Bernardino Ochino
Encyclopedia
Bernardino Ochino was an Italian
Reformer
.
son of the barber Domenico Ochino, and at the age of 7 or 8 around 1504 was entrusted to the Minorite order of Franciscan
Friars, then from 1510 he studied medicine at Perugia
.
.
He had already become famous for zeal and eloquence, and was the intimate friend of the Spaniard
Juan de Valdés
, of Pietro Bembo
, Vittoria Colonna
, Pietro Martire
, Carnesecchi
, and others destined to incur the suspicion of heresy
, either from the moderation of their characters or from the evangelical tincture of their theology
.
, he visited Venice
and delivered a remarkable course of sermon
s, showing a decided tendency to the doctrine
of justification by faith, which appears still more evidently in his Dialogues published the same year.
He was suspected and denounced, but nothing ensued until the establishment of the Inquisition
in Rome
in June 1542, at the instigation of Cardinal Giovanni Pietro Carafa
, the first Grand Inquisitor
, and later Pope Paul IV. Ochino almost immediately received a citation to Rome
, and set out to obey it about the middle of August. According to his own statement, he was deterred from presenting himself at Rome by the warnings of Cardinal Contarini
, whom he found at Bologna
, dying of poison
administered by the reactionary party.
to Geneva
. He was cordially received by Calvin
, and published within two years several volumes of Prediche, controversial tracts rather than sermons, explaining and vindicating his change of religion
. He also addressed replies to marchioness Vittoria Colonna
, Claudio Tolomei
, and other Italian sympathizers who were reluctant to go to the same length as himself. His own breach with the Roman Catholic Church
was decisive and irreparable.
. From this time dates his contact with Caspar Schwenckfeld. He was compelled to leave forsake when, in January 1547, the city was occupied by the imperial forces for the Diet of Augsburg
.
, where he was made a prebendary
of Canterbury
, received a pension
from King Edward VI's
privy purse, and composed his capital work, the Tragoedie or Dialoge of the unjuste usurped primacie of the Bishop of Rome. This remarkable text, originally written in Latin
, is extant only in the 1549 translation of Bishop John Ponet
.
The conception is highly dramatic; the form is that of a series of dialogues. Lucifer
, enraged at the spread of Jesus
' kingdom, convokes the fiends in council, and resolves to set up the pope
as antichrist
. The state, represented by the emperor Phocas
, is persuaded to connive at the pope
's assumption of spiritual authority; the other churches are intimidated into acquiescence; Lucifer's projects seem fully accomplished, when Heaven
raises up Henry VIII of England
and his son for their overthrow. The conception bears a remarkable resemblance to that of Paradise Lost; and it is nearly certain that Milton
, whose sympathies with the Italian Reformation were so strong, must have been acquainted with it.
Several of Ochino's Prediche were also translated into English by a lady, Anna Cooke (or Anne Cooke; b.1533) afterwards second wife of Sir Nicholas Bacon; and he published numerous controversial treatises on the Continent.
drove Ochino, and hundreds of other European exiles, from England. He went to Basel, where Lelio Sozzini and the lawyer Martino Muralto
were sent to secure Ochino as pastor of the Italian church at Zürich, which Ochino accepted. The Italian congregation at Zürich
was composed principally of refugees from Locarno
. There for 10 years Ochino continued to write books which, repeating the history of his early works, gave increasing evidence of his alienation from the strict orthodoxy
around him. The most important of these was the Labyrinth, a discussion of the freedom of the will
, covertly assailing the Calvinistic
doctrine of predestination
.
In 1563 the long-gathering storm of slander burst upon the occasion of the publication of his Thirty Dialogues, in one of which his adversaries maintained that he had justified polygamy
under colour of a pretended refutation. His dialogues on divorce
and against the Trinity
were also considered obnoxious.
, at that time the most tolerant state in Europe
. He had not resided there long when an edict appeared (August 8, 1564) banishing all foreign dissident
s. Fleeing the country, he encountered the plague
at Pińczów
; three of his four children were carried off; and he himself, worn out by misfortune, expired in solitude and obscurity at Slavkov
in Moravia
, about the end of 1564.
in 1643 with the authorship of the legendary-apocryphal heretical treatise De tribus Impostoribus
, as well as with having carried his alleged approval of polygamy into practice.
It was reserved for his biographer Karl Benrath
to justify him, and to represent him as a fervent evangelist
and at the same time as a speculative thinker with a passion for free inquiry, always learning and unlearning and arguing out difficult questions with himself in his dialogues, frequently without attaining to any absolute conviction. The general tendency of his mind, nevertheless, was counter to tradition, and he is remarkable as resuming in his individual history all the phases of Protestant theology from Luther to Fausto Sozzini. He is especially interesting in relation to English Reformation literature for his residence in England, and the probable influence of more than one of his writings upon Milton
.
