ENCICLICHE

CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA. — In general, an encyclopedia (II. enciclopedia) may be defined as a clear and distinct presentation of everything that is of interest in the fields of letters, sciences, and the arts.

I. General Notions

The term derives from the Greek ἐγκύκλιος παιδεία, "education, all-round training," or more precisely "a training that embraces the entire cycle, the complete system of instruction and culture": "iam omnia attingenda, quae Graeci τὴν ἐγκύκλιον παιδείαν vocant," says Pliny, explaining the subject he treats in his Naturalis historia (I, 11; cf. also Quintilian, Inst. orat., I, 10, 1). This complete cycle, though varying according to the culture of the times, crystallized in a first phase, generally, around the seven liberal arts of the trivium and quadrivium. In a second phase, it changed its aims, criteria, methods, and forms to arrive at the modern encyclopedias, which offer a tool of work that is easier, clearer, and more organized.

According to content, an encyclopedia is universal if it embraces all human knowledge in a more or less broad manner; special or particular if it deals with only one subject or a group of related subjects (e.g., an encyclopedia of dogmatic theology or moral theology or of the history of religion). According to form, it is divided into systematic, when the subject matter is treated by dividing it according to a logical and organic system (theology, philosophy, etc.); or lexical or alphabetical, if the material is divided into articles arranged alphabetically for easier consultation whatever the subject treated. The lexical encyclopedia should not, however, be confused with dictionaries, which deal not only with language but also with technical and scientific terms; for these are limited to giving the definitions of the various meanings of a word; whereas in an encyclopedia, even if special, the word is important as a subject to be developed at length, gathering around it all the useful and interesting information that the various fields of knowledge can offer.

One must, and it is very important, consider the encyclopedia also according to the spirit that informs the entire complex of its composition, to which the judgments given about theories, persons, and facts are adapted and from which they depend. Thus one may have a materialist, Enlightenment, rationalist, communist, etc., encyclopedia. In light of these concepts, one may therefore define a Catholic encyclopedia as one that, whether universal or particular, presents all knowledge, or part of it, according to the Catholic spirit (which by no means implies either partiality, subjectivity, or, as it is commonly said, confessionalism, nor, much less, sectarianism). This Catholic spirit requires, on the one hand, that Catholic doctrine be expounded and followed, and, on the other, that in judgments and evaluations of ideas, theories, persons, and facts, an equitable, serene, objective criterion be followed, in conformity with legitimate and normal standards.

It is to these encyclopedias, whether universal or particular, that the subject treated here is restricted.

II. SYSTEMATIC CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIAS

The history of these encyclopedias follows in its development the general history of encyclopedias and may be divided into two great and distinct periods: the first embraces those prior to the mid-17th century, the second those after II. The encyclopedias of the first period are all systematic and generally universal; they might rather be called true libraries, aiming to supply recourse to other books, not always easy to find in many copies at that time, and formed from original passages, either unaltered or slightly modified, taken from the best authors versed in the individual subjects, then put together by the compiler without excessive care to give the whole an organic and homogeneous fusion. Consequently, in these encyclopedias one finds little originality or critical treatment of sources; yet they are to be credited with having preserved many passages from ancient authors whose works have been lost.

In their work the compilers followed the example of Latin and Greek classical authors. Setting aside Aristotle, whose complete works may be said to form a true encyclopedia (logic, metaphysics, ethics, politics, rhetoric, biology, natural history, with hints and notices drawn from immediate experience), and the work of M. Porcius Cato, which has come down to us only in a few fragments, in which he compiled a series of treatises on agriculture, rhetoric, medicine, and the art of war, in opposition to the invasion of Greek culture, the most celebrated and well-known encyclopedias are those of Terentius Varro, each book of which contained a treatment of a subject; Pliny the Elder’s Naturalis historia in 37 books, divided into 2,493 chapters, with a list of the authors from whom the information was taken (146 Latin and 327 non-Latin, mostly Greek), and the number of facts recorded from them amounts to 20,000 and better said to about 40,000; and Martianus Capella’s De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii, from the early 5th century, which treats the subjects of the seven liberal arts.

