Theophilanthropy
Encyclopedia
The Theophilanthropists were a deistic sect
, formed in France
during the latter part of the French Revolution
.
, to combine Rousseau's deism and Robespierre's civic virtue
(rè de la vertu) would be combined. Jean-Baptiste Chemin wrote the Manuel des théopanthropophiles, and Valentin Haüy
offered his institute for the blind as a provisional place of meeting. When, later, the Convention
turned over to them the little church of Sainte Catherine, in Paris
, the nascent sect won a few followers and protectors; still its progress was slow till Louis Marie de La Révellière-Lépeaux
, an influential member of the Directory
, took up its cause.
But it was only after the Revolution of 18 Fructidor, which left him master of the situation, that his sympathy bore fruit. Then was the apogee of Theophilanthropism. Blended in a way with the culte décadaire, it came into possession of some of the great churches of Paris like Notre Dame de Paris
, Saint
-Jacques
du Haut Pas, St-Médard etc.; it took a conspicuous part in all the national celebrations, and from the metropolis passed into the provinces, chiefly the Department of Yonne.
The movement, in spite of a strong opposition not only on the part of Catholics but also from Constitutionals and Philosophers, was gradually taking hold of the masses when the Directory brought it to an abrupt end. The First Consul set his face against the new religionists and they were disbanded.
wrote in his Annales de la Religion (VI, no 5.):
Pope Pius VI
, 17 May 1800 placed an interdict on the churches that had been desecrated by the deistic rites, and Cardinal Consalvi, in the course of the negotiations regarding the Concordat of 1801
, demanded that a speedy end be put to the profanation of the Catholic temples.
. In 1882, Décembre and Vallières, through La fraternité universelle and many similar publications, sought directly to reorganize the sect, but the attempt failed and, in 1890, Décembre confessed the impossibility of arousing public interest. Camerlynck's voluminous book, "Théisme", published in Paris in 1900, had a similar aim and met a similar fate.
.
No dogmatic creed was imposed on the adherents of the new religion, the two fundamental tenets, viz. the existence of God
and the immortality of the soul, being purely sentimental beliefs (croyances de sentiment) deemed necessary for the preservation of society and the welfare of individuals. The moral teaching, considered the principal feature of the movement, held a middle position between the severity of Stoicism
and the laxity of Epicureanism
. Its basic principle was good: good is all that tends to preserve and perfect the man; evil is all that tends to destroy or impair him. It is in light of that axiom and not of the Christian standard - in spite of the phraseology - that we should view the commandments concerning the adoration of God, the love of our neighbor, domestic virtues and patriotism.
Theophilanthropist worship was at first very simple and meant chiefly for the home: it consisted in a short invocation of God in the morning and a kind of examination of conscience
at the end of the day. A plain altar on which were laid some flowers and fruits, a few inscriptions appended to the walls, a platform for the readers or speakers, were the only furnishings allowed. The founders were particularly anxious that this simplicity be strictly adhered to. Nevertheless, the progress of the sect led gradually to a more elaborate ceremonial. It is a far cry from the early meetings where the minister or père de famille, presided at prayer or mimicked Christian
baptism
, First Communion
, marriages
or funerals
, to the gorgeous display of the so-called national festivals. There even was a Theophilanthropist Mass, which, however, came much nearer a Calvinist service than to the Catholic Liturgy.
Of the hymns adopted by the sect, some taken from the writings of J. B. Rousseau, Madame Deshoulières, or even Racine
, breathe a noble spirit but, side by side with these, there are bombastic lucubrations like the "Hymne de la fondation de la ré" and the "Hymne a la souverainete du peuple". The same strange combination is found in the feasts where Socrates
, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and St Vincent de Paul are equally honored and in the sermon where political harangues interlard moral exhortations. In Dubroca's funeral oration of George Washington
the orator, under cover of the American hero, catered to the rising Napoleon Bonaparte and laid out for him a whole political program which, read in the light of subsequent events, sounds like irony. Despite the hint, Bonaparte chose to be the Oliver Cromwell
rather than the Washington of the new religionists.
The first idea of the sect really belongs to David Williams
, an English minister who exercised considerable influence in Paris during the Revolution. Chemin consulted the Calvinists before launching his Manuel. If later, a controversy arose between Protestants themselves as to the merits of Theophilanthropism, this was due to the imprudence of Theophilanthropists, who, elated by apparent success, lifted the mask.
Sect
A sect is a group with distinctive religious, political or philosophical beliefs. Although in past it was mostly used to refer to religious groups, it has since expanded and in modern culture can refer to any organization that breaks away from a larger one to follow a different set of rules and...
