Desiderius Erasmus and the humanist case against war

¶ … Anachronism

Universal Peace and the Primacy of Reason: the Formula for Happiness

Humanism refers to a system of thought, which focuses on humans and their values, capacities and worth over religious beliefs (The American Heritage Dictionary 2007). It

also refers to a cultural and intellectual movement of the Renaissance, which emphasized secular values and concerns. The movement was a consequence of the rediscovery and study of the classic literature, art and civilization (The American Heritage Dictionary). Desiderius Erasmus and Sir Thomas More were the leading humanists of the 16th century and close friends.

Reason and Virtue Lead to Happiness

A perfect or happy world is one where people live according to nature and the dictates of reason (Philosophy Basic 2009). Sir Thomas More wrote about an imaginary or ideal island country, called "utopia," where private property was unknown and complete religious tolerance dominated (Philosophy Basics).

Thomas More was born in London, England on February 7, 1478 to Sir John More, a renowned judge, and Agnes Granger (Burnet 1885). He worked as a young page to the household of Archbishop Morton who predicted that More would grow up to be a "marvelous man." More later studied at Oxford under Thomas Linacre and William Grocyn. He was an English philosopher, scholar, statesman and writer during the Renaissance period. He had great reputation as a Christian humanist scholar in continental Europe. Under King Henry VIII, he held many public positions, culminating to that of Lord Chancellor of England. He met and became a close friend to Desiderius Erasmus during the latter's 1499 visit to England. They translated the works of Lucian into Latin in 1506 during Erasmus' second visit in 1509. In his third visit in 1509, Erasmus dedicated his work, "In Praise of Folly," to More (Burnet).

More became the first layman to become Lord Chancellor in 1529 (Burnet 1885). He

sent six Lutherans to burn at the stake and 40 others to prison. He did this to eliminate the collaborators of William Tyndale who secretly published a Protestant translation of the Bible in English in 1525. He presided over more executions at the stake, including the burnings of the former Benedictine monk Richard Bayfield in 1531 and John Frith, a priest and writer, in 1533. In 1530, he refused to sign a letter, written by English church leader, asking the Pope to annul Henry's marriage to Catherine. In 1531, he tried to resign after being coerced to take an oath to declare Henry VIII the Supreme Head of the English Church. In 1532, he convinced the king to relieve him of his office due to sharp chest pains. But when he refused to attend the coronation of Anne Boleyn as Queen of England in 1533, the king charged him for bribe-taking. This was dismissed. But later in 1534, he refused to swear to the Act of Succession and the Oath of Supremacy. For the refusal, he was imprisoned at the Tower of London. He was charged for high treason the following year for denying the validity of the Act of Succession. He was convicted and then beheaded on July 6, 1535. His head was exhibited over the London Bridge for a month, a customary penalty for traitors. But he was beatified in 1886 and then canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1935. The Catholic Church also declared him the patron saint of politicians and statesmen in 1980 (Burnet).

In his most famous and controversial work, "Utopia," a traveler to the imaginary island country describes its ideal political arrangements (Burnet 1885). More argued that belief in God or an afterlife was necessary in acknowledging and obeying authority or principle beyond oneself. The orderliness and social arrangements in Utopia reflected monastic communalism. These arrangements were the opposite of the social structure of European states, indicating the need for order and discipline in those places. His cooperative efforts with Erasmus aimed at reviving hedonism on religious or spiritual grounds. More believed that God not only designs man for happiness but also uses that desire to motivate him to behave uprightly. More distinguishes mental pleasures from physical or bodily pleasures. He wrote that man should seek the more natural pleasures in order to avoid getting too immersed in artificial pleasures (Burnet).

The key principles of religion in the island country of Utopia were the immortality of the soul, God's purpose of happiness for the soul, reward for good acts and punishment for evil acts, and the distribution of the rewards after this mortal life (Philosophy Basic 2009). These principles are in operation among Utopian citizens and determine their attitudes in their search for happiness. They sought that happiness only in good and honest pleasures. Utopians also believed that reason inspires a love for God in them. It produces cheerfulness, freedom from passion, and a concern for the happiness of others. It inclines the person to seek the public good (Philosophy Basics).

The people of Utopia seek things, which are properly good for the body and the mind

(Philosophy Basics 2009). They investigate on the nature of virtue and pleasure but they concentrate on the happiness of man and what it is made up of. They uphold that man's happiness consists mainly in the good type of pleasure. They derive arguments from religious principles, despite its roughness and strictness. Without these principles, all searches on happiness can only be merely conjectural and defective (Philosophy Basics).

The need for a real-life utopia is more felt today than before. It is a basic ingredient in the fulfillment of human potential in the contemporary environment (Ainsa 1991).

Contemporary historical, political and philosophical views still retain some Utopian dimension or strain. Utopianism may have discredited for some flaws in the past, but it remains indispensable as an alternative model for mapping out the future. An ideal society is always an attempt to invent the future. Utopia differs from ideology in that utopia represents hope in the possible. Ideology reflects the view of people in power. Utopia, on the other and, always subverts existing authority and challenges the ideal it imposes in place of that authority. Poor living conditions, for example, provide the ground for Utopian protests. Utopian thinking has continued to inspire social progress. Many improvements on poor living conditions drew and grew out of utopian fantasies and pressures. These improvements have been in the form of realistic working hours, gender equality, welfare policies, leisure, alternative energy sources, environmental protection and town planning. Humanists' fascination and preoccupation with the impossible are filling in the gap and helping provide the foundation for turning dreams into reality (Ainsa). Erasmus and More are among those prophets who inputted the very valuable ingredients of universal peace and the primacy of reason for human survival, progress and, ultimately, happiness.#