|
Dr. Philipp Schwartzerd
Dr. Philipp Schwartzerd (1497-1560) was born in Bretten, Palatinate, Germany. He was an Evangelical Lutheran theologian, professor, religious and social reformer, and close friend of Dr. Martin Luther (1483-1546). Dr. Schwartzerd is particularly noted for his authorship of the Augsburg Confession of the Evangelical Lutheran Church as well as publishing the first Lutheran volume on systematic theology.
After receiving his M.A. degree in 1518, Schwartzerd lectured, with much success, on the classics and soon had six books to his credit, including “Rudiments of the Greek Language”, a popular grammar that was eventually republished in many editions.
In 1518 Schwartzerd accepted an invitation, relayed through his uncle, the renowned scholar Reuchlin, to become the University of Wittenberg's first professor of Greek.
During the Renaissance it was not uncommon for European scholars to make alterations to their surnames to make them more “academic sounding.” For example, noted priest, theologian and compiler of the popular European text of the Greek New Teastament, Gerrit Gerritszoon (meaning, Gerard Gerard's son) or Herasmus Gerritszoonthe (1466 –1536) is popularly known as Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam. The scholarly name Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus comprises the following three elements: the Latin noun desiderium ("longing" or "desire"; the name being a genuine Late Latin name); the Greek adjective ἐράσμιος (erásmios) meaning "desired", and, in the form Erasmus, also the name of a St. Erasmus of Formiae; and the Latinized adjectival form for the city of Rotterdam (Roterodamus = "of Rotterdam"). The son of mine owner, Hans Luder altered the spelling of his surname to the more academic sounding “Luther.” In the same way, Reuchlin convinced his promising nephew Schwartzerd to use the Greek translation of his surname, which in German means “black earth.” Consequently, Dr. Philipp Schwartzerd is commonly known as Dr. Philipp Melanchthon.
By 1519 Dr. Schwartzerd had already defended authority of scripture against Dr. Martin Luther's opponent Dr. Johann Eck, rejected (before even Luther did) transubstantiation (i.e., the doctrine that the substance of the bread and wine in the Lord's Supper is physically changed into the body and blood of Christ) and made justification by faith the foundation of his theology, and openly estranged himself from Reuchlin.
In 1520 Schwartzerd married Katherine Krapp, who bore him four children—Anna, Philipp, Georg, Magdalen.
In 1521, at Luther's urging, Schwartzerd lectured on Paul's Letter to the Romans and published the Loci communes, the first systematic treatment of evangelical doctrine. Three editions of the Loci appeared before the end of the year and between 1525 and 1558 18 editions appeared, in addition to the publishing of a German translation. The last edition was much enlarged and changed. Luther was so impressed that he declared that the Loci deserved a place in the canon of Scriptures.
Dr. Schwartzerd died on April 19, 1560, in Wittenberg, Saxony, Germany.
|
