Erasmus of Rottingham

Erasmus of Rottingham

Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536) grew up in central Europe. A few of his quotes are typed in italics green throughout this study.

"Our hope is in the mercy of God and the merits of Christ."…. "He ... nailed our sins to the cross, sealed our redemption with his blood. " He boldly stated that no rites of the Catholic Church were necessary for an individual's salvation. "The way to enter paradise, is the way of the penitent thief, say simply, Thy will be done. The world to me is crucified and I to the world." Desiderius Erasmus

While Erasmus was a young lad both of his parents fell victim to the plague in Europe. He and his brother were then placed in the care of a relative who promptly sent them off to a monastery, for the purpose of being rid of them. He was later to choose to be an Augustinian student, because such as these were known to have the best of libraries. He is known to history as one of the most prolific writers. Learning was his primary purpose above all things. While keeping not the sacraments and rituals of the Church he endured in her. One of his many writings consisted of "Against the Barbarians" which was pointed at the overt wickedness within the RCC. Possibly his greatest contribution to mankind was his attitude toward the common man. Living in the rigidly classed society of his day Erasmus himself was no respecter of persons. He, like William Tyndale, possessed a godly passion for placing the Scripture in the hands of the common man. His greatest opposition with the Roman Church was over its doctrine of salvation through works, sacraments, and the tenets of the church. Concerning the Anabaptists, he reserved a great deal of respect for them. He mentioned them very favourably as early as 1523.

Though he never officially joined with them, his theology became somewhat parallel with theirs, especially in resects to being a pacifist. By 1530, his name had come to be associated with the Anabaptists whom the Catholics and many Protestants considered to be the arch-heretics of the sixteenth century. Erasmus began to advocate baptism by immersion after conversion when the fruits of repentance were revealed in the believer. Moreover, he came to believe that baptism was to be by immersion, even though this was called an Anabaptist heresy by both the Catholics and Protestants; however this was in-fact correct doctrine and biblically sound.

"After you have taught them these things, and they believe what you have taught them, have repented their previous lives, and are ready to embrace the doctrine of the gospel (in their life), then immerse them in water, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost" "The Apostles are commanded that they teach first and baptize later." Desiderius Erasmus

"Do you think that the Scriptures are fit only for the perfumed?" "I venture to think that anyone who reads my translation at home will profit thereby." He boldly stated that he longed to see the Bible in the hands of "the farmer, the tailor, the traveler and the Turk” Desiderius Erasmus

Erasmus stands as an esteemed type of cultivated man of God given reasoning ability applied to human affairs and conditions. He rescued theology from the pedantries of the Schoolmen, exposed the abuses of the RCC, and did more than any other single person of his time to advance the revival of biblical learning applied to daily life. He first made the scriptures available to the unlearned in the 16^th centruy with his dual Greek & Latin bible publication in 1516. Half the page was Greek and the second half was written in Latin. Click, hold, and turn at the bottom right of each page to view the original text.http://www.bibles-online.net/1519/NewTestament/11-Philippians/

“By a Carpenter mankind was made, and only by that Carpenter can mankind be remade”. ..“Everyone knows that by far the happiest and universally enjoyable age of man is the first. What is there about babies which makes us hug and kiss and fondle them, so that even an enemy would give them help at that age?” Desiderius Erasmus……….{Erasmus knew that man was born innocent}

Apart from the valleys of the Piedmont Alps and other remote separatist groups such as the Waldensian and the Albagensians, there were very few other forms of Christianity outside the Roman Catholic Church in that part of the world. After 1500 years the world’s population had finally doubled from the time of Christ, growing form ¼ billion to ½ billion people in 1600 years. The western world was dominated by the RCC, even Wycliffe and Tyndale had been nominal Catholics. The Reformation had not yet begun, and there were no Protestant churches in central Europe or England at this time. In the recorded history of that time He was one of the few well known scholars and men of God that knew and understood clearly that man was not born a sinner, and he most certainly did have freewill. These two things are essential in learning doctrine, without them one will derive with another gospel. He had a deep desire to bring forth the word of God to all men in all languages. Here is a link to a written peace by Erasmus from 1529 on the life of a Christian, living in the Spirit, denying the world, and set apart from sin. His understandings were much superior to those of Luther, Calvin and the Reformationists of that time. Erasmus’, a very temperate and patient man, taught the crucified live in Christ. His doctrine was in complete opposition to that of the Westminster Confessions which was later formed in the 17^th century, of which the vast majority of Protestantism is formulated from today,being formatted by Luther and Calvin’s reprobate influence.

http://history.hanover.edu/courses/excerpts/346erasmus.html

It's the generally accepted privilege of theologians to stretch the heavens, that is the Scriptures, like tanners with a hide. Desiderius Erasmus

Erasmus once being a Catholic is somewhat of a hollow charge by the new-age pundits who support the faulty Alexandrian text. Though he was a clergyman in the Catholic Church, there is no known record that he ever presided over any parish. Rather, he traveled across Europe throughout most of his career as a scholar, gathering the byzantine text originating from Antioch. One might say he was more or less a non-serving Catholic. In his day, he was considered the foremost scholar of classical Greek and Latin literature, the man that brought to life the Koine Greek language in the western renaissance world. Having access to all libraries in Europe the course of his travels took him from Holland to France, England, and Switzerland while gathering the Greek text. Some 70 years later in 1559 Pope Paul the IV forbid the reading of his books by Catholics.

