Christian humanism is the belief that human freedom and individualism are compatible with the practice of Christianity or intrinsic in its doctrine. It is a philosophical union of Christian and humanist principles.^[1] Christianity percentage by country, purple is highest, orange is lowest Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Wycliffe Tyndale · Luther · Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury Patriarch... The philosopher Socrates about to take poison hemlock as ordered by the court. ... Humanism[1] is a broad category of ethical philosophies that affirm the dignity and worth of all people, based on the ability to determine right and wrong by appeal to universal human qualities—particularly rationality. ...

Origins

Christian humanism may have begun as early as the 2nd century, with the writings of Justin Martyr. While far from radical, Justin suggested a value in the achievements of Classical culture in his Apology^[2] Petrarch (1304-1374) is also considered a father of humanism. The traditional teaching that humans are made in the image of God, or in Latin the Imago Dei, also supports individual worth and dignity. Justin Martyr (Justin the Martyr, also known as Justin of Caesarea) (100 – 165) was an early Christian apologist. ... Justin Martyr (Justin the Martyr, also known as Justin of Caesarea) (100 – 165) was an early Christian apologist. ... From the c. ... Imago Dei is taken from the Latin meaning the Image of God. This concept and theological doctrine states that human beings are created Gods image and therefore have inherent value independent of their utility or function. ...

Background

Humanists were involved with studia humanitas and placed great importance on studying ancient languages, namely Greek and Latin, eloquence, classical authors, and rhetoric. All were important for educational curriculum. Christian humanists also cared about scriptural and patristic writings, Hebrew, Church reform, clerical education, and preaching.

In the Renaissance

Christian humanism saw an explosion in the Renaissance, emanating from an increased faith in the capabilities of Man, married with a still-firm devotion to Christianity. Mere Humanism might value earthly existence as something worthy in itself, whereas Christian humanism would value such existence, so long as it were combined with the Christian faith. One of the first texts regarding Christian humanism was Giovanni Pico della Mirandola's Oration on the Dignity of Man, in which he stressed that Men had the free will to travel up and down a moral scale, with God and angels being at the top, and Satan being at the bottom. The country of Pico's nativity, Italy, leaned heavily toward Civic humanism, while the firmer Christian principles took effect in places other than Italy, during what is now called the Northern Renaissance. Italian universities and academia stressed Classical mythology and writings as a source of knowledge, whereas universities in the Holy Roman Empire, France, etc. were still deeply Christian and taught extensively of Church fathers. The Renaissance (French for rebirth, or Rinascimento in Italian), was a cultural movement in Italy (and in Europe in general) that began in the late Middle Ages, and spanned roughly the 14th through the 17th century. ... Humanism[1] is a broad category of ethical philosophies that affirm the dignity and worth of all people, based on the ability to determine right and wrong by appeal to universal human qualities—particularly rationality. ... Pico della Mirandola. ... This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... The Annunciation - the Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she will bear Jesus (El Greco, 1575) An angel is an ethereal being found in many religions, whose duties are to assist and serve God. ... For other uses, see Satan (disambiguation). ... Civic humanism was an intellectual movement of the Italian Renaissance that saw Cicero as the ideal, and held that humanists should be involved in government and use their rhetorical training in the service of the state. ... The Northern Renaissance is the term used to describe the Renaissance in northern Europe, or more broadly in Europe outside Italy. ... The extent of the Holy Roman Empire in c. ... The Church Fathers or Fathers of the Church are the early and influential theologians and writers in the Christian Church, particularly those of the first five centuries of Christian history. ...

Sparks of Christian Humanism

After the fall of the Roman Empire and the civilization of barbarians, there were thoughts of a more Christianized humanity for society. Christian clerics controlled education and Charlemagne requested for scholars to set up places of learning that became universities. Universities including Padua and Bologna, Paris and Oxford resulted from increased Church involvement. A primitive humanism actually started when the papacy began protecting the Northern Cluniacs and Cistercians and the Church formed a unifying bond. Monks and friars went on crusades and St. Bernard counseled kings. Priests were frequently Lord Chancellors in England and in France. Christian views became present in all aspects of society. There was a stressed importance that one must serve God and others. Furthermore, there was a view of human nature that was both hopeful and Christian. All offices, civil, and academic works had religious elements. For example, during the Middle Ages, guilds or livery companies resembled modern-day trade unions. In addition, religion influenced medicine with the Good Samaritan of the Gospels and St. Luke. The idea of free people under God came from this time and spread from the West to other areas of the world. Motto Senatus Populusque Romanus (SPQR) The Roman Empire at its greatest extent. ... A portrait of Charlemagne by Albrecht Dürer that was painted several centuries after Charlemagnes death. ... Cistercians coat of arms The Order of Cistercians (OCist) (Latin: ), otherwise White Monks (from the colour of the habit, over which a black scapular or apron is sometimes worn) is a Roman Catholic order of enclosed monks. ...

Selected Humanist Teachings of Jesus

The Second Great Commandment

"You shall love thy neighbor as thyself"
- Matthew 22:39, Mark 12:31, Luke 10:27 (also Leviticus 19:18) The Gospel of Matthew (literally, according to Matthew; Greek, Κατά Μαθθαίον or Κατά Ματθαίον, Kata Maththaion or Kata Matthaion) is one of the four Gospel accounts of the New Testament. ... The Gospel of Mark (literally, according to Mark; Greek, Κατά Μαρκον, Kata Markon),(anonymous[1] but ascribed to Mark the Evangelist) is a Gospel of the New Testament. ... The Gospel of Luke is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels of the New Testament, which tell the story of Jesus life, death, and resurrection. ... Leviticus is the third book of the Hebrew Bible, also the third book in the Torah (five books of Moses). ...

