Arthur Faunt facts for kids

Laurence Arthur Faunt (born 1554 – died 28 February 1591) was an English Jesuit priest and scholar. He was known for his religious writings and for his work as a missionary in Poland.

Early Life and Family

Laurence Arthur Faunt was born in 1554. He was the third son of William Faunt and his second wife, Jane. His family lived in Foston, Leicestershire, England. The Faunt family was Roman Catholic, which was important during a time when England was mostly Protestant.

Education and Religious Path

In 1568, when he was about 14, Faunt went to Merton College, Oxford, a famous university in England. He studied with a philosopher named John Pott, who was also Catholic. Because of the religious situation in England, Pott and Faunt's parents decided it was safer for him to study elsewhere.

So, in 1570, Faunt moved to Louvain (now in Belgium) and joined a Jesuit college. The Jesuits are a Catholic religious order known for their focus on education and missionary work. After earning his first degree there, he studied in Paris and then in Munich, Germany. The Duke of Bavaria, William V, even supported his studies at the University of Munich.

In 1575, Faunt went to the English College at Rome to study theology, which is the study of religious faith and practice. Around this time, he officially joined the Society of Jesus and took the religious name Laurence. He became a teacher of theology at the English College in 1578 and was ordained as a priest in 1580.

Work with the Pope

Laurence Faunt became well-known and respected. Pope Gregory XIII noticed his talents. The Pope even gave Faunt special permission to create a seal. This seal allowed Faunt to issue special travel documents, like passports, to his fellow English Catholics. These documents helped them travel safely through other countries, protecting them from dangers like the Spanish Inquisition. Some people believed that if Pope Gregory had lived longer, he might have made Faunt a cardinal, which is a very high rank in the Catholic Church.

Missionary Work in Poland

In 1581, Stephen Báthory, who was the King of Poland, decided to start a Jesuit college in a city called Poznań. Pope Gregory XIII chose Laurence Faunt to be the very first leader, or rector, of this new college. Faunt left Rome on June 10, 1581, to take on this important role.

At the college in Poznań, Faunt taught Ancient Greek for three years. He also taught moral theology and religious debates for nine years. He was highly respected by both religious and political leaders in Poland. A letter he wrote in 1589 shows that he was in high demand, being asked for advice by three different princes at the same time.

Death

Laurence Faunt passed away on February 28, 1591. He died in Vilnius, which was the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the time. This area was then part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Works

Laurence Faunt wrote several books and papers about theology. These works were mostly in Latin and discussed various Catholic beliefs and arguments against other Christian groups of his time.

• Assertiones Theologicæ de Christi in terris Ecclesia (Posen, 1580)
• Assertiones Theologicæ de Christi in terris Ecclesia, quaenam et penes quos existat (Posen, 1584)
• Assertiones Rhetoricæ ac Philosophicæ, quæ in Coll. Posnaniensi Soc. Jes. an. 1582 in solemni studiorum renovatione disputandæ proponuntur (Posen, 1582)
• Disputatio Theologica de D. Petri et Romani Pontificis successoris ejus in Ecclesia Christi principatu (Posen, 1583)
• Doctrina Catholica de Sanctorum invocatione et veneratione (Posen, 1584)
• Coenae Lutheranorum et Calvinistarum oppugnatio ac catholicae Eucharitiae defensio (Posen, 1586)
• De Controversiis inter Ordinem Ecclesiasticum et Secularem in Polonia, ex iure diuino, Regniq. Statutis, Priuilegijs, ac Præscriptione Tractatio ([Cracow?], 1587)
• Apologia libri sui de invocatione ac veneratione Sanctorum (Cologne, 1589)