On these examples were modeled the first medieval encyclopedias: Flavius Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus with his two treatises De institutione divinarum litterarum (PL 90, 1105-1156) and De artibus et disciplina liberalium litterarum (ibid., 1150-1218). Both works were intended, according to the author, to take the place of a teacher, the first to introduce the study of Holy Scripture, the second the study of the seven liberal arts. Then there is St. Isidore, Bishop of Seville, with his Etymologiarum seu Originum libri XX (PL 82, 893-914; 83, 1-1166). This work, a true encyclopedia of all knowledge of his time, enjoyed world-wide fame; the title is due to the fact that each particular treatment begins with the etymology of the word; the content ranges from the seven arts to other profane sciences, then to sacred sciences, and thence to the customs and mores of peoples, tools of work, games, houses, etc. In the end it is nothing more than a compilation from Cassiodorus, Boethius, Varro, Pliny, Suetonius, etc., and the critical sense leaves much to be desired; nevertheless it preserves for us many passages from lost works and lets us know the degree of erudition attained by antiquity and the desire that obsessed everyone to know and to learn. A summary of this work, in some places a literal copy, is that of Rabanus Maurus (d. 856), Abbot of Fulda: De universo sive De rerum naturis libri XXII (PL 111, 9-614), presented to Louis the Pious in 847. Following this, but of much greater value and completeness, is the Speculum maius of Vincent of Beauvais (Strasbourg 1474), divided into three parts: Speculum naturale (32 books, in which the world is described according to the order of creation); Speculum doctrinale (17 books, which treat all scholastic science concerning philosophy, the seven arts, and profane sciences); Speculum historiale (31 books, which recount the history of the world from creation to 1254, including also the end of the world in 2376, the reign of the Antichrist, the Universal Judgment, and the triumphant kingdom of God). Later a fourth part, Speculum morale, was added, but it belongs to another and was composed after 1332. This truly monumental work was compiled to satisfy the requests of Louis IX, King of France, and required the collaboration of many copyists who presented the extracts indicated for each author (there are about 450 authors and 2,000 works consulted); it is entitled Speculum because, according to the author himself, it embraces everything that is worthy of speculation.

Other compilers of the Middle Ages and the late Middle Ages also enjoyed great popularity in this type of work: Bruno Leto Laini with his Li livres dou Tresor (written between 1260 and 1267, during his exile in France) in three books with 413 chapters, translated into Italian by the end of the same 13th century by Bono Giamboni; Honorius of Autun (d. c. mid-13th century) with the Imago mundi (PL 172, 119-87); Guillieri of Metz (d. in the second half of the 13th century) with the Image du monde; Conrad of Megenberg (d. in 1374) with the Liber de natura rerum; Alexander Neckham (d. in 1375) with De naturis rerum; Thomas of Cantimpré (d. between 1263 and 1280) also with a De naturis rerum; Bartholomew the Englishman, mistakenly called de Glanvillia the Franciscan (d. in the second half of the 13th century) with De proprietatibus rerum (translated into the Mantuan dialect by the notary Vivaldo Belcalzer at the beginning of the 14th century under the title Trattato de scienza universale); Peter Berchore, a Benedictine (d. in 1362), with Il Dictionarius (of 1,350 entries) and Redactionum de proprietatibus rerum (an imitation of the aforementioned work by the Englishman); Peter d’Ailly (d. c. 1420) with Imago mundi; Gregory Reisch, a Carthusian (d. in 1525), with Margarita philosophica; Raffaele Maffei (d. in 1524) with the Commentariorum rerum urbanarum libri XXXVII (Rome 1506); Giorgio Valla (d. in 1496), De expedendis et fugiendis rebus, in 38 books (Venice 1501).

