The Problem Of Tolerance And Social Existence In The Writings Of Félicité Lamennais, 1809-1831

Hardcover, no dust jacket. Ex-library, otherwise very good. 268 pages. Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Table of Contents 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 10 INTRODUCTION 12 I. A BIOGRAPHICAL INTRODUCTION 16 Life and Works of Félicité Lamennais 16 Lamennais as a Philosopher 25 The Philosophical Education of Lamennais 33 II. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 39 A Precision on the State of the Question 39 Tolerance: A Modern Problem 42 Tolerance in the Restoration 51 1. Revival of the Old 54 2. Defense of the New 61 3. Theorizing for the Future 67 III. LAMENNAIS AND THE RESTORATION OF AUTHORITY 70 Traces of a Traditionalist Philosophy in his early writings 70 1. Metaphysical options of Réflexions sur l’état de l’eglise en France pendant le dix-huitième siècle, et sur sa situation actuelle 70 2. An early discussion of the nature of Spiritual Sovereignty 79 The First Mennaisian Synthesis: Essai sur l’indifférence en matière de religion 86 1. Philosophy of Religion: A Social Apologetic 86 a) Tolerance and Indifference 86 b) Religion and Society 97 2. A Social Theory of Certitude 103 Elements of Transition 110 1. Liberty and Order 110 a) Priority of Social Unity 111 b) Christian Liberty 114 c) Towards a "Free Church" 118 2. Political Implications of Common Consent 121 3. History and Truth 125 IV. THE YEARS OF TRANSITION (1825-1829) 130 The Medievalism of Lamennais 130 1. The Romanticists and the Middle Ages 130 2. Lamennais's “Political Theology” 134 a) Religion and Law 134 b) Lamennais and "Unam Sanctam" 143 3. The End of “Societas Christiana” 147 Religious Liberty-Source of all Liberties 158 1. Christian Liberty in a Secularized World 158 2. The Phenomenon of Liberalism 165 3. The Mission of Catholicism 171 a) Church and State 171 b) The Church and Liberalism 176 4. The Inner Dynamics of Providence 179 5. Epistemological Refinements 184 V. THE MENNAISIAN CATHOLIC-LIBERAL SYNTHESIS 190 Legitimacy and Revolution 190 1. The Creation of “L’Avenir” 190 2. The Political Philosophy of “L’Avenir” 194 a) Social Reality and Its Interpretation 194 b) The Basis of a New Social Pact 198 c) Legitimacy and Legality 204 d) Common Liberties: Principles of the Social Pact 208 The Church in a Liberal Society 214 1. The Separation of Church and State 214 a) The Mennaisian Theory of Separation 214 b) Lamennais and the Theory of Thesis-Hypothesis 218 2. Tolerance 223 3. The Liberating Role of the Church 227 Metaphysical Justification 232 1. The Idea of a Catholic Philosophy 232 2. Progress and the Doctrine of Rights 235 VI. CONCLUSIONS AND CRITICAL REMARKS 245 Recapitulation 245 The Philosophical Character of the Mennaisian System 251 1. Concerning Common Consent as a Criterion of Certitude 251 2. The Problem of Lamennais’s Catholic Philosophy 252 3. The Problem of Method 253 The Validity of Mennaisian Insights 254 1. Unity and Plurality 254 2. Mennaisian Liberalism 257 3. Religious Liberty and Tolerance 258 General Conclusion 260 BIBLIOGRAPHY 262 Index of Proper Names 272 Subject Index 277 By John J. Oldfield. Bibliography: P. 251-260.