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John Cassian

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Saint
John Cassian
File:John Cassian.jpeg
Church Father
Theologian, Monk
Born c. 360[1]
Scythia Minor, Roman Empire
Died c. 435
Massilia, Gallia Narbonensis, Western Roman Empire
Venerated in Catholic Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
Oriental Orthodox Church
Anglican Communion
Major shrine Monastery of St Victor, Marseille
Feast East: February 29th (28th non-leap years)
West: July 23

John Cassian (c. AD 360 – c. 435), also known as John the Ascetic and John Cassian the Roman,[2] was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern churches for his mystical writings.[3] Cassian is noted for his role in bringing the ideas and practices of early Christian monasticism to the medieval West.

Biography

Cassian was born around 360, most likely in the region of Scythia Minor (now Dobruja, a historical region in present-day Romania and Bulgaria),[4] although some scholars assume a Gallic origin.[5] The son of wealthy parents, he received a good education: his writings show the influence of Cicero and Persius.[6] He was bilingual in Latin and Greek.[7]

In his first work, the Institutes, Cassian mentions having a sister, with whom he corresponded in his monastic life; she may have ended up with him in Marseille.[8]

As a young adult he traveled to Palestine with an older friend, Germanus, with whom he would spend much of the next twenty-five years. The two entered a hermitage near Bethlehem. After remaining in that community for about three years,[9] they journeyed to the desert of Scete in Egypt, which was rent by Christian struggles. There they visited a number of monastic foundations.

Approximately fifteen years later, about 399, Cassian and Germanus faced the Anthropomorphic controversy provoked in letter form by Theophilus, Archbishop of Alexandria. Cassian noted that the majority of the monks received the message of their patriarch "with bitterness", and charged Theophilus with heresy for impugning the plain teaching of scripture.[10] Following an unsuccessful journey to Alexandria to protest the matter, Cassian and Germanus fled with about 300 other Origenist monks. Cassian and Germanus went to Constantinople, where they appealed to the Patriarch of Constantinople, John Chrysostom, for protection. Cassian was ordained a deacon and became a member of the clergy attached to the patriarch while the struggles with the imperial family ensued. When the patriarch was forced into exile from Constantinople in 404, Chrysostom sent the Latin-speaking Cassian to Rome to plead the patriarchal cause before Pope Innocent I.[6][11]

While in Rome, Cassian accepted the invitation to found an Egyptian-style monastery in southern Gaul, near Marseille. He may also have spent time as a priest in Antioch between 404 and 415. In any case, he arrived in Marseille around 415. His foundation, the Abbey of St Victor, was a complex of monasteries for both men and women, one of the first such institutes in the West, and served as a model for later monastic development.[12]

Cassian's achievements and writings influenced Benedict of Nursia (480-547), who incorporated many of Cassian's principles into his monastic rule, and recommended to his own monks that they read the works of Cassian.[13] Since Benedictine, Cistercian, and Trappist monks still follow Benedict's rule, John Cassian's thought still exercises influence over the spiritual lives of thousands of men and women in the Latin Church.[14]

Cassian died in 435 at Marseille.[15]

Writings

Cassian came very late into writing and did so only when a request was made by one or more important persons. His sources were the same as those of Evagrius Ponticus, but he added his own ideas, which were arranged in extensive collections. Evagrius was, however, the single most important influence on Cassian's ideas, due to his reverence for the "Origenist" monks (who also relied predominantly on Evagrius) of Nitria, Kellia, and Scetis, three early monastic centres in the desert of the northwestern Nile Delta.[7][16]

Around 420, at the request of Bishop Castor of Apt in Gallia Narbonensis, Cassian wrote two major spiritual works, the De institutis coenobiorum (Institutes of the Coenobia) and the Conlationes or Collationes patrum in scythica eremo (Conferences of the Desert Fathers). In these, he codified and transmitted the wisdom of the Desert Fathers of Egypt. The Institutes deal with the external organization of monastic communities, while the Conferences deal with "the training of the inner man and the perfection of the heart".[12]

His books were written in Latin, in a simple, direct style. They were swiftly translated into Greek, which indicates the Eastern monks recognized him as one of their own.[7] Some of his works had been translated into Georgian by the 11th century.[17]

