It is precisely on this point of retreat from the world -- which seems to have been the direct result of Jansenist uncertainties about salvation -- and the success of the Huguenots in economic matters -- which seems to have been a direct result of their assurance of salvation -- that much of the French reaction to both movements has its roots. In regard to the Crown, however, these doctrinal differences seem to have had little effect. Both groups undoubtably suffered persecution under the French government simply because Louis XIV was extremely uncompromising in matter's of faith. Any movement that even remotely disagreed with his orthodox Catholicism was vehemently opposed, not because Louis was necessarily interested in matters of faith--for he was not--but rather because any area of the state that showed any degree of separation from his absolutist rule was necessarily a challenge to his authority. This was not an absolute principle, however. Political expediency would often times call for the king to compromise. Like the Jansenists, who would also see relief from persecution under the "peace of the church," there were times, especially during war, when the Huguenots were not feeling direct pressure from the state.

Louis was not directly interested in the particulars of doctrine, and one might therefore expect that any differences that may have existed between the Huguenots and the Jansenists were not given much consideration by the state (if they were noticed at all) . Although it may be something of a generalization, for the most part, this was true. Both Jansenists and Huguenots, although perhaps different in name, were simply dissenters in the eyes of the king, and were for the most part treated equally as such. For the Jansenists, however, removal from society was of great importance; how then such a group could be considered a threat to the king is difficult to conceive. The question can be answered simply in that Louis' desire for absolutism reached even to those who did not directly affect him. At the same time, however, one must be careful to note that Jansenism in later centuries was much more than just a religious movement, and therefore constituted a political threat to the Crown as well.

According to Van Kley, "In 1759, an anonymous Pamphleteer asserted that there were 'many people who call themselves Jansenists uniquely out of party spirit, and who in truth understand not a single word of what Jansenism means but who merely, because of hatred for the Jesuits... do not respectfully bow before the bull Unigentus." Not too long before this pamphlet was printed, the Marquis d'Argenson observed in his journal that "it is no longer a question of calling the one's Jansenists and the other Molinists: in place of these names, substitute those of nationalist and sacredotals." Indeed, it appears that Jansenist theology in the later part of the eighteenth century was simply used as a vehicle by which French nationalist and anti-papal sentiment might best be expressed. After taking this into consideration, it becomes clear how Jansenism (broadly defined) might have been a threat to the crown.

The People

One can not blame the Crown exclusively for Huguenot and Jansenist persecution, however. In fact, a look at the reaction of the French people to both movements will add some insight into why both groups were persecuted. For the Huguenots specifically, their persecution seems to have been, at least in part, a result of jealousy by the people of France themselves. Due to their 'Protestant work ethic,' Huguenots had made great advances in commercial industries. At the same time, the edict of Grace, which fundamentally limited the Huguenots participation in politics, forced the French Calvinists to focus on their commercial activities even more, resulting in even greater wealth and prosperity. The Huguenot, due to his 'Augustinian piety,' was also more ethical than many of his Roman Catholic neighbors. In terms of Calvinist ministers and Catholic priests, "only too often the way of life of the Protestant minister was a standing reproof to the neighboring priest." For the Huguenot, then, both his assurance and the signs of his own salvation and election were instrumental in making him "more intelligent, harder working, soberer, and a better man of business than his Roman Catholic neighbor." Louis XIV's persecution of the Huguenots, therefore, seems to have been less of a result of his own doing, and more of a result of his following the cries of the people.

It seems that the people of France were far more sympathetic to the Jansenists. Although the Jansenists also inherited the Augustinian piety that was evident in the Huguenots, they took this piety to an extreme, and removed themselves from the world. They had not the business success that the Huguenot's had, and were therefore not an economic threat to their orthodox Catholic counterparts. They were far more pious than the average layman, but they had removed themselves to monasteries and were not active among the people like the Huguenots were. The people of France, therefore, had nothing to be jealous of or fear in the Jansenists. In addition, the policies of persecution instituted by Louis XIV against the Jansenists were 3insufficient to eradicate the heresy," but were nonetheless "sufficiently severe to discredit the opponents of Jansenism in public opinion."

The Church

Although the people of France saw some difference between the Huguenot and the Jansenist, the Church, like the Crown, essentially had no need to draw any type of distinction between the two movements. By necessity, the Church of France would have to treat each group separately and in a different manner, but at a fundamental level, the church was an arm of the state, and any absolutist state would therefore have to have an absolutist church. Both the Huguenots and the Jansenists were heretics in the eyes of the Church of France, and it looked to eradicate both. There is, however, some reason to believe that many church officials did not understand the issues involved in Jansenism. In 1638, Richelieu imprisoned St.Cyran, one of Jansenism's important early converts, but it is most likely that the Cardinal probably "understood little of the points at issue." He simply regarded theological innovation as "a specialized branch of civil revolt." One must also keep in mind that, in the seventeenth century (as is even true today), the Roman Catholic Church held no definitive position on the issue of predestination and the total depravity of mankind.

Politics and Religion

In our own secular society, there is a tendency to downplay the reality of religious conviction and the role religious doctrine plays in the life of the believer. Perhaps far too often, politics play, or at least are perceived as playing, a much greater role than they actually do. Certainly political motives and underpinnings are very important in understanding the persecution of the Huguenots and the Jansenists, and the economic threat the Huguenots presented to the people of France was most likely just as great, if not a greater cause of their persecution as the fact that they were Protestants. At the same time, however, it has been the goal of this paper to show that the religious doctrines that influenced and shaped both the Huguenot and Jansenist interaction with their neighbors, the state, and the church, are fundamental to understanding their history as well.

Conclusion

In the complex history of the Jansenist and Huguenot movements, there can be no one single cause that affected the way members of each group were treated. However, religion can have a strong influence on the lives of people, and one should not be so quick to dismiss the importance and the powers of doctrine. On the issues of the knowledge of your own salvation and the preserverance of the saints, Huguenots developed a sound security that they were indeed saved, and were therefore free to follow secular callings. The Jansenists, however, never had any assurity of their salvation, and therefore withdrew from the world and all its vices. Although many political factors must be considered as well, on this one point of doctrine, the nature of both Jansenism and French Calvinism formed, and both groups were treated differently as a direct result. The Huguenots, both active and prosperous within the world, were the envy of their neighbors, were seen as heretics by the Church, and viewed by the Crown as a political threat. Although the last two viewpoints would also be true of the Jansenists, because they withdrew from the world and were not an economic threat to the people of France, they were viewed somewhat sympathetically by that group. On a single point of doctrine then, the lives of people were changed dramatically, and their relationship with their neighbors was altered in a fundamental way.

[history page]

In order to save time and space, exact quotations and footnotes will be provided upon request.