Epistola alli Signori di Balia della città di Siena (1543)
Responsio ad Marcum Brixiensem Abbatem Ordinis S. Benedicti (Geneva, 1543)
Responsio ad Mutium Justinopolitanum to Girolamo Muzio
(1496-1576)
Tragoedie or Dialoge of the unjuste usurped primacie of the Bishop of Rome. 1549 translation of Bishop John Ponet
.
'Disputa intorno alla presenza del corpo di Cristo nel Sacramento della Cena
Labyrinth - Laberinti del libero arbitrio (1563) dedicated to Elisabeth 1st
Dialogi XXX (1563)
Prediche
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Reformer
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
.
Biography
Bernardino Ochino was born in SienaSiena
Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena.The historic centre of Siena has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site. It is one of the nation's most visited tourist attractions, with over 163,000 international arrivals in 2008...
son of the barber Domenico Ochino, and at the age of 7 or 8 around 1504 was entrusted to the Minorite order of Franciscan
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
Friars, then from 1510 he studied medicine at Perugia
Perugia
Perugia is the capital city of the region of Umbria in central Italy, near the River Tiber, and the capital of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area....
.
1534, transfer to the Capuchins
At the age of 38, perhaps craving a stricter governance, Ochino transferred himself in 1534 to the newly-founded Order of Friars Minor CapuchinOrder of Friars Minor Capuchin
The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin is an Order of friars in the Catholic Church, among the chief offshoots of the Franciscans. The worldwide head of the Order, called the Minister General, is currently Father Mauro Jöhri.-Origins :...
.
He had already become famous for zeal and eloquence, and was the intimate friend of the Spaniard
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Juan de Valdés
Juan de Valdés
Juan de Valdés was a Spanish religious writer.He was the younger of twin sons of Fernando de Valdés, hereditary regidor of Cuenca in Castile, where Valdés was born. He has been confused with his twin brother Alfonso...
, of Pietro Bembo
Pietro Bembo
Pietro Bembo was an Italian scholar, poet, literary theorist, and cardinal. He was an influential figure in the development of the Italian language, specifically Tuscan, as a literary medium, and his writings assisted in the 16th-century revival of interest in the works of Petrarch...
, Vittoria Colonna
Vittoria Colonna
Vittoria Colonna , marchioness of Pescara, was an Italian noblewoman and poet.-Biography:The daughter of Fabrizio Colonna, grand constable of the kingdom of Naples, and of Agnese da Montefeltro, Vittoria Colonna was born at Marinoa fief of the Colonna family in the Alban Hills near Rome.Betrothed...
, Pietro Martire
Pietro Martire Vermigli
Peter Martyr Vermigli , sometimes simply Peter Martyr, was an Italian theologian of the Reformation period.-Life:...
, Carnesecchi
Pietro Carnesecchi
Pietro Carnesecchi was an Italian humanist.-Biography:Born in Florence, he was the son of a da Andrea Carnesecchi, a merchant who under the patronage of the Medici, and especially of Giulio de' Medici as Pope Clement VII, rapidly rose to high office at the papal court.He came into touch with the...
, and others destined to incur the suspicion of heresy
Christian heresy
Christian heresy refers to non-orthodox practices and beliefs that were deemed to be heretical by one or more of the Christian churches. In Western Christianity, the term "heresy" most commonly refers to those beliefs which were declared to be anathema by the Catholic Church prior to the schism of...
, either from the moderation of their characters or from the evangelical tincture of their theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
.
1538, vicar-general of the Capuchin order
In 1538 he was elected vicar-general of his order. In 1539, urged by Pietro BemboPietro Bembo
Pietro Bembo was an Italian scholar, poet, literary theorist, and cardinal. He was an influential figure in the development of the Italian language, specifically Tuscan, as a literary medium, and his writings assisted in the 16th-century revival of interest in the works of Petrarch...
, he visited Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
and delivered a remarkable course of sermon
Sermon
A sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts...
s, showing a decided tendency to the doctrine
Doctrine
Doctrine is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system...
of justification by faith, which appears still more evidently in his Dialogues published the same year.
He was suspected and denounced, but nothing ensued until the establishment of the Inquisition
Inquisition
The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
in June 1542, at the instigation of Cardinal Giovanni Pietro Carafa
Pope Paul IV
Pope Paul IV, C.R. , né Giovanni Pietro Carafa, was Pope from 23 May 1555 until his death.-Early life:Giovanni Pietro Carafa was born in Capriglia Irpina, near Avellino, into a prominent noble family of Naples...
, the first Grand Inquisitor
Grand Inquisitor
Grand Inquisitor is the lead official of an Inquisition. The most famous Inquisitor General is the Spanish Dominican Tomás de Torquemada, who spearheaded the Spanish Inquisition.-List of Spanish Grand Inquisitors:-Castile:-Aragon:...
