ill arranged and abounding in the marvellous; but a careful collation of different versions of his work, the autograph MSS. of his amanuensis having been lost, leads to the opinion that the original text has been grossly tampered with.—C. G. R.
OECOLAMPADIUS, Johannes, the reformer of the city of Basle, was born at Weinsberg in Wurtemberg, in the year 1482. His family name was Hussgen, which his learned friends chose to consider as equivalent to Hausschein or Houselamp, and rendered into the Greek designation by which he is best known in history. His life divides itself into two unequal portions—from 1482 to 1522, when he became a professed disciple of Luther; and from 1522 to 1531, when he died at his post as the chief reformer and church leader of Basle. His mother belonged to a respectable family of Basle, and was a woman of superior spirit and talents. His father, who was a merchant in moderate circumstances in Weinsberg, destined him for his own employment; but his mother prevailed to obtain for him the benefits of a liberal education, to fit him for a higher vocation. After being taught Latin in the grammar-school of Heilbronn, he was sent into Italy to study law in the university of Bologna, but his stay there was very short—his heart was not in the law—the climate of Italy did not suit him—and a merchant of Bologna defrauded him of the supplies remitted to him by his father, and he was compelled to return across the Alps. He repaired to Heidelberg in 1499, where he devoted himself to the study of theology and literæ humaniores, and took so high a place as a scholar that he was appointed tutor to the younger sons of the Elector Palatine Philip. He soon grew weary, however, of court life, and returned to Weinsberg to enter upon the duties of a parish priest—his parents having founded a small church-endowment for his benefit, in the hope of retaining their only surviving son near their own home. Here he preached a course of sermons on the "Seven Words of the Cross," which were printed in 1512, and which revealed a spirit of warm religious earnestness, though still deeply tinctured, of course, with the superstitions of the unreformed church. With a high appreciation of the work of a true theologian, and sympathizing with the reviving love of ancient literature and grammatical learning, he ere long left his charge at Weinsberg in the hands of a substitute, and repaired to Tübingen, where he became acquainted with Melancthon, and to Stutgard, where he was introduced to Reuchlin, by the help of both of which eminent scholars he improved his knowledge of Greek. In 1515 he was again in Heidelberg, studying Hebrew with the aid of a Spanish baptized Jew, named Matthew Adriani, and giving lectures on Greek grammar. Here also he made the acquaintance of Brentz and Capito; and when the latter soon after became a preacher and professor at Basle, he recommended Œcolampadius to the bishop of that see, who was a patron of scholars, and by whom he was invited to become a preacher in his cathedral. He brought with him to Basle a letter of introduction to Erasmus, from Sapidus of Schlettstadt, and became a member of the sodalitium literarium which surrounded the illustrious scholar in that city. He was a useful assistant to Erasmus in preparing the first edition of his celebrated Greek Testament. Returning ere long to his pastoral charge in Weinsberg, he published in 1518 a tract De risu paschali, in which he censured the priests for a usage then current of amusing the people at Easter in the pulpits with jocular stories. In the same year Erasmus induced him to return to Basle to assist him in the second edition of the Greek Testament, which was to be much more carefully prepared than the first; but before the end of the year he accepted a call to Augsburg as cathedral preacher, in which office he continued till 1520. In 1519 he published several writings of a reformation-tendency, and he made no secret at Augsburg of his sympathy with Luther, with whom, as well as with Melancthon, he occasionally corresponded; but his convictions on the dogmatic points involved in the controversy were not yet mature, and in 1520 he took the sudden and singular step of entering a monastery in the neighbourhood of Augsburg. This proceeding caused great surprise to Erasmus and Capito, and his other learned friends; and it was not long before his ripening views compelled him to reverse it. Early in 1522 he escaped from the monastery, and directing his steps to the Rhine, was welcomed to the castle of Ebernburg by Francis von Sickingen, who made him chaplain of the castle, and encouraged him to introduce into the daily mass the reading of the Epistle and Gospel in German. It was during his