Omitting other secondary names, some must be recalled in which the title of encyclopedia first appears: J. F. Ringelberg, Lucubrationes vel potius absolutissima XC-ADADEL (Basel 1541); Paul Scalich, Encyclopaedia seu Orbis disciplinarum tum sacrarum, tum profanarum (ibid. 1559); M. Martini, Idea methodica et brevis encyclopaediae sive adumbratio universitatis (Herborn 1606); J. H. Alsted, Scientiarum omnium encyclopaedia, seu VII (ibid. 1630), a revised and expanded version of the Cursus philosophici encyclopaedia (ibid. 1630). In all these works, however, there remained a lack of mastery of the subject matter, a lack of critical sense and of organizational didactic skill; they are nonetheless important for the history of the popularization of culture, because not everything in them is a simple reproduction and repetition of the ancient; there is always, instead, as it were, a shifting mass that reflects the different assimilation made by the compiler and the evolution that the various branches of knowledge had undergone in the meantime.

III. ALPHABETICAL ENCYCLOPEDIAS

From this point (second half of the 17th century) one enters the second period in the history of encyclopedias, in which the adoption of alphabetical order was to bring greater ease of research and consultation; not only that, but precisely because of this, it also brought about a transformation in the method of treating the material. There will still be encyclopedias in general use, but gradually a distinction is made between humanistic and scientific encyclopedias, leading to ever more specialized encyclopedias for individual subjects; there is also a tendency to divide and subdivide topics, increasing the number of entries; the work of the compiler grows to ever greater proportions, becoming almost an original work; in the 19th century, especially, national encyclopedias flourish and multiply.

It was Francis Bacon of Verulam who helped to arouse and develop these various trends with his two works: Novum organum (London 1620) and De dignitate et augmentis scientiarum (in 1623), in which he laid the foundations for the classification of the sciences and strengthened the predominance of the idea of Louis Moreri, with his Le grand dictionnaire historique ou le mélange curieux de l'histoire sacrée et profane (Lyons 1674, which went through 20 editions, the last being the Paris edition of 1759, expanded into 10 volumes); Jakob Hofmann with Lexikon universale historico-geographico-chronologico-poetico-philologicum (2 vols., Basel 1677); Pierre Bayle, who sought to correct and expand Moreri’s work with his Dictionnaire historique et critique (Rotterdam 1697).

At the beginning of the 18th century, Vincenzo Maria Coronelli of the Conventual Minorites, cartographer of the Republic of Venice, began to publish his Biblioteca universale sacro-profana, on which he had worked for thirty years and which was intended to comprise 300,000 entries in 45 volumes; but he did not get beyond the first seven (Venice 1701–1706; A–Caque) with a total of 30,260 articles. The true precursors of modern alphabetical encyclopedias, however, were the various authors of the Grosse vollständiges Universal-Lexicon aller Wissenschaften und Künste, better known by the name of its publisher, G. H. Zedler (64 vols., with 4 supplements, Halle–Leipzig 1732–54), and Ephraim Chambers with his Cyclopaedia or Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences (2 vols., London 1728; later enlarged and revised by A. Rees, 2 vols., in 1778–88; Italian trans. in 4 editions, Venice 1748–49 and 1769, Naples 1748, Genoa 1770–75). From the uncompleted French version Encyclopédie (v.) of D’Alembert.

IV. UNIVERSAL CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIAS

These and other similar works, which proliferated in great numbers, often to the detriment of readers because of their various degrees of hostility to Christianity, spurred Catholics to counter the evil by compiling their own encyclopedias, impartial, complete, and conscientious, which would safeguard the interests of their faith. Such universal encyclopedias are not numerous, but they bear excellent testimony to the zeal and laudable effort of their compilers and editors.