The Institutes

The Institutes were meant to help Castor to establish a coenobium following the model of Egypt, in contrast to the existing monastic life in Gaul, which included the work of Martin of Tours. According to Hugh Feiss the Institutes are a counterweight to Sulpicius Severus' Life of Martin and Dialogues, and are an attempt to put order into a movement Cassian regarded as chaotic. Cassian, who insists on manual work, had a higher opinion of and close ties with the monastery on the Island of Lerins, founded by Honoratus.[7]

In Books 1–4 of Institutions, Cassian discusses clothing, prayer and rules of monastic life. Books 5–12 are rules on morality, specifically addressing the eight vices – gluttony, lust, greed, wrath, sadness, listlessness, boasting and hubris – and what to do to cure these vices. In the Institutions, Cassian discusses a will that is more complex than the will at the heart of the Pelagian message. Willful monks are a contentious problem, and Cassian paid considerable attention to analyzing the will, treating the corrupt will, and chiefly subordinating even the good will for the good of the community and ultimately, the will of God.[18]

Below is an outline of Cassian's Institutes:[19]

Book Title in Latin Topics
1 De habitu monachorum The monastic habit and its allegorical meaning
2 De canonico nocturnarum orationum et psalmorum modo Method of praying the psalms: night prayers
3 De canonico diurnarum orationum et psalmorum modo Method of praying the psalms: day prayers
4 De institutis renuntiantium Rules and instructions for new monks
5 De spiritu gastrimargiae First Vice: Gluttony
6 De spiritu fornicationis Second Vice: Fornication
7 De spiritu filargyriae Third Vice: Love of money
8 De spiritu irae Fourth Vice: Anger
9 De spiritu tristitiae Fifth Vice: Sadness
10 De spiritu acediae Sixth Vice: Listlessness (acēdia)
11 De spiritu cenodoxiae Seventh Vice: Vainglory
12 De spiritu superbiae Eighth Vice: Pride

The Conferences

The Conferences, dedicated to Pope Leo, to the bishop of Fréjus, and to the monk Helladius, summarize important conversations that Cassian had with elders from the monastery at Scetis about principles of the spiritual and ascetic life. This book addresses specific problems of spiritual theology and the ascetic life. It was later read in Benedictine communities after the evening meal,[20] and from the Latin title, Collationes, comes the word collation in the sense of "light meal".[21][22]

Outline of Cassian's Conferences:[19]

First Set
Conference Title in Latin Topic Speaker
1 De monachi destinatione vel fine The goal and end of the monk Moses (of Scetis)
2 De discretione Discernment Moses
3 De tribus abrenunitationibus The three renunciations Paphnutius (of Scetis)
4 De concupiscentia carnis ac spiritus Desires of the flesh Daniel (of Scetis)
5 De octo vitiis principalibus The eight principle vices Sarapion (of Scetis)
6 De nece sanctorum The murder of saintly people Theodore (of Kellia)
7 De animae mobilitate et spiritalibus nequitiis Evil spirits and the soul's changeability Serenus (of Scetis)
8 De principatibus The principalities Serenus
9 De oratione Prayer (disposition, types) Isaac (of Scetis)
10 De oratione Prayer (unceasing, method) Isaac
Second Set
Conference Title in Latin Topics Speaker
11 De perfectione Perfection Chaeremon (an anchorite near Panephysis)
12 De castitate Chastity Chaeremon
13 De protectione Dei Grace and free will Chaeremon
14 De spiritali scientia Spiritual knowledge, biblical interpretation Nestoros (an anchorite near Panephysis)
15 De charismatibus diuinis Charisms Nesteros
16 De amicitia Friendship Joseph (an anchorite near Panephysis)
17 De definiendo Oaths and promises Joseph
Third Set
Conference Title in Latin Topics Speaker
18 De tribus generibus monachorum Three types of monks Piamun (of Diolcos, a cenobite turned anchorite)
19 De fine coenobiotae et heremitae Cenobites and anchorites John (of Diolcos, an anchorite turned cenobite)
20 De paenitentiae fine et satisfactionis indicio Penitence and reparation Pinufius (of Panephysis, cenobite)
21 De remissione quinquagensimae Relaxing during Pentecost Pinufius
22 De nocturnis inlusionibus Dreams and nocturnal emissions Pinufius
23 De anamarteto Sinlessness Theonas (of Scetis, an anchorite)
24 De mortificatione Mortification, renunciation Abraham (of Diolcos, an anchorite)

Spirituality

The desert ascetics of Egypt followed a three-step path to mysticism: Purgatio, Illuminatio, and Unitio. These stages correspond to the three ways of later Catholic theology. During the first level, Purgatio (in Greek, Catharsis), young monks struggled through prayer and ascetic practices to gain control of "the flesh"—specifically by purging their gluttony, lust and desire for possessions. This period of purgation, which often took many years, was intended to teach young monks that whatever strength they had to resist these desires (grace) came directly from the Holy Spirit.

