Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 3.djvu/460

 CASSIA

404

CASSIAN

as a Kempis; edited Jacob's "Greek Reader" (1836), of which sixteen editions were published, and a text- book on Latin Prosody (1S45), which is still extensively used in classical schools, and wrote and published a pamphlet entitled "New England Critics and New York Editors", in reply to an article in the "North American Review" on the merits of certain Greek class-books. Eugene, his son, b. in Ireland, 1822; d. at San Francisco, California, 14 June, 18S3. He was graduated from Georgetown University, and in 1844 was admitted to the New York Bar. During the years 1846-7 he served as Corporation Counsel in New York, and in 1S50 moved to San Francisco, where he took an active part in both local and national politics. In 1869 he was elected United States Senator from California, but resigned his seat and returned to San Francisco, November, 1S73, to resume the practice of the law. Pilot (Boston, 4 Jan., 1S6S); Catholic Family Almanac (New York. 1SS5); Donahue's Magazine (Boston. INO.Vi; .Shea, His- tory of Georgetown University (New York. 1S.S9). 207; Apple- ton's ('yd. of Am. Biog. (New York, 1900), I, 553.

Thomas Gaffney Taaffe.

Cassia, Simonb a Fidati a. See Simon of Cascia.

Cassian, John, a monk and ascetic writer of Southern Gaul, and the first to introduce the rules of Eastern monasticism into the West, b. probably in Provence about 360; d. about 435, probably near Marseilles. Gennadius refers to him as a Scythian by birth (natione Scytha), but this is regarded as an erroneous statement based on the fact that Cassian passed several years of his life in the desert of Scete {heremus Scitii) in Egypt. The son of wealthy par- ents, he received a good education, and while yet a youth visited the holy places in Palestine, accom- panied by a friend, Germanus, some years his senior. In Bethlehem Cassian and Germanus assumed the obligations of the monastic life, but, as in the case of many of their contemporaries, the desire of acquiring the science of sanctity from its most eminent teachers soon drew them from their cells in Bethlehem to the Egyptian deserts. Before leaving their first monas- tic home the friends promised to return as soon as possible, but this last clause they interpreted rather broadly, as they did not see Bethlehem again for seven years. During their absence they visited the solitaries most famous for holiness in Egypt, and so attracted were they by the great virtues of their hosts that after obtaining an extension of their leave of absence at Bethlehem, they returned to Egypt, where they remained several years longer. It was during this period of his life that Cassian collected the materials for his two principal works, the "Institutes" and "Conferences". From Egypt the companions came to Constantinople, where Cassian became a favourite disciple of St. John Chrysostom. The famous bishop of the Eastern capital elevated Cassian to the diaconate, and placed in his charge the treasures of his cathedral. After the second expul- sion of St. Chrysostom, Cassian was sent as an envoy to Rome by the clergy of Constantinople, for the purpose of interesting Pope Innocent I in behalf of their bishop. It was probably in Rome that Cassian was elevated to the priesthood, for it is certain that on his arrival in the Eternal City he was still a deacon. From this time Germanus is no more heard of, and of Cassian himself, for the next decade or more, noth- ing is known. About 415 he was at Marseilles where he founded two monasteries, one for men, over the tomb of St. Victor, a martyr of the last Christian per- secution under Maximian (286-305), and t be other for women. The remainder of his days were passed at, or very near, Marseilles. His personal influence and his writings contributed greatly to the diffusion of monasticism in the West. Although never for- mally canonized. St. Gregory the Great regarded him as a saint, and it is related that Urban V (1362-1370), who had been an abbot of St. Victor, had the words

Saint Cassian engraved on the silver casket that con- tained his head. At Marseilles his feast is celebrated, with an octave, 23 July, and his name is found among the saints of the Greek Calendar.

The two principal works of Cassian deal with the cenobitic life and the principal or deadly sins. They are entitled: "De institutis ccenobiorum et de octo principalium vitiorum remediis libri XII" and "Col- lationes XXIV". The former of these was written between 420 and 429. The relation between the two works is described by Cassian himself (Instit., II, 9) as follows: "These books [the Institutes] . . . are mainly taken up with what belongs to the outer man and the customs of the ccenobia [i. e. Institutes of monastic life in common]; the others [the "Colla- tiones" or Conferences] deal rather with the training of the inner man and the perfection of the heart." The first four books of the "Institutes" treat of the rules governing the monastic life, illustrated by ex- amples from the author's personal observation in Egypt and Palestine; the eight remaining books are devoted to the eight principal obstacles to perfection encountered by monks: gluttony, impurity, covet- ousness, anger, dejection, accidia (ennui), vainglory, and pride. The "Conferences" contain a record of the conversations of Cassian and Germanus with the Egyptian solitaries, the subject being the interior life. It was composed in three parts. The first in- stalment (Books I-X) was dedicated to Bishop Leon- tius of Frejus and a monk (afterwards bishop) named Helladius; the second (Books XI-XVII), to Honora- tus of Aries and Eucherius of Lyons; the third (Books XVIII-XXIV), to the "holy brothers" Jovinian, Minervius, Leontius, and Theodore. These two works, especially the latter, were held in the highest esteem by his contemporaries and by several later founders of religious orders. St. Benedict made use of Cassian in writing his Rule, and ordered selections from the "Conferences", which he called a mirror of monasticism (speculum monasticutn), to be read daily in his monasteries. Cassiodorus also recommended the "Conferences" to his monks, with reservations, however, relative to their author's ideas on free will. On the other hand, the decree attributed to Pope Gelasius, "De recipiendis et non recipiendis libris" (early sixth century), censures this work as "apocry- phal", i. e. containing erroneous doctrines. An abridgment of the "Conference" was made by Eu- cherius of Lyons which we still possess (P. L., L, 867 sqq.). A third work of Cassian. written at the request of the Roman Archdeacon Leo, afterwards Pope Leo the Great, about 430-431, was a defence of the ortho- dox doctrine against the errors of Nestorius: " De Incarnatione Domini contra Nestorium " (P. L., L, 9-272). It appears to have been written hurriedly, and is, consequently, not of equal value with the other works of its author. A large part consists of proofs, drawn from the Scriptures, of Our Lord's Divinity, and in support of the title of Mary to be regarded as the Mother of God; the author denounces Pelagianism as the source of the new heresy, which he regards as incompatible with the doctrine of the Trinity.

Yet Cassian did not himself escape the suspicion of erroneous teaching; he is in fact regarded as the origi- nator of what, since the Middle Ages, has been known as Semipelagianism. Views of this character attrib- uted to him are found in his third and fifth, but es- pecially in his thirteenth, "Conference". Preoccu- pied as he was with moral questions he exaggerated the role of free will by claiming that the initial steps to salvation were in the power of each individual, un- aided by grace. The teaching of Cassian on this point was a reaction against what he regarded as the exaggerations of St. Augustine in his treatise "De correptione el gratia" as to the irresistible power of grace and predestination. Cassian saw in the doc-