Des Pèlerins de Dieu

Abstract

Lamennais was a man whose convictions lead him through a life filled with grief. He desired liberty for all men, from a tyrannical government headed by Louis-Philippe. He also knew that man needed some power to guide him away from despotism to a divine life. What better power than the catholic church-the oldest authority on earth. But the church was tied to the state so Lamennais fought to disentangle the two powers. He had two friends that helped him M. H. Lacordaire and le Vicomte Ch. de Montalembert. They tried to change the ancient ideas of the gallican hierarchy. But, the thought of the church without the state was too radical for the well established system. So countless times Lamennais and his friends were brought to judgement under the state (trials) and the church (encycliques from the pope). I wrote a play depicting the lives of Lamennais and his friends when they initiated the paper l'Avenir. It was a time of immense joy France saw a chance to break away from the monarchy, and a time of tremendous hardship the pope condemned the leading ideas of l'Avenir. A play means the use of dialogue, which helped me show the intense emotions and devotedness of each character. There are three sections I would like to acknowledge in my play. Act one, scene one, lines 48-54 and act two, scene three, lines 5-13a 18-19, and 28-29, are based on the description in John J. Oldfield, The Problem of Tolerance and Social Existence in the Writings of Féiicite Lamennais, 1809-lBJl. E. s. Bull, 1973• Also act one, scene two, / lines 5-lJ are based on description of Rene Bovard, Drame de Conscience. Paris' 1961.