At this point, the Illuminatio (theoria in Greek) commenced. During this period the monks practiced the paths to holiness as revealed in the Gospel, identifying strongly with the Christ who taught the Sermon on the Mount (found in Matthew 5–7). Many monks took in visitors and students and tended the poor as much as their resources allowed. Many monks died never having moved past this period. The final stage was the Unitio (theosis in Greek), a period in which the soul of the monk was meant to bond with the Spirit of God in a union often described as the marriage of the Song of Solomon (also called the "Song of Songs" or the "Canticle of Canticles"). To find the solitude and peace that this level of mystical awareness demanded, elderly monks often fled into the deep desert or into remote forests.

His asceticism, while rigorous, was tempered by common sense. Cassian says hospitality should override ascetical routine. Even the most contemplative of anchorites should entertain visitors. Both asceticism and ministry are aspects of the practical life.[7]

In his Conferences, Cassian recommended as "absolutely necessary for possessing the perpetual awareness of God" the formula in Psalm 70 (69) v. 2, Deus, in adiutorium meum intende. Domine, ad adiuvandum me festina ("God, incline unto my aid; O Lord, make haste to help me").[23] He says of it:

Not without reason has this verse been selected out of the whole body of Scripture. For it takes up all the emotions that can be applied to human nature and with great correctness and accuracy it adjusts itself to every condition and every attack. It contains an invocation of God in the face of any crisis, the humility of a devout confession, the watchfulness of concern and of constant fear, a consciousness of one's own frailty, the assurance being heard, and confidence in a protection that is always present and at hand, for whoever calls unceasingly on his protector is sure that he is always present. It contains a burning love and charity, an awareness of traps, and a fear of enemies. Seeing oneself surrounded by these day and night, one confesses that one cannot be set free without the help of one's defender. This verse is an unassailable wall, an impenetrable breastplate, and a very strong shield for those who labour under the attack of demons.

— Cassian 1997, p. 381, Tenth Conference, X, 2-4

Benedict of Nursia praises Cassian's Conferences in his rule[24][25] and use of this formula became part of the Liturgy of the Hours in the Western Church, in which all the canonical hours, including the minor hours, start with this versicle, which is omitted only if the hour begins with the Invitatory, the introduction to the first hour said in the day, whether it be the Office of Readings or Morning Prayer. Alphonsus Liguori also cites Cassian's recommendation to use this short prayer continually.[26]

In the West, Cassian's proposition that "the slightest glimmer of goodwill" could be attributed to the human drive was widely regarded as unacceptable in relation to the prosperity of the Augustinianism of the period (Conf. 13.7.1; cf Prosper of Aquitaine Contra Collatorem; Cassiodorus, Institutiones 1.29; Decretum Gelasianum V.7).[27] In his Thirteenth Conference and in writings to the Monks of Lerins, Cassian qualifies this by saying the good will is "stirred" by God:

For when God sees us inclined to will what is good, He meets, guides, and strengthens us: for "At the voice of thy cry, as soon as He shall hear, He will answer thee;" and: "Call upon Me," He says, "in the day of tribulation and I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me." And again, if He finds that we are unwilling or have grown cold, He stirs our hearts with salutary exhortations, by which a good will is either renewed or formed in us.

— Schaff 2009, p. 428

Cassian finds the will to be insufficient for spiritual progress, and traces this back to the initial sin of pride. Cassian illustrates advanced cases of the will's pathology in the Institutions, saying these problems began when man "believed himself capable of attaining the glory of the Godhead by his freedom of will and hard work." To this end, Cassian believes the renunciate must conquer his will, overcome it, and even kill it.[28]

In regards to demons, Cassian noted that the earliest coenobites would ensure one monk was reciting a prayer, psalmody, or reading at all times, due to their belief that demons were especially prevalent at night. Cassian promotes David's evil spirit repulsing prayer at Ps. 35: 1–3, for demons actively oppose the virtuous life, and could be warded off with prayer.[29]