, formed in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
during the latter part of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
.
Origins
Thomas Paine, together with other disciples of Rousseau and Robespierre, set up a new religionReligion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, to combine Rousseau's deism and Robespierre's civic virtue
Civic virtue
Civic virtue is the cultivation of habits of personal living that are claimed to be important for the success of the community. The identification of the character traits that constitute civic virtue have been a major concern of political philosophy...
(rè de la vertu) would be combined. Jean-Baptiste Chemin wrote the Manuel des théopanthropophiles, and Valentin Haüy
Valentin Haüy
Valentin Haüy - 19 March 1822 in Paris) was the founder, in 1784, of the first school for the blind, the Royal Institution for the Young Blind in Paris . In 1819, Louis Braille entered this school....
offered his institute for the blind as a provisional place of meeting. When, later, the Convention
National Convention
During the French Revolution, the National Convention or Convention, in France, comprised the constitutional and legislative assembly which sat from 20 September 1792 to 26 October 1795 . It held executive power in France during the first years of the French First Republic...
turned over to them the little church of Sainte Catherine, in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, the nascent sect won a few followers and protectors; still its progress was slow till Louis Marie de La Révellière-Lépeaux
Louis Marie de La Révellière-Lépeaux
Louis Marie de La Révellière-Lépeaux was a French politician, member of the French DirectoryHe was born at Montaigu , the son of J. B. de la Révellière. He adopted the name Lépeaux from a small property belonging to his family, and he was known locally as M. de Lépeaux. He studied law at Angers...
, an influential member of the Directory
French Directory
The Directory was a body of five Directors that held executive power in France following the Convention and preceding the Consulate...
, took up its cause.
But it was only after the Revolution of 18 Fructidor, which left him master of the situation, that his sympathy bore fruit. Then was the apogee of Theophilanthropism. Blended in a way with the culte décadaire, it came into possession of some of the great churches of Paris like Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris , also known as Notre Dame Cathedral, is a Gothic, Roman Catholic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in the fourth arrondissement of Paris, France. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Archdiocese of Paris: that is, it is the church that contains the cathedra of...
, Saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
-Jacques
Jacques
Jacques is the French equivalent of James.Jacques is derived from the Late Latin Iacobus, from the Greek , from the Hebrew ...
du Haut Pas, St-Médard etc.; it took a conspicuous part in all the national celebrations, and from the metropolis passed into the provinces, chiefly the Department of Yonne.
The movement, in spite of a strong opposition not only on the part of Catholics but also from Constitutionals and Philosophers, was gradually taking hold of the masses when the Directory brought it to an abrupt end. The First Consul set his face against the new religionists and they were disbanded.
Catholic reaction
The constitutional clergy, in the national council, held at Notre Dame in 1797, protested against the new religion, and Henri GrégoireHenri Grégoire
Henri Grégoire , often referred to as Abbé Grégoire, was a French Roman Catholic priest, constitutional bishop of Blois and a revolutionary leader...
wrote in his Annales de la Religion (VI, no 5.):
- "Theophilanthropism is one of those derisive institutions which pretend to bring to God those very people whom they drive away from Him by estranging them from Christianity... .Abhorred by Christians, it is spurned by philosophers who, though they may not feel the need of a religion for themselves, still want the people to cling to the faith of their fathers."
Pope Pius VI
Pope Pius VI
Pope Pius VI , born Count Giovanni Angelo Braschi, was Pope from 1775 to 1799.-Early years:Braschi was born in Cesena...
, 17 May 1800 placed an interdict on the churches that had been desecrated by the deistic rites, and Cardinal Consalvi, in the course of the negotiations regarding the Concordat of 1801
Concordat of 1801
The Concordat of 1801 was an agreement between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII, signed on 15 July 1801. It solidified the Roman Catholic Church as the majority church of France and brought back most of its civil status....
, demanded that a speedy end be put to the profanation of the Catholic temples.
Later history
Sporadic attempts at reviving Theophilanthropism were made in the course of the nineteenth century. In 1829, Henri Carle founded "L'alliance religieuse universelle", with La libre conscience as its organ, but both society and periodical disappeared during the Franco-Prussian warFranco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
. In 1882, Décembre and Vallières, through La fraternité universelle and many similar publications, sought directly to reorganize the sect, but the attempt failed and, in 1890, Décembre confessed the impossibility of arousing public interest. Camerlynck's voluminous book, "Théisme", published in Paris in 1900, had a similar aim and met a similar fate.