, and later Pope Paul IV. Ochino almost immediately received a citation to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, and set out to obey it about the middle of August. According to his own statement, he was deterred from presenting himself at Rome by the warnings of Cardinal Contarini
Gasparo Contarini
thumb|240px|Gasparo Contarini.Gasparo Contarini was an Italian diplomat and cardinal. He was one of the first proponents of the dialogue with Protestants, after the Reformation.-Biography:...
, whom he found at Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, dying of poison
Poison
In the context of biology, poisons are substances that can cause disturbances to organisms, usually by chemical reaction or other activity on the molecular scale, when a sufficient quantity is absorbed by an organism....
administered by the reactionary party.
1542, escape to Geneva
He turned aside to Florence, and after some hesitation escaped across the AlpsAlps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. He was cordially received by Calvin
John Calvin
John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530...
, and published within two years several volumes of Prediche, controversial tracts rather than sermons, explaining and vindicating his change of religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
. He also addressed replies to marchioness Vittoria Colonna
Vittoria Colonna
Vittoria Colonna , marchioness of Pescara, was an Italian noblewoman and poet.-Biography:The daughter of Fabrizio Colonna, grand constable of the kingdom of Naples, and of Agnese da Montefeltro, Vittoria Colonna was born at Marinoa fief of the Colonna family in the Alban Hills near Rome.Betrothed...
, Claudio Tolomei
Claudio Tolomei
Claudio Tolomei was an Italian philologist. His name in Italian is identical to that of Claudius Ptolemaeus, the 2nd Century Greek astronomer....
, and other Italian sympathizers who were reluctant to go to the same length as himself. His own breach with the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
was decisive and irreparable.
1545-1547, Augsburg
In 1545 he became minister of the Italian Protestant congregation at AugsburgAugsburg
Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...
. From this time dates his contact with Caspar Schwenckfeld. He was compelled to leave forsake when, in January 1547, the city was occupied by the imperial forces for the Diet of Augsburg
Diet of Augsburg
The Diet of Augsburg were the meetings of the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire in the German city of Augsburg. There were many such sessions, but the three meetings during the Reformation and the ensuing religious wars between the Roman Catholic emperor Charles V and the Protestant...
.
1547-1553, Edward VI's England
He found an asylum in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, where he was made a prebendary
Prebendary
A prebendary is a post connected to an Anglican or Catholic cathedral or collegiate church and is a type of canon. Prebendaries have a role in the administration of the cathedral...
of Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
, received a pension
Pension
In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...
from King Edward VI's
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
privy purse, and composed his capital work, the Tragoedie or Dialoge of the unjuste usurped primacie of the Bishop of Rome. This remarkable text, originally written in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, is extant only in the 1549 translation of Bishop John Ponet
John Ponet
John Ponet was the Bishop of Winchester, the Bishop of Rochester, and a controversial Protestant religious leader.In his day, Ponet was an influential Protestant theologian...
.
The conception is highly dramatic; the form is that of a series of dialogues. Lucifer
Lucifer
Traditionally, Lucifer is a name that in English generally refers to the devil or Satan before being cast from Heaven, although this is not the original meaning of the term. In Latin, from which the English word is derived, Lucifer means "light-bearer"...
, enraged at the spread of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
' kingdom, convokes the fiends in council, and resolves to set up the pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
as antichrist
Antichrist
The term or title antichrist, in Christian theology, refers to a leader who fulfills Biblical prophecies concerning an adversary of Christ, while resembling him in a deceptive manner...
. The state, represented by the emperor Phocas
Phocas
Phocas was Byzantine Emperor from 602 to 610. He usurped the throne from the Emperor Maurice, and was himself overthrown by Heraclius after losing a civil war.-Origins:...
, is persuaded to connive at the pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
's assumption of spiritual authority; the other churches are intimidated into acquiescence; Lucifer's projects seem fully accomplished, when Heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
raises up Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
and his son for their overthrow. The conception bears a remarkable resemblance to that of Paradise Lost; and it is nearly certain that Milton
John Milton
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...
, whose sympathies with the Italian Reformation were so strong, must have been acquainted with it.
Several of Ochino's Prediche were also translated into English by a lady, Anna Cooke (or Anne Cooke; b.1533) afterwards second wife of Sir Nicholas Bacon; and he published numerous controversial treatises on the Continent.