Accusations of Semipelagianism

As viewed by the Catholic Church

His third book, On the Incarnation of the Lord, was a defense of orthodox doctrine against the views of Nestorius, and was written at the request of the Archdeacon of Rome, later Pope Leo I. In this book Cassian points out a link between Nestorianism which stresses the humanity of Jesus and Pelagianism which stresses human effort. Later theologians, however, labeled Cassian as "Semipelagian" because he stressed the role of the human will, as opposed to Augustine's stress on the totality of grace, in moving towards salvation.[6]

The ideas expressed by Cassian to which critics have pointed as examples of his alleged Semipelagianism are found in his Conferences, in book 3, the Conference of Abbot Paphnutius; book 5, the Conference of Abbot Serapion; and most especially in book 13, the Third Conference of Abbot Chaeremon.

The view that Cassian propounded Semipelagianism has been disputed. Lauren Pristas, writes: "For Cassian, salvation is, from beginning to end, the effect of God's grace. It is fully divine. Salvation, however, is salvation of a rational creature who has sinned through free choice. Therefore, salvation necessarily includes both free human consent in grace and the gradual rehabilitation in grace of the faculty of free choice. Thus Cassian insists salvation is also fully human. His thought, however, is not Semi-Pelagian, nor do readers who submit to the whole corpus emerge Semi-Pelagians."[30] And Augustine Casiday states that "for Cassian... although sparks of goodwill may exist (which are not directly caused by God), they are totally inadequate and only direct divine intervention can ensure our spiritual progress".[31]

The Latin Church condemned Semipelagianism in the local Council of Orange (529), but recognizes Cassian himself as a saint.[32] It did not endorse Augustine entirely[33] and, while later Catholic theologians accepted Augustine's authority, they interpreted his views in the light of writers such as Cassian.[34]

As viewed by the Eastern Orthodox Church

Augustine Casiday states that Cassian "boldly asserts that God's grace, not human free will, is responsible for 'everything which pertains to salvation' - even faith."[35] Some other Orthodox, who do not apply the term "Semi-Pelagian" to their theology, criticize the Roman Catholics for allegedly rejecting Cassian, whom they accept as fully orthodox,[36] and for holding, as, in Casiday's interpretation, that everything which pertains to salvation comes from God's grace, and so that even the human consent to God's justifying action is itself an effect of grace.[37] This position of the Roman Catholic Church and of Cassian as interpreted by Casiday is attributed by Eastern Orthodox theologian Georges Florovsky also to the Eastern Orthodox Church, which, he says, "always understood that God initiates, accompanies, and completes everything in the process of salvation", rejecting instead the Calvinist idea of irresistible grace.[38] Neither Cassian nor any of his teachings have ever been directly or indirectly called into question or condemned by Eastern Orthodox, as they are considered a witness to the Orthodox position.[39]

In Cassian's writings

In The Book of Mystical Chapters, a compilation of sayings of the Church Fathers by renowned theologian and early church historian[40] John Anthony McGuckin, Cassian is quoted as saying the following:

The thief on the cross certainly did not receive
the Kingdom of Heaven as a reward for his virtues
but as a grace and a mercy from God.
He can serve as an authentic witness
that our salvation is given to us
only by God's mercy and grace.
All the holy masters knew this
and unanimously taught that perfection in holiness
can be achieved only through humility.

— McGuckin 2003, p. 24

Other views

According to some scholars, Cassian is a prominent representative of a monastic movement in southern Gaul which, ca. 425, gave expression to the soteriological view that much later was called Semipelagianism.[41] This emphasized the role of free will in that the first steps of salvation are in the power of the individual, without the need for divine grace. His thought has been described as a "middle way" between Pelagianism, which taught that the will alone was sufficient to live a sinless life, and the view of Augustine of Hippo, which emphasizes original sin and the absolute need for grace. For instance, Anglican priest and historian Owen Chadwick stated that Cassian held that man can come to God without the intervention of divine grace first;[42] and the Presbyterian theologian B. B. Warfield called Cassian the leader of the monastics in southern Gaul who asserted that men begin their turning to God and that God assists that beginning.[43]

Influence

The spiritual traditions of Cassian had an immeasurable effect on Western Europe. Many different western spiritualities, from that of St Benedict of Nursia to that of St Ignatius of Loyola, owe their basic ideas to Cassian.

