Robert Grosseteste was an unusual combination of scientist and theologian, acclaimed by modern theorists as "...the central figure in England in the intellectual movement during the first half of the thirteenth century." Grosseteste wrote prolifically on philosophy, astronomy, and science, and diligently encouraged the addition of a greater number of scientific subjects to the curriculum of the university of his time.
Information about Grosseteste's life until he reached his early fifties is virtually non-existent. Even the exact year of his birth is uncertain. He was, however, born in Suffolk County, probably in a little town called Stow Langtoft. His family were not wealthy, and survival during the first half of his life was most likely difficult. He had a sister, Juetta (or Ivetta), who became a nun, and letters written by him indicate he may have had relatives who were clergymen. He was admired for his knowledge of the arts and literature, was well-versed in music, architecture, poetry, mathematics, astronomy, optics, and physics; understood Greek and Hebrew; and historic evidence ssuggests he was conversant in both medicine and law. Writings attributed to him from the year 1200 indicate he studied and lectured on theology at the Cathedral School at Oxford, and it seems likely he was the first chancellor when Oxford was declared a university in 1215.
In 1221 he left that post, holding several church-related positions over the next few years. His devout faith and adherence to Biblical theology gained him the position of lector (lecturer) to Oxford's newly established order of Franciscans and, in 1235 when he was somewhere in his late sixties, he was elected to the distinguished post of Bishop of Lincoln, the largest diocese in England. Almost immediately, he instituted strict reforms in his new diocese based on Biblical principles. So strong was his faith that he unhesitatingly spoke out-- sometimes violently--against immoral and unethical conduct within the churches, adamantly berating the pope, cardinals, and bishops whenever he believed their power and influence deviated from Biblical standards. He even publicly denouncing the king for his misuse of power.
A fervent believer in the philosophy of Aristotle and a translator of Greek and Arabic scientific texts, Grosseteste was one of the first scholars to bring Aristotelian theory to Europe. He wrote commentaries of Aristotle's Posterior Analytics around 1228 and Physics between 1228 and 1231, delving into the theory of scientific reasoning and expressing theories on the systematic and scientific search for knowledge and truth. The foundation of Grosseteste's scientific reasoning was the Bible in which God is often referred to as Light. In Genesis, the first book of the Bible, God used light to created the World. Grosseteste firmly believed that, to understand God, one must understand light. He also believed that experiments were essential to validate any theory. This led him to an intense investigation into light using Euclid's methods of geometry. Ultimately, he correctly determined that a rainbow was caused by the refraction of light passing through mist, and not--as previously believed--by reflection. Grosseteste wrote De Luce, a famous essay on his study of light; De Natura Locorum, in which he diagrams a glass of water refracting light; and his study of optics using lenses and mirrors is recorded in his De Iride, in which he wrote "...we may make things a very long distance off appear as if placed very close, and large near things appear very small..."
Until his death at around the age of eighty-three or eighty-five, Grosseteste was vital, active and worked harder than ever before in his already rich life. In his lifetime, Grosseteste was either loved or hated. His outspoken convictions made him unpopular in many circles. However, in 1253, his church honored him as being their greatest bishop ever, and several recommendations were made to the pope by the king, archbishops, and other clergy in 1280, 1286, 1288, 1307 to declare him a saint. Although modern historians still find him controversial, most agree he was a "...portentous person, a man of universal genius."
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