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adrian91
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What effect did Ludolph of Saxony’s De Vita Christi have on Ignatius and the " Exercises"?
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https://www.ccel.org/search/fulltext/John Cassian
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03404a.htmThe two principal works of Cassian deal with the cenobitic life and the principal or deadly sins. They are entitled: “De institutis coenobiorum et de octo principalium vitiorum remediis libri XII” and “Collationes 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 coenobia [i.e. Institutes of monastic life in common]; the others [the “Collationes” 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 examples 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, covetousness, 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 instalment (Books I-X) was dedicated to Bishop Leontius of Fréjus and a monk (afterwards bishop) named Helladius; the second (Books XI-XVII), to Honoratus of Arles 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 monasticum), 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 “apocryphal”, i.e. containing erroneous doctrines. An abridgment of the “Conference” was made by Eucherius 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 orthodox 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.
Sounds like you have us doing your homework, Adrian!What are the two major works of St. John Cassian? Can you explein, briefly, their characteristics.
Vico gets an A!