Érasme, les intellectuels et l’affaire Reuchlin

Intellectuals have been more than once accused of not caring about world affairs. Now, Erasmus appears to announce a modern reflection on power and knowledge. An archetype of our contemporary intellectual, he looked at and criticized the society he lived in. As a theologian and a priest, he conferred sacerdotal authority on his speech, but he spoke for a large audience, not exclusively for scholars. As a famous man, he played a role in the “Reuchlin affair,” the first time that intellectuals made a public engagement. Without blindly following the “Reuchlinist party,” Erasmus defended a scholar with his name and his pen. But he trusted the civil authorities more than pure truth, and he refused to discredit the theologians.