Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 6.djvu/537

 GERASA

4G9

GERBERON

missionaries to Persia, (leori;ia, Armenia (1329); Malabar (1330), Cliina and tatary (1331); Bosnia (1340). In 1320 Jolm XXII sent him to King Charles Robert of Hungary and to Ban Stephen of Bosnia for the purpose of bringing about the extermination of the heretics, largely Patarenes, in these countries. On 5 Sept., 1333, Gerardus and the Dominican Arnauld de Saint-Michel (Arnaldusde S.Michaele) were appointed papal legates to make peace between the Kings of England anil Scotland. The procurator of the Scotch king in Paris having reported, however, that his master was not to be found in Scotland, John recalled the commission of the legates, 31 Oct., 1333. Ger- ardus remained in Paris and defended before a large number of professors of the university, on IS Dec, 1333, the opinion of John XXII concerning the Visio beatijica, namely, that the saints do not enjoy the complete Beatific Vision until after the Last Judg- ment. The University of Paris was greatly agitated by the controversy, and the next day, 19 Dec, Philip VI called together twenty-nine professors at Vincennes to discuss the question. This assembly dissented from the opinion of the pope, as did also a second assembly w'hich met 2 Jan., 1334. As is known, John XXII withdrew his opinion, 3 Dec, 1334. Gerardus Odonis was also one of the commission of sixteen masters of theology which met by command of Bene- dict XII from 4 July to 4 Sept., 1334, at Pont-Sorgues near .Vvignon, to discuss, under the pope's presidency, the ((uostiou of the Visio beaiifica. On 27 Nov., 1342, Benedict XII appointed him Patriarch of Antioch and at the same time administrator of the Diocese of Catania, Sicily.

Apart from the " Constitutiones Benedictinte" and the "Officium de stigmatibus S. Francisci", still recited in the Franciscan Order and commonly attril> uted to Gerardus, the best know'n of his writings is his " Commentarius [Expositio] in Aristotelis Ethi- cam" (Brescia, 1482, Venice, 1500). This work brought him the honour later of being called Doctor Mornlis. He also wrote on logic and a treatise en- titled " Philosophia Naturalis", in which he is said to have apparently taught .\tomism; another work was a "Commentarius in IV libros Sententiarum". Among his exegetical works are: "De figuris Bibliorum", and treatises on the Psalter, the First Epistle to the Corinthians, and the Epistle to the Galatians, besides "Sermones". In addition to taking severe measures against the adherents of the deposed Michael of Cesena, Gerardus addressed to the latter the writing "Quid niteris", to which, however, Cesena soon made a rejoinder beginning "Teste Salomone".

EuBEL, Bullarium Franciscanvm (Rome, 1898, 1902), V, VI; Waddino, Annales Minorum (2ncl ed., Rome. 1733), VII, VIII; Denifle and Chatelain, Chartularium llniuersitatis Parisien- sis (Paris. 1891), II, 321-442; Analecta Franrisrana (Quarac- chi, 1887), II, 146-81; (1897). Ill, 488-537; Michaelis a Neapoli, Chronalooia historico-Iegalis Ord. Fratr. Minorum (Naples, 16.50), I, 46-63; Wadding, Scriptore." Ordinis Mino- rum (Rome, 1650), 14.5; 2nd cd. (Rome, 1806), 99; 3rd ed. (Rome, 1906), 99-100; Sbaralea, Supplementum ad Scriptt. Ord. Min. (Rome, 1806), 306-7; 2nd ed. (Rome), 1,324-25; Jeiler in Kirchenlex., s. v. Gerhard Odonis; .Iele.ni<5, De Patarenis Bofmiw (Sorajevo, 1908), 98 sqq.; Archiimm Franciscanum liixloricum (Quaracchi, 1909), II, nn. 160 sqq.; II, nn. 269 sqq.; Ill, nn. 412 sqq.

Michael Bihl.

