1 Secrets between Philosophy, Biblical Interpretation, and Literature: Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466/9–1536)

Abstract

Erasmus adapts Origen's ideas of secrecy and uses them in diverse areas of his thought, notably in the domains of anthropology, theology, and ethics. Origen theorized secrecy through his three-fold philosophical understanding of the human persona's structure. For instance, while writing his Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans, he relies extensively on Saint Paul's and Origen's three-fold division of the human persona. He uses it to respond to John Colet in their dispute about the nature of Christ's sacrifice. In the domain of ethics, he integrates it into his Enchiridion, while in his literary works, such as The Praise of Folly and Adages, he uses Origen to develop a philosophical dimension in Christianity. He deals with the same group of issues in his Apology Against Jacques Lefevre d'Etaples.Keywords: Christianity; Erasmus of Rotterdam; human persona's structure; John Colet; Origen theorized secrecy; Saint Paul