Pope Gregory I's teaching on the seven deadly sins comes from Cassian, as does much of his teaching on compunction and prayer. Philip Neri used to read Cassian to the laity and would frequently use his work as the starting point for his own addresses.[44] He also influenced John Climacus and John of Damascus,[7] as well as Saint Dominic, Francis de Sales, and John Henry Newman.[44]

Cassian's writings stress the role of prayer and personal asceticism in attaining salvation by contrast with Augustine's writings which stress the role of God's justice and grace (predestination) and take a more negative view of human effort. His teaching on overcoming the eight evil tendencies (See Books 5 to 12 of The Institutes) were the inspiration behind the way the Irish monks practised asceticism, as shown in the Irish Penitentials.[6]

The Institutes had a direct influence on organization of monasteries described in the Rule of Saint Benedict; Benedict also recommended that ordered selections of the Conferences be read to monks under his Rule. Moreover, the monastic institutions Cassian inspired kept learning and culture alive during the Early Middle Ages, and were often the only institutions that cared for the sick and poor.

His works are excerpted in the Philokalia (Greek for "love of the beautiful"), the Eastern Orthodox compendium on mystical Christian prayer.

Even modern thinkers have been influenced by Cassian's thinking. Michel Foucault was fascinated by the rigorous way Cassian defined and struggled against the "flesh".[45] Pope Leo XIV includes his portrayal of a monk's "humility of heart" in his account of monasticism's historic care for the poor.[46]

Cassian's thought and writings are enjoying a recent popularity even in non-religious circles.

Veneration

He is a saint of the Eastern Orthodox Churches, with a feast day on 29 February. Because this day occurs only once every four years on leap years, official church calendars often transfer his feast to another date (usually 28 February).[47]

He is also a saint of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, his Christology considered Miaphysite by the Church and his works being relevant in the theological discourse of the 4th and 5th centuries.[48]

The Catholic Church also ranks him as a saint, with a feast day on 23 July (death anniversary). Like his contemporaries Augustine of Hippo and John Chrysostom, he was never formally canonized, a process that came into use several centuries after his death.[12] Pope Urban V referred to him as sanctus (a saint) and he was included in the Gallican Martyrology[49] He is included also in the Roman Martyrology with a feast-day on 23 July.[32] In the Irish church, at the beginning of the ninth century, Cassian was commemorated on 25 November, as indicated in the Martyrology of Óengus: "Lasin nEoin Cassian assa érchain corann" (With John Cassian whose crown is very fair). Like the great majority of recognized saints of the church, he is not one of the saints in the General Roman Calendar, but the Archdiocese of Marseilles and some monastic orders celebrate his memorial on his feast day.

In 2022, John Cassian was officially added to the Episcopal Church liturgical calendar with a feast day on 23 July.[50]

Cassian's relics are kept in an underground chapel in the Monastery of Saint Victor in Marseilles. His head and right hand are in the main church there.

Works

English Translations
French translations
  • Cassian, John (1955–59). E. Pichery (ed.). Conférences. SC 42. Éditions du Cerf.
  • Cassian, John (2024). Pascale-Dominique Nau, o.p. (ed.). Entretiens I-X avec les Pères de Scété: Introduction, traduction et notes. Parole et Silence. ISBN 978-2889595488.
  • Cassian, John (1965). Jean-Claude Guy (ed.). Institutions cénobitiques. SC 109. Éditions du Cerf.

