Portrait of Jacques-Paul Migne (1800-1875)

Jacques Paul Migne (; 25 October 1800 – 24 October 1875) was a French priest who published inexpensive and widely distributed editions of

theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

works, encyclopedias, and the texts of the

Church Father The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical pe ...

s, with the goal of providing a universal library for the

Catholic priesthood The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned (" ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers onl ...

. The ''

Patrologia Latina The ''Patrologia Latina'' (Latin for ''The Latin Patrology'') is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1841 and 1855, with indices published between ...

'' and the ''

Patrologia Graeca The ''Patrologia Graeca'' (or ''Patrologiae Cursus Completus, Series Graeca'') is an edited collection of writings by the Christian Church Fathers and various secular writers, in the Greek language. It consists of 161 volumes produced in 1857– ...

'' (along with the ''

Monumenta Germaniae Historica The ''Monumenta Germaniae Historica'' (''MGH'') is a comprehensive series of carefully edited and published primary sources, both chronicle and archival, for the study of Northwestern and Central European history from the end of the Roman Empir ...

'') are among the great 19th century contributions to the scholarship of

patristics Patristics or patrology is the study of the early Christian writers who are designated Church Fathers. The names derive from the combined forms of Latin ''pater'' and Greek ''patḗr'' (father). The period is generally considered to run from ...

and the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. Within the Roman Catholic Church, Migne's editions put many original texts for the first time into the hands of the priesthood.

Biography

Migne was born in Saint-Flour,

Cantal Cantal (; oc, Cantal or ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France, with its prefecture in Aurillac. Its other principal towns are Saint-Flour (the episcopal see) and Mauriac; its residents are known as Cantalians (fren ...

and studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

at the

University of Orléans The University of Orléans (french: Université d'Orléans) is a French university, in the Academy of Orléans and Tours. As of July 2015 it is a member of the regional university association Leonardo da Vinci consolidated University. History ...

. He was ordained in 1824 and placed in charge of the parish of Puiseaux, in the

diocese of Orléans In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...

, where his uncompromisingly Catholic and royalist sympathies did not coincide with local patriotism and the new regime of the Citizen-King. In 1833, after falling out with his bishop over a pamphlet he had published, he went to Paris, and on 3 November started a journal, ''L'Univers religieux'', which he intended to keep free of political influence. It quickly gained 1,800 subscribers and he edited it for three years. (It afterwards became his co-editor

Louis Veuillot Louis Veuillot (11 October 1813 – 7 March 1883) was a French journalist, author and anti-Semite who helped to popularize ultramontanism (a philosophy favoring Papal supremacy). Career overview Veuillot was born of humble parents in Boyne ...

ultramontane Ultramontanism is a clerical political conception within the Catholic Church that places strong emphasis on the prerogatives and powers of the Pope. It contrasts with Gallicanism, the belief that popular civil authority—often represented by th ...

organ, ''

L'Univers ''L'Univers'' was a nineteenth-century French Roman Catholic daily newspaper that took a strongly ultramontane position. It was edited by Louis Veuillot Louis Veuillot (11 October 1813 – 7 March 1883) was a French journalist, author and ...

''.) Migne was, until June 1856, owner of the daily ''Vérité'' (formerly the ''Journal des faits''), which, being limited to reproducing other newspapers, described itself as the impartial echo of all opinions. Migne believed in the power of the press and the value of information widely distributed. In 1836 he opened his great publishing house, the ''Ateliers catholiques'', at Petit-Montrouge, in Paris's outlying 14th arrondissement. He published numerous religious works in rapid succession meant for lesser clergy at prices that ensured wide circulation, and bypassed the bookselling establishment with direct subscriptions. These works were reproduced from the best available texts, generally without requesting permission. His publishing house was complemented during the Second Empire by painter artists' workhalls for the decoration of churches: three of their main works, in the style of

Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( , ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: Britis ...

, still remain in the choir of the church of Saint

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

Audresselles Audresselles (; nl, Oderzele; pcd, Auderselle) is a commune south of Cape Gris Nez in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The commune covers about of cultivated lands, two beaches, and seashore cliffs. In the 12th century it was ...

Pas de Calais The Strait of Dover or Dover Strait (french: Pas de Calais - ''Strait of Calais''), is the strait at the narrowest part of the English Channel, marking the boundary between the Channel and the North Sea, separating Great Britain from continent ...

, France. The ''Ateliers'' also produced and sold a variety of religious items. In time, the ''Ateliers catholiques'' became the largest privately held press in France. However, on the night of 12–13 February 1868, a devastating fire, which began in the printing plant, destroyed Migne's establishment. "Five hundred thousand plates, stacked in piles, melted in an instant; they are now enormous blocks on the most bizarre forms," reported ''Le Monde illustré''. Despite his insurance contracts, Migne was only able to retrieve a pittance. Shortly afterwards Mgr

Georges Darboy Georges Darboy (16 January 181324 May 1871) was a French Catholic priest, later bishop of Nancy then archbishop of Paris. He was among a group of prominent hostages executed as the Paris Commune of 1871 was about to be overthrown. Biography Dar ...

