Jesuit Civil Wars

Founded in 1540, the Society of Jesus quickly established itself as one of the most influential but divisive orders within early-modern Catholicism. Covering the generalate of Tirso González (1687-1705) this book offers a window into Jesuit politics and theology during this much less documented period in the Society's history. It focuses on two major crises during González's generalate, the first being the confrontation between Louis XIV and the Papacy over the question of control of the Church in France; the second, González's opposition to the theory of 'probabilism', to which the bulk of Jesuits subscribed. As such the book not only illuminates the role and theology of González, but also the tensions within late seventeenth-century Catholicism.

Auteur

Jean-Pascal Gay is maître de conférences in Early-Modern History in the Faculty of History of the University of Strasbourg, France, and former fellow (membre) of the Ã0/00cole française de Rome.

Contenu

Contents: Introduction; Towards a state of perpetual crisis? González, the Jesuits and the demands of French absolutism; Jesuit probabilism and González's probabilism; 'For my honour and that of the Society': the crisis over the publication of the de Recto usu opinionum probabilium; 'Great troubles and discords, and more than intellectual': government, theology and partisanship in the Society of Jesus under González; Epilogue: a not-so-conflictual memory; Conclusions; Bibliography; Index.