Houghton EC65 B8185R 1642 - Religio Medici

''Religio Medici'' (''The Religion of a Doctor'') by

Sir Thomas Browne Sir Thomas Browne (; 19 October 1605 – 19 October 1682) was an English polymath and author of varied works which reveal his wide learning in diverse fields including science and medicine, religion and the esoteric. His writings display a ...

is a spiritual testament and early psychological self-portrait. Published in 1643 after an unauthorized version was distributed the previous year, it became a European best-seller which brought its author fame at home and abroad.

Themes

Religion

Structured upon the Christian virtues of Faith and Hope (part 1) and Charity (part 2), Browne expresses his beliefs in the doctrine of ''

sola fide ''Justificatio sola fide'' (or simply ''sola fide''), meaning justification by faith alone, is a soteriological doctrine in Christian theology commonly held to distinguish the Lutheran and Reformed traditions of Protestantism, among others, fr ...

'', the existence of hell, the ''

Last Judgment The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

'', the

resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, whic ...

and other tenets of Christianity.

Science and religion

Throughout ''Religio Medici'' Browne uses scientific imagery to illustrate religious truths as part of his discussion on the relationship of science to religion.

Reception and influence

A rare surviving contemporary review by

Guy Patin Guy (or Guido) Patin (1601 in Hodenc-en-Bray, Oise – 30 August 1672 in Paris) was a French doctor and man of letters. Patin was doyen (or dean) of the Faculty of Medicine in Paris (1650–1652) and professor in the Collège de France starti ...

, a distinguished member of the Parisian medical faculty, indicates the considerable impact ''Religio Medici'' had upon the intelligentsia abroad: Throughout the seventeenth century ''Religio Medici'' spawned numerous imitative titles, including John Dryden's great poem,

Religio Laici ''Religio Laici, Or A Layman's Faith'' (1682) is a poem written in heroic couplets by John Dryden. It was written in response to the publication of an English translation of the ''Histoire critique due vieux testament'' by the French cleric Fath ...

, but none matched the frank, intimate tone of the original in which Browne shares his thoughts, as well as the idiosyncrasies of his personality with his reader.

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...

in his diaries complained that the ''Religio'' was ''cried up to the whole world for its wit and learning''. A translation into German of the ''Religio'' was made in 1746 and an early admirer of Browne's spiritual testament was Goethe's one-time associate

Lavater Johann Kaspar (or Caspar) Lavater (; 15 November 1741 – 2 January 1801) was a Swiss poet, writer, philosopher, physiognomist and theologian. Early life Lavater was born in Zürich, and was educated at the '' Gymnasium'' there, where J. J. Bo ...

. In the early nineteenth century ''Religio Medici'' was "re-discovered" by the English Romantics.

Charles Lamb Charles Lamb (10 February 1775 – 27 December 1834) was an English essayist, poet, and antiquarian, best known for his '' Essays of Elia'' and for the children's book '' Tales from Shakespeare'', co-authored with his sister, Mary Lamb (1764� ...

introduced it to

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lak ...

, who after reading it, exclaimed,- ''O to write a character of this man!''

Thomas de Quincey Thomas Penson De Quincey (; 15 August 17858 December 1859) was an English writer, essayist, and literary critic, best known for his '' Confessions of an English Opium-Eater'' (1821). Many scholars suggest that in publishing this work De Quinc ...

in his ''

Confessions of an English Opium-Eater ''Confessions of an English Opium-Eater'' (1821) is an autobiographical account written by Thomas De Quincey, about his laudanum addiction and its effect on his life. The ''Confessions'' was "the first major work De Quincey published and the one ...

'' also praised it, stating: The book strongly influenced the prominent physician

William Osler Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet, (; July 12, 1849 – December 29, 1919) was a Canadian physician and one of the "Big Four" founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital. Osler created the first residency program for specialty training of phys ...

in his early years. Osler, who is considered the "father of modern medicine", is said to have learned it by heart. In

Virginia Woolf Adeline Virginia Woolf (; ; 25 January 1882 28 March 1941) was an English writer, considered one of the most important modernist 20th-century authors and a pioneer in the use of stream of consciousness as a narrative device. Woolf was born ...

's opinion ''Religio Medici'' paved the way for all future confessionals, private memoirs and personal writings. In the twentieth century, the Swiss psychologist

Carl Jung Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. Jung's work has been influential in the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, archaeology, literature, ph ...

used the term ''Religio Medici'' several times in his writings.Collected Works Volume 10 : 727 Collected Works Volume 13:161, Collected Works 18:1465

Literary allusions

Dorothy L. Sayers in her novel

Gaudy Night ''Gaudy Night'' (1935) is a mystery novel by Dorothy L. Sayers, the tenth featuring Lord Peter Wimsey, and the third including Harriet Vane. The dons of Harriet Vane's '' alma mater'', the all-female Shrewsbury College, Oxford (based on S ...

has Harriet Vane discover that Peter Wimsey is reading ''Religio Medici.'' It helps her better understand his character and motivations.

Patricia Highsmith Patricia Highsmith (January 19, 1921 – February 4, 1995) was an American novelist and short story writer widely known for her psychological thrillers, including her series of five novels featuring the character Tom Ripley. She wrote 22 nove ...

’s novel Strangers on a Train references a morocco-bound copy of the work, and Guy reflects on his favorite passages. In

Excellent Women ''Excellent Women'' is a novel by Barbara Pym, first published in 1952, her second published novel and generally acclaimed as the funniest and most successful of her comedies of manners. Title The phrase "excellent women" is used by men in ref ...

Barbara Pym Barbara Mary Crampton Pym FRSL (2 June 1913 – 11 January 1980) was an English novelist. In the 1950s she published a series of social comedies, of which the best known are ''Excellent Women'' (1952) and '' A Glass of Blessings'' (1958). In 1977 ...

, the sad, spinsterish church-lady, Mildred Lathbury has a copy on her bedside table.

References

External links

''Text of Religio Medici''
(1643 edition, 1645 edition)
A ''Religio Medici'' bibliography (1905)
* {{librivox book , title=Religio Medici, author=Browne 1643 books Philosophy books British non-fiction literature Works by Thomas Browne Books about Christianity