short stay in this celebrated place of refuge that he finally broke with the Romish doctrine of the mass, by declaring its antagonism to the scripture doctrine of the one offering of the Lamb of God; and before the end of the year he returned to Basle, fully prepared for his work as the reformer of that city, and the chief colleague of Zwingli in carrying on the work of the Swiss reformation at large. Early in 1523 he was appointed by the municipality of Basle to a lectureship in the university on the Holy Scriptures. He chose the prophecies of Isaiah for his subject, and his expositions, which were full of bold applications to the errors and corruptions of the church, soon attracted public attention, and kindled into a flame the smouldering zeal of the citizens. Many struggles followed between the opposing parties. In 1524 he held a public disputation upon the points in debate, in which he was assisted by Farel, and the results of which inspired fresh confidence into the friends of reform. In 1525 he was appointed to the pastoral charge of St. Martins-in-the-City, a position which added much to his popular influence; and here the popish ceremonies were first abolished in Basle, and the sacrament of the Lord's supper administered in both kinds. Popular tumults followed; the burghers broke into the other churches and destroyed the images; Erasmus abandoned the city in disgust; and Œcolampadius was left undisputed master of the field. On the 1st of April, 1529, appeared a new church-order, adopted and sanctioned by the municipality, by which the Reformation was introduced into all the churches of the city and canton, and which was immediately followed up with a reformation of the university and schools. He did not long survive this great triumph. Zwingli's death on the field of Cappel overwhelmed him with distress, and he followed him to the grave a few weeks after. He died 24th November, 1531. He was one of the most moderate of the reformers, both in temper and teaching. His views of the Lord's supper avoided the extremes both of Luther and Zwingli. He assisted at the Marburg conference in the interest of peace between the Saxon and Helvetic divines, and he was a zealous coadjutor of Bucer in his repeated, but unsuccessful attempts, to bring about reconciliation and union. His works were numerous, but have never been published in a collective edition. His commentaries on scripture in particular were highly esteemed.—P. L.
OECUMENIUS, Bishop of Tricca in Thessaly, flourished in the latter part of the tenth century, and was the author of commentaries upon the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles of Paul, and the catholic epistles, which were printed with a Latin translation in Paris in 1631. He is the first of the catenists. His interpretations are for the most part derived from the ancient fathers of the Eastern church, although he occasionally offers explanations of his own. He shows little ability, in common with the most of the Greek commentators, to penetrate to the depths of the doctrine of St. Paul.—P. L.
OEDER, Georg Ludwig, a botanist and physician, was born at Anspach in 1728, and died on 28th October, 1791. His studies were carried on at Göttingen under Haller, After taking his degree he settled as a medical man at Schleswig, and in 1752 was chosen professor of botany at Copenhagen. He examined the botany of Denmark and Norway, and published the fine work entitled "Flora Danica," the first fasciculus of which appeared in 1763. He devoted attention also to political economy and finance, and published a work on the civil and political condition of the Danish peasants. He became celebrated as a financier, and he was appointed president of the financial council of Norway under the administration of Struensee. He afterwards went to the duchy of Oldenburg, and there he occupied a place as judge or bailiff. He originated a scheme for the relief of widows, and a plan for the registration of lands. Medicine and botany were now completely deserted by him, and he occupied himself entirely in matters of finance and political improvement. Among his works are the following—"Flora Danica," 9 vols., folio, a splendid work containing sixteen hundred and twenty figures of plants; "Elements of Botany;" "Nomenclator Botanicus;" memoirs on the state of the peasants in Denmark, on paper money, on banks, widows' schemes, register of lands, and on the population of Oldenburg. A genus Oedera was named after him by Linnæus.—J. H. B.
OEHLENSCHLAEGER, Adam Gottlob, the most illustrious of Danish poets, and one of the greatest poets of modern times, was born at Vesterbro, a suburb of Copenhagen, on the 14th of November, 1779. His father was organist and steward of
