Nikolaus von Dinkelsbühl was an Austrian Roman Catholic clergyman, pulpit orator and theologian.

Biography

He was born c. 1360, in

Dinkelsbühl Dinkelsbühl () is a historic town in Central Franconia, a region of Germany that is now part of the state of Bavaria, in southern Germany. Dinkelsbühl is a former free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire. In local government terms, Dinkelsb ...

. He studied at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

where he is mentioned as

baccalaureus A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years (de ...

in the

faculty of Arts A faculty is a division within a university or college comprising one subject area or a group of related subject areas, possibly also delimited by level (e.g. undergraduate). In North America, academic divisions are sometimes titled colleges, sc ...

in 1385. Magister in 1390, he lectured in philosophy, mathematics and physics until 1397, and from 1402 to 1405. From 1397 he was dean of the faculty; he studied theology, lecturing until 1402 on theological subjects, first as ''cursor biblicus'', and later on the ''

Sentences The ''Sentences'' (. ) is a compendium of Christian theology written by Peter Lombard around 1150. It was the most important religious textbook of the Middle Ages. Background The sentence genre emerged from works like Prosper of Aquitaine's ...

'' of

Peter Lombard Peter Lombard (also Peter the Lombard, Pierre Lombard or Petrus Lombardus; 1096 – 21/22 August 1160) was an Italian scholasticism, scholastic theologian, Bishop of Paris, and author of ''Sentences, Four Books of Sentences'' which became the s ...

. In 1405 he became bachelor of Divinity, in 1408 licentiate and in 1409 doctor and member of the theological faculty. Rector of the university, 1405–6, he declined the honor of a re-election in 1409. From 1405 he was also canon at the Viennese cathedral of St. Stephen. The supposition of several early authors that he was a member of the Order of the Hermits of St. Augustine is incorrect, for he could not have been rector of the university had he been a member of any order. Eminent as teacher and

pulpit orator Public speaking, is the practice of delivering speeches to a live audience. Throughout history, public speaking has held significant cultural, religious, and political importance, emphasizing the necessity of effective rhetorical skills. It all ...

, Nikolaus possessed great business acumen and was frequently chosen as ambassador both by the university and the reigning prince. He represented Duke

Albert V of Austria Albert the Magnanimous , elected King of the Romans as Albert II (10 August 139727 October 1439), was a member of the House of Habsburg. By inheritance he became Albert V, Duke of Austria. Through his wife (''jure uxoris'') he also became King ...

at the

Council of Constance The Council of Constance (; ) was an ecumenical council of the Catholic Church that was held from 1414 to 1418 in the Bishopric of Constance (Konstanz) in present-day Germany. This was the first time that an ecumenical council was convened in ...

(1414–18) and the University of Vienna in the trial of Thiem, dean of the

Passau Passau (; ) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the ("City of Three Rivers"), as the river Danube is joined by the Inn (river), Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's population is about 50,000, of whom ...

cathedral. When

Emperor Sigismund Sigismund of Luxembourg (15 February 1368 – 9 December 1437) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 until his death in 1437. He was elected King of Germany (King of the Romans) in 1410, and was also King of Bohemia from 1419, as well as prince-elect ...

came to Constance, Nikolaus delivered an address on the abolition of the schism ("Sermo de unione Ecclesiae in Concilium Constantiense," II, 7, Frankfort, 1697, 182–7). He took part in the election of

Martin V Pope Martin V (; ; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Oddone Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. His election effectively ended the West ...

, and delivered an address to the new pope (Sommerfeldt, "Historisches Jahrbuch", XXVI, 1905, 323–7). Together with John, Patriarch of Constantinople, he was charged with the examination of witnesses in the proceedings against

Hieronymus of Prague Jerome of Prague (; ; 1379 – 30 May 1416) was a Czech scholastic philosopher and theologian. Jerome was one of the chief followers of Jan Hus and was burned for heresy at the Council of Constance. Early life Jerome was born in Prague, Kingdom ...

. Returning to Vienna in 1418, he again took up his teaching duties at the university, and in 1423 directed the theological promotions as representative of the

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

. Duke Albert V having chosen him as his confessor in 1425, wished to make him Bishop of Passau, but Nikolaus declined the appointment. During the preparations for the

Council of Basle The Council of Florence is the seventeenth ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church, held between 1431 and 1445. It was convened in territories under the Holy Roman Empire. Italy became a venue of a Catholic ecumenical council aft ...

, he was one of the committee to draw up the reform proposals which were to be presented to the council. His name does not appear thereafter in the records of the university. He died on 17 March 1433, at

Mariazell Mariazell (; Central Bavarian: ''Mariazöö'') is an Austrian city in the southeastern state of Styria. Well known for being a hub of winter sports and a pilgrimage destination, it is located north of Graz. It is picturesquely situated in the v ...

Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...

Writings

His published works include "Postilla cum sermonibus evangeliorum dominicalium" (Strasburg, 1496) and a collection of "Sermones" with tracts (Strasburg, 1516). Among his numerous unpublished works, the manuscripts of which are chiefly kept in the Court library at Vienna and in the Court and State library at Munich, are to be mentioned his commentaries on the Psalms,

Isaias Isaiah ( or ; , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "Yahweh is salvation"; also known as Isaias or Esaias from ) was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. The text of the Book of Isaiah refers to Isaiah as "the prophet" ...

, the Gospel of St. Matthew, some of the Epistles of St. Paul, the "Sentences" of Peter Lombard and "Questiones Sententiarum"; a commentary on the "Physics" of

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

, numerous sermons, lectures and moral and ascetic tracts.

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nikolaus von Dinkelsbuhl People from Dinkelsbühl Dinkelsbuhl, Nikolaus von 14th-century Roman Catholic theologians 15th-century Roman Catholic theologians