See also

From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

John Cassian — A monk and ascetic writer of Southern Gaul, and the first to introduce the rules of Eastern monasticism into the West, b. probably in Provence about 360; d. about 435, probably near Marseilles. Gennadius refers to him as a Scythian by birth (natione Scytha), but this is regarded as an erroneous statement based on the fact that Cassian passed several years of his life in the desert of Scete (heremus Scitii) in Egypt. The son of wealthy parents, he received a good education, and while yet a youth visited the holy places in Palestine, accompanied by a friend, Germanus, some years his senior. In Bethlehem Cassian and Germanus assumed the obligations of the monastic life, but, as in the case of many of their contemporaries, the desire of acquiring the science of sanctity from its most eminent teachers soon drew them from their cells in Bethlehem to the Egyptian deserts. Before leaving their first monastic home the friends promised to return as soon as possible, but this last clause they interpreted rather broadly, as they did not see Bethlehem again for seven years. During their absence they visited the solitaries most famous for holiness in Egypt, and so attracted were they by the great virtues of their hosts that after obtaining an extension of their leave of absence at Bethlehem, they returned to Egypt, where they remained several years longer. It was during this period of his life that Cassian collected the materials for his two principal works, the "Institutes" and "Conferences". From Egypt the companions came to Constantinople, where Cassian became a favourite disciple of St. John Chrysostom. The famous bishop of the Eastern capitol elevated Cassian to the diaconate, and placed in his charge the treasures of his cathedral. After the second expulsion of St. Chrysostom, Cassian was sent as an envoy to Rome by the clergy of Constantinople, for the purpose of interesting Pope Innocent I in behalf of their bishop. It was probably in Rome that Cassian was elevated to the priesthood, for it is certain that on his arrival in the Eternal City he was still a deacon. From this time Germanus is no more heard of, and of Cassian himself, for the next decade or more, nothing is known. About 415 he was at Marseilles where he founded two monasteries, one for men, over the tomb of St. Victor, a martyr of the last Christian persecution under Maximian (286-305), and the other for women. The remainder of his days were passed at, or very near, Marseilles. His personal influence and his writings contributed greatly to the diffusion of monasticism in the West. Although never formally canonized, St. Gregory the Great regarded him as a saint, and it is related that Urban V (1362-1370), who had been an abbot of St. Victor, had the words Saint Cassian engraved on the silver casket that contained his head. At Marseilles his feast is celebrated, with an octave, 23 July, and his name is found among the saints of the Greek Calendar.

The 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.

Yet Cassian did not himself escape the suspicion of erroneous teaching; he is in fact regarded as the originator of what, since the Middle Ages, has been known as Semipelagianism. Views of this character attributed to him are found in his third and fifth, but especially in his thirteenth, "Conference". Preoccupied as he was with moral questions he exaggerated the rôle of free will by claiming that the initial steps to salvation were in the power of each individual, unaided by grace. The teaching of Cassian on this point was a reaction against what he regarded as the exaggerations of St. Augustine in his treatise "De correptione et gratia" as to the irresistible power of grace and predestination. Cassian saw in the doctrine of St. Augustine an element of fatalism, and while endeavouring to find a via media between the opinions of the great bishop of Hippo and Pelagius, he put forth views which were only less erroneous than those of the heresiarch himself. He did not deny the doctrine of the Fall; he even admitted the existence and the necessity of an interior grace, which supports the will in resisting temptations and attaining sanctity. But he maintained that after the Fall there still remained in every soul "some seeds of goodness... implanted by the kindness of the Creator", which, however, must be "quickened by the assistance of God". Without this assistance "they will not be able to attain an increase of perfection" (Coll., XIII, 12). Therefore, "we must take care not to refer all the merits of the saints to the Lord in such a way as to ascribe nothing but what is perverse to human nature". We must not hold that "God made man such that he can never will or be capable of what is good, or else he has not granted him a free will, if he has suffered him only to will or be capable of what is evil" (ibid.). The three opposing views have been summed up briefly as follows: St. Augustine regarded man in his natural state as dead, Pelagius as quite sound, Cassian as sick. The error of Cassian was to regard a purely natural act, proceeding from the exercise of free will, as the first step to salvation. In the controversy which, shortly before his death, arose over his teaching, Cassian took no part. His earliest opponent, Prosper of Aquitaine, without naming him, alludes to him with great respect as a man of more than ordinary virtues. Semipelagianism was finally condemned by the Council of Orange in 529.

The best edition of the works of Cassian is that of PETSCHENIG (Vienna, 1886-1888); a tr. of his writings by GIBSON is published in the series of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers (Oxford and New York, 1894), XI. See also HOLE in Dict. of Christ. Biog. I, 414 sqq. (London, 1877); GODET in Dict. de théol. cath. (Paris, 1906), II, 1824 sqq. BARDENHEWER, Les Pères de l'église (Paris, 1905), II; GRÜTZMACHER in Realencyklopädie f. prot. Theol. (Leipzig, 1897), III, 746 sqq.; POHLE in Kirchenlex., II, 2021 sqq.; HOCH, Lehre des Johannes Cassianus von Natur und Gnade, etc. (Freiburg, 1896); CHEVALIER, Rep. bio-bibliogr. (Paris, 1905), 796-97.

