ERASMUS OF ROTTERDAM AND THE CHRISTIAN HUMANISM

Erasmus, in full Desiderius Erasmus, (born October 27, 1469 —died July 12,
1536)

Dutch humanist who was the greatest scholar of the northern Renaissance, the first
editor of the New Testament, and also an important figure in patristics and
classical literature.

Using the philological methods pioneered by Italian humanists, Erasmus helped lay
the groundwork for the historical-critical study of the past, especially in his studies
of the Greek New Testament and the Church Fathers.

SLIDE His educational writings contributed to the replacement of the older

Scholastic curriculum by the new humanist emphasis on the classics. By criticizing
ecclesiastical abuses, while pointing to a better age in the distant past, he
encouraged the growing urge for reform, which found expression both in the
Protestant Reformation and in the Catholic Counter-Reformation.

Finally, his independent stance in an age of fierce confessional controversy—

rejecting both the doctrine of predestination and the powers that were claimed for
the papacy—made him a target of suspicion for loyal partisans on both sides and a
beacon for those who valued liberty more than orthodoxy.

SLIDE By 1502 Erasmus had settled in the university town of Leuven (Brabant
[now in Belgium]) and was reading Origen and St. Paul in Greek. The fruit of his
labours was Enchiridion militis Christiani (1503/04; Handbook of a Christian
Knight). In this work Erasmus urged readers to ―inject into the vitals‖ the teachings
of Christ by studying and meditating on the Scriptures, using the spiritual
interpretation favoured by the ―ancients‖ to make the text pertinent to moral
concerns.

The Enchiridion was a manifesto of lay piety in its assertion that ―monasticism is
not piety.‖ Erasmus’s vocation as a ―primitive theologian‖ was further developed
through his discovery at Park Abbey, near Leuven, of a manuscript of Valla’s
Adnotationes on the Greek New Testament, which he published in 1505 with a
dedication to Colet.

SLIDE For the Aldine press Erasmus expanded his Adagia, or annotated collection
of Greek and Latin adages, into a monument of erudition with over 3,000 entries;
this was the book that first made him famous. The adage ―Dutch ear‖ (auris
Batava) is one of many hints that he was not an uncritical admirer of sophisticated
Italy, with its theatrical sermons and its scholars who doubted the immortality of
the soul; his aim was to write for honest and unassuming ―Dutch ears.‖

SLIDE De pueris instituendis is the clearest statement of Erasmus’s enormous faith

in the power of education. With strenuous effort the very stuff of human nature
could be molded, so as to draw out (e-ducare) peaceful and social dispositions
while discouraging unworthy appetites. Erasmus, it would almost be true to say,
believed that one is what one reads. Thus the ―humane letters‖ of classical and
Christian antiquity would have a beneficent effect on the mind, in contrast to the
disputatious temper induced by Scholastic logic-chopping or the vengeful amour
propre bred into young aristocrats by chivalric literature, ―the stupid and tyrannical
fables of King Arthur.‖

SLIDE The Protestant challenge of Erasmus

From the very beginning of the momentous events sparked by Martin Luther’s
challenge to papal authority, Erasmus’s clerical foes blamed him for inspiring
Luther, just as some of Luther’s admirers in Germany found that he merely
proclaimed boldly what Erasmus had been hinting. In fact, Luther’s first letter to
Erasmus (1516) showed an important disagreement over the interpretation of St.
Paul, and in 1518 Erasmus privately instructed his printer, Froben, to stop printing
works by Luther, lest the two causes be confused. As he read Luther’s writings, at
least those prior to The Babylonian Captivity of the Church (1520), Erasmus found
much to admire, and he could even describe Luther, in a letter to Pope Leo X, as ―a
mighty trumpet of Gospel truth.‖ Being of a suspicious nature, however, he also
convinced himself that Luther’s fiercest enemies were men who saw the study of
languages as the root of heresy and thus wanted to be rid of both at once. Hence he
tugged at the slender threads of his influence, vainly hoping to forestall a
confrontation that could only be destructive to ―good letters.‖
SLIDE Erasmus’s belief in the unity of the church was fundamental, but, like the
Hollanders and Brabanters with whom he was most at home, he recoiled from the
cruel logic of religious persecution. He expressed his views indirectly through the
Colloquia, which had started as schoolboy dialogues but now became a vehicle for
commentary. The implication is that bitter disputes like those over papal
infallibility or Luther’s doctrine of predestination are differences over mere
opinion, not over dogmas binding on all the faithful.

For Erasmus the root of the schism was not theology but anticlericalism and lay
resentment of the laws and ―ceremonies‖ that the clergy made binding under pain
of hell. As he wrote privately to the Netherlandish pope Adrian VI (1522–23),
there was still hope of reconciliation, if only the church would ease the burden; this
could be accomplished, for instance, by granting the chalice to the laity and by
permitting priests to marry: ―At the sweet name of liberty all things will revive.‖

SLIDE Influence and achievement of Erasmus

Always the scholar, Erasmus could see many sides of an issue. But his hesitations
and studied ambiguities were appreciated less and less in the generations that
followed his death, as men girded for combat, theological or otherwise, in the
service of their beliefs.

Rather skeptical Erasmus must have been a philosophe before his time, one whose
professions of religious devotion and submission to church authority could be seen
as convenient evasions. This view of Erasmus, curiously parallel to the strictures of
his orthodox critics, was long influential. Only in the past several decades have
scholars given due recognition to the fact that the goal of his work was a
Christianity purified by a deeper knowledge of its historic roots. Yet it was not
entirely wrong to compare Erasmus with those Enlightenment thinkers who, like
Voltaire, defended individual liberty at every turn and had little good to say about
the various corporate solidarities by which human society holds together.

SLIDE The personal exploration and reflection on piety, and living according to its
indications, brings fulfillment and a sense of meaningfulness. According to
Erasmus, anyone could become a theologian, provided they read the holy books
with understanding. These allow us to build a personal relationship with God, to
look at ourselves, to discover and develop our inner life, and then to have the
courage to decide to live a decent life, bringing benefits also to our neighbours and
community. This does not require the mediation of knowledgeable theologians,
who reflect on and teach complex doctrinal questions and dogmas. Devotio
moderna, or the new piety, was to be based on faith, love of one’s neighbour, and
striving for union with God in eternity. However, the life of a Christian was not the
only possible model for a good, happy life.

SLIDE We can read in Pietas puerilis that piety is ―the undefiled worship of the
Deity and the keeping of his commandments‖.

The indications are as follows:

«First that we think rightly and reverently of God and the Sacred Scriptures and
not only fear God as Lord but also love him with our whole hearts as a most
gracious Father. Second, that we do our utmost to keep ourselves blameless, that is,
injure no one. Third, that we practice charity, that is, insofar as possible deserve
well of all men. Fourth, that we be long-suffering, inasmuch as this enables us to
bear patiently the ills we cannot remedy, forgoing vengeance and not returning evil
to evil»

SLIDE For Erasmus, the philosophy of Christ was the formula for a life of
following the Gospel as the Good News; that is to say, following Christ, who is the
author and guarantor. Importantly, it addressed adults who are able to face the
unambiguous and demanding call of Christ, the Teacher of the art of life.

It was Erasmus’ contribution that made such a description possible. Let us recall
the two characteristics of humanism that we attribute to him, which are: the
preference for teaching rhetoric and ethics (namely, studia humanitatis) over logic
and speculative philosophy; and the sceptical attitude that allows us to take into
account all the disputing parties and arrive at a final consensus.