Hendrik Herp

Last updated

Hendrik Herp [1] (died 22 February 1477), known in Latin as Henricus Harphius, [2] was a Dutch or Flemish Franciscan of the Strict Observance, and a writer on mysticism.

Contents

Life

Herp was born around 1400 either at Erp near Veghel [3] or Erps-Kwerps near Leuven. He is possibly the same person as Heinricus Erppe, clericus Cameracensis dioceses, who in 1426, as one of the first students, was registered at the University of Leuven. [4] "Clericus Cameracensis dioceses" means that this student had held a clerical position in the diocese of Kamerijk, leading some to propose that he was not born in Erp, which is widely believed to be his birthplace but belonged to the diocese of Liège, but in Erps near Leuven, which was near the edge of the diocese of Kamerijk. [4] The first undisputed reference to his life is in 1445, when he is rector of the Brethren of the Common Life at Delft, suggesting that he had previously joined the Brethren, either in Zwolle or Deventer. [5] The next year he founded a Brethren community in nearby Gouda, which he led until 1450, "to the great good of his subjects". [6] In Gouda, Herp had extensive contact with Franciscans, and in 1450, on a pilgrimage to Rome, he took the habit of St. Francis, joining the Franciscan Observance (the Capuchin reform) at the Convent of Ara Cœli. [7] On his return to the Low Countries in 1454, he served as the guardian of the Franciscan convent in Mechelen until 1457. [8] In 1460 he was guardian of a convent in Antwerp. [9] He later served in several posts for the Franciscan Cologne Province, which covered much of the Northern Netherlands, including as Provincial superior (1470–73). Under his leadership, convents were started in Bolsward, Amersfoort and Herentals. [10] Herp traveled a lot, having meetings (kapittels) in Gouda in 1471, in Alkmaar in 1472, and in Bergen op Zoom in 1473. At the latter meeting Henricus de Bercha is chosen as his successor. [11] In 1474 he returns as guardian of the convent of Mechlin, where he died in 1477. [11]

Works

Herp wrote his works between 1450 and 1475. An early work is called The Contemplative Eden.

This is succeeded by his major work, probably written in the 1460s, entitled Spieghel der volcomenheit (The Mirror of Perfection). As a whole and in the chief divisions of his doctrine, Herp shows several points of contact with his fellow Brabantian John of Ruusbroec. [12]

Later reception

This work was widely read: the modern edition of the text uses 48 manuscripts and lists 66 edition in many languages, beginning with the first Dutch printing in 1475. Much of this diffusion was due to the Latin translation prepared by the Cologne Carthusian Peter Blomeveen, published in 1509 under the title Aureum directorum contemplativorum (The Golden Directory of Contemplatives). [13]

In 1538, the Cologne Carthusians, led by Dietrich Loher, also published an anthology of Herp’s writings under the title De mystica theologica (On Mystical Theology), with a dedication to George Skotborg, Bishop of Lund. This anthology comprises three parts: "Soliloquium divini Amoris", "Directorium Aureum contemplativorum", and "Paradisus contemplativorum". In other words, the Latin translation of The Mirror comprised book two. This edition was important for the later reception of Herp, since it was reprinted five times before 1611, and translated into French and German. [13]

However, Herp’s work was not always received positively – in 1559, the 1556 edition of De mystica theologica, dedicated to Ignatius Loyola by Loher, was placed on the Index of Forbidden Books for a number of theological errors (though not heresies). This was renewed in 1580 and 1583. Many still found the book useful, however. In 1586 a version corrected by the Dominican theologian Peter Paul Philippus (d. c.1648) was printed in Rome. [14] There is also an "Index Expurgatorius" (Paris, 1598), where can be found, as well as in the "Index of Sotomayor" (1640), the opinions to be corrected.[ citation needed ]

He was praised by Mabillon, Bona, and others. Of his works, only one was printed during his lifetime, Speculum aureum decem præceptorum Dei (Mainz, 1474); it is a collection of 213 sermons on the Commandments for the use of preachers and confessors. Another collection of 222 sermons (Sermones de tempore, de sanctis, etc.) was printed in 1484, etc. Both frequently quote the Doctors of the Middle Ages, especially Thomas Aquinas, Alexander of Hales, Bernard of Clairvaux, etc., and were often reprinted.[ citation needed ]

Influence

Some of the early modern mystics who knew and used Herp include Francisco de Osuna, Bernardino de Laredo, Angelus Silesius, Benet Canfield, Augustine Baker, the author of The Evangelical Pearl, Louis de Blois, Cardinal Berulle, Constantine Barbanson, and John of Saint-Samson. [15]

The Franciscan Chapter of Toledo in 1663 recommended his works as standard writings in mystic theology.

The Franciscan Martyrology of Arturus of Rouen gives him the title of Blessed.

