“If someone should attempt to take off the masks and costumes of the actors in a play and show to the audience their real appearances, would he not ruin the whole play?… For what else is the life of man but a kind of play in which men in various costumes perform until the director motions them off the stage.” (The Praise of Folly, Dolan translation)
Published in 1511, The Praise of Folly is the best known book written by Erasmus, a priest from Rotterdam. Saying it is his most famous book is no small praise; he was one of the best-selling authors of his day.
No stranger to controversy, he could not escape the ferment caused by the Protestant Reformation. In a letter, Erasmus expressed his concerns: “I was sorry that Luther’s books were published, and when some or other of his writings first came into view, I made every effort to prevent their publication, chiefly because I feared a disturbance might result from them.” His fears were well-founded.
A well-known Catholic priest who engaged in the Reformation battles on the side of Rome, Erasmus sure seems like the sort of person whose books would be loved at the Vatican. Yet, The Praise of Folly was put on the index of forbidden books by the Church in 1559. Why?
Read the rest at the Online Library of Liberty’s Reading Room
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