Bossuet: God, King, and the People / Examination of a Primary Source Document Nathaniel Tang To scholars and students

of history, primary source documents (PSDs) are windows into certain period of history of a locale or a people. More specifically, it aids in the understanding of the beliefs, the culture, and the ideology of the individual who wrote or created the document. Depending on the status and position of the individual within their society, it could also tell historians how the society operated or what the social norms were during the period in which they live. One of the primary source documents that gives historians an insight into the world of the Ancien Rgime period of French History was Politics drawn from the very words of the Holy Scripture, a document on kingship by a Gallican bishop named Bossuet. Bossuet begins the document with the following: We have already seen that all power is of God. 1 This statement set the tone for the rest of the document and acts as the theme in which Bossuet ties each of his following points within his document. Bossuet continues by stating that rulers act as the ministers of God and as his lieutenants on earth...it is through them that God exercises his empire.2 In other words, Bossuet is stating that temporal rulers are representatives of God on earth and it is through them that Gods will is carried out. The first statements of the document already give the reader the sense of the Gallican ideology. As Catholicism was the state religion of the Ancien Rgime, it is odd that the Papacy and the Bishop of Rome would be left out of Bossuets document in terms of his argument about Gods representative. However, it could be said that because this is a document on Kinship, the Papacy has no place. Leaving out the Bishop of Rome could also be by design and speaks of the Gallican ideology that the French Church should be autonomous but in communion with Rome, and that the Papacy does not fit into temporal affairs.

1 2

Bossuet, Politics drawn from the very words of the Holy Scripture, line 1 Ibid, line 3

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According to Bossuet, Kings were chosen or anointed by God and he used a verse from the Biblical Book of Ecclesiastes as supporting evidence: God has given to every people its ruler.3 He also makes specific references to several kings of the Biblical texts, such as King Solomon of Israel and King Cyrus of Persia: The Lord hath chosen Solomon my son to sit on upon the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel4 Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden...5

The idea that God choses or anoints Kings connects back to the first point that Bossuet makes: all power is of God.6 Because Kings are chosen or anointed by God, Bossuet argues that Kings are to be considered sacred.7 One could therefore assume that attacking the King, which could interpreted as criticizing or opposing the King, could be construed as sinning against God.8 In the same line of thought, Bossuet equates serving or respecting the King to ones duty to serve God.9 Bossuet states kings, although their power comes from on high, as has been said, should not regard themselves as masters of that power to use it at their pleasure.10 Because, as Bossuet stated earlier in the document, the royal throne is not the throne of a man, but the throne of God,11 the power the king wields should not be used for the personal will or desires of the king, but for the will of God. Bossuet states that the Power given to the King should be used for justice

3 4

Ibid, line 10-11 Ibid, line 7 5 Ibid, line 17-18 6 Ibid, line 1 7 Ibid, line 13 8 Ibid, line 13-14 9 Ibid, line 20-22 10 Ibid, line 23-24 11 Ibid, line 6

and he reminds the reader that misuses of God power is rewarded with punishment.12 Bossuet continues by stating Kings should tremble then as they use the power God has granted them; and let them think how horrible is the sacrilege if they use for evil a power which comes from God.13 In other words, the King is not above the Law, and more specifically, he is not above the laws of God. In a manner of speaking, Bossuet rejects the idea that the king can do no wrong. This does not mean that Bossuet is opposed to absolutism. In fact, Bossuet defends absolutism and states that critics of absolute government have attempted to confound absolute government with arbitrary government.14 In a manner of speaking, Bossuet argues that absolute government derives from God, while arbitrary government is a creation of humans. In the beginning of the document, Bossuet states that the purpose of the king is to be a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.15 Bossuet refers back to his earlier statement when he states that absolutism is necessary to do good and fight evil.16 This justification of absolutism and absolute government in Bossuets document gives the reader an understanding of the political system in Ancien Rgime France and that absolutism was central to the governance of the State. While Bossuet defends absolutism and does reaffirm that the King is the State, he also states that the King must be the representative of the will of all the people and their will must be a part of his own.17 In a manner of speaking, Bossuet, to a very small and minute degree, supports a minor form of popular sovereignty when he mentions the will of the people.

12 13

Ibid, line 30-31 Ibid, line 34-35 14 Ibid, line 40-41 15 Ibid, line 3 16 Ibid, line 47 17 Ibid, line 55

Bossuet continues to remind the readers to his overarching theme from the beginning of the document that all power is of God.18 Bossuet states that the power of God can be felt throughout the earth and it spans across the globe.19 In much of the same way, the Kings power can be felt throughout his realm. Bossuet argues that while they are the leaders of their respective realms, they also perform the role of the linchpin that holds their realms together, maintaining peace, order, stability, and unity.20 One of the attribute of a monarch is Majesty. Bossuet argues, however, that he does not consider majesty that pomp which surrounds kings or that exterior magnificence which dazzles the vulgur.21 He does state that the majesty seen in a king is only a glimpse of the Majesty of God.22 Bossuet states that so great is this Majesty that it cannot reside in the Prince as its source; it is borrowed from God. Bossuet continues by stating that the Majesty of God should be used for the good of the people.23 In addition to the King being a glimpse of the Majesty of God, Bossuet also mentions that the King is the image of God.24 While all humans were created in the image of God, according to biblical tradition, Bossuet argues that the King is THE image of God in that the King is the representative of God within their realms. One could also state that the person of God, his image, and his power is vested in the person of the King. The combination of Bossuets point about the Majesty of God and the Image of God, gives the reader the impression that Kings and the people who lived during this era in France believed in the divinity of the Monarchy and that it is by divine right that they rule.

18 19

Ibid, line 1 Ibid, line 58 20 Ibid, line 59-61 21 Ibid, line 51-52 22 Ibid, line 52 23 Ibid, line 72-73 24 Ibid, line 64

Even though there is general belief that the Kings are divine and that their office, power and authority derives from God, Bossuet reminds the reader that the King is only human and states Grandeur separates men for a littletime, but a common fall makes them all equal at the end.25 Bossuet concludes his document with advice that draws back to his first point that all power is of God:26 O kings, exercise you power then boldly, for it is divine and salutary for human kind, but exercise it with humility.27 What one can conclude about Ancien Rgime France when they read Bossuets Politics drawn from the very words of the Holy Scripture is that France during this period was ruled by Kings who had absolute power and after God, as the people of that era believed, was the most important and powerful person within his realm. Bossuets document also aids in the conclusion that Ancien Rgime France was very religious and, according to Bossuet, everything, from the temporal to the spiritual, was connected to God and that God is the centre of everything: We have already seen that all power is of God.28 While Politics drawn from the very words of the Holy Scripture helps modern readers understand the beliefs, ideals, and governing system of Ancient Rgime France, one could conclude that Bossuet sought to teach future kings to rule justly and wisely, and with boldness and with humility. And it is with that hope and determination that he continues to remind whoever reads his document that all power is of God.29

25 26

Ibid, line 82-83 Ibid, line 1 27 Ibid, line 84-85 28 Ibid, line 1 29 Ibid