Archbishop of Paris The Archdiocese of Paris (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Parisiensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Paris'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is one of twenty-three archdioceses in Fran ...

, forbade the continuance of the business and even suspended him from his priestly functions. The Franco-Prussian War of 1870 inflicted further losses. Then from the

curia Curia (Latin plural curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally likely had wider powers, they came ...

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

came a decree condemning the use of Mass stipends to purchase books, which specifically called out Migne and his publications. Migne died in Paris. He died without ever regaining his former success and his ''Imprimerie Catholique'' passed in 1876 into the hands of Garnier Frères.

A complete edition of patrology

The best known of his publications are: ''Scripturae sacrae cursus completus'' ("complete course in sacred scripture") which assembled a wide repertory of commentaries on each of the books of the Bible, and ''Theologiae cursus'', each of them in 28 vols, 1840–45; ''Collection des auteurs sacrés'' (100 vols., 1846–48); ''Encyclopédie théologique'' (171 vols., 1844–46). However, the three great series that have made his reputation were ''Patrologiae cursus completus'', Latin series (''

'') in 221 vols. (1844–55); Greek series (''

''), first published in Latin (85 vols., 1856–57); then published with Greek text and Latin translation (165 vols., 1857–58). Though scholars have always criticised them, these hastily edited, inexpensive, and widely distributed texts have only slowly been replaced during a century and a half with more critically edited modern editions. Though the cheap paper of the originals has made them fragile today, the scope of the ''Patrologia'' still makes it unique and valuable, when modern editions do not yet exist. It is a far more complete collection of Patristic and later literature than anything that has appeared subsequently or is likely to. To create so much so quickly, Migne reprinted the best or latest earlier editions available to him. In the ''PG'' the Latin translations were often made in the renaissance before any Greek text had been printed, and so do not necessarily match the Greek text very accurately. The indexes themselves are useful for locating references in the

patristic Patristics or patrology is the study of the early Christian writers who are designated Church Fathers. The names derive from the combined forms of Latin ''pater'' and Greek ''patḗr'' (father). The period is generally considered to run from ...

writings. The collection is available through

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...

and archive.org.

Summary of publications

Migne's ''Ateliers catholiques'' employed 5 steam-powered presses, and by 1854 some 596 workers. On average, it published a book every ten days for thirty years. In summary these were:Bloch, pages 1–2. * ''Patrologia Latina'', 217 tomes in 218 volumes * ''Patrologia Graeca'', 161 tomes in 166 volumes * Greek Fathers in Latin, 81 tomes in 85 volumes * ''Scripturae sacrae cursus completus'', 25 volumes * ''Theologia cursus completus'', 25 volumes * ''Démonstration évangeliques des plus célèbres défenseurs du Christianisme'', 18 volumes * ''Orateurs sacrés'' in two series, 66 and 33 volumes * ''Première encyclopédie théologique ou série de dictionnaires sur toutes les parties de la science religieuse'', 50 volumes * ''Nouvelle encyclopédie théologique'', 53 volumes * ''Troisième et dernière encylopédie ecclésiastique'', 66 volumes * ''Summa aurea de laudibus B. Mariae virginis'', 13 volumes

References

External links

*
Brief biography
independent research (in French)
Migne Patrologia Graeca
Index of Authors / Download links
Faulkner University Patristics Project
A growing collection of English translations of patristic texts and high-resolution scans from the comprehensive ''Patrologia'' compiled by J. P. Migne.

PDF's of much of the ''Patrologia Latina'' * Polytonic Greek OCR of PG from the Lace repository at

Mount Allison University Mount Allison University (also Mount A or MtA) is a Canadian primarily undergraduate liberal arts university located in Sackville, New Brunswick, founded in 1839. Like other liberal arts colleges in North America, Mount Allison does not par ...

vol. 45

vol. 46
* *
''Patrologia Graeca'' - patristica.net
* Adalbert Hamman

''

Le Monde ''Le Monde'' (; ) is a French daily afternoon newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average circulation of 323,039 copies per issue in 2009, about 40,000 of which were sold abroad. It has had its own website si ...

'', 7 January 1975
L'abbé Jacques-Paul Migne
- website on life and works of Migne {{DEFAULTSORT:Migne, Jacques Paul 1800 births 1875 deaths People from Cantal Catholic education Christian scholars Hellenists French Latinists Patristic scholars French editors 19th-century French Roman Catholic priests French male non-fiction writers