Perez, Bartolome, a distinguished Spanish painter, was I)orn at Madrid in 1034. He studied in the school of Don Juan de Arellano, and attained great excellence in flower painting. His pictures of this kind are composed in a tasteful and delicate style, with a brilliancj' and harmony of coloring deserving of high praise. He also succeeded in the figure, fol- lowing the style of Don Juan de Carreno. There were many of his pieces at the Retiro, which were sub- sequently removed to the Rosario ; and one of his best
PEREZ
942
PERFECTION
productions is mentioned, which combines his talents in both branches of the art, representitig *SY. Hosa nf Lima kneeling before the Virgin and infant Jesus, with (wo Ang. Is, one of whom is crmcning tlm Saviour, while the other is presenting him with a vase of flowers. Perez was also distinguished for the excellence of his theat- rical decorations. The duke of Monteleone commis- sioned him to paint a grand ceiling in fresco in his palace at Madrid, but while occupied upon it he unfor- tunately fell from the scaffold and was killed, in 1093. See Spooner, Biog. Hist, of the Fine A rts, ii, G75.
Perez, Francisco, de Pineda, a Spanish painter who flourished at Seville about IGGO. He studied un- der Murillo, and followed his style with considerable success. Among other works, he painted several pict- ures for the churches and convents at Seville, which show that he was an able disciple of that great master. Perez was a member of the society of professors who established the Academy of Fine Arts at Seville. See Spooner, Biog. Hist, of the Fine Arts, ii, 675.
Pe'rez-Uzza (Heb. Pe'rets JJzza' , NTS' -J^-IQ, 1 Chron. xiii, 11), or Pe'rez-Uz'zah (Heb. Pe'rets Uzzah', n*!3 V"^S, breach of Uzzuh, 2 Sam. vi, 8 ; Sept. ALacyKOTTi) 'Os«)) the name which David conferred on the tlu'eshing-floor of Nachon, or Cliidon, in com- memoration of the sudden death of Uzzah : "And Da- vid was wroth because Jehovah had broken this breach on Uzzah, and he called the place ' Uzzah's l)reaking' unto this day." The word pei-ez was a favorite with David on such occasions. He emplo3'ed it to com- memorate his having " broken up" the Philistine force in the valley of Kephaim (2 Sam. f, 20). See Baal- PERAZiJi. He also used it in a subsequent reference to Uzzah's destruction in 1 Chron. xv, 13, It is re- markable that the statement of the continued exist- ence of the name should be found not only in Samuel and Chronicles, but also in Josephus, who says {Ant. vii, 4, 2), as if from his own observation, "the place where he died is even now (tVi vi'v) called ' the cleav- ing of Oza.' " — Smith. About a mile and a half or two miles from the site of Kirjath-jearim, on the hill immediately above Chesla, the ancient Chesalon, on the road thence towards Jerusalem, is a small village still called Khirbet el-Uz, or "the ruins of Uzzah." It is given by Prof. Eobinson among the names of places ■west of Jerusalem as Khirbet el-Lauz, or, as it should be written, Khirbet el-Aiiz. This seems to be Perez- Uzzah. The position, on the road to Jerusalem, near the site of Obed-edom's house, and not far from the site of Kirjath-jearim, all correspond. David, being afraid, it is said, to proceed with the ark towards Jeru- salem, "carried it aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite." It seems therefore that tlie house of Obed-edom must have been near or in the immediate neighborhood of Perez-Uzzah. — Fairbairn. See Obed- edom.
Perfect! {Perfect) is the name assumed by the stricter Cathari (([. v.) of the 12th and 13th centuries. Kainerius, who had himself been a Catharist, and who speaks of a census of tiie sect taken by tiiemselves, says that tliere were only 4000 of these, although the "Credentes," or general bodj' of the Catharists, were innumerable. These "perfect" Ciitharists were anal- ogous to the Jlanichrean "elect," professing to live an extremely strict life, in imitation of Christ and his apostles. From among them were taken their bish- ops, "Filius major," " Filius minor," and deacon, some of whom were brought up from their childhood on a rigid fisli and vegetatile diet. The Perfecti also called themselves Consolati and Boni Homines. See Reiner, drnfr. Waldens. in Bibl. Max. xxv, 2GC, 2G9.
Perfection (L:\t. perfctiim, "made out," complete) is applied to that which wants nothing. According to some, it is divided into phi/sicnl or natural, wherebj' a thing has all its powers and facultie.s; moral, or an
eminent degree of goodness and piety ; and metaphys- ical or transcendent in the possession of all the essen- tial attributes or parts necessary to the integrity of a substance ; or, in general, it is that -whereby a thing has or is provided with everything belonging to its nature. Perfection is relative or absolute. A being possessed of all the qualities belonging to its species in the highest degree nnu' be called perfect in a rela- tive sense. But absolute perfection can only be ascribed to the Supreme Being. We have the idea of a Being infinitely />er/er^ — and from this Descartes reasoned* that such a Being really exists.
'J'he Perfections of God are those qualities which he has communicated to his rational creatures, and which are in him in an infinitely /)er/ec< degree. They have been distinguished as natural and moral — the former belonging to Deity as the great first cause — such as independent and necessary existence — the lat- ter as manifested in the creation and government of the universe — such as goodness, justice, etc. But they are all natural in the sense of being essential. It has been proposed to call the former attributes and the lat- ter perfections. But this distinctive use of the terms has not prevailed ; indeed it is not w-ell founded. In God there are nothing but attributes — because in him everj-thing is absolute and involved in the substance and unit}' of a perfect being. See Attributes.