Jakob Schegk
Encyclopedia
Jakob Schegk (also known as Jakob Degen, Johann Jacob Brucker Schegk, Jakob Schegk the elder, Schegkius, and Scheckius) was a polymath German Aristotelian
philosopher and academic physician.
, son of the citizen Bernhard Degen, he adopted the name Schegk/Schegkius which he used his entire adult life. A prodigy in classical languages, having studied with Johann Reuchlin’s
student Johann Thomas in Schorndorf, Schegk made rapid progress upon enrolling at the University of Tübingen in 1527, taking his M.A. in 1529. He was received by the university senate and began lectures in lectures in philosophy and classics while only twenty. He remained in Tübingen for his entire career.
giving him the opportunity to develop a competence in theology. He likewise studied law prior to turning his attention to medicine in the 1530s. He took a doctorate in medicine in 1539 after studying with Leonhard Fuchs and Michael Rucker. He remained on the arts faculty until joining the medical faculty in 1553. Nevertheless, his philosophical expertise was too great to go untapped, and the university gave him the unusual dual commission to hold lectures in both medicine and Aristotle from 1564 onwards. His poor eyesight hampered his mobility, and he became totally blind by 1577. He nevertheless continued his academic career. In philosophy, he was a leading German Lutheran Aristotelian and was regarded as one of the greatest philosophical authorities of his age. He died at Tübingen
.
While somewhat neglected by modern scholarship, his numerous commentaries upon the Aristotelian corpus are highly regarded, especially his De demonstratione libri XV. He engaged a long running dispute against the Italian Aristotelian philosopher Simone Simoni
. A committed Aristotelian, he resolutely opposed the philosophical innovations of Petrus Ramus
. He likewise was involved in a dialogue with Thomas Erastus
concerning the ubiquity
of Christ's physical body in the Lord's Supper
.
Prominent students included Nicolaus Taurellus
and Andreas Planer, and Schegk exercised a more distant influence on the French Paracelsian Joseph Duchesne Quercetanus. Recent studies have demonstrated his long lasting impact on early modern medical theory. Hans Weber dubbed him “the father and pioneer of Protestant Scholasticism.”
Aristotelianism
Aristotelianism is a tradition of philosophy that takes its defining inspiration from the work of Aristotle. The works of Aristotle were initially defended by the members of the Peripatetic school, and, later on, by the Neoplatonists, who produced many commentaries on Aristotle's writings...
philosopher and academic physician.
Origins and education
Born Jakob Degen in SchorndorfSchorndorf
Schorndorf is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located c. 26 km east of Stuttgart. Its station is a the terminus of line S2 of the Stuttgart S-Bahn....
, son of the citizen Bernhard Degen, he adopted the name Schegk/Schegkius which he used his entire adult life. A prodigy in classical languages, having studied with Johann Reuchlin’s
Johann Reuchlin
Johann Reuchlin was a German humanist and a scholar of Greek and Hebrew. For much of his life, he was the real centre of all Greek and Hebrew teaching in Germany.-Early life:...
student Johann Thomas in Schorndorf, Schegk made rapid progress upon enrolling at the University of Tübingen in 1527, taking his M.A. in 1529. He was received by the university senate and began lectures in lectures in philosophy and classics while only twenty. He remained in Tübingen for his entire career.
Academic career
He took over the administration of the Tübingen StiftTübinger Stift
The Tübinger Stift is a hall of residence and teaching; it is owned and supported by the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg, and located in the university city of Tübingen, in South West Germany. The Stift was originally founded as an Augustinian monastery in the Middle Ages...
giving him the opportunity to develop a competence in theology. He likewise studied law prior to turning his attention to medicine in the 1530s. He took a doctorate in medicine in 1539 after studying with Leonhard Fuchs and Michael Rucker. He remained on the arts faculty until joining the medical faculty in 1553. Nevertheless, his philosophical expertise was too great to go untapped, and the university gave him the unusual dual commission to hold lectures in both medicine and Aristotle from 1564 onwards. His poor eyesight hampered his mobility, and he became totally blind by 1577. He nevertheless continued his academic career. In philosophy, he was a leading German Lutheran Aristotelian and was regarded as one of the greatest philosophical authorities of his age. He died at Tübingen
Tübingen
Tübingen is a traditional university town in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, on a ridge between the Neckar and Ammer rivers.-Geography:...