"Therefore if you will dedicate yourself wholly to the study of the Scriptures, if you will meditate on the law of the Lord day and night, you will not be afraid of the terror of the night or of the day, but you will be fortified and trained against every onslaught of enemies." Desiderius Erasmus

While Erasmus was in Italy he spent all of his time “devouring the libraries,” states Durant. “[C]omparing two codices...for the more correct reading of some intricate passage” was his passion (Durant, p. 275; Mangan, pp. 275, 91). Erasmus states, “It may easily be guessed how large a part of the usefulness of my work would have been lacking if my learned friends had not supplied me with manuscripts” (Mangan, p. 241). Upon his return to Basel to work on the printing of this Greek New Testament, he arrived “weighed down with books...and copious notes on the New Testament” (Rummel, Erika, Erasmus s Annotations on the New Testament, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1986, p. 23). His own manuscript collection was so large, unique, and valuable, it was seized by customs when he left London while proceeding to the mainland Continent in order to finalize the Greek New Testament in 1514. He protested claiming that “they had stolen the labours of his life.” The manuscripts were returned in a few days (Froude, The Life and Letters, p. 169).

"Aristotle is so in vogue that there is scarcely time in the churches to interpret the gospel." Desiderius Erasmus

Over the years, Erasmus became closely acquainted with biblical manuscripts available throughout Europe, particularly those of the NT. In 1516, Erasmus published his first edition from Basel Switzerland, which he called the Novum Instrumentum, in English meaning the New Instrument. The more Erasmus became laboured in the compiled study and editing of the New Testament, the more his doctrine, theology, and his own convictions began to separate him from Rome. He came to reject the common Roman Catholic interpretation of Matt. 16:18 establishing papal primacy. He began to vehemently attack the abuses and scandals of the Roman Catholic clergy. His commentaries on Mathew 23:27 (on whited sepulchres): 'What would Jerome say could he see the Virgin's milk exhibited for money . . . the miraculous oil; the portions of the true cross, enough if they were collected to freight a later ship? Here we have the hood of St. Francis, there Our Lady's petticoat, or St. Anne's comb, or St. Thomas of Canterbury's shoes . . . and all through the avarice of priests and the hypocrisy of monks playing on the credulity of the people. Even bishops play their parts in these fantastic shows, and approve and dwell on them in their rescripts”.

His commentary on Matthew 24:23 'I saw with my own eyes Pope Julius II, at Bologna, and afterwards at Rome, marching at the head of a triumphal procession as if he were Pompey or Caesar. St. Peter subdued the world with faith, not with arms or soldiers or military engines”.

Erasmus, unlike the RCC and many of the Protestant reformers was very much a pacifist, and believed in non-persecution of peoples religious beliefs.

"Christ Jesus . . . is the true light, alone shattering the night of earthly folly, the Splendor of paternal glory, who as he was made redemption and justification for us reborn in him, so also was made Wisdom” Desiderius Erasmus

He was a critic of Pope Julius and the Papacy Monarch of Rome. He made comparisons with the Roman crusades by connecting Pope Julius to that of Julius Caesar. He is quoted as saying, "How truly is Julius playing the part of Julius." He also stated, "This monarchy of the Roman pontiff is the pest of Christendom." He advised the church to "get rid of the Roman” A satire of Pope Julius was portrayed as going to Hell, anonymously written and circulated, it was commonly known by most that its author was Erasmus.

The RCC detested him, and Most of the Reformers were suspicious of him at best. Erasmus, who edited the Greek text of which 120 years later was to be known as the Textus Receptus. He was an embarrassment to the Pope and a poor example of a "good" Roman Catholic.

In defense of Erasmus http://www.angelfire.com/la2/prophet1/erasmus.html

Great abundance of riches cannot be gathered and kept by any man without sin. Great eagerness in the pursuit of wealth, pleasure, or honor, cannot exist without sin. Desiderius Erasmus

Erasmus published five editions of the New Testament in Greek. They were brought out successively in 1516, 1519, 1522, 1527 and 1535.

Academics and critical pundits of Erasmus have been quick to point out that he dedicated his first 1516 edition of his Greek NT to Pope Leo X. However, the long established Catholic position was that Jerome’s’ Latin Vulgate was the only official church bible proclaimed and upheld by the Papacy for centuries. There was an extreme enmity toward anything that threatened the primacy of Jerome’s text.. Erasmus being wise a serpent but harmless as a dove, knowing this first, Erasmus knew of the level of opposition his Greek text would come against. Therefore, without Pope Leo even being aware that he dedicated his Greek NT to him, yet at the same time he obtained his friend in Rome, Bombasius, to make a formal approval of his Greek publication because it had been dedicated to the Pope. Thus, when the RCC council in central Europe began to vehemently attack his work, Erasmus produced the approval of the Pope for justification in doing so. He was then accused by some ranking members in the RCC as being even more dangerous than Martin Luther.

