ideal