Image of La Mère Angélique, 1662
Title
Image of La Mère Angélique, 1662
Description
Pictured in this engraving is Marie Angélique Arnauld, who served as abbess of the Abbey of Port-Royal near Paris. She was a leading proponent of Jansenism, a theological movement in seventeenth century France. It emphasized the reading of Scripture by the laity, personal virtue, and Calvinist ideas on predestination and free will. In this engraving, the Latin text on the book appears to be a translation of Matthew 6:33: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” The Jansenists disputed fiercely with the French Jesuits, who enjoyed royal patronage.
Pope Innocent X condemned several specific teachings in 1653 in his bull Cum occasione, and later popes renewed their attacks on Jansenist teachings, ending in 1713 with Clement XI’s Unigenitus, which issued a comprehensive repudiation of Jansenist principles (Wiesner-Hanks, 416-417).
Jansenism offers a specific example of dissenting movements within the Catholic Church and the authority the papacy brought to bear in condemning the movement reinforces the heft popes possessed in spiritual matters. Jansenism was not an “Enlightenment” movement, but it is also an interesting case study in considering the dispute between historian Jonathan Israel, who sees the Radical Enlightenment as truly embodying the popular notions of the Enlightenment, and others like Nathaniel Wolloch who contend the mainstream Enlightenment’s influence cannot be discounted. Jansenism’s inherent skepticism of papal authority in the Church was never extinguished from the Church in France, and Louis XIV drew on this principle in later decades as he fought for Gallican ecclesiastical autonomy from Rome. This small example illustrates the influence more moderate strains of thought can have on intellectual movements.
Pope Innocent X condemned several specific teachings in 1653 in his bull Cum occasione, and later popes renewed their attacks on Jansenist teachings, ending in 1713 with Clement XI’s Unigenitus, which issued a comprehensive repudiation of Jansenist principles (Wiesner-Hanks, 416-417).
Jansenism offers a specific example of dissenting movements within the Catholic Church and the authority the papacy brought to bear in condemning the movement reinforces the heft popes possessed in spiritual matters. Jansenism was not an “Enlightenment” movement, but it is also an interesting case study in considering the dispute between historian Jonathan Israel, who sees the Radical Enlightenment as truly embodying the popular notions of the Enlightenment, and others like Nathaniel Wolloch who contend the mainstream Enlightenment’s influence cannot be discounted. Jansenism’s inherent skepticism of papal authority in the Church was never extinguished from the Church in France, and Louis XIV drew on this principle in later decades as he fought for Gallican ecclesiastical autonomy from Rome. This small example illustrates the influence more moderate strains of thought can have on intellectual movements.
Creator
Pieter van Schuppen (1627-1702)
Source
Portret van Marie Angelique Arnauld, Pieter van Schuppen, naar Philippe de Champaigne, 1662, from Rijksmuseum. Original image here.
Date
1662
Contributor
Matthew Walsh
Rights
Public Domain, with full license here.
Citation
Pieter van Schuppen (1627-1702), “Image of La Mère Angélique, 1662,” HIST 139 - Early Modern Europe, accessed April 26, 2026, https://earlymoderneurope.hist.sites.carleton.edu/items/show/237.