Indeed, I disagree very much with those who are unwilling that Holy Scripture, translated into the vulgar tongue, be read by the uneducated, as if Christ taught such intricate doctrines that they could scarcely be understood by very few theologians, or as if the strength of the Christian religion consisted in men's ignorance of it. Desiderius Erasmus

The RCC criticized his works on the bases of his rejection of Jerome's Latin Vulgate translation, of which he believed to be inaccurate. He detected that the Greek text copied by Jerome had been corrupted as early as the third century, based solely on Origins Hexapla, an Alexandrian manuscripts, the Vaticanus.

Contrary to popular misconception and propaganda, Erasmus had more than a handful of manuscripts at his disposal.
Critics often make the assertion that ‘Erasmus did not have the manuscripts we have today.’ The fact is that he had access to every reading currently available, and rejected those matching the Jerome’s Catholic Vulgate which aligns with the TNIV, NIV ESV, ASV, HCSB, RSEV and NASB today. Modern scholars claim  Erasmus himself had no knowledge of the Alexandrian manuscripts which they claim did not come to light until 1850, while announcing that  that the Sinaiticus was not discovered at the monastery of St. Catherine's until the mid-19th century.  On the contrary; Erasmus most certainly did have access to the Sinaitic text readings; he did indeed have access to the Codex Vaticanus copies containing the Septuagint as well. What is overlooked in the mass propaganda effort is that; because the Vatican library at Rome since about the 15th century was not available for use by outsiders until 19th century. But Erasmus did prior, already have access to copies of Codex B readings while gathering the Greek text in the early 16^th century. Erasmus, having rejected them because he knew how corrupt they were and how few manuscripts existed. Knowing this, that B is the Pope's manuscript, and since Erasmus was aware of the Popes corruption and Jerome's faulty text, he wisely rejected it just on that basis alone. But then also conceder this;

 Paulus Bombasius actually discovered the neglected Codex B in the Vatican library way back in 1521. Sending Erasmus its readings from I John 4:1-3 & 5:7.  These same corrupt readings of the Sinaiticus and Vaticanus were also very much before the committees one KJB scholars in the 1611 edition. 1 John 5-7 is also represented in the good Waldensian Latin Vulgate copied from the original Greek in 150 AD.

Although the KJB scholars did take note of some of the faulty text as expressed in their preface, they rejected most as folklore. Erasmus, having access to every library in Europe because of his reputation as a scholar, this included the Vatican as well. Yes, Erasmus had access to the Codex Vaticanus if he wanted it. He didn't need the original manuscripts because Paulus Bombasius, who was in Rome, and was sending him B readings. It is just not correct to say no one had access to them before 1850.
 
Erasmus was made available with 365 readings of B by Sepulveda, who was in possession of them as early as 1520.  Frederick Kenyon points out that the preface and dedication to Ximenes' text state; that the text was derived from manuscripts loaned by Pope Leo X from the Vatican library.  If he had this text the manuscripts were made available to him, then certainly must have Erasmus also had access of the which he discarded as faulty, such did Stephens in 1550, and Beza in 1596 editions..
 

“Human affairs are so obscure and various that nothing of this world can be clearly known”. Desiderius Erasmus

The controversy over I John 5:7 forced an appeal to Codex B in 1522. So what do the false pundits mean by hailing Sumner’s’ claim when he said; no one had access to them at this time? How could it have been introduced in 1522 during the time of the great controversy over I John 5:7 unless people knew of its readings? When Cardinal Ximenes was preparing his Greek New Testament in 1512 he had access to Codex B. If he had such access then so certainly must have Erasmus who rejected their authentic credibility. Theodore Beza in his final copulation of the Greek in 1596 also rejected them.  In 1675, John Fell put out a Greek text based on the Elzevir 1633 text with variant readings for Codex B.  If "no one had access to Codex B until the middle of the 19th century," as Sumner falsely claims; how did Fell obtain these writings? The whole 19^th century Jesuit Oxford movement was deception and lies of the highest order, then giving birth to Cyrus Schofiled speaking lies out of the womb.

Erasmus did not create a new text, but merely "put together the many puzzle pieces," and printed and published this Greek New Testament that was incredibly reliable. It was not a text newly received, but rather was built upon those pieces which were already received by the True Church and Body of Christ Jesus. Erasmus weeded out the poor and unreliable manuscripts, and presented us with a true and very reliable Greek New Testament, later known to be the Textus Receptus because those Spirit-filled members of the Body of Christ, realized it was indeed the true Word of God in the Greek New Testament Form.

http://workmenforchrist.org/Bible/History/DErasmus.html

http://www.angelfire.com/la2/prophet1/erasmus.html

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