Graces, Les Hesperides, Les Boucliers votifs, Les Se/-- ments chez les Anciens, and a ParalVele entre Homere et Platon, His most valuable work is UHistoire de la Poesie Frangoise, it partir du onzieme si'ecle, Massieu was one of the many distinguished literary men who are obliged all through life to maintain an incessant struggle with poverty. In his old age he suffered many bodily grievances, and two cataracts deprived him of his sight. He rendered valuable service to Biblical lit- erature by his edition of the Neio Testament in Greek (printed at Paris, 1715, in 2 vols. 12mo). He died Sept. 26, 1722, at Paris. — Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Generale, vol. xxxiv, s. V.
Massilians, a school of theologians in Southern Gaid, who, about the year 425, with John Cassian of Marseilles {Massilia), a pupil of Chrj'sostom, at their head, asserted the necessity of the co-operation of divine grace and the human will, maintained that God works differently in different men, and rejected the doctrine of predestination as a vain speculation of mischievous tendency. They were called at first Massilians ; after- wards, bj' scholastic writers, Semi-Pelagians; although, far from taking that name themselves, they rejected aU connection with Pelagianism. Cassian recognised the universal corruption of human nature as a consequence of the first transgression, and recognised grace as well as justification in the sense of St. Augustine, whom he opposed on the question of election. See Riddle, Eccl. Chron.; Eden, 7 keol. Diet. ; 'Neander, Hist, of the Chris- tian Religion and Church, ii. 261, 627-630; Schaff, Ch. Hist, iii, 859 sq. ; Wiggers, Gesch. des Semi-Pelagianis- mns, ii, 7 sq. ; Guericke, Ch. Hist, i, 391 sq. ; Neander, Hist, of Christian Dogmas, ii, 375 ; Hagenbach, Hist, of Doctr. vol. i. See Semi-Pelagia>'s and Cassl\nus.
Massillou, Jean Baptiste, prominent among the most eloquent divines of the French Roman Catholic Church, was born at Hieres, in Provence, June 24, 1663. His father was a notary in moderate circumstances, and at first intended his son for the same profession, but subsequently allowed him to receive the instruc- tions of the Fathers of the Oratory, and when eigh- teen years of age the young man joined that order. Soon "after, forsaking the -world altogether, he entered an abbey under the rule of La Trappe. Here, however, his talents attracted the attention of the bishop, after- wards cardinal de Noailles, who induced him to re-enter the Oratory, in which he soon achieved great eminence. Yet his success was more the fruit of labor than of spon- taneous genius, and his last efforts are much superior to his first. In 1696 he went to Paris as principal of the Seminary of St. Magloire, the renowned school of the Oratory. Here, in the midst of the prevailing laxity of morals, he commenced his career as a pulpit orator, the delivery of his " Ecclesiastical conferences" to ecclesias- tical students affording him an opportunity of developing his talent. He admired the austere eloquence of Bour- daloue, but chose for himself a different style, character- ized by profound pathos, and an insight into the most secret motives of the human heart. He was shortly noted as the preacher of repentance and penitence; and it was declared by able contemporaries of his sermons that " they reach the heart, and produce their due ef- fects with much more certainty than all the logic of Bourdaloue." He delivered the customary Lent ser- mons at Montpellier in 1698, and the following year at Paris. The latter were warmly applauded, and induced the king to invite Jlassillon to preach the "Advent" at court. On this occasion king Louis XIV paid him the highest compliments. He said, "I have heard many talented preachers in my chapel before, and was much pleased with them ; but every time I hear you, I feel much displeased with myself." He again preached the Lent sermons before the coiu-t during the years 1701 to 1704, but afterwards he received no calls to appear be- fore them mitil the death of the king : so fearless and plain-spoken a preacher would have been ill suited to
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the gallant and profligate court of " the great king." At the death of Louis XIV, jMassilloii was requested to preach liis funeral sermon ; in other words, to pronounce a eulogy of this prince. This was an arduous task for the uncourticrlike preacher; yet he undertook it, and in his discourse lauded the fame and piety of the lung, yet deplored the evils suffered by the nation in consequence of the wars and the looseness of morals. Invited now to preach the Lent sermons before the young king, Louis XV, then but eight years of age, he took advan- tage of the occasion to censure the manners of the court ; and morality, rather than the passion of Christ, formed the subject of his sermons. These are ten in number, and being short, to accommodate them to the youth of his royal hearer, are known under the name of Le petite careme. In 1717 Massillon became bishop of Clermont, and in 1719 member of the French Academy. Two years after he preached at St. Denis the funeral sermon of the duchess Ehzabeth Charlotte of Orleans, daughter of the elector of Palathiate, and mother of the regent. This is considered one of the best of his six Oraisons Funehres. Thereafter he remained quietly in his diocese, diligently fulfilling his pastoral duties until his death. Less ambitious than Bossuet, he did not wish to remain connected with the court, or in any way to take part in temporal affairs. His life was a model of Christian vir- tue and gentleness; he never disputed against any but infidels, and the Roman Catholics will not forgive him for having, in his eulogy of Louis XIV, after praising this monarch for his efforts to destroy heres}% alluded to the massacre of St. Bartholomew's eve and pronounced it a Uoodi/ wronff, to be ever condemned in the name of religion as well as of humanity. Preaching from the fulness of his heart, he did not consider the rank of those he addressed, but spoke to them with nobleness of purpose in all simplicity and fervor. He carefidly in- structed the clergy of his diocese by holding numerous conferences and by synodal discourses. He died Sept. 18, 1742. D'Alembert pronounced his eulogy before the French Academy.