When Faith and Culture Become Political

Description

The humanists closely associated with Basel, Johannes Reuchlin, Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam, and Sebastian Castellio, were gifted philologists and thinkers whose works often mark milestones in European literary and scientific history. However, they were also controversial during their lifetimes. They did not want to be mere armchair scholars but dared to question authorities and raise their voices even when it was dangerous. How they fulfilled the role of the public intellectual in their time, and why they did so, is also of considerable relevance today. Faith, culture, and the conscience of each individual are currently under tremendous pressure. The lecture explores how three humanists of the 16th century can inspire us to defend humanity even against the mainstream. Biography Matthias Dall’Asta Dr. phil., born in 1963 in Hanover, studied Protestant theology, classical philology, and Italian studies in Tübingen, Göttingen, and Rome. After his traineeship in Berlin with subjects Latin and Greek, he earned his doctorate in Göttingen with a thesis on the reception of Philostratus' Vita Apollonii in the Renaissance. Since 1994, he has been a staff member of the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences, initially until 2007 at the Reuchlin Research Center in Pforzheim and since 2008 at the Melanchthon Research Center in Heidelberg.

Highlights

• Lecture by Dr. Matthias Dall’Asta
• Themed evening about humanists of the 16th century
• Relevance for faith and culture in the present

General Information

The lecture highlights the role of humanists like Reuchlin, Erasmus, and Castellio and their influence on European literary and scientific history. It takes place at the University Library Basel and addresses the challenges of faith and culture in today's world.

Location

Schönbeinstrasse 18/20, 4056 Basel, Switzerland

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