.
While somewhat neglected by modern scholarship, his numerous commentaries upon the Aristotelian corpus are highly regarded, especially his De demonstratione libri XV. He engaged a long running dispute against the Italian Aristotelian philosopher Simone Simoni
Simone Simoni
Simone Simoni was an Italian philosopher and physician.After graduating in medicine from the University of Padua, Simoni moved to Geneva where he became professor of philosophy and engaged in controversy with Jakob Schegk...
. A committed Aristotelian, he resolutely opposed the philosophical innovations of Petrus Ramus
Petrus Ramus
Petrus Ramus was an influential French humanist, logician, and educational reformer. A Protestant convert, he was killed during the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre.-Early life:...
. He likewise was involved in a dialogue with Thomas Erastus
Thomas Erastus
Thomas Erastus was a Swiss physician and theologian best known for a posthumously published work in which he argued that the sins of Christians should be punished by the state, and not by the church withholding the sacraments...
concerning the ubiquity
Ubiquitarians
The Ubiquitarians, also called Ubiquists, were a Protestant sect started at the Lutheran synod of Stuttgart, 19 December 1559, by Johannes Brenz, a Swabian ....
of Christ's physical body in the Lord's Supper
Lord's Supper
The Lord's Supper may refer to:*Eucharist, Mass or Communion, a rite in Christianity*The Last Supper, the last meal Jesus of Nazareth shared with his disciples in the collection of Christian Scriptures called The Holy Bible....
.
Prominent students included Nicolaus Taurellus
Nicolaus Taurellus
Nicolaus Taurellus was a German philosopher and theologian.He was born in the County of Mömpelgard, then part of the Duchy of Württemberg. With support from Duke Georg I. of Württemberg-Mömpelgard, he read theology at University of Tübingen and medicine at the University of Basel, where he...
and Andreas Planer, and Schegk exercised a more distant influence on the French Paracelsian Joseph Duchesne Quercetanus. Recent studies have demonstrated his long lasting impact on early modern medical theory. Hans Weber dubbed him “the father and pioneer of Protestant Scholasticism.”
Works
- Antisimonius, quo refelluntur supra trecentos errores Simonii ... Eivsdem Iacobi Schegkii Apologeticus, oppositus calumniae G. Genebrardi, Parisiensis Theologi. Tübingen: Georg Gruppenbach, 1573 (VD 16VD 16The Verzeichnis der im deutschen Sprachbereich erschienenen Drucke des 16. Jahrhunderts , abbreviated VD 16, is a project to make a retrospective German national bibliography for the sixteenth century. The project was compiled during the period 1969-1999...
S 2464). - Antilogia Jacobi Schegkii Schorndorffensis, qua refellit XXVII Propositiones Servetianae Haereseos Tübingen: Ulrich Morhart, 1568 (VD16 S 2463).
- De demonstratione libri XV Basel: Johannes OporinusJohannes OporinusJohannes Oporinus was a humanist printer in Basel, the son of the painter Hans Herbst- Life :...
et al., 1564 (VD 16VD 16The Verzeichnis der im deutschen Sprachbereich erschienenen Drucke des 16. Jahrhunderts , abbreviated VD 16, is a project to make a retrospective German national bibliography for the sixteenth century. The project was compiled during the period 1969-1999...
S 2475). - De Vna Persona & duabus Naturis Christi: Sententia Iacobi Schegkij D. Medici Et Philosophi Clarissimi, Professoris Scholae Tubingensis ex fundamentis quidem Scripturae Sacrae, analysi autem Philosophica, & piè & eruditè explicata. Frankfurt: Peter Braubach, 1565 (VD16 S 2493).
- Hyperaspistes Responsi, ad quatuor Epistolas Petri Rami contra se aeditas Tübingen: Ulrich Morhart, 1570 (VD16 S 2478).
- Organi Aristotelei Pars prima eaq[ue] analytica. Basel: Eusebius Episcopius, 1577 (VD16 S 2483).
- Tractationum physicarum et medicarum tomus unus. Frankfurt: Johann Wechel, 1585 (VD16 S 2492).