Desiderius Erasmus (October 28, 1466 – July 12, 1536)

The story of his life is interesting, to say the least. He didn’t need the outward signs and rites of the Roman Catholic Church: he had a direct relationship with God.

Erasmus was given the highest education available to a young man of his day, in a series of monastic or semi-monastic schools. In 1475, at the age of nine, he and his older brother Peter were sent to one of the best Latin schools in the Netherlands, located at Deventer and owned by the chapter clergy of the Lebuïnuskerk (St Lebuin’s Church),though some earlier biographies assert it was a school run by the Brethren of the Common Life. During his stay there the curriculum was renewed by the principal of the school, Alexander Hegius. For the first time ever in Europe, Greek was taught at a lower level than a university and this is where he began learning it. He also gleaned there the importance of a personal relationship with God but eschewed the harsh rules and strict methods of the religious brothers and educators. His education there ended when plague struck the city about 1483, and his mother, who had moved to provide a home for her sons, died from the infection.

Early Life (from Wikipedia)

I have rectified his chart to show that he lost his mother (Moon) to the plague when he was just 17. There is but one inconjunct (not dependent on the time of day he was born).

Venus Inconjunct Jupiter

This can be a positive aspect if you learn to control some of its negative possibilities. You are likley to lack energy and to be rather passive. You may wait for opportunities to come to you, rather than go after them. You may not have enough energy to pursue your ambitions, or you may not have much ambition. Or you may love your comfort so much that you are unwilling to make any effort or put up with any pain that could help you grow and develop. However, if there are any indications of energy in your chart, they should overcome the passivity.

On the plus side, you need love and affection, and you can usually be very warm and affectionate as well. However, it is very important that you choose your close friends carefully, because you may attract people who are difficult to get along with, who order you around or act as if they are better than you. Avoid such people, for they will do you no good.

If you do associate with difficult people, you may be unable to live up to your own standards of behavior. You may do things that you usually wouldn’t approve of, because somehow the relationship weakens your resolve to do what is right. But this won’t happen if you choose your friends carefully and avoid people who are not good for you.

When his strength began to fail, he decided to accept an invitation by Queen Mary of Hungary, Regent of the Netherlands, to move from Freiburg to Brabant. However, during preparations for the move in 1536, he suddenly died from an attack of dysentery during a visit to Basel. He had remained loyal to the papal authorities in Rome, but he did not have the opportunity to receive the last rites of the Catholic Church; the reports of his death do not mention whether he asked for a priest or not. According to Jan van Herwaarden, this is consistent with his view that outward signs were not important; what mattered is the believer’s direct relationship with God, which he noted “as the [Catholic] church believes”. However, Herwaarden observes that “he did not dismiss the rites and sacraments out of hand but asserted a dying person could achieve a state of salvation without the priestly rites, provided their faith and spirit were attuned to God.” He was buried with great ceremony in Basel Minster (the former cathedral) there.

His last words, as recorded by his friend Beatus Rhenanus, were apparently “Dear God” (Dutch: Lieve God). A bronze statue of him was erected in the city of his birth in 1622, replacing an earlier work in stone

Death (from Wikipedia)

Dear God

Now, why have I heard that before?