Page - 194 - in Maximilian Hell (1720–92) - And the Ends of Jesuit Science in Enlightenment Europe

Chapter 4194 to declare my thoughts in such a way that all further development in this matter would be depending on the Will of God, not on myself.74 In practical terms, this meant that while Hell signaled to von Bachoff his will- ingness to accept the invitation, he left it to the ambassador to negotiate with Hell’s own Viennese superiors the necessary permissions. Once these were se- cured, Hell’s account reaches its rhetorical climax: As I heard of this assent, which so easily and readily had been obtained from Her Highness our Empress (without any effort from my part), I at once started pondering this strange and exceptional plan of Providence, which caused my spirit to be lifted with a lively hope of a complete suc- cess in this highly strenuous expedition. Hence, free from all fear associ- ated with being exposed to the utmost dangers to my life and health, I found myself expecting nothing but luck and success in every respect; so completely convinced was I that this invitation, which had come about in such a strange manner and without any interference of my own, was alto- gether the work of Divine Providence. I should like to stress this, in order that those who have nurtured suspicions that this expedition was made to happen through a hidden and not very honorable scheming of some sort, should realize that nothing whatsoever came about as a result of any actions from my part. The rulers were the protagonists, whereas the means and end of this whole expedition is to be attributed solely to god’s Providence and planning.75 Hell’s rhetorical defense of his integrity as a person, as a scholar, and as a Jesuit needs to be read against the background of the centuries-old stereotypes about Jesuits as especially given to plotting and conspiracy (“a not very honorable scheming of some sort”), as well as the subsequent rumors and allegations about his “falsification” of the data gained from the 1769 Venus transit observa- tion. To avert suspicion regarding the circumstances of his invitation, Hell enunciated a rendering of it in which it appeared as nothing other than the work of divine providence. Thus, placing his fate in the hands of God, Hell ex- pressed willingness to go to Vardø already during his very first meeting with the ambassador of Denmark. 74 “Introductio ad Expeditionem litterariam,” in Aspaas, “Maximilianus Hell,” 410–11. 75 “Introductio ad Expeditionem litterariam,” in Aspaas, “Maximilianus Hell,” 413–14.