Johannes Maccovius

Johannes Maccovius, also known as Jan Makowsky, was a Polish Reformed theologian. He was born at Lobzenica, Poland in 1588 and died at Franeker, the Netherlands on June 24, 1644. He was married three times, his first wife was Antje van Uylenburgh, a sister of Saskia van Uylenburg. In 1634, at the time Rembrandt married Saskia, she helped out her brother-in-law, after his wife died.

After visiting various universities (in 1607 in Danzig) and as the tutor of young Polish nobles, holding disputations with Jesuits and Socinians, Maccovius entered into the University of Franeker in 1613. There he became privat-docent in 1614 and professor of theology in 1615. In later years, the fame of Maccovius attracted many students to Franeker.

Theologically, Maccovius was a Calvinist, of the supralapsarian school, and possessed theses of a corresponding nature, defended in 1616 by one of his pupils, involved him in a controversy with his colleague Sibrandus Lubbertus which was settled only by the Synod of Dort in 1619. The synod, while neither approving or condemning his supralapsarianism, acquitted Maccovius of the charges of heresy brought against him, but advised him to be more cautious and peaceable.

Nevertheless, he became involved in another controversy at Dort with his subsequent colleague William Ames by asserting that all things that must be believed are not necessarily true, that no impulse toward regeneration and effecting it exists in the unregenerate, and that Christ is the object of faith "because of whom", but not "in whom", man must believe.

Maccovius' theory of Scripture was very free, and he distinguished sharply between scholarship and beliefs essential to salvation.

Chief Works

*"Collegia theologica". Amsterdam, 1623.
*"Maccovius redivivus sive manuscripta euis typis exscripta". Franeker, 1647, published posthumously.
*"Loci communes theologici". Franeker, 1650.

Further reading

*A. Kuyper, Jr., "Johannes Maccovius", Leyden, 1899.
*E. L. Briemoet, "Athenarum Frisiacarum libri", pp. 151-160, Leeuwarden, 1758.
*J. Heringa Ez, in "Archief voor Kerkelijke Geschiedenis", 1831, iii. 503-564.
*W. B. S. Boeles, "Frieslands Hoogeschool en het Rijks Athenarum te Franeker", ii. 90-94, Leeuwarden, 1889.

Websites

* [http://gereformeerdetheologie.blogspot.com/2007/01/het-bevel-is-algemeen-de-belofte_22.html Maccovius on the address of the promises of God (Dutch)]
*http://www.answers.com/topic/johannes-maccovius

References

*Schaff-Herzog