The principal ones are: Allgemeine Realencyclopädie oder Conversations-Lexikon für das katholische Deutschland (13 vols., Regensburg 1846–50; 4th ed., in 1880–90); Herders Konversations-Lexikon (5 vols., Freiburg im Br. 1853–57; 3rd ed. in 8 vols., in 1901–1908; 4th ed. under the title Der Grosse Herder, 12 vols., plus atlases, in 1913–35); Enciclopedia universal ilustrada europeo-americana, also known by the names of its publishers, the Hijos de J. Espasa (70 vols., Barcelona 1907–30; plus 10 vols. of supplements, in 1930–33; and further: supplement 1935, in 1936; supplements 1936–39, 2 vols., in 1944; supplement 1940–41, in 1948); De katholieke Encyclopaedie (24 vols., Amsterdam 1933–38; and now in progress, 2nd ed., so far 3 vols., in 1949); Katolikku Daijiten (4 vols., so far vols. I and II, Tokyo 1948–50, 2nd ed.).

V. SPECIALIZED CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIAS

More than in the compilation of universal encyclopedias, Catholics of various nations devoted their efforts to producing specialized encyclopedias, which cover in whole or in part religious and ecclesiastical matters, with or without reference to other related subjects.

I. The following are treatises on religious subjects. Apart from the Dictionnaire historique by F. X. Feller (q.v.), N.-S. Bergier’s Dictionnaire théologique (3 vols., Paris 1889) is more intent on refuting the Enlightenment and encyclopedists than on positively developing the foundations of the Faith; it also contains gaps, inaccuracies, and concessions to Gallicanism. See D’Avino, E., Dell’ecclesiastico (4 vols., Naples 1842–48; 2nd ed., modeled on the Kirchenlexikon, Turin 1863–70; 3rd ed., 1878–79), a well-known and still useful work. J. P. Migne, Encyclopédie théologique (52 vols., Paris 1844–59); Nouvelle encyclopédie théologique (53 vols., 1851–59); Troisième et dernière encyclopédie théologique (66 vols., 1855–66); in all, 90 dictionaries in 171 volumes, each treating alphabetically a branch of theology: dogma, liturgy, heresies, archaeology, missions, conversions, councils, cardinals, religious orders and chancellors, objections against religion, etc.; a collection of much material not always well vetted or assimilated. G. Moroni, Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica da S. Pietro ai nostri giorni (103 vols., Venice 1840–61, plus 6 vols. of indices, 1878–79); though in many respects inadequate and uncritical, the work retains a particular interest for ecclesiastical institutions, facts, personages, and publications of the first half of the 19th century. H. Wetzler–B. Welte, Kirchenlexikon (13 vols., Freiburg im Br. 1847–60; 2nd ed., revised and updated by Cardinal J. J. Hergenröther and F. Kaulen, 12 vols., 1880–91, plus 1 vol. of index, 1903). M. Buchberger, Kirchliches Handlexikon (2 vols., Munich 1907–12) and Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche (10 vols., Freiburg im Br. 1930–38). Lessico ecclesiastico illustrato (4 vols., Milan 1901–1906); the work is now appearing in a new edition, which may rather be described as a complete rejection and notable expansion: A. Bergier, Enciclopedia ecclesiastica (in progress; so far 3 vols., Milan–Turin 1942–49). The Catholic Encyclopedia (15 vols., New York 1907–12, plus 1 vol. of index, 1914, and 1 vol. of supplement, 1922). J. Bricout, Dictionnaire pratique des connaissances religieuses (6 vols., Paris 1925–28, plus 1 supplementary vol., 1929–33, in 1933). G. Jacquemont, Catholique, hier, aujourd’hui, demain (in progress; so far 2 vols., Paris 1948–50). Enciclopedia de la Religión Católica, Barcelona 1949 (in progress, 1 vol.).

The present encyclopedia — For Italy, however, there was lacking an encyclopedia of this kind that could stand alongside those mentioned for other nations. To remedy this deficiency, the Rev. Abbot Giuseppe Ricciotti of the Canons Regular of the Lateran and Monsignor Pietro Barbieri of the Sacred Congregation of the Sacraments set out in 1939, in the midst of the disturbances, to gather writers and collaborators, prepare a filing system, assign and vet the entries for the first letters. The circumstances of the time and the scale of the work, however, led them to consider more organic and truly adequate measures. The idea was resumed after the war, and in order to ensure serious organic unity of effort and direction and the necessary means, a committee of persons of particular competence was formed. This committee appointed the director, associate directors, and members of the editorial staff, established the criteria, and laid down the rules for carrying out the work. Begun in 1947, the work has proceeded—and continues to proceed—rapidly, and to date five volumes have appeared (Vatican City 1948–50).

2. Certain fields of religious subject matter are treated as follows: a) theology: G. B. Jungé, Dictionnaire apologétique de la foi catholique (Paris 1888; 4th ed., ed. P. Adhémar d’Alès, 4 vols., 1911–22; plus 1 vol. of index, 1931); Dictionnaire de théologie catholique, ed. A. Vacant, E. Mangenot, E. Amann (in progress; so far 25 fascicles, each in 2 vols., 1902–50); b) ecclesiastical history and geography: Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie ecclésiastique, ed. A. Baudrillard, A. De Meyer, E. von Cauwenbergh (in progress; so far 11 vols., 1921–49); c) canon law: Dictionnaire de droit canonique, ed. A. Villien, E. Magnin, A. Armanieu, R. Naz (in progress; so far 4 vols., 1935–49); d) Christian archaeology: J. A. Martigny, Dictionnaire des antiquités chrétiennes (Paris 1855; 3rd ed., 1890); F. X. Kraus, Realencyclopädie der christlichen Altertümer (2 vols., Freiburg im Br. 1882–91); Dictionnaire d’archéologie chrétienne et de liturgie, ed. F. Cabrol and H. Leclercq (in progress; so far 14 tomes, each in 2 vols., Paris 1903–50); T. Klauser, Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum (in progress; so far 5 fascicles, Leipzig 1942); e) Sacred Scripture: see J. J. J. (II, col. 1576); f) sociology: Dictionnaire de sociologie, ed. J. Bricout, P. Mainage, and G. Jacquet (in progress; so far 4 vols. and 2 fascicles, Paris 1933–39); H. Sacher, Staatslexikon, 5th ed., 5 vols., Freiburg im Br. 1926–32; O. von Nell-Breuning and H. Sacher, Wörterbuch der Politik (in progress; so far 4 fascicles treating related groups of entries pending the completion of the dictionary: Zur christlichen Gesellschaftslehre; Zur christlichen Staatslehre; Zur sozialen Frage; Zur Wirtschaftsordnung, Freiburg im Br. 1948–49); g) pedagogy: Lexikon der Pädagogik, ed. E. M. Roloff (5 vols., Freiburg im Br. 1913–17); Lexikon der Pädagogik der Gegenwart, ed. J. Spieler (2 vols., 1930–32).

The following non-Catholic works on religious subjects deserve special mention for the excellent service they can render in the study and discussion of religious questions:

a) Protestant works: Realencyklopädie für protestantische Theologie und Kirche, ed. J. J. Herzog (21 vols., Leipzig 1853–68; 3rd ed., ed. A. Hauck, 21 vols., 1896–1908; plus 1 vol. of index, 1909, and 2 vols. of supplements, 1913); Die Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart, ed. F. M. Schiele (5 vols., Tübingen 1909–13; 2nd ed., revised by H. Gunkel and L. Zscharnack, 5 vols., 1927–31; plus 1 vol. of index, 1932); Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, ed. J. Hastings (12 vols., London–New York 1908–21; plus 1 vol. of index, 1926); b) Jewish works: The Jewish Encyclopedia, ed. J. Singer (12 vols., New York–London 1901–06); Jüdisches Lexikon, ed. G. Herlitz and B. Kirschner (5 vols., Berlin 1927–30); Encyclopaedia Judaica, Das Judentum in Geschichte und Gegenwart, ed. J. Klatzkin and I. Elbogen (in progress; so far 10 vols., Berlin 1928–34); c) Islamic works: Encyclopédie de l’Islam (5 vols., Paris 1913–30; plus 1 supplementary vol., 1938).