Robert Crosse
Encyclopedia
Robert Crosse was an English puritan theologian.
, Somerset
. He entered Lincoln College, Oxford
, in 1621, obtained a fellowship in 1627, graduated in arts, and in 1637 proceeded B.D. Siding with the presbyterians on the outbreak of the First English Civil War
, he was nominated in 1643 one of the Westminster Assembly
, and took the Solemn League and Covenant
.
In 1648, submitting to the parliamentarian visitors, he was appointed by the committee for the reformation of the University of Oxford
to succeed Dr. Robert Sanderson
as Regius Professor of Divinity
. He declined the post, however, and soon afterwards was instituted as vicar of Chew Magna
in Somerset. At the Restoration he conformed, and as there was nobody to claim his living, he retained it till his death on 12 December 1683. Anthony à Wood says he was a noted philosopher and theologian, an able preacher, and well versed in the Church Fathers and scholastic philosophers.
He had a controversy with Joseph Glanvill
, on the subject of Aristotelian philosophy. This became sharp when Crosse accused Glanvill, and the Royal Society
of which he was a Fellow, of being "downright atheists", based on their experimental philosophy. Crosse then passed the baton to Henry Stubbe, who became a very persistent critic of the Society. A book which Crosse wrote against Glanvill was rejected by the licensers, but Glanvill, having obtained the contents of it, sent it in a letter to Dr. Nathaniel Ingelo
, who had a hundred copies of it privately printed under the title of the Chew Gazette. Afterwards Crosse wrote ballads against Glanvill with the object of ridiculing him and the Royal Society.
Life
He was son of William Crosse of DunsterDunster
Dunster is