 matthias flacius illyricus (latin; , ) (3 march 1520 â 11 march 1575) was a lutheran reformer from istria, present day croatia.  == biography == === early life and education === flacius was born in carpano, a part of labin in istria, son of andrea vlacich alias francovich and jacobea luciani, daughter of a wealthy and powerful albonian family. his mother's uncle was the lutheran baldo lupetina who later was condemned to death in venice for his faith. he lost his father during his early childhood. at the age of sixteen flacius went to study in venice where he was taught by the humanist giambattista cipelli (baptista aegnatius / battista egnazio). at the age of seventeen, he intended to join a monastic order, with a view to sacred learning. his intention, however, was diverted by his uncle, baldo lupetina, provincial of the franciscans and sympathetic to the reformation cause, who convinced him to start a university career. flacius continued his studies in basel in 1539, then went to tÃ¼bingen and finally ended up in wittenberg where in (1541) he was welcomed by melanchthon. there he came under the influence of martin luther. in 1544, flacius was appointed professor of hebrew at wittenberg. he finished his master's degree on 24 february 1546, ranking first among the graduates. === career and teachings === soon, flacius was prominent in the theological discussions of the time, opposing strenuously the augsburg interim, and the compromise of melanchthon known as the leipzig interim. melanchthon wrote of him with venom as a renegade (aluimus in sinu serpentem, "we have nourished a snake in our bosom"). because wittenberg became too stressful, flacius moved to magdeburg in 1549. on 7 may 1557 he was appointed professor of new testament theology at jena but was soon involved in controversy with his colleague victorinus strigel on the synergistic question (relating to the function of the will in conversion). affirming the natural inability of man, he adopted a position on sin as not being an accident of human nature, but involved in its substance, since the fall of man. holding to a strong view of what calvinists later called total depravity, flacius insisted that human nature was entirely transformed by original sin, human beings were transformed from goodness and almost wholly corrupted with evil, making them kin to the devil in his view, so that within them, without divine assistance, there lies no power even to cooperate with the gospel when they
1520_births 1575_deaths 16th-century_German_Protestant_theologians Croatian_theologians German_Lutheran_theologians People_from_Labin