Bible humanism
So-called Bible humanism was a subspecies of Renaissance humanism .
By returning to the ancient values, the humanists of the 15th and 16th centuries wanted to translate the Bible from the ancient Hebrew and Greek texts into a text that was as flawless as possible in modern languages. Furthermore, in the theological interpretation of the Bible and in their philosophical discussion, it was important for them to use contemporary, i.e. ancient, sources as far as possible. In this sense the slogan of the humanists to go “ ad fontes ” (to the sources) was welcomed. This movement, which with its renewing power went against the traditional scholastic ideals of the church , thus sparked the resistance of the church.
Several German theologians became Hebraists who studied the Hebrew language and grammar in depth . Johannes Reuchlin , Sebastian Münster and Johann Böschenstein wrote treatises on Hebrew accents and spelling.
This movement, from which numerous personalities emerged, ultimately played a major role in bringing about the Reformation that began with Martin Luther . In addition to Luther and Philipp Melanchthon , Erasmus of Rotterdam was one of them . However, after a dispute with Luther regarding the Roman Church and the papacy (Luther called the Pope the “Antichrist”) and about freedom of will, Erasmus turned away from him and the Wittenberg Reformation. Erasmus placed his main value on the ethical - moral side of religion, which was particularly evident in 1502 in the Enchiridion militis Christiani (Handbook of the Christian Archer). Initially open to the Reformation, especially since he saw a need for church reform , he turned away from it when he saw Martin Luther in an irreconcilable opposition to the Roman Catholic Church . It was also the cause of his argument with Ulrich von Hutten .
literature
- Cornelis Augustijn: Humanism . Series: The Church in Her History 2, delivery of issue 2. Göttingen 2003
- Henning Graf von Reventlow : Epochs of biblical interpretation. Vol. III: Renaissance, Reformation, Humanism . Munich 1997 ( review )