Martin, PAULIN, a French Biblical scholar, b. at Lacam, Lot, July 20, 1840; d. at Amelie-les-Bains, Pyrenees-Orientales, January 14, 1890. His secondary studies were made at the petit seminaire of Montfaucon, and his theology at St. Sulpice. Here he came under the influence of Le Hir. At the end of his theology, Martin was too young for ordination; so he went to the French Seminary, Rome, attended the lectures at the Gregorian University, and was raised to the priesthood in 1863. He remained in Rome till 1868, obtained a doctorate in sacred theology and licentiate in canon law, and started upon his life study of Semitic languages. He worked chiefly at Hebrew, Syriac, Aramaic, and Arabic. It was as a Syriac scholar that he first attracted attention. Abbe Martin was in France ten years, as curate in various parishes of Paris, before his appointment to the chair of Sacred Scripture and Oriental Languages in the Institut Catholique of Paris, which he filled from 1878 to 1890. The time of literary activity of Abbe Martin was the twelve years of his professorship at the Institut. His best work is said to be the lithographed lectures delivered from 1882 to 1886: “Introduction A la critique textuelle du N. T., partie theorique” (Paris, 1882-83); a supplement thereto, “Description technique des manuscrits grecs, relatifs au N. T., conserves dans les bibliotheques de Paris” (Paris, 1883); “Introduction a la critique textuelle du N. T. partie pratique” (4 vols., Paris, 1884-86). These tour volumes contain studies in the ancient manuscripts of the New Testament, the authenticity and historicity of disputed fragments of the New Testament,—notably the ending of Mark, the bloody sweat, the woman taken in adultery, the three heavenly witnesses. In regard to this last fragment, he carried on a controversy with MM. Vacant, Maunoury, and Rambouillet in the “Revue des sciences ecclesiastiques” (1887 and 1889), and in “La Controverse” (1888). Earlier writings of Abbe Martin were: “Oeuvres grammaticales d ‘Abu el-Faraj, dit Bar-Hebraeus” (Paris, 1872); “Grammatica, chrestomathia, et glossarium linguae syriacae” (Paris, 1873); “Histoire de la ponctuation ou de la massore chez les Syriens” (Paris, 1875). In addition he published a general introduction to the Bible (Paris, 1887-89).
WALTER DRUM