Antonius Rescius

Antonius Rescius OP (also Anton Resch , Antonius Reschius ; * around 1520 in England ; † 23 January 1583 ) was auxiliary bishop in Würzburg between 1567 and 1583 . He also worked as a professor and was appointed first dean of the theological faculty at the University of Würzburg in 1582 .

Life

Antonius Rescius was born in England around 1520. Later attributions, calling him a Brabant , refer to the early emigration to what is now the Netherlands . The young Antonius had embarked on a priestly career, but after the break with Rome under Henry VIII in England, Catholic clergymen were often persecuted. In the Netherlands Rescius joined the Dominican order.

The priest returned to England in the 1550s, where he studied theology at Oxford University . He completed this in 1555 with a Bachelor of Theology. He then deepened his studies at the Universities of Leuven and Cologne , where he already gave lectures. Finally he received his doctorate as "doctor famosus" and later also carried the title of master's degree. In this role he also taught at the University of Cologne. He then became a teacher at the Tricoronatum high school in Cologne .

In the meantime, the Würzburg prince-bishop Friedrich von Wirsberg was looking for an auxiliary bishop for his diocese. He had already asked the theologian Petrus Canisius and the Passau suffragan Michael Englmayr, but received two rejections. Probably through the mediation of Canisius he came across Rescius and wooed the clergyman in the period that followed. Rescius was supposed to teach at the Würzburg particular school, for which Wirsberg offered him a total of 80 guilders travel money.

The Dominican order made it possible for Rescius to assume the desired position because it was hoped that he would spread the reforms of the Council of Trent to the Main . In 1563 Rescius arrived in Würzburg and was appointed professor of theology. He gave lectures in the city's Agnetenkloster . At the same time he took over the administration of the dissolved Schottenkloster . He lost this activity with the revival of the convent in the 1580s.

In 1567 Rescius was by Pope Pius V. Bishop of Salona appointed. He was consecrated in Würzburg on March 7 of the same year, with Friedrich von Wirsberg also making him a member of his clergy . There Rescius had the particular task of supervising the examinations of candidates for priests. Church reforms were also discussed there, and the theologian Petrus Canisius was also present at these consultations at times.

From 1568 Antonius Rescius began his consecration activities in the Schottenkloster. Later he consecrated altars in the Mainz Jesuit Church and in the Röttinger Kilian Church . Mostly, however, he made benedictions from clergymen. The two abbots of St. Stephan and Maria Bildhausen , Kilian Lantz and Michael Christ were consecrated by Rescius. In 1567 von Wirsberg planned to add an assistant priest to his auxiliary bishop.

The position of Antonius Rescius was not precisely defined, which is why he was also known as Fiskal in 1571 . In the older literature he was also assigned the office of vicar general of the diocese. After the election of Bishop Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn , Rescius lost influence. Probably he was no longer included in the clergy, so that he now acted more isolated. However, Echter appointed him on January 2, 1582 as the first dean of the theology faculty. Antonius Rescius died on January 23, 1583.

coat of arms

In the so-called album Amicorum (Latin for friendship album) of the clergymen of Balthasar König, the coat of arms of Antonius Rescius can be found, which the scholar probably gave himself. Blazon : A divided shield, three red roses below in white, above a white lily in blue. A rising sun can be seen above the shield, above a bishop's miter, which refers to the office of the coat of arms, and behind it a stole with two crossed bishop's staffs.

plant

Some of Rescius' lectures that he had given in the Agnetenkloster were published posthumously in Würzburg . Their theme was the doctrine of the Catholic Church. The focus is on eleven bullet points that deal with the interpretation of this teaching.

• De Theologia Doctrina. Vndecim has quaestiunculas explicare aggredietur decimo septimo die February (...) . o. O. 1600.

literature

• Veronika Heilmannseder: The spiritual council of the diocese of Würzburg under Friedrich von Wirsberg (1558–1573) and Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn (1573–1617) (= sources and research on the history of the diocese and bishopric of Würzburg, vol. LXXIII) . Wuerzburg 2014.

Web links

• Catholic-hierarchy: Bishop Anton Resch , English
• WürzburgWiki: Anton Resch

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Heilmannseder, Veronika: The Spiritual Council of the Diocese of Würzburg . P. 375.
2. ↑ Heilmannseder, Veronika: The Spiritual Council of the Diocese of Würzburg . P. 377.
3. ↑ Heilmannseder, Veronika: The Spiritual Council of the Diocese of Würzburg . P. 378.
4. ↑ Heilmannseder, Veronika: The Spiritual Council of the Diocese of Würzburg . P. 379.