Godfrey of Fontaines (born sometime before 1250, died 29 October 1306 or 1309), in Latin Godefridus de Fontibus, was a

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and theologian, designated by the title Doctor Venerandus. He made contributions to a diverse range of subjects ranging from moral philosophy to epistemology. However, he is best known today for his work on metaphysics.

Early biography

Godfrey was born sometime before 1250 in the principality of

Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from b ...

in present-day Belgium. He was likely born at Fontaines-les-Hozémont, a château owned by his noble family.

Formation

Godfrey was a student at the University of Paris by at least 1277, but more probably as early as 1270, as he was likely there during the second regency of Thomas Aquinas (1269-1272) who had returned to Paris from the Santa Sabina ''studium provinciale''. Aquinas' teaching was perhaps the strongest influence on Godfrey's own thought, though he differed on issues such as the principle of individuation, and the distinction between essence and existence in material things. A notebook from his student years has been dated around 1271 to 1274 demonstrating his familiarity with views proposed by Siger of Brabant and

Boethius of Dacia Boetius de Dacia, OP (also spelled Boethius de Dacia) was a 13th-century Danish philosopher. Name The rendering of his name ''Danske Bo'' (" Bo the Dane") into Medieval Latin as ''Boetius de Dacia'' stems from the fact that the toponym '' Dan ...

, leading representatives of the radical Aristotelian movement in the Arts faculty at the time.

Career

He was a "Magister", or Master of Theology at the University of Paris by at least 1285 because that is when he gave his first Quodlibet, which means he had earned his Magister regens in Theology by this time and because one would have to be at least thirty-five for this honor; this offers the reasoning that his year of birth is 1250 or earlier. He was Magister regens from 1285 to 1299 and then again in 1303 to 1304. Godfrey was held in high esteem during his life, and held a number of ecclesiastical offices, including Canon of Liège, Canon of Tournai, Provost of St. Severin in Cologne (1287–1295), and possibly Canon of Paris. In 1300 he was chosen to be the Bishop of Tournai, but he chose not to take the position due to a contested election. Godfrey left Paris between his final Quodlibet in 1298-1299 and 1303/1304 yet returned before he died on 29 October 1306 or 1309. He had compiled a large library during his lifetime, which he donated to the Sorbonne upon his death; a portion of which is still intact.

Writings

The most significant of Godfrey's writings are transcriptions of Quodlibets, of which he participated in fifteen during his tenure at the University of Paris. These were week-long sessions held before Christmas and Easter in which participating Masters were required to answer questions chosen by their students. This was taxing to the Master, who would have to argue a thoughtful and researched answer on an incredibly diverse range of subjects. Many Masters chose not to engage in the Quodlibets. Godfrey of Fontaines completed at least fifteen Quodlibetal sessions. Hence, Godfrey discussed a very wide range of issues. These and other writings show him to have been not merely a distinguished theologian and philosopher, but also a canonist, jurist, moralist, and conversationalist, who took an active part in the various

ecclesiastical {{Short pages monitor Sometime in the 14th century, Godfrey, though well known in his own time, fell out of favour into near-total obscurity. Thomas Aquinas sparked plenty of controversy and discussion in philosophy and theology in the last quarter century of the 13th century. Many significant writers lived during this period, but for the most part, until the 20th century only Thomas Aquinas and Duns Scotus received any recognition. Godfrey may have been just as significant in his own time as these two, yet for some reason his works were only edited and published as of the early 20th century. This may have more to do with his political affiliation than anything else. Religious Scholars of this time became well known in the long run based mainly on how well promoted they were by the mendicant orders. Thomas Aquinas was promoted by the Dominican order, and Duns Scotus was promoted by the

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. Despite this, Godfrey of Fontaines' writings had, by the 1960s, regained much popularity.

References

Sources

Wippel, John. ''Godfrey of Fontaines'', The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2001 Edition).
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* * De Wulf, M. (1904). ''Un théologien-philosophe du XIIIe siècle. Étude sur la vie, les oeuvres et l'influence de Godefroid de Fontaines.'' Brussels: M. Hayez. * Duin, J.J. (1959). ''La bibliothèque philosophique de Godefroid de Fontaines'', Estudios Lulianos 3, pp. 21–36, 136–60. * Marrone, S. (2001). ''The Light of Thy Countenance. Science and Knowledge of God in the Thirteenth Century.'' Vol. 2: God at the Core of Cognition. Leiden: Brill. * Putallaz, F.X. (1995). ''Insolente liberté. Controverses et condemnations au XIIIe siècle.'' Fribourg: Éditions Universitaires/Paris: Éditions du Cerf. * * Wippel, J.F. (1984). ''Possible Sources for Godfrey of Fontaines' Views on the Act-Potency Composition of Simple Creatures'', Mediaeval Studies 44 (1984), pp. 222–44. * Wippel, J.F. (1986). ''The Role of the Phantasm in Godfrey of Fontaines' Theory of Intellection'', in C. Wenin, ed., L'homme et son univers au moyen âge (Actes du septième congrès internationale de philosophie médiévale 0 Août-4 Septembre 1982, Vol. 2, pp. 573–82. * Wippel, J.F. (2001). ''Godfrey of Fontaines at the University of Paris in the Last Quarter of the Thirteenth Century'', in J.A. Aertsen, K. Emery, Andreas Speer, eds., Nach der Verurteilung von 1277. Philosophie und Theologie an der Universität von Paris im letzten Viertel des 13. Jahrhunderts. Studien und Texte (Miscellanea Mediaevalia, 28) Berlin-New York: Walter de Gruyter, pp. 359–89. {{DEFAULTSORT:Godfrey of Fontaines 13th-century births 1300s deaths Year of birth unknown Year of death uncertain Catholic philosophers Scholastic philosophers French Christian theologians Prince-Bishopric of Liège clergy 13th-century philosophers 13th-century French philosophers

Early biography

Formation

Career

Writings

References

Sources

Further reading