Who was Desiderius Erasmus?

Answer

Desiderius Erasmus (1466—1536) was a Dutch theologian and the scholar responsible for what is now recognized as the Textus Receptus. During a time when the only available Bible was the Latin Vulgate, Erasmus aimed to create a faithfully accurate Greek New Testament. For this purpose, he gathered various handwritten Greek manuscripts and supervised their publication in 1516.

Erasmus was ordained as a Catholic priest at 25 but received permission to release his religious vows, allowing him to take on the role of secretary to the Bishop of Cambrai. In 1495, Erasmus studied at the University of Paris and obtained his Doctor of Divinity from Turin University, Italy, in 1506. Between 1510 and 1515, Erasmus taught at Queens College, Cambridge, England.

Erasmus produced a version of the New Testament in both Greek and Latin, which became a bestseller. Martin Luther used his second edition (1519) of the Greek text for his German Bible translation. William Tyndale utilized the third edition (1522) for the initial English New Testament. This edition also served as the foundation for the 1550 Robert Stephanus edition, which was used by the translators of the Geneva Bible (1599) and the King James (Authorized) Version of the Bible (1611). In 1527, Erasmus released a definitive fourth edition, featuring parallel columns of Greek, Latin, and his own notes. The final edition (1535) excluded the Latin Vulgate. Erasmus dedicated his efforts to Pope Leo X and considered his creation of a Greek New Testament as his primary contribution to Christianity.

Following Erasmus’ passing, another edition of his New Testament was published in 1633. The publisher’s preface stated, “Textum ergo habes, nun cab omnibus receptum” (“Therefore, the [reader] now possesses the universally accepted text”). This notation from the publisher led to the term “Received Text” or “Textus Receptus.” Erasmus’ work remained the predominant Greek text of the New Testament for the subsequent 250 years.As not until the publication of the Westcott and Hort Greek New Testament in 1881 that the influence of the Textus Receptus waned.

During the Reformation, Erasmus was of two minds. He was critical of the abuses within the Catholic Church and called for reform, but he kept his distance from Martin Luther and continued to recognize the authority of the Pope. Erasmus wanted to introduce humanistic enlightenment into the Catholic Church without breaking with Rome. Erasmus declined to support Luther on the basis that to do so would jeopardize his position as an independent scholar and lessen his influence within the Church to introduce reform. To begin with, there was mutual respect between Erasmus and Luther, but Erasmus later condemned the conduct of the new evangelicals of the Reformation and expressed concern that Luther was setting himself up as the sole interpreter of Scripture. In some ways, Erasmus was caught in a crossfire, each side accusing him of siding with the other.

Between 1524 and 1527, Erasmus and Luther engaged in a bitter dispute over free will. From this exchange came Luther’s famous On the Bondage of the Will. Erasmus debated with other theologians and humanists (those who study the humanities), and, although he opposed abuses within the Church, he usually came down squarely on the side of Catholic doctrine.

Erasmus was respected as a classical Latin and Greek scholar and became known as the “Prince of the Humanists.” He is best known as a Dutch Renaissance humanist, social critic, teacher, and theologian. He described the Reformation this way: “Luther was guilty of two great crimes; he struck the Pope in his crown, and the monks in their belly.” And his comment on Luther’s influence: “By burning Luther’s books you may rid your bookshelves of him, but you will not rid men’s minds of him.” Both comments show Erasmus had an astute grasp of the realities of his times.

Throughout the tumult of the Reformation, Erasmus sought to avoid outright conflict while still upholding

Erasmus was known for his moderate stance on traditional Roman Catholic doctrine. His middle-of-the-road approach upset scholars on both sides, and the Church of Rome was dissatisfied that Erasmus did not martyr himself in defense of the Church.