Hans Uytenbogaert (Uytenbogard, Wytenbogard)

Hans Uytenbogaert (Uytenbogard, Wytenbogard) 

Uytenbogaert (Uytenbogard, Wytenbogard), Hans

one of the most prominent and influential adherents of Arminius, after the death of that scholar a leader of the Remonstrants — an independent and earnest and yet a moderate and considerate man, everywhere maintaining a firm and upright character, and incessantly engaged in promoting peace among the parties of Protestantism — was regarded as the ablest and most distinguished preacher of his time among the Remonstrants. His custom was to avoid, as far as possible, the application of scholastic forms, and to base his discourses directly on the Scriptures. He was born at Utrecht in 1557, studied at Geneva under Beza, and became pastor in his native town in 1584. From this post he was dismissed in 1589, because of the moderate views he held respecting the already controverted doctrine of predestination.

In 1590 he was called to the Hague, where he became chaplain to the court of the prince of Orange and tutor to his son, and acquired great reputation and influence. He united with Arminius in petitioning the States-General to convoke a synod at which they might defend their party and views against the charges continually urged against them by the Gomarists. An interview between Arminius and Gomarus was the only result of this effort, and the dispute was afterwards continued without any relaxation of its bitterness. Uytenbogaert carried himself with dignity throughout. He delivered an address before the States, in which he set before them the rights, and duties they were bound to observe. He showed tile inadmissibility of compulsory support of a symbol, demonstrated that the clergy itself had occasioned the troubles in the Church, and that its object was to enforce the principle of the independence of the spiritual power.

He demanded that the States should examine the questions in dispute themselves and bring them to a conclusion; that in the event of a synod being convened no decisions should be reached before the opposing party should have had opportunity to be heard; and, finally, that if fraternity between factions could not be attained, mutual toleration at least should be insured. After the death of Arminius, in 1609, Uytenbogaert was associated with Episcopius in the leadership of his party and in the Remonstrance through which they presented their doctrinal system to the view of the States of Holland and West Friesland (1610). He accompanied an embassy to Paris as its chaplain about this time, and in the following year participated with Episcopius and others in a colloquy with their opponents at the Hague in the vain hope of securing peace. In 1616, Henry Roseus entered legal complaint against him on account of a particular exposition given by him of the five points of the Remonstrance.

In 1619 he presided over a Remonstrant synod at Walwyck, which fact intensified the hostility to which he was exposed. He thereupon retired to Antwerp until 1622, during which time sentence of banishment and confiscation of property was pronounced against him, and afterwards to Rouen, in France. In 1626 he came back to Rotterdam and lived in secrecy, endeavoring to secure a revocal of his sentence and aiding with counsel and act in the measures of his party. His goods were restored to him in 1629, and in 1631 he was permitted to be present during public worship at the Hague. He was even allowed to preach a few times, but his enemies succeeded in compelling him to finally desist from exercising the functions of the ministry. He died Sept. 24, 1644. His writings are chiefly in the Dutch language. Among them are a Church History (Rotterdam; 1646) a treatise De Auctoritate Margistratus in Rebus Eccles. (ibid. 1647): — and a translation of the Confessio sive Declaratio Sententiae Pastorum. See Schr Ö ckh, Christl. Kirchengesch. seit d. Reform. (Leips. 1806), 5, 226- 276, and the literature there given; also Gieseler, Kirchengesch. (Bonn, 1852), 3, 21, 33; Herzog, Real-Encyklop. s.v.