Gerasa, a titular see in the province of Arabia and the Patriarchate of Antioch. According to Josephus, it was a city of Decapolis in which a number of Jews resided. Alexander Janna>us took possession of it, althoughit was surrounded by a triple wall (Bell. Jud., I, 4, 8). In 68 A. D. Vespasian ravaged the country and sacked the city because the Jews were all-power- ful there (op. cit., IV, 9, 1). Simon, the son of Gioras, one of the principal leaders of the rebellious Jews, was born at (ierasa. The city is mentioned as forming a part, sometimes of Arabia, sometimes of Syria, by Ptolemy, Pliny, and Stephen of Byzantium, who also

speak of several notaljle persons of the place. Coins and a number of inscriptions prove that it was some- times called Antioch on the Chrysorrhoas, the little river by which it is watered. In the Gospel (Matt., viii, 28; Mark, v, i; Luke, viii, 26, 37) there is ques- tion of the country of the Gerasans, but if this name is to be read instead of Gadarenians or Gergesians, the reference is to another locality, near the lake of Tibe- rias. The prosperity of Gerasa, once considerable, dates from the first centuries of our era, its buildings date from the emperors of the second and third cen- turies. Its destruction was brought about by earth- quakes and the Arab invasions. We know tlu-ee (ireek Bishops of Gerasa: Exairesius, fourth century; Plancus, 4,51; ^Eneas, who built the church of St. Theodore in the sixth century. In 1121 Baldwin II attempted in vain to conquer it, and at the beginning of the thirteenth century the geographer Yakut in- forms us that it was no longer inhabited. In modern times, several thousand Tcherkesses have established themselves amid its ruins and have unfortunately de- stroyed most of the GriBco-Roman monuments which time had spared. Until recently Djerasch was the best preserved city of Roman antiquity and the one which afforded us the most exact idea of Roman civili- zation. Its ramparts, in a state of partial preservation, are still to be seen; also a magnificent triumphal arch, with three openings about 82 feet wide by 29 high; a " naumachia", or circus for naval combats; two thea- tres; the forum with fifty-five columns still standing; the great colonnade which crosses the city from north to south, and which still retains from 100 to 150 of its columns; several aqueducts; some propylaa; a tem- ple of the Sun, the columns of which are about 40 feet high, and several other temples, baths, etc. Greek and Latin inscriptions are very numerous among the ruins. The ramparts of the city cover a distance of about three miles.

Gehmer-Durand, Exploration epigraphigue de Ghasa in Revue bibhque, 1895, 374-400; Nouvelle exploration epigraphi- gue de Gerasa in Revue biblique, 1899, 5. 39; and 1900, 93-95; see also Perdrizet in Revue Billique, 1900, 429-443; and the various guidebooks to Palestine and Syria.

S. Vailhe.

Gerberon, Gabriel, a Benedictine of the Maurist Congregation; b. at St-Calais, Department of Sarthe, France, 12 Aug., 1628; d. in the monastery of St- Denis, near Paris, 29 March, 1711; educated by the Oratorians at Vendome; became a Benedictine in the mona.stery of St-Melaine, at Rennes, 11 Dec, lCi49; studied theology in the monastery of Mont St-Michel; ordained priest in 1655; and taught philosophy and theology in the monasteries of Bourgeuil, St-Denis, and St-Benoit-sur-Loire until 1663. His departure from the Scholastic method of teaching theology, and his leaning towards Jansenism, influenced his superiors to relieve him of his professional duties. In 1663 he was sent to the monastery of La Couture, near Le Mans, and three years later, to St-(!ermain-des-Pres, where he devoted six years (1666-1672) to the care of souls and to literary pursuits. In 1672 he was sent to the monastery of Argenteuil, and in 1675 he was ap- pointed subprior of the monastery of Corbie. Here he openly opposed the encroachments of Louis XIV in ecclesiastical and monastic affairs, and when it be- came known that he was the author of the second vol- ume of "L'Abb^ commendataire " (Cologne, 1674), a work which severely condemned the abuse of setting commendatory abbots over monasteries, the king ordered his arrest (1682). Gerberon e.scaped the hands of the law by fleeing to Brussels, thence to Hol- land, where he lived a few years under the assumed name of Augustin Kergr^. In 1690 he returned to Brussels, and, in union with Quesnel and other Jansen- ists, wrote numerous pamphlets in favour of Jansen- ism. On 30 May, 1703, he was arrested at the com- mand of the .-\rehbishop of Mechlin, who intended to