Martinus Becanus (6 January 1563 – 24 January 1624) was a Dutch-born

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest, known as a theologian and controversialist.

Life

He was born ''Maarten Schellekens'' in

Hilvarenbeek Hilvarenbeek () is a municipality and a town in the south of the Netherlands, along the border with Belgium. The biggest tourist attraction is called Beekse Bergen, consisting of a safari park, amusement park/playground, holiday bungalow park, an ...

North Brabant North Brabant ( nl, Noord-Brabant ; Brabantian: ; ), also unofficially called Brabant, is a province in the south of the Netherlands. It borders the provinces of South Holland and Gelderland to the north, Limburg to the east, Zeeland to the we ...

; Schellekens is a

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. Patronymics are still in use, including mandatory use, in many countries worldwide, alt ...

and he adopted a Latinized form of the surname Van (Hilvaren)Beek. He entered the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

on 22 March 1583, and taught

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

for twenty-two years at

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg is ...

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

, and

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. He died in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, where he was the confessor to the

Emperor Ferdinand II Ferdinand II (9 July 1578 – 15 February 1637) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, Hungary, and Croatia from 1619 until his death in 1637. He was the son of Archduke Charles II of Inner Austria and Maria of Bavaria. His parents were dev ...

Works

A first class controversialist and prolific writer Becanus is the author of some 37 books, most of them works of polemics. *He developed the art of controversy and taught it in his book : ''Manuale controversiarum huius temporis'' published in Wurzburg (1623), that went into more than 50 editions (in the shortened version until the late 18th century). *In ''De fide haereticis servanda (1607)'' he defended the view that Protestants and Catholics should observe contracts concluded between one another. *Another book had much success: ''Analogia veteris et novi Testamenti''. *He supported

Cardinal Bellarmine Robert Bellarmine, SJ ( it, Roberto Francesco Romolo Bellarmino; 4 October 1542 – 17 September 1621) was an Italian Jesuit and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was canonized a saint in 1930 and named Doctor of the Church, one of only ...

in the major

allegiance oath controversy The Oath of Allegiance of 1606 was an oath requiring English Catholics to swear allegiance to James I over the Pope. It was adopted by Parliament the year after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 (see Popish Recusants Act 1605). The oath was proclaimed ...

with

James I of England James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland as James I from the Union of the Crowns, union of the Scottish and Eng ...

, publishing six books in the period 1610 to 1613, one against

William Tooker William Tooker (or Tucker) ( Exeter, 1557 or 1558 – 19 March 1621) was an English churchman and theological writer, who was archdeacon of Barnstaple and later dean of Lichfield. Life Born at Exeter in 1557 or 1558, he was the third son ...

and another being directed at

Lancelot Andrewes Lancelot Andrewes (155525 September 1626) was an English bishop and scholar, who held high positions in the Church of England during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I. During the latter's reign, Andrewes served successively as Bishop of Chic ...

. At the time he was based in

; he was brought into the front line of the discussion of Bellarmine's ''Apologia'' by Attileo Amalteo, the nuncio at Cologne.Peter Godman, ''The Saint as Censor: Robert Bellarmine between inquisition and index'' (2000), p. 203. Among numerous other works was his ''Summa Theologiae Scholasticae.''

References

''Scholasticon'' page
* (in german)

Werner Raupp Werner may refer to: People * Werner (name), origin of the name and people with this name as surname and given name Fictional characters * Werner (comics), a German comic book character * Werner Von Croy, a fictional character in the ''Tomb Raid ...

: Art. Becanus (Bécan, Verbee , Van der Bee ; Schellekens, Scell-), Martinus (Martin). In: Frühe Neuzeit in Deutschland 1620–1720. Literaturwissenschaftliches Verfasserlexikon (VL 17), Vol. 1, Berlin/Boston: De Gruyter 2019, Cols. 481–502 (with detailed Bibliography). * W. Decock (ed.), I. Buhre (transl.), T. Dienst/Ch. Strohm (introd.),
Martinus Becanus. On the Duty to Keep Faith with Heretics
', Sources in Early Modern Economics, Ethics and Law, Grand Rapids, 2019, .

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Becanus, Martin 1563 births 1624 deaths 17th-century Jesuits 16th-century Dutch Roman Catholic theologians People from Hilvarenbeek 16th-century Jesuits