Le Quien, Michael, a Dominican, who was bom at Boulogne in 1661, was remarkable for bis learning in Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic, and in Oriental Church His- tory. His Joannis Damasceni opera (Paris, 1712, in two folio volumes) is a superior edition of that father. His most important work is Oriem Christianus, insiiper et Africa, an account of the churches, patriarchs, etc., of the East (3 vols. 8vo), the first part of which appeared before, the second part after the author's death, which took place at the convent in St. Honore in 1733.
Lerins, Convent of, one of the oldest, and once one of the most important monastic establishments in France, is situated in the island of St. Honore, on the coast of Provence, opposite Antibes. The legend con- cerning its origin is as follows: Honoratus, a man of noble descent, and who had even been once consul, em- braced the Christian faith, together with his brother, in spite of the remonstrances of liis family. They first re- lired to an island near Marseilles, but Honoratus after- wards went back to Provence, where he settled at Le- rins, under the protection of the bishop of Fryus. His re])utation for sanctity induced many to join him, and they lived, some in communities {coenobites'), others as hermits in separate cells. It was the time when raon- achism was lately introduced into Europe from the East, and convents were arising along the shores of the ]Med- iterranean, and on the coasts of Italy (Gallinara, Gor- gona, Capraja), of Dahnatia, and of France. Slartinus had just established a convent at Turonum, whose rules ■were adopted in those that were established by Cassian. The statement that the Cassian rules were first intro- duced at Lerins is therefore erroneous. Under Honora- tus, who was aftero'ards appointed bishop of Aries, the last-named convent made rapid progress. Lerins be- came one of the most important schools for the clergy of Southern Gaul, and furnished a large number of bish- ops, among whom we will mention Hiiarius of Aries and Eucherius of Lyons: at that time monks were often made bisliops. In the 5th century the convent became imbued with semi-1'elagiaii ideas, wliich thence spread into Southern France. In tlie 7tli century the monks of Lerins seem to have relaxed in their obedience to their rule, for (iregory wrote to the abbot Conon inviting him to reform their morals. This reform was accom- plished by a Benedictine abbot, Aigulf, but only after a struggle which for a while threatened to destroy the convent, the opposition party going so far as to call in the assistance of ncigbiioring \ords, and murdering the abbot and some of his followers. Still, as the reform liad been inaugurated, the convent resumed its former jirosperit}-, and in the beginnfng of the 8th century' its abbot counted 3700 monks mider his command. Soon after, however, it was overrun by the Saracens from Spain ; the abbot Porcarius, in prevision of this event.
sent thirty-six of tlie younger monks and forty children to Italy, while be and those who remained were mur- dered, with the exception of four, who were retained prisoners. They escaped after a while, and, having re- turned to Lerins, formed the nucleus of a new convent. In 997, under the renowned Odilo, the convent once more rose to eminence, and attained its greatest fame under Adalbert (1030-1066). Eaymvmd, count of Barcelona, gave the monks a whole convent in Catalonia, and they had possessions in France, Italy, Corsica, and the islands belonging to Italj\ A nunnen,- at Tarascon, established by the seneschal of Provence, was also subject to their rule, together with a large number of canonici retfuhires, to whom the abbot Giraud gave two churches in 1226, under the condition that they should always remain subject to the rule of Lerins. Their prosperity decreas- ing, the abbot, Augustin Grimald, afterwards bishop of Grasse, connected them with the Benedictines in 1505, and this fusion received in 1515 the sanction of pope Leo X and of Francis I. In 1635 the island was taken by the Spaniards, who retamed it until 1657; and, al- though the convent continued to exist, it lost hence- forth all its importance. SeeVincentius Barralis, Chro- nolofjium Sanctorum et aliorum clarorum virorum insu- la Lerinensis (1613); Abrege de VHistoii-e de I'Ordre de S. Benoist, par la Congregation de St.Maur, i, 215 sq., 468 sq. ; ii, 245 ; Hist, des Ordres Monastiqites, i, 116 sq. — Herzog, Rectl-EncyUojmdie, viii, 333 sq.
Lesbonax (At o-/3wi'a^, a son of Potamon of IMyt- ilene, a philosopher and sophist, lived in the time of Au- gustus. He was a pupil of Tiraocrates, and the father of Polemon, who is known as the teacher and friend of Tiberius. Suidas says that Lesbonax wrote several iihil- osophical works, but does not mention that he was an orator or rhetorician, although there can be no doubt that he is the same person as the Lesbonax who wrote fjeXtra'i fJijTopiKai and ipwrtKai t—t<Tro\ai (see Photius, Bibl. cod. 74, p. 52). — Smith, Diet, of Greek and Roman Biograjihy, ii, 772.
Le'shem (Heb. id. C;^?, agent, as in Exod. xxviii, 19, etc, ; Sept. Aiaip v. r. Aaxic), a city in the northern part of Palestine (Josh, xix, 47) ; elsewhere called La- ISH (Judg. xviii, 7). See Dan.
Leshem. See Ligure.
Lesley, John, a very celebrated Scotch prelate, was born in 1527, and was educated in the Laiiversity of Aberdeen. In 1547 he was made canon of the cathedral chiu-ch of Aberdeen and Murray, and after this he trav- elled into France, and, pursuing his studies in the uni- versities of Toulouse, Poitiers, and I'aris, finally took the degree of doctor of laws. He continued abroad till 1554, when he was commanded home by the queen re- gent, and made official and vicar general of the diocese of Aberdeen ; and, entering into the priesthood, he be- came parson of Une. About this time, the Keformed doctrine, beginning to spread in Scotland, was zeal- ously opposed by Lesley ; and at a solemn dispute be- tween the Protestants and Papists, held in 1560 at Ed- inburgh, Lesley was a principal chamjiion on the side of the latter. However, this was so far from putting an end to the divisions that they daily increased, and, occa- sioning many disturbances and commotions, both parties agreed to invite home the queen, who was then absent in Franco. On this errand Lesley was employed by the Roman Catholics, and made such dispatch that he came to Yitri. where queen IMarj- was then lamenting the death of her husband, tlie king of France, several days before lord James Stuart, sent by the Protestants. Having de- livered to her his credentials, he told her majesty of lord James Stuart's mission, and actually succeeded in per- suading her to embark with him for Scotland. Imme- diately upon his arrival home he was appointed senator to the College of Justice and a privy councillor, and a short time after was presented with the living of Lun- dores, and, upon the death of Sinclair, was made bishop