Humanism in the Service of Theology (I.) Cover Image

A humanizmus az igei tudomány szolgálatában (I.)
Humanism in the Service of Theology (I.)

Author(s): Dezső Buzogány
Subject(s): History of Church(es), History of Education, 16th Century, Biblical studies, Other Christian Denominations, Rhetoric
Published by: Erdélyi Református Egyházkerület
Keywords: Reformation; Humanism; Biblical languages; dialectic; rhetoric;

Summary/Abstract: When speaking of Reformation and Humanism, we tend to connect them to each other. But as we come closer to the essence of each, we discover their substantially different nature. The gist of Humanism is the human nature. On statues and paintings of the Renaissance the man is portrayed as a great, powerful, almost almighty person. On the other hand, Reformation places God, Christ, salvation, reconciliation etc. at the centre of its teaching. Humans are included too, but only as sideliners, as weak, infirm, needy, helpless figures. Nevertheless, Reformation has benefited to a significant extent from Humanism via its emphasis on the grammar for mastering the languages of the Scripture (Hebrew and Greek), dialectics striving to a better understanding of the scriptural message, and rhetorics as a substantial technical help spreading the Gospel. Therefore, teaching these disciplines at the universities of the Reformation has become of major importance during the 16th century.

  • Issue Year: 113/2020
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 53-62
  • Page Count: 10
  • Language: Hungarian