Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 14.djvu/578

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TERRIEN


520


TERTULLIAN


quoted by Salmond, Hastings, "Diet, of the Bible", 8. V. "Paradise"). The uncertainty and confusion of the current Jewish ideas concerning paradise may explain the paucity of reference to it in the New Testament. The first mention of the word occurs in Luke, xxiii, 43, where Jesus on the cross says to the penitent thief: "Amen I say to thee, this day thou shalt be with me in paradise". According to the prevailing interpretation of Catholic theologians and commentators, paradise in this instance is used as a synonym for the heaven of the blessed to which the thief would accompany the Saviour, together with the souls of the righteous of the Old Law who were awaiting the coming of the Redeemer. In II Cor- inthians (xii, 4) St. Paul describing one of his ecstasies tells his readers that he was "caught up into para- dise". Here the term seems to indicate plainly the heavenly state or abode of the blessed, implying possibly a glimpse of the beatific vision. The refer- ence cannot be to any form of terrestrial paradise, especially when we consider the parallel expression in verse 2, where relating a similar experience he says he was "caught up to the third heaven". The third and last mention of paradise in the New Testa- ment occurs in the Apocalypse (ii, 7), where St. John, receiving in vision a Divine message for the "angel of the church of Ephesus", hears these words: "To him that overcometh, I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of my God." In this passage the word is plainly used to designate the heavenly kingdom, though the imagery is bor- rowed from the description of the primeval Garden of Eden in the Book of Genesis. According to Catholic theology based on the Biblical account, the original condition of our first parents was one of perfect inno- cence and integrity. By the latter is meant that they were endowed with many prerogatives which, while pertaining to the natural order, were not due to human nature as such — hence they are sometimes termed preternatural. Principal among these were a high degree of infused knowledge, bodily immortal- ity and freedom from pain, and immunity from evil impulses or inclinations. In other words, the lower or animal nature in man was perfectly subjected to the control of reason and the will. Besides this, our first parents were also endowed with sanctifying grace by which they were elevated to the supernatural order. But all these gratuitous endowments were forfeited through the disobedience of Adam "in whom all have sinned", and who was "a figure of Him who was to come" (Rom., v) and restore fallen man, not to an earthly, but to a heavenly paradise.

According to Josephus (Ant. Jud., I, i, 3), the Nile is one of the four great rivers of paradise (Gen., ii, 10 sqq.). This view, which has been adopted by many commentators, is based chiefly on the connec- tion described between Gehon, one of the yet unidenti- fied rivers, and the land of Cush, which, at least in later times, was identified with Ethiopia or modern Abyssinia (cf. Vulgate, Gen., ii, 13). Modern schol- ars, however, are inclined to regard this African Cush as simply a colony settled by tribes migrating from an original Asiatic province of the same name, located by Fried. Delitsch (op. cit., 71) in Baby- lonia, and by Hommel ("Ancient Hebrew Tradition", 314 sqq.) in Central Arabia.

HuRTER. Theotogin Dogmatica Compendium, II (Innsbruck, 1893), 264-83; VON Himmelauer, Commenl. in Genesim (Paris, 1895): Comment, in Cap. ii; Vigouroux, Diet, de la Bible, s. v.; GiaoT, Special Inlmduclion In the Study of the Old Testament, Pt. I, 168 sqq. (New York, 1901).

James F. Driscoll.

Terrien, Jean-Baptistb, dogmatic theologian, born at St-Laurent-des-Autels, Maine-et-Loire, 26 Aug., 1832; d. at Bellevue, near Paris, 5 Dec, 1903. He entered the Society of Jesus at Angers, 7 Dec, 1854; taught philosophy for two years and dogmatic


theology for twenty-two at the seminaries of Laval (France), 1864-80, and St. HeUer (Jersey), 1880-88, then, after being spiritual father at Laval he was ap- pointed professor of dogmatic theology and taught three years, 1891-94, at the Catholic Institute of Paris, remaining afterwards in this city as spiritual father and writer. During his first period of teaching, he did not pubUsh any theological work, except a treatise, "De Verbo incarnato", Jersey, 1882, for pri- vate circulation; there are also five or six other trea- tises in MS. or lithographed, which form a substantial body of Positive rather than Scholastic theology, after the manner and doctrine of Cardinal Franzehn. In a quite different style is framed a neo-Thomistic mono- graph, pubhshed at Paris in 1894: "S. Thomae Aqui- natis, O.P., doctrina sincera de unione hypostatica Verbi Dei cum humanitate amplissime declarata". At this time. Father Terrien began to apply his deep knowledge of theology to popular instruction, and pubhshed the following doctrinal treatises in French: "La Devotion au Sacr^-Coeur de J6sus, d'apres les documents authentiques et la theologie", 1893; Ital- ian translation by G. M. Rossi (Naples, 1895); "La grdce et la gloire ou la fihation adoptive des enfants de Dieu 6tudi^e dans sa r^alit^, ses principes, son per- fectionnement, et son couronnement final", 2 vols., 1897; newed., 1908; "LaMerede Dieu et la Mere des hommes d'apres les P^res et la theologie", 4 vols., 1900, 1902. These three works form unquestionably the most conspicuous part of Terrien's hterary per- formance, as they are highly valuable on account of precision and richness of doctrine.

Xavieh Le Bachelet.

Tertiaries (from the Latin lertiarius, the relative adjective of tertiiis, "third"), or what is known as "Third Orders", are those persons who Uve accord- ing to the Third Rule of religious orders, either outside of a monastery in the world, or in a reUgious community. The idea which forms the basis of this institute is in general this, that persons who on account of certain circmiistances cannot enter a religious order, strictly so-called, may, nevertheless, as far as possible enjoy the advantages and privileges of religious orders. This is most clearly ex-pressed in the Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis which, al- though not the oldest, has, nevertheless, become the model for the nde of almost all other Third Orders. Tertiaries are divided into Regular and Secular (see Third Orders).

Ferdinand Heckmann.

TertuUian (Quintus Septimids Florens Ter- tullianus), ecclesiastical writer in the second and third centuries, b. probably about 160 at Carthage, being the son of a centurion in the proconsular serv- ice. He was evidently by profession an advocate in the law-courts, and he shows a close acquaintance with the procedure and terms of Roman law, though it is doubtful whether he is to be identified with a jurist TertuUian who is cited in the Pandects. He knew Greek as well as Latin, and wrote works in Greek which have not come down to us. A pagan until mid- dle life, he had shan^l the pagan jirejudices against Christianity, and h;id indulged like others in shameful pleasures. His conversion was not later than the year 197, and may have been earlier. He embraced the Faith with all the ardour of his impetuous na^ ture. He became a priest, no doubt of the Church of Carthage. Monceaux, followed by d'Alrs, considers that his earlier writings were comixised while he was yet a layman, and if this be so, then his onlinat ion was about 2(X). Hie extant wTitings range in (hilc from the apologetics of 197 to the attack on a bisiioi) who is probablv Pope Callistus (;ift(-r 21S). It wa.s after the year 206 that he joined tlu- Montauist seel, .•uid he seems to have definitively sepaialcd from the Church about 311 (Harnack) or 213 (Monceaux). After