Beliefs and organisation
Theophilanthropism was described in the Manuel du théophilanthropie, of which there were new editions made as the work progressed. The governing body consisted of two committees, one called "comité de direction morale", in charge of the spiritual, the other styled "comité des administrateurs" in charge of the temporalitiesState (polity)
A state is an organized political community, living under a government. States may be sovereign and may enjoy a monopoly on the legal initiation of force and are not dependent on, or subject to any other power or state. Many states are federated states which participate in a federal union...
.
No dogmatic creed was imposed on the adherents of the new religion, the two fundamental tenets, viz. the existence of God
Existence of God
Arguments for and against the existence of God have been proposed by philosophers, theologians, scientists, and others. In philosophical terms, arguments for and against the existence of God involve primarily the sub-disciplines of epistemology and ontology , but also of the theory of value, since...
and the immortality of the soul, being purely sentimental beliefs (croyances de sentiment) deemed necessary for the preservation of society and the welfare of individuals. The moral teaching, considered the principal feature of the movement, held a middle position between the severity of Stoicism
Stoicism
Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded in Athens by Zeno of Citium in the early . The Stoics taught that destructive emotions resulted from errors in judgment, and that a sage, or person of "moral and intellectual perfection," would not suffer such emotions.Stoics were concerned...
and the laxity of Epicureanism
Epicureanism
Epicureanism is a system of philosophy based upon the teachings of Epicurus, founded around 307 BC. Epicurus was an atomic materialist, following in the steps of Democritus. His materialism led him to a general attack on superstition and divine intervention. Following Aristippus—about whom...
. Its basic principle was good: good is all that tends to preserve and perfect the man; evil is all that tends to destroy or impair him. It is in light of that axiom and not of the Christian standard - in spite of the phraseology - that we should view the commandments concerning the adoration of God, the love of our neighbor, domestic virtues and patriotism.
Theophilanthropist worship was at first very simple and meant chiefly for the home: it consisted in a short invocation of God in the morning and a kind of examination of conscience
Examination of conscience
Examination of conscience is a review of one's past thoughts, words, actions, and omissions for the purpose of ascertaining their conformity with, or deviation from, the moral law. Among Christians, this is generally a private review; secular intellectuals have, on occasion, published autocritiques...
at the end of the day. A plain altar on which were laid some flowers and fruits, a few inscriptions appended to the walls, a platform for the readers or speakers, were the only furnishings allowed. The founders were particularly anxious that this simplicity be strictly adhered to. Nevertheless, the progress of the sect led gradually to a more elaborate ceremonial. It is a far cry from the early meetings where the minister or père de famille, presided at prayer or mimicked Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
, First Communion
First Communion
The First Communion, or First Holy Communion, is a Catholic Church ceremony. It is the colloquial name for a person's first reception of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Catholics believe this event to be very important, as the Eucharist is one of the central focuses of the Catholic Church...
, marriages
Catholic marriage
Catholic marriage, also called matrimony, is a "covenant by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life and which is ordered by its nature to the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring...
or funerals
Catholic Funeral
A Roman Catholic funeral is a funeral rite in use in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church. Within the Church, they may be referred to as ecclesiastical funerals...
, to the gorgeous display of the so-called national festivals. There even was a Theophilanthropist Mass, which, however, came much nearer a Calvinist service than to the Catholic Liturgy.
Of the hymns adopted by the sect, some taken from the writings of J. B. Rousseau, Madame Deshoulières, or even Racine
Jean Racine
Jean Racine , baptismal name Jean-Baptiste Racine , was a French dramatist, one of the "Big Three" of 17th-century France , and one of the most important literary figures in the Western tradition...
, breathe a noble spirit but, side by side with these, there are bombastic lucubrations like the "Hymne de la fondation de la ré" and the "Hymne a la souverainete du peuple". The same strange combination is found in the feasts where Socrates
Socrates
Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...
, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and St Vincent de Paul are equally honored and in the sermon where political harangues interlard moral exhortations. In Dubroca's funeral oration of George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
the orator, under cover of the American hero, catered to the rising Napoleon Bonaparte and laid out for him a whole political program which, read in the light of subsequent events, sounds like irony. Despite the hint, Bonaparte chose to be the Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
rather than the Washington of the new religionists.
The first idea of the sect really belongs to David Williams
David Williams (philosopher)
David Williams , was a Welsh philosopher of the Enlightenment period. He was an ordained minister, theologian and political polemicist, and was the founder in 1788 of the Royal Literary Fund.-Upbringing:...
, an English minister who exercised considerable influence in Paris during the Revolution. Chemin consulted the Calvinists before launching his Manuel. If later, a controversy arose between Protestants themselves as to the merits of Theophilanthropism, this was due to the imprudence of Theophilanthropists, who, elated by apparent success, lifted the mask.