This study of the Catholic Church and religious life in eighteenth‐century France seeks to ‘recapture the atmosphere of the times, and to appreciate the beliefs, aspirations, hopes, and fears of four generations. This first volume deals with the question of Church and State, including the alliance between the clerical and secular powers, the wealth of the Church, and the general assemblies of the clergy and clerical taxation, and secondly with the religious establishment, meaning not only the higher clergy, cathedral chapters, and the monastic orders, but also the ordinary curés, the parish st ... More

This study of the Catholic Church and religious life in eighteenth‐century France seeks to ‘recapture the atmosphere of the times, and to appreciate the beliefs, aspirations, hopes, and fears of four generations. This first volume deals with the question of Church and State, including the alliance between the clerical and secular powers, the wealth of the Church, and the general assemblies of the clergy and clerical taxation, and secondly with the religious establishment, meaning not only the higher clergy, cathedral chapters, and the monastic orders, but also the ordinary curés, the parish structure, and the mass of lower and marginal clerics. It shows how the constant pressure of worldly interests influenced religious vocations and allegiance among the clergy and laity because of the Gallican Church's close integration into the social order. The lifestyle of the clergy is evoked from the aristocratic bishops at the summit of the ecclesiastical hierarchy to the humblest and poorest of the religious orders, male and female. The motives and vocations of all sections of the clergy are analysed through individual portraits and discussion of their social actions, e.g. in education and caring for the sick and poor. A major theme emerging from the wide‐ranging examination of the relationship between the clergy and the rest of society is how the archaic structures of the Gallican Church and the ancien régime slowed down all pastoral initiatives meant to respond to the needs of a rapidly changing social and intellectual environment. Diocesan and parish organizations handicapped responses to changes in population; the complex regulations governing benefices put a premium on influence and opportunism; and most reforming schemes in monasteries and convents were rendered ineffective by the rules governing religious orders. Similarly, the growth of the Enlightenment critique of established religion runs like a leitmotif through all aspects of the study. Nevertheless, the discussion avoids abusive generalizations, views the dilemmas facing the clergy with sympathy, and pays due tribute to genuine religious vocations and how people sincerely pursued useful work in the world.