References

  1. Back to citation Lake 2004, pp. 27–41.
  2. Back to citation Latin: Ioannes Eremita Cassianus, Ioannes Cassianus, or Ioannes Massiliensis; "John Cassian". Christian Classics Ethereal Library. Retrieved 5 April 2016. Greek: Ἰωάννης Κάσσιος ὁ Ἐρημίτης
  3. Back to citation Chisholm 1911, p. 458.
  4. Back to citation Kurian & Smith 2010, p. 241; Lamm 2012, p. 220; Hinson 2010, p. 263; Egan 2010, p. 33; Stone 2010, p. 43; Cassian 2000, p. 3.
  5. Back to citation Hassett 1908; Lake 2004, p. 27; Stewart 1998, p. 27.
  6. Back to citation occurrence 6.0 Back to citation occurrence 6.1 Back to citation occurrence 6.2 Back to citation occurrence 6.3 "Feb 29 - St John Cassian (360-435)".
  7. Back to citation occurrence 7.0 Back to citation occurrence 7.1 Back to citation occurrence 7.2 Back to citation occurrence 7.3 Back to citation occurrence 7.4 Back to citation occurrence 7.5 "Feiss OSB, Hugh. "Cassian and Monasticism", Monastery of the Ascension; Jerome, Idaho". Archived from the original on 2018-04-14. Retrieved 2013-06-04.
  8. Back to citation Stewart 1998, p. 4.
  9. Back to citation Lake 2004, p. 27.
  10. Back to citation Shepherd 1938, pp. 263–273.
  11. Back to citation Squires, Stuart (2 October 2019). The Pelagian Controversy: An Introduction to the Enemies of Grace and the Conspiracy of Lost Souls. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. https://books.google.com/books?id=60e6DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT248. ISBN 9781532637834. Retrieved 27 February 2026. “[Cassian] and Germanus remained in Constantinople for only a few years, and soon left for Rome on a mission for Chrysostom. In late 404, or even 405, they carried letters to Pope Innocent from Chrysostom and all of his clergy, and they described to him the 'scenes of evil' that led to Chrysostom's second exile from Constantinople.”
  12. Back to citation occurrence 12.0 Back to citation occurrence 12.1 Back to citation occurrence 12.2 Hassett 1908.
  13. Back to citation "Cassian's influence on western monasticism and spirituality was profound and lasting. His monastic regulations and spirituality influenced Benedict of Nursia and many later monastic writers.... The Rule of Saint Benedict’s requirement that the Conferences be read to the monks during meals ensured that generations of monks would be shaped by the ideals of asceticism and prayer that Cassian had gleaned from the desert ascetics."
  14. Back to citation Vu, Linhxuan (2016-10-12). The Paradise Man: According to Thomas Merton. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 978-1-5245-4971-8.
  15. Back to citation "Jean Cassien | Joseph & Cassien". Retrieved 2025-09-22.
  16. Back to citation Driver 2002, p. 4.
  17. Back to citation Chadwick 1950, p. 172.
  18. Back to citation Casiday 2007, p. 96.
  19. Back to citation occurrence 19.0 Back to citation occurrence 19.1 Harmless, William (2004). Desert Christians: an introduction to the literature of early monasticism. Oxford New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-516222-6.
  20. Back to citation St. Benedict. "Chapter XLII: That No One Speak after Compline". The Holy Rule of St. Benedict. Translated by Boniface Verheyen. (1949 ed.). Retrieved 8 March 2019.
  21. Back to citation Funk 2007, p. 78-79.
  22. Back to citation McKean 2005, p. 333.
  23. Back to citation Nova Vulgata, Psalmus 70 (69)
  24. Back to citation "Rule of St. Benedict". www.thelatinlibrary.com.
  25. Back to citation "Birrell, Martin Birrell, "'HELP!' St John Cassian in The Liturgy & in Devotion", Pluscarden Abbey" (PDF).
  26. Back to citation Liguori 2009, p. 39.
  27. Back to citation McGuckin 2011, p. 533.
  28. Back to citation Casiday 2007, p. 97.
  29. Back to citation Casiday 2007, pp. 172–173.
  30. Back to citation Pristas 1993.
  31. Back to citation Moss 2009, p. 4.
  32. Back to citation occurrence 32.0 Back to citation occurrence 32.1 Martyrologium romanum. Libreria editrice vaticana. 2001. p. 385. ISBN 978-88-209-7210-3.
  33. Back to citation Zackrison 2004, p. 73.
  34. Back to citation Gonzalez 2010, p. 58.
  35. Back to citation Casiday 2007, p. 103.
  36. Back to citation Lossky 1976, p. 198.
  37. Back to citation "When Catholics say that persons cooperate in preparing for an accepting justification by consenting to God's justifying action, they see such personal consent as itself an effect of grace, not as an action arising from innate human abilities" (Karras, Valerie A. "Beyond Justification: An Orthodox Perspective". Archived from the original on 2010-11-30. Retrieved 2010-07-16.)
