La mathématique, les mathématiques, la mathématique moderne

Description

review:

• Michel Moreau, “M.-L. Guerard des Lauriers, La mathématique. Les mathématiques. La mathématique moderne,” Revue Philosophique de Louvain 72, no. 15 (1974): 586–587.

Moreau says Des Lauriers polemically argues against "ensemblisme" ("set-theory-ification of math"): « À bas l'ensemblisme; et, alors, vive Bourbaki! » and in favor of viewing math in terms of relation. The goal of math is not self-consistency, but ultimately the contemplation of God.

good brief bio of Bp. des Lauriers: p. 35fn3 of this

Guérard des Lauriers, O.P. is well-known among French Thomists, and he's a fascinating character. He studied mathematics with big-wigs like Levi-Civita and Cartan, obtaining his degree at the École Normale Supérieure : Sur les systèmes différentiels du second ordre qui admettent un groupe continu fini de transformations (MathSciNet review). He was a consultant to Pius XII on the Assumption, and some think he drafted Munificentissimus Deus. He helped write the Ottaviani Intervention. He devised the sedeprivationism (a.k.a. the "Cassiciacum" or papa materialiter) thesis. He was consecrated a bishop by Abp. Thuc, on the prevision that he be sedevacantists, but then he returned to defending sedeprivationism. Here're some books by or on him:

1. Le mystère de l'être : l'approche thomiste de Guérard des Lauriers : avec la traduction de tous les textes où saint Thomas traite de la "nature de l'être" by Louis-Marie de Blignières
2. La mathématique, les mathématiques, la mathématique moderne by M.-L Guérard des Lauriers

his dissertation under Élie Cartan at ENS is 1940; he was classmates with Levi-Civita and André Weil. He worked on his doctorate in mathematics after obtaining degrees in theology.

some interesting PDFs on him:

• his last sermon
• interview
• biography
• another bio