Jansenism

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Jansenism was a 17th- and 18th-century theological movement within Roman Catholicism, primarily active in France, which arose as an attempt to reconcile the theological concepts of free will and divine grace in response to certain developments in the Catholic Church, but later developing political and philosophical aspects in opposition to royal absolutism.

Jansenism is difficult to define, as its proponents usually identified as Roman Catholics. They did, however, possess some characteristic traits, such as using Augustine of Hippo's conception of divine grace. In their interpretation, divine grace not only was necessary for salvation, but also negated human free will. As they interpreted it, humans post-Fall were only capable of evil. The Jansenists were also distinguished by their moral rigorism and hostility towards the Jesuits and ultramontanism. From the end of the 17th century, this theological movement gained a political aspect, with the opponents of royal absolutism being largely identified with Jansenism.

Jansenism began in the midst of the Counter-Reformation, and owes its name to the Dutch bishop of Ypres, Cornelius Jansen, the author of its foundational text, Augustinus, which was published posthumously in Leuven in 1640. The work was first popularised by Jansen's friend Abbot Jean du Vergier de Hauranne of Saint-Cyran-en-Brenne Abbey, and after Vergier's death in 1643, the movement was led by Antoine Arnauld. Augustinus was the culmination of controversies regarding grace dating back several decades, and coincided with growing hostility of part of the Roman Catholic clergy towards the Jesuits. Jansen claimed to establish Augustine's true position on the subject, as opposed to the Jesuit view, which was said to give too great a role to free will in salvation.

Augustinus provoked lively debates, particularly in France, where five propositions, including the doctrines of limited atonement and irresistible grace, were extracted from the work and declared heretical by theologians hostile to Jansen.^[1] These were condemned in 1653 by Pope Innocent X in the apostolic constitution Cum occasione. Certain defenders of Jansen responded by distinguishing between matters de jure and de facto, arguing that the propositions were indeed heretical (de jure), but could not be found in Augustinus (de facto), and thus that the pope could not bind the conscience of a Roman Catholic regarding matters de facto.

The Jansenists attacked Jesuit casuistry as moral laxity, in such works as the Lettres provinciales ('Provincial letters', fictional letters defending the Jansenist cause) by Blaise Pascal, which greatly affected French opinion on the matter. At the same time, the Port-Royal-des-Champs Abbey became a theological centre for the movement and a haven for writers including Vergier, Arnauld, Pascal, Pierre Nicole and Jean Racine. Jansenism developed and gained popularity. In the late 17th century, Jansenists enjoyed a measure of peace under Pope Clement IX (a period known as the 'Clementine Peace').

Nevertheless, Jansenism was opposed by many within the Roman Catholic hierarchy, especially the Jesuits. Although the Jansenists identified themselves merely as rigorous followers of Augustine's teachings, Jesuits coined the term Jansenism to identify their ideas as the heresy of Crypto-Calvinism.^[1] Jansenists were also considered enemies of the monarchy, as they were very quickly targeted by royal power, with Louis XIV and his successors intensely persecuting them. The popes likewise demonstrated increasing severity towards them, notably with Clement XI abolishing the abbey of Port-Royal in 1708 and promulgating the bull Unigenitus in 1713, which further condemned Jansenist teachings.^[2] This controversy did not end until Louis Antoine de Noailles, cardinal and archbishop of Paris, who had opposed the bull, signed it in 1728. In this context, Jansenism merged with the Enlightenment in the struggle against the Jesuits, royal absolutism, and ultramontanism during the 18th century. Jansenist courtiers were instrumental in persuading Louis XV to launch the Suppression of the Jesuits. The clerics supporting the First French Republic and the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, which declared the Catholic Church in France completely subservient to the State, were also largely Jansenists. However, Jansenism receded and disappeared in the 19th century, with the First Vatican Council declaring a definitive end to most of the debates which caused its initial appearance, mainly by declaring the dogma of papal infallibility, which resolved ambiguities regarding the infallibility of papal bulls, and therefore whether they could be accepted or rejected by Roman Catholic clergy and laypeople.