Jacques Lefèvre d'Étaples

Jacques Lefèvre d'Etaples (also Jacobus Faber Stapulensis; * 1450 or 1455 in Etaples, Picardy, † in Nerac 1536) was a French theologian and humanist. Its name combines mainly with La Sainte Bible en français ( 1523-30 ), the first complete French translation of the Bible.

Life and work

After studying theology and the priesthood in Paris Lefèvre was a lecturer in philosophy at a college of the Sorbonne. In addition, he began to learn Ancient Greek, which he was one of the first French Hellenist. Maybe even before 1486, but in any case 1491 and 1499 he undertook educational trips to Padua and Pavia as centers of already full-blown humanistic scholarship. After that, he was also himself as a humanist scholar active with text-critical editions central writings of the Greek philosopher Aristotle, which he also, under renunciation of the medieval traditions of interpretation, newly annotated. At least back in 1505 in Paris, he became the center of a small circle of interested humanistic nobleman, theologians and jurists, including Guillaume Budé, who later founded (1530) with the support of King Francis I, the Collège des trois langues, the first arrive at the university furnished College of France.

Another faithful was Briçonnet Guillaume (1470-1534), Bishop of Lodève in southern France, the most but who was in Paris to be present at the court. As Briçonnet 1507 also received the benefice of the Abbot of the Abbey of Saint- Germain -des- Prés, just outside the city, Lefèvre settled there and helped him with the introduction of a more closely with the gospel -oriented religious life. After all, he was, as many humanists, have become increasingly aware that many dogmas and rules of the church did not conform to the Bible. At the same time worked and he published text critical editions of various portions of the Bible (eg the Psalms in 1509 and 1512, the Epistles of Paul ).

1521 Briçonnet who possessed the favor of Francis I. and confessor whose sister Margaret was was promoted to bishop of Meaux. When he decided to consistently reside on site and evangelize his diocese, Lefèvre followed him as a member of the circle reformist theologians and academics around the bishop. In addition, he was appointed Vicar General.

At the same time he worked on a translation of the Bible, first of the New Testament, where he ran out of the semi-official Latin version, the Vulgate, the Church Father Jerome had created around 400 after the Greek and Hebrew texts. With his translation he pursued, much like the almost simultaneously active Martin Luther (who, however, ran out of the original Greek texts ) the typical Reformation intention to give the normal faithful the opportunity to read the Bible themselves or being read to and their wording without interpreted the teaching of the Catholic clergy and their interpretation conventions. When he in 1523 without permission (which he hardly would have received ) had printed his New Testament, he was told of the Sorbonne, which is now aggressively defended their prerogative of interpretation, a heretic.

Even his patron Briçonnet was increasingly attacked, including because he banished the Franciscans from his diocese and supporters of the recently excommunicated Luther was preaching. When his 1525 temporarily the backing of the king was missing, who had fallen into captivity by Emperor Charles V at the Battle of Pavia, and he had his conservative opponents to make concessions to Lefèvre felt unprotected and fled to the free city of Strasbourg, a stronghold of German humanism.

After the return of the king 1526 Lefèvre was returned to France and was provided with the post of librarian of the royal library at Blois. In 1529 he accepted the invitation of Margaret, the sister of the king, which was in 1527 became Queen of residual kingdom of Navarre in a second marriage, and went to her Nerac in southwest France, in the small courtyard, entertained them there. For you who sympathized with the " Lutheranisme " he finished his translation of the Old Testament also (again, according to the Vulgate ), and he spent his last years, by the way without breaking decisively with the Catholic Church.

His whole Bible was published in 1530 in the then world open, rich and yet per - Reformation Antwerp as La Sainte Bible en français, selon la translatée pure et entière traduction de Saint- Hierosme. She was immediately banned by the Paris Parlement.

Although it has been reprinted several times, reached Lefevre's Bible in the French language area not removed the same meaning as that of Luther in German. One important reason was sure that the Reformer Jean Calvin, and with him the francophone Protestants somewhat later (rather wooden ) Translation of Pierre Robert Olivétan (1535 ff ) preferred, which was like Luther assumed the Hebrew and Greek texts.