1553-1563, pastor at Zürich
In 1553 the accession of Mary IMary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
drove Ochino, and hundreds of other European exiles, from England. He went to Basel, where Lelio Sozzini and the lawyer Martino Muralto
Martino Muralto
Martino Muralto was an Italian lawyer and elder in the exiled Italian protestant church in Zürich. The church was made up of 250 members, many refugees from Locarno, and was an influential centre of free Italian protestantism outside Italy during the period 1540-1620...
were sent to secure Ochino as pastor of the Italian church at Zürich, which Ochino accepted. The Italian congregation at Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
was composed principally of refugees from Locarno
Locarno
Locarno is the capital of the Locarno district, located on the northern tip of Lake Maggiore in the Swiss canton of Ticino, close to Ascona at the foot of the Alps. It has a population of about 15,000...
. There for 10 years Ochino continued to write books which, repeating the history of his early works, gave increasing evidence of his alienation from the strict orthodoxy
Orthodoxy
The word orthodox, from Greek orthos + doxa , is generally used to mean the adherence to accepted norms, more specifically to creeds, especially in religion...
around him. The most important of these was the Labyrinth, a discussion of the freedom of the will
Free will
"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
, covertly assailing the Calvinistic
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
doctrine of predestination
Predestination
Predestination, in theology is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God. John Calvin interpreted biblical predestination to mean that God willed eternal damnation for some people and salvation for others...
.
In 1563 the long-gathering storm of slander burst upon the occasion of the publication of his Thirty Dialogues, in one of which his adversaries maintained that he had justified polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
under colour of a pretended refutation. His dialogues on divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
and against the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
were also considered obnoxious.
Poland, and death
Ochino was not given opportunity to defend himself, and banished from Zürich. After being refused a shelter by other Protestant cities, he directed his steps towards PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, at that time the most tolerant state in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He had not resided there long when an edict appeared (August 8, 1564) banishing all foreign dissident
Dissident
A dissident, broadly defined, is a person who actively challenges an established doctrine, policy, or institution. When dissidents unite for a common cause they often effect a dissident movement....
s. Fleeing the country, he encountered the plague
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
at Pińczów
Pinczów
Pińczów is a town in Poland, in Świętokrzyskie Voivodship, about 40 km south of Kielce. It is the capital of Pińczów County. Population is 12,304 .-History:...
; three of his four children were carried off; and he himself, worn out by misfortune, expired in solitude and obscurity at Slavkov
Slavkov u Brna
Slavkov u Brna is a country town east of Brno in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Population: 5,900. The town is widely known for giving its name to the Battle of Austerlitz which actually took place several kilometres to the west of the town....
in Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
, about the end of 1564.
Legacy
His reputation among Protestants was at the time so bad that he was charged by Thomas BrowneThomas Browne
Sir Thomas Browne was an English author of varied works which reveal his wide learning in diverse fields including medicine, religion, science and the esoteric....
in 1643 with the authorship of the legendary-apocryphal heretical treatise De tribus Impostoribus
The Treatise of the Three Impostors
The Treatise of the Three Impostors is the name for a probably mythical work supposedly denying all three Abrahamic religions - Christ, Moses and Muhammed...
, as well as with having carried his alleged approval of polygamy into practice.
It was reserved for his biographer Karl Benrath
Karl Benrath
Karl Benrath was a German church historian.Benrath was educated in Bonn, Berlin and Heidelberg. In 1871 went on a scientific tour of several years to Italy and England. From 1879 he was professor at Bonn, and from 1890 professor of church history at Königsberg.His most important works describe 16th...
to justify him, and to represent him as a fervent evangelist
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
and at the same time as a speculative thinker with a passion for free inquiry, always learning and unlearning and arguing out difficult questions with himself in his dialogues, frequently without attaining to any absolute conviction. The general tendency of his mind, nevertheless, was counter to tradition, and he is remarkable as resuming in his individual history all the phases of Protestant theology from Luther to Fausto Sozzini. He is especially interesting in relation to English Reformation literature for his residence in England, and the probable influence of more than one of his writings upon Milton
John Milton
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...
.
Works
Prediche (1542)Epistola alli Signori di Balia della città di Siena (1543)
Responsio ad Marcum Brixiensem Abbatem Ordinis S. Benedicti (Geneva, 1543)
Responsio ad Mutium Justinopolitanum to Girolamo Muzio
Girolamo Muzio
Girolamo Muzio or Mutio Justinopolitano was an Italian courtier, poet, and author in defence of the vernacular Italian language against Latin.-Works:...
(1496-1576)
Tragoedie or Dialoge of the unjuste usurped primacie of the Bishop of Rome. 1549 translation of Bishop John Ponet
John Ponet
John Ponet was the Bishop of Winchester, the Bishop of Rochester, and a controversial Protestant religious leader.In his day, Ponet was an influential Protestant theologian...
.
'Disputa intorno alla presenza del corpo di Cristo nel Sacramento della Cena
Labyrinth - Laberinti del libero arbitrio (1563) dedicated to Elisabeth 1st
Dialogi XXX (1563)
Prediche