Jacques Paul Migne

1800-1875. French Roman Catholic priest, patrologist, and publisher. Because of a controversy with his bishop concerning the revolution of 1830, he left his diocese and went to Paris. He turned to journalism, and after several unsuccessful attempts in newspaper work he decided to publish a universal library for the clergy. In 2,000 volumes he hoped to publish at a moderate price all the Catholic literature to his own day. His press employed 300 people, and he showed himself expert at managing the enterprise. In addition to hundreds of volumes of theology, sermons, church history, apologetics, theological encyclopedias, and works on the Virgin Mary he published editions of the Latin Fathers (221 vols., 1844-64) and the Greek fathers (162 vols. in Greek 1857-66; 81 vols. in Latin 1856-67). His work remains valuable because despite errors it is still the one uniform collection of the Church Fathers which even approaches completion.