Page 204 - Transcriptions d'actes notariés - Tome 20 - 1682-1686

developmen~s, a judgement whieh there is reason to regard as balanced
and judicious, particularly in comparison witb that oi the Jansenista,
the philosophes, and other enthusiasts of the time. The Journalists took
their part in the Enlightenment; they were in a aenae men of the Enligbt-
enment; they helped to spread the new learning. The Journaliste derrion-
strate in their own way the important faet that the readjustment of
ideas of this period extended to Catholies as well as to non-believers,
that the Enlightenment was by no means essentially an irreli,' ~~OUS move-
meut upon whieh the Chureh looked with distrust.
An illustration of lhia atti~ude of the Journalists might be found,
for instance, in their appraisal of Diderot's Encyclopedia, whieh, with
certain qualifications, they found quite praiseworthy. In like fashion,
they approved of the popular interest in philosophic studies and of the
erowth in science. At the same time the Daoes of the lournal testifv to
V 1 V
the dismay on the part of its editors at thc growth of deism and reli,' W~OUB
indifference in Franee, which they felt was being eneouraged by the
many deist traets smnggled iuto the country irom England. Thus they
sharply criticised Pope's Essay on Man for the deiat doctrine it contained
at a time when the poem was rmeived with great acclaim in France.
Their attitude js also jllustratd in their treatment of Voltaire's writings.
The Journalists, some of whom had taught Voltaire, singled him out
early in his career as a most gifted writer, and indeed helped to popular-
ize his writings. Objeetionable trends in his early writings were notid;
but they appear to have regarded these as merely the signs of a versatile,
though immature, poet misled by his deist and irreligious associates.
Meanwhile in his correepondenee with thc Jourrialjsts whieh was carried
on {rom 1730 to 1750 VoItaire showed ihat while he would not expur-
gate his works, he wes anxioufi to coritiuue hi5 association with thcm.
Various motives have been suggested for this associatiou, pcrhaps a
desire to have the advice of the Jesuits iri literary questioris, perhaps his
persona1 iriendship for the two Jesuits, Porée and Tournemine, which is
describd frequeritly in hi5 letters. These more or lem amicable rela-
tions ended rather abruptly in ~he early 1750'5, partly for persorial
reasons, and partly bmause the philosophes had become united and were
launching a vigorous and more open campaign against the Church.
From then until 1762 thc Journalists painetakirigly and wjthout rancor
pointed out LO jts readirig public the objectionable publications appearing,
with the hope of offsetting the damage that might he done. How much
they were ablc to accomplish iri this rcspt it is impossible to say.
There are other aspects of the Journal which might be treated; thosc
mentioried should be enlarged upon. But perhaps thie briei accourit
will give some iudication of the nature of thc task that the Journalists
assumed in 1701 arid how that task was carried ou^ during the Journal's
history. What the Journalists aceomplished is still of value today to
the historian of ideas, particularly to the Catholic historian of ideas. Its
full value and full significancc can only bc grasped when it is con-
sidercd in reference to the age in which it was published. For the
Journal de Trévoux was not only a Journal in the Age of the Enlighten-
ment, it was also in a real seuse a Journal of the Age of the Enlight-
enment.
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