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Also Harp or Erp.
  2. ↑ Also Hendricus de Herp, Henricus Herpius or Harpius, and Citharoedus.
  3. ↑ Hendrik Herp at the Digital Library for Dutch Literature
  4. 1 2 Dlabačová, p. 29
  5. ↑ Dlabačová, p. 28,30-32
  6. ↑ Dlabačová, p. 32-40
  7. ↑ Dlabačová, p.40-42
  8. ↑ Dlabačová, p.40-42,50
  9. ↑ Dlabačová, p.50
  10. ↑ Dlabačová, p.53
  11. 1 2 Dlabačová, p.54
  12. ↑ Dlabačová, p.57, Chapter Seven Archived 2008-05-21 at the Wayback Machine
  13. 1 2 McGinn, p. 130.
  14. ↑ McGinn, p. 131.
  15. ↑ McGinn, p. 533.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poor Clares</span> Catholic order of convent nuns

The Poor Clares, officially the Order of Saint Clare, originally referred to as the Order of Poor Ladies, and also known as the Clarisses or Clarissines, the Minoresses, the Franciscan Clarist Order, and the Second Order of Saint Francis, are members of a contemplative Order of nuns in the Catholic Church. The Poor Clares were the second Franciscan branch of the order to be established. Founded by Clare of Assisi and Francis of Assisi on Palm Sunday in the year 1212, they were organized after the Order of Friars Minor, and before the Third Order of Saint Francis for the laity. As of 2011, there were over 20,000 Poor Clare nuns in over 75 countries throughout the world. They follow several different observances and are organized into federations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John van Ruysbroeck</span> 14th-century Flemish theologian and mystic

John van Ruysbroeck, original Flemish name Jan van Ruusbroec was an Augustinian canon and one of the most important of the Flemish mystics. Some of his main literary works include The Kingdom of the Divine Lovers, The Twelve Beguines, The Spiritual Espousals, A Mirror of Eternal Blessedness, The Little Book of Enlightenment, and The Sparkling Stone. Some of his letters also survive, as well as several short sayings. He wrote in the Dutch vernacular, the language of the common people of the Low Countries, rather than in Latin, the language of the Catholic Church liturgy and official texts, in order to reach a wider audience.

Devotio Moderna was a movement for religious reform, calling for apostolic renewal through the rediscovery of genuine pious practices such as humility, obedience, and simplicity of life. It began in the late 14th-century, largely through the work of Gerard Groote, and flourished in the Low Countries and Germany in the 15th century, but came to an end with the Protestant Reformation. It is most known today through its influence on Thomas à Kempis, the author of The Imitation of Christ, a book which has proved highly influential for centuries. The Devotio Moderna wrote in IJssellands, a written language which stood in between Middle Dutch and Middle Low German.

Nicholas Tacitus Zegers was a Flemish Franciscan biblical exegete.

Cornelius van Zierikzee was a Dutch priest known for his work in Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erp, Netherlands</span> Village in North Brabant, Netherlands

Erp is a village in the southern Netherlands, in the province of North Brabant between 's-Hertogenbosch and Eindhoven. Prior to 1994, Erp was a municipality consisting of the town of Erp and the villages of Boerdonk and Keldonk. In that year, the municipality was merged with the municipality of Veghel to form one municipality under the latter name. The area of the former municipality of Erp has a population of 6,663, while Veghel has a population of 37,655.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Blomevenna</span>

Peter Blomevenna Dutch: Pieter Blommeveen; 29 March 1466 in Leiden – 14 August 1536 in Cologne) was a Carthusian author and prior of Cologne Charterhouse from 1507 to 1536.

Henricus Canisius was a Dutch canonist and historian.

Nicolaus Ferber was a German Franciscan and controversialist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franciscan spirituality in Protestantism</span> Influence of the spirituality of Catholic saint Francis in Protestant Christians

Franciscan spirituality in Protestantism refers to spirituality in Protestantism inspired by the Catholic friar Saint Francis of Assisi. Emerging since the 19th century, there are several Protestant adherent and groups, sometimes organised as religious orders, which strive to adhere to the teachings and spiritual disciplines of Saint Francis of Assisi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aodh Mac Cathmhaoil</span>

Aodh Mac Cathmhaoil, O.F.M., was an Irish Franciscan theologian and Archbishop of Armagh. He was known by Irish speakers at Leuven (Louvain) by the honorary name Aodh Mac Aingil, and it was under this title that he published the Irish work Scáthán Shacramuinte na hAthridhe.

Dietrich Coelde was a German Franciscan missionary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Antwerp</span> Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Belgium

The Diocese of Antwerp is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Belgium. The diocese was restored in 1961. It is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels. Its cathedra is found within the Cathedral of Our Lady.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joannes Molanus</span>

Joannes Molanus (1533–1585), often cited simply as Molanus, is the Latinized name of Jan Vermeulen or Van der Meulen, an influential Counter Reformation Catholic theologian of Louvain University, where he was Professor of Theology, and Rector from 1578. Born at Lille, he was a priest and canon of St. Peter's Church, Leuven, where he died.

Fortunatus Hueber was a West German Franciscan historian and theologian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria, Königin des Friedens</span> Pilgrimage church

Maria, Königin des Friedens is a pilgrimage church and parish in Neviges, part of Velbert, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The pilgrimage dates back to 1676. Neviges was the home of a Franciscan monastery from 1675 until the end of 2019. A church dedicated to the Immaculate Conception in 1728 became too small for the growing numbers of pilgrims in the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helmut Schlegel</span> German Catholic priest (born 1943)

Helmut Alfons Schlegel is a German Franciscan, Catholic priest, meditation instructor, author, librettist and songwriter. He is known for writing new spiritual songs, set to music by various composers.

Hendrik van Cuyk or Henricus Cuyckius (1546–1609) was the second bishop of Roermond from 1596 until his death in 1609.

Cornelius Thielmans was a Franciscan hagiographer from the Habsburg Netherlands.

Henricus Sedulius (1547-1621) – the Latinized name of Henri de Vroom van Kleef – was a Belgian Franciscan scholar noted for his works on religious figures such as the lives of St. Elziarius and St. Francis of Assisi. He also published works that defended the Franciscan order.

References

Modern editions

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.