About the Enchiridion Militis Christiani of Erasmus of Rotterdam - DOI: 10.4025/actascihumansoc.v26i1.1563

Abstract

This research aims at analyzing the Enchiridion Militis Christiani work of Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466/69-1536), whose approached date of composition was 1501 and the first publication in 1503. The text was written to a young soldier, for whom some behavior rules were supplied in order to give him support. For that, Erasmus exposed through Man´s Christian Humanists concepts about spirituality, politics, Church. In the work, Erasmus proposed, in advance, ideas that would entail him, later, accusations of being either excessively attached to the tradition on the Reformers part as to stimulating the " sedition " in the Christianity breast on the conservative Catholics part. And, both traditions, complained later on Erasmus´ thought as their patrimony. Erasmus prefigured Saint Ignatius of Loyola and Saint Teresa of Ãvila no more speculative mystics with corresponding ethics. He made this based on a spirituality chain designed at the Church at least one century ago. And both Saint Ignatius and Saint Teresa are commonly considered as the founders of the modern Catholic spirituality. Both were settled in a spiritual perspective of "effort" (or work)- a typical concept of the Modernity and that Erasmus already announced in his texts