Eramus of Rotterdam
Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus was known as Erasmus of
Rotterdam, was a Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest,
social critic, teacher, and early promoter of religious toleration.
Erasmus was a classical scholar who wrote in a pure Latin style and
enjoyed nickname "Prince of the Humanists." He has also been
called "The crowning glory of the Christian humanists." Using
humanist techniques, he prepared important new Latin and Greek
editions of the New Testament.
Erasmus lived through the Reformation period, but while he was
critical of the Church, he could not bring himself to join the cause of
the Reformers. In relation to abuses in the Church, Erasmus
remained committed to reforming the Church from within. He also
held to Catholic doctrines such as that of free will, which some
Reformers rejected in favor of the doctrine of predestination. His middle road approach disappointed
and even angered scholars in both camps. He died in Basel in 1536 and was buried in the formerly
Catholic cathedral there.
Desiderius Erasmus was born in Holland on October 28th. His
parents almost certainly were not legally married. His father,
named Roger Gerard, later became a priest and afterwards
curate in Gouda. Little is known of his mother other than that her
name was Margaret and she was the daughter of a physician.
Although he was born out of wedlock, Erasmus was cared for by
his parents until their early deaths from the plague in 1483. He
was then given the very best education available to a young man
of his day, in a series of church schools.
After his parent’s deaths, poverty forced Erasmus into the
monastery. He was ordained to the Catholic priesthood and took
vows at about the age of 25, but he never seemed to have
actively worked as a priest for a long time.
While at a monestary in Steyn, Erasmus fell in love with a fellow monk and wrote a series of passionate
letters in which he called Rogerus "half my soul".Later, while tutoring in Paris, he was suddenly
dismissed by the guardian of Thomas Grey a young man he was tutoring. However this incident was
covered up by the church so he still became an ordained priest.
Soon after he became an ordained priest, he got his chance
to leave the monastery when offered the job of secretary to
the Bishop of Cambray. He was offered this job on account
of his great skill in Latin and his reputation as a man of
letters. In order to allow him to accept that post, he was
given a temporary discharge from his monestary vows on
the grounds of poor health and love of Humanistic studies,
though he remained a "secular priest". Pope Leo X later
made the discharge permanent, a considerable privilege at
the time.
In 1495, with the bishop's consent and a monetary grant, he
went on to study at the University of Paris. The University
was then the chief location of Scholastic learning, but
already coming under the influence of Renaissance
humanism.
Erasmus chose to remain a Roman Catholic. Though he remained firmly neutral, each side accused him
of siding with the other.
As the popular response to Martin Luther gathered
momentum, the social disorders, which Erasmus
dreaded and Luther disassociated himself from, began to
appear, including the German Peasants' War. If these
were the outcomes of reform, Eramus was thankful that
he had kept out of it. Yet he was ever more bitterly
accused of having started the whole "tragedy".
Erasmus concludes that truth is furthered by a more
harmonious relationship between individuals. Although
Erasmus did not oppose the punishment of heretics, in
individual cases he generally argued for moderation and
against the death penalty. He wrote, "It is better to cure
a sick man than to kill him."
Erasmus died of a sudden attack of dysentery in 1536 in
Basel and was buried there in the cathedral.
By the 1530s, the writings of Erasmus accounted for 10
to 20 percent of all book sales. He is credited with coining the adage, "In the land of the blind, the oneeyed man is king". With the collaboration of Publio Fausto Andrelini, he formed a collection of Latin
proverbs and adages, commonly called Adagia. Erasmus is also generally credited with originating the
phrase "Pandora's box", arising through an error in his translation of Pandora by Hesiod in which he
confused "pithos", storage jar, with "pyxis", box.
The Catholic Reformation movement often condemned Erasmus as having "laid the egg that hatched the
Reformation." Their criticism of him was based on his not being strong enough in his criticism of Luther,
not seeing the dangers of a vernacular Bible and dabbling in dangerous scriptural criticism that
weakened the Church's arguments against doctrines.
Protestant views of Erasmus fluctuated largely depending on region and period, with continuous
support in his native Netherlands and in cities of the Upper Rhine area. However, following his death
and in the late sixteenth century, Reformation supporters see Erasmus's criticisms of Luther and lifelong
support for the universal Catholic Church as damning. His reception was particularly cold by the
Reformed Protestant groups.
# 1- 14 - Match a bold, underlined word from the
reading with each synonym or definition.
Synonym/ Definition
Inclined to find fault with
Refuse to accept
Obligated as under a pledge to a particular cause,
action, or belief
The belief that all events have been willed by God
Ability to make choices free from any kinds of
constraints
The state of an individual who lacks material
possessions or money
Establishment of character
Improper use or treatment of something for a bad
purpose
To approve or give permission
Without taking sides
Forward movement
A disease involving the inflammation of the lining
of the large intestine
A philosophy that focuses on human values and
concerns
Old, wise saying
Word from the reading
Answer the following questions based on the reading:
15. What were the two nicknames give to Erasmus?
16. Erasmus disagreed with the Catholic Church and yet he did not leave it – why?