  38. Back to citation The existential and ontological meaning of man's created existence is precisely that God did not have to create, that it was a free act of Divine freedom. But— and here is the great difficulty created by an unbalanced Christianity on the doctrine of grace and freedom— in freely creating man God willed to give man an inner spiritual freedom. In no sense is this a Pelagian or Semi-Pelagian position. The balanced synergistic doctrine of the early and Eastern Church, a doctrine misunderstood and undermined by Latin Christianity in general from Saint Augustine on— although there was always opposition to this in the Latin Church— always understood that God initiates, accompanies, and completes everything in the process of salvation. What it always rejected— both spontaneously and intellectually— is the idea of irresistible grace, the idea that man has no participating role in his salvation. (Florovsky, Georges, The Ascetic Ideal and the New Testament: Reflections on the Critique of the Theology of the Reformation (PDF))
  39. Back to citation Augustine's writings found their way to parts of the West Roman provinces. Saint John Cassian (circa 360-433), former ascetic in the deserts of Egypt and then deacon of the Patriarch of Constantinople Saint John Chrysostom, challenged Augustine's teaching about original sin and pre-destination without mentioning him. The teachings of Augustine on these points were condemned by the Council of Orange in 529.[ 18 ] Augustine's writings completely captured the 8th century Carolingian tradition which knew basically only Augustine until the 12th century. At that time the Franks acquired a translation of Saint John of Damascus' "Book on the Orthodox Faith" which they simply understood within their own Augustinian categories. By the 11th century the Franks had taken over all of Western Europe, except Spain, by either conquest or diplomacy. The Spanish Romans under Arab rule were still under the direct surveillance of the Roman Emperor of Constantinople New Rome. The Umayyad Arabs of Spain and the Abbasid Arabs of Damascus and then Baghdad called their Roman Orthodox subjects Melkites, i.e. those who belong to the religion of the Roman Emperor in New Rome Constantinople. (Romanides, John S. "The Cure of the Neurobiological Sickness of Religion".)
  40. Back to citation 1. http://religion.columbia.edu/people/John%20McGuckin Archived 2016-06-20 at the Wayback Machine 2. https://utsnyc.edu/academics/faculty/john-anthony-mcguckin/ Archived 2017-02-22 at the Wayback Machine
  41. Back to citation Cross & Livingstone 2005, p. 701.
  42. Back to citation Cassian 1985, p. 27.
  43. Back to citation Schaff 2007, p. 21.
  44. Back to citation occurrence 44.0 Back to citation occurrence 44.1 Life, Spiritual (23 July 2012). "The saint whose guide on virtue was read every day by monks in the Middle Ages". Catholic Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  45. Back to citation Foucault engages extensively with Cassian in his 1979-1980 lecture series at the College de France, published as Du gouvernement des vivants (2012); On the Government of the Living (English translation, 2014)
  46. Back to citation Pope Leo XIV, Dilexi te, paragraph 57, published on 4 October 2025, accessed on 17 November 2025
  47. Back to citation Petruzzello, Melissa (3 August 2020). "St. John Cassian". Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
  48. Back to citation "The Life of St John Cassian - Pimonakhos Articles". St Shenouda Monastery. 2016-02-20. Archived from the original on 2025-04-04. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
  49. Back to citation Sabine Baring-Gould, The Lives of the Saints (Baring-Gould), p.521
  50. Back to citation "General Convention Virtual Binder". www.vbinder.net. Archived from the original on 2022-09-13. Retrieved 2022-07-22.

Bibliography

Sources

Further reading

  • Brown, Peter (2003). The Rise of Western Christendom: Triumph and Diversity, A.D. 200-1000. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. p. 111.
  • Harper, James (1965). Church History. Vol. 34. pp. 371–380.
  • Jones, Lindsay, ed. (2005). Encyclopedia of Religion. Vol. 3 (2nd ed.). Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA. pp. 1447–1448.
  • New Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 3 (2nd ed.). Detroit: Gale. 2003. pp. 205–207.
  • Rousseau, Philip (2003). Hornblower, Simon; Spawforth, Antony (eds.). The Oxford Classical Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 298.

Online texts

Others

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