History concepts and applications

¶ … Renaissance Humanism

By nature, Humanists believed that the ancient teachings of Greeks and Romans were a solid foundation for intellectual pursuits and social philosophy.

During the Renaissance the average man found himself turning away from a life that was governed by medieval Christian restrictions, and welcoming classical literature and paganistic views that paved the way to a more secular life and view.

The return to favor of the pagan classics stimulated the philosophy of secularism, the appreciation of worldly pleasures, and above all intensified the assertion of personal independence and individual expression.... Expansion of trade, growth of prosperity and luxury, and widening social contacts generated interest in worldly pleasures, in spite of formal allegiance to ascetic Christian doctrine (Kreis, 2002)."

The Renaissance was a time where many great humanists, like Desiderius Erasmus, and Niccolo Machiavelli encouraged their fellow man to embrace the classics and venture into intellectual independence. Erasmus was a first rate scholar and a skilled popularist.

He was considered 'the king of humanists' and prided himself as a world traveler.

Erasmus also felt the church shouldn't be governed by state, but rather be an institutional 'propagator of faith'. This view found him in opposition to many tradition theologians.

Another founding father of Renaissance Humanism has to be Petrach (1304-1374). Petrach was an Italian scholar and poet and enticed his fellow man to re-explore the classic humanities. He felt the Middle Ages were corrupt and irrelevant to "Renaissance Man." In 1341, Petrach became a Poet Laureate.

Giovanni Pico Della Mirandola's "Oration on the Dignity of Man" (1486) is considered the most eloquent writings on Humanist destiny, and the ability of Free Will. It was Humanists such as this that allowed for the growth and independence of their fellow man.

Renaissance Europe seemed to be the light in the dark after the Middle Ages. Most of Europe had seen its fair share of war, disease and poverty. Humanists stressed living in the now, rather than living in fear of the 'afterlife'.