Antoine-Jacques Roustan
Encyclopedia
Antoine-Jacques Roustan (23 October 1734 - 15 June 1808) was a Swiss pastor and theologian, who engaged in an extensive correspondence with Jean-Jacques Rousseau
.
Unlike Rousseau, he believed that a Christian republic
was practical - that the Christian religion was not incompatible with patriotism or republicanism.
, the son of Jacques Roustan, a Protestant shoemaker and Marie Baile.
He studied theology at Geneva, and was ordained a minister in 1759.
In 1761 he married Jeanne-Françoise, daughter of Justus Saint-Andre, a barber.
He was a schoolteacher and minister of St. Evangile in Geneva from 1761–1764, when he became pastor of the Swiss Church of London
(1764–1791).
In 1791 he became a "bourgeois" (gentleman) of Geneva, and in 1792 became a pastor in Geneva, and from 1797-1798 he was a headmaster.
He was elected a Member of the National Assembly in 1793.
Roustan and his friend the Rev. Jacob Vernes
wrote a History of Geneva, which remained in manuscript form.
He published several books on Christianity and Deism.
In his first letter of March 1757 he compared Rousseau to Socrates
"Plus je me repasse en revue, et plus je trouve que je suis tout pétrifié de Socrate; lui et vous faites meme histoire, et en vérité nous sommes si Athéniens que nous meritons bien d'en avoir un." . Rousseau praised him in return, but, although polite about the poetry he had sent, advised him against seeking a career as a man of letters.
Roustan wrote to Rousseau after reading Julie, or the New Heloise (1761) saying that although he found the novel delightful, he was concerned that it was immoral in describing adulterous love so vividly and in describing hope as the only reason to believe in Christianity.
He visited Rousseau in Môtiers
in 1762 and welcomed in him in London in 1766, but retained his views on the compatibility between Christianity and patriotism.
Four of his works — Défense du christianisme considéré du côté politique, wherein he refuted some of Rousseau's arguments from On the Social Contract; Discours sur les moyens de réformer les mœurs; Examen des quatre beaux siècles de Voltaire; and Dialogue entre Brutus et César aux Champs Élysées — were collected and published in 1764 under the title Offrande aux autels et á la patrie.
The rebuttal in Défense du Christianisme ou réfutation du chapitre VIII du Contrat Social is friendly, and in fact Rousseau approved of his work and helped him with finding a publisher. In it Roustan implied that Rousseau may not himself have believed in his stated view that the scriptures preach servitude and resignation, and went on to say that doing good works was an integral part of the religion, including fighting for freedom and against tyranny. He therefore felt that Christianity and Republicanism or patriotism were fully compatible.
In 1776 Roustan published a rebuttal to Rousseau's Profession of Faith of a Savoyard Vicar in Emile: or, On Education
.
His Examen critique de la seconde partie de la "profession de foi du Vicaire Savoyard" was one of the main reasons that Rousseau was mocked by Voltaire
in Voltaire's Remontrances des pasteurs du Gévaudan.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
.
Unlike Rousseau, he believed that a Christian republic
Christian republic
A Christian republic is a governmental system that comprises both Christianity and republicanism. Jean-Jacques Rousseau and John Locke considered the idea to be an impossibility, a self-contradiction, but for different reasons....
was practical - that the Christian religion was not incompatible with patriotism or republicanism.
Life
Roustan was born on 23 October 1734 in GenevaGeneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, the son of Jacques Roustan, a Protestant shoemaker and Marie Baile.
He studied theology at Geneva, and was ordained a minister in 1759.
In 1761 he married Jeanne-Françoise, daughter of Justus Saint-Andre, a barber.
He was a schoolteacher and minister of St. Evangile in Geneva from 1761–1764, when he became pastor of the Swiss Church of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
(1764–1791).
In 1791 he became a "bourgeois" (gentleman) of Geneva, and in 1792 became a pastor in Geneva, and from 1797-1798 he was a headmaster.
He was elected a Member of the National Assembly in 1793.
Roustan and his friend the Rev. Jacob Vernes
Jacob Vernes
Jacob VernesNot to be confused with Jacob Vernet, a prominent theologian in Geneva around the same time. was a Swiss theologian and Protestant pastor in Geneva, famous for his correspondence with Voltaire and Rousseau.-Life:...
wrote a History of Geneva, which remained in manuscript form.
He published several books on Christianity and Deism.
Correspondence with Rousseau
Roustan exchanged many letters with Rousseau between 1757 and 1767.In his first letter of March 1757 he compared Rousseau to Socrates
Socrates
Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...
"Plus je me repasse en revue, et plus je trouve que je suis tout pétrifié de Socrate; lui et vous faites meme histoire, et en vérité nous sommes si Athéniens que nous meritons bien d'en avoir un." . Rousseau praised him in return, but, although polite about the poetry he had sent, advised him against seeking a career as a man of letters.
Roustan wrote to Rousseau after reading Julie, or the New Heloise (1761) saying that although he found the novel delightful, he was concerned that it was immoral in describing adulterous love so vividly and in describing hope as the only reason to believe in Christianity.
He visited Rousseau in Môtiers
Môtiers
Môtiers was a municipality in the district of Val-de-Travers in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. On 1 January 2009, the former municipalities of Boveresse, Buttes, Couvet, Fleurier, Les Bayards, Môtiers, Noiraigue, Saint-Sulpice and Travers merged to form Val-de-Travers.The old castle,...
in 1762 and welcomed in him in London in 1766, but retained his views on the compatibility between Christianity and patriotism.
Four of his works — Défense du christianisme considéré du côté politique, wherein he refuted some of Rousseau's arguments from On the Social Contract; Discours sur les moyens de réformer les mœurs; Examen des quatre beaux siècles de Voltaire; and Dialogue entre Brutus et César aux Champs Élysées — were collected and published in 1764 under the title Offrande aux autels et á la patrie.
The rebuttal in Défense du Christianisme ou réfutation du chapitre VIII du Contrat Social is friendly, and in fact Rousseau approved of his work and helped him with finding a publisher. In it Roustan implied that Rousseau may not himself have believed in his stated view that the scriptures preach servitude and resignation, and went on to say that doing good works was an integral part of the religion, including fighting for freedom and against tyranny. He therefore felt that Christianity and Republicanism or patriotism were fully compatible.
In 1776 Roustan published a rebuttal to Rousseau's Profession of Faith of a Savoyard Vicar in Emile: or, On Education
Emile: Or, On Education
Émile, or On Education is a treatise on the nature of education and on the nature of man written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who considered it to be the “best and most important of all my writings”. Due to a section of the book entitled “Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar,” Émile was be...
.
His Examen critique de la seconde partie de la "profession de foi du Vicaire Savoyard" was one of the main reasons that Rousseau was mocked by Voltaire
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet , better known by the pen name Voltaire , was a French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher famous for his wit and for his advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion, free trade and separation of church and state...
in Voltaire's Remontrances des pasteurs du Gévaudan.