Quesnel: Moral Reflections on the Gospels Vol 1

Vll
Catholic student, because he connects them with the
notions of tradition and authoritative comment. He
began soon to compose books of piety, chiefly for the
use of the young people intrusted to his care. It
was in this course that he was led to write the first
portion of those <strong>Reflections</strong> which, thirty years
afterwards, kindled so ardent a controversy. One
or two persons of distinction having been much de-
lighted with them, encouraged him to extend his
notes to the whole of the Gospels ; for at first they
comprehended only some portions of our Lord's life
and they thus gradually swelled into a very important
work, which gave a character to the age in which it
appeared. It was in 1671 that the first edition was
published, under the sanction of the then bishop of
Chalons sur Marne ; for it was not uncommon for
persons of that station, if men of piety, to authorize
and circulate works of devotion, with the sufferance
of their superiors, so long as the peculiar tenets of
the Roman Catholic church were intermingled, and
no great stir was excited about the evangelical truths
which they contained.
<strong>Quesnel</strong> continually added to his <strong>Reflections</strong> dur-
ing the rest of his life. He embraced the Acts of
the Apostles, and the Epistles in his plan, besides
enriching, by more than one half, the original notes.
His last years were dedicated to the preparation of a
still more enlarged edition, with much new matter,
which was published in 1727.* Nearly sixty years
were thus employed more or less upon this pleasing
and elevated task—another proof, amongst a thou-
* Eight years after his death. None of the earlier editions
are complete.