John Slotanus (also Schlottanus or van der Slootien, John Geffen) (died July 9, 1560) was a Dutch

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

polemic Polemic () is contentious rhetoric intended to support a specific position by forthright claims and to undermine the opposing position. The practice of such argumentation is called ''polemics'', which are seen in arguments on controversial topics ...

al writer. He lived and worked most of his life in Cologne.

Life

Slotanus was born in Geffen,

Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...

. He joined the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of Cal ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

about 1525. For many years he worked to defend Roman Catholicism against its opponents through preaching and writing. Later he taught sacred literature at Cologne. In 1554 was made a

Doctor of Theology Doctor of Theology ( la, Doctor Theologiae, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equiva ...

. About this same time he became

prior Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be l ...

of his convent at Cologne. In this role he exercised the offices of censor of the faith and papal inquisitor throughout the Archdiocese of Cologne and the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

country. In the discharge of these duties Slotanus came into conflict with the learned

Justus Velsius Justus Velsius, Haganus, or ''Joost Welsens'' in Dutch (c. 1510, The Hague, Low Countries – after 1581 at an unknown location), was a Dutch humanist, physician, and mathematician. Velsius started his career as a highly respected professor of li ...

, who in 1556, on account of teachings deemed heretical by the Church, was obliged to leave Cologne. The vehement writings which Velsius afterwards published against the Cologne theologians moved Slotanus to write two works covering nearly all the heretical doctrines of his time. He died in Cologne.

Works

Among Slotanus's various works those most worthy of mention are: ''Disputationum adversus hæreticos liber unus'' (Cologne, 1558); ''De retinenda fide orthodoxa et catholica adversus hæreses et sectas'' (Cologne, 1560); and ''De barbaris nationibus convertendis ad Christum'' (Cologne, 1559). In the last-named work Slotanus displays the ardent missionary zeal which fired the religious men of his time.

References

;Attribution cites: **Echard, ''Script. Ord. Prœd.'', II, 175 **Hurter, ''Nomenclator'' **Meuser, ''Zur Geschichte der Kölner Theologen im 16. Jahrh. in Kath. Zeitschr. für Wissenschaft und Kunst'', II (Cologne, 1845), 79 sq. **Paulus, ''Kölner Dominicanerschriftsteller a.d. 16. Jahrh. in Katholik'' II (1897) 238 sq. {{DEFAULTSORT:Slotanus, Johannes 1560 deaths 16th-century births Dutch Dominicans Dutch male writers Priors 16th-century Dutch Roman Catholic theologians People from Maasdonk