Unto the Least

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand

"Come, ye blessed of my Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat:
I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink:
I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
Naked, and ye clothed me:
I was sick, and ye visited me:
I was in prison, and ye came unto me."

Then shall the righteous answer him, saying,
"Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee?
or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in?
or naked, and clothed thee?
Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

And the King shall answer and say unto them,

"Verily I say unto you,
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren,
ye have done it unto me."
- Matthew 25:34-40 The Gospel of Matthew (literally, according to Matthew; Greek, Κατά Μαθθαίον or Κατά Ματθαίον, Kata Maththaion or Kata Matthaion) is one of the four Gospel accounts of the New Testament. ...

Literary criticism

Christian humanism is first of all a movement for widened learning that emerged out of the Renaissance and was brought by devoted Christians to the study of the philological sources of the Greek New Testament. This project was undertaken at the time of the Reformation in the work of Erasmus of Rotterdam (who remained a Catholic), Martin Luther (who was an Augustinian priest and led the Reformation, translating the Scriptures into his native German), and John Calvin (who was a student of law and theology at the Sorbonne where he became acquainted with the Reformation, and began studying Scripture in the original languages, eventually writing a text-based commentary upon the entire Christian Old Testament and New Testament except the Book of Revelation). John Calvin was the most prominent of the many figures associated with Reformed Churches that proliferated in Switzerland, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and portions of Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, and Poland. Each of the candidates for ordained ministry in these churches had to study the Christian Old Testament in Hebrew and the New in Greek in order to qualify. This continued the tradition of Christian humanism. Desiderius Erasmus in 1523 Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (also Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam) (October 27, probably 1466 – July 12, 1536) was a Dutch humanist and theologian. ... Martin Luther (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a German monk,[1] priest, professor, theologian, and church reformer. ... John Calvin (July 10, 1509 – May 27, 1564) was a French Protestant theologian during the Protestant Reformation and was a central developer of the system of Christian theology called Calvinism or Reformed theology. ... Note: Judaism commonly uses the term Tanakh. ... John 21:1 Jesus Appears to His Disciples--Alessandro Mantovani: the Vatican, Rome. ... Visions of John of Patmos, as depicted in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. ...

The broader tradition extends the zone of usage of the term "Christian humanism" and continues to be used widely to describe the vocations of Christians such as Dorothy Sayers, Charles Williams, C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Flannery O'Connor, Henri-Irénée Marrou. Dorothy Leigh Sayers (Oxford, 13 June 1893 – Witham, 17 December 1957) was a British author, translator, student of classical and modern languages, and Christian humanist. ... Charles Walter Stansby Williams (September 20, 1886 – May 15, 1945), was a British writer and poet, and a member of the loose literary circle called the Inklings. ... Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an Irish author and scholar. ... John Ronald Reuel Tolkien CBE (January 3, 1892 – September 2, 1973) was an English philologist, writer and university professor, best known as the author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. ... Mary Flannery OConnor (b. ... Henri-Irénée Marrou (1904-1977) was a leading French historian of the mid- twentieth century. ...

Prominent Christian humanists

• Blaise Pascal
• Christopher Fry
• Erasmus
• Jacques Maritain
• Jim Wallis
• Søren Kierkegaard
• Thomas More
• T. S. Eliot

Blaise Pascal (pronounced ), (June 19, 1623–August 19, 1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, and religious philosopher. ... Christopher Fry (born December 18, 1907; died June 30, 2005) was an English playwright. ... Desiderius Erasmus in 1523 Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (also Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam) (October 27, probably 1466 – July 12, 1536) was a Dutch humanist and theologian. ... Jacques Maritain Jacques Maritain (November 18, 1882 – April 28, 1973) was a French Catholic philosopher. ... Jim Wallis Reverend Jim Wallis (born June 4, 1948 in Detroit, Michigan) is a Christian writer and political activist, best known as the founder and editor of Sojourners magazine and of the Washington DC based Christian community of the same name. ... Søren Aabye Kierkegaard (IPA: , but usually Anglicized as ;  ) 5 May 1813 – 11 November 1855) was a prolific 19th century Danish philosopher and theologian. ... There are also several institutions named Thomas More College. ... Thomas Stearns Eliot, OM (September 26, 1888 – January 4, 1965), was a poet, dramatist and literary critic. ...

Notes

References

D’Arcy, Martin C. Humanism and Christianity. New York: The World Publishing Company, 1969

Arnold, Jonathan. “John Colet- Preaching and Reform at St. Paul’s Cathedral, 1505-1519.” Reformation and Renaissance Review: Journal of the Society for Reformation Studies 5, no. 2 (2003): 204-209.

See also

• Christianity
• Humanism
• Personalism
• Religious humanism

Christianity percentage by country, purple is highest, orange is lowest Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Wycliffe Tyndale · Luther · Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury Patriarch... Humanism[1] is a broad category of ethical philosophies that affirm the dignity and worth of all people, based on the ability to determine right and wrong by appeal to universal human qualities—particularly rationality. ... Personalism is the school of thought that consists of three main principles: Only persons are real (in the ontological sense), Only persons have value, and Only persons have free will. ... Religious humanism, is an integration of religious rituals with humanistic philosophy that centers on human needs, interests, and abilities. ...

External links

• No Christian humanism? Big mistake., Online Catholics, by Peter Fleming. (Accessed 02 August, 2006)

• Christian Humanism, a website maintained by John P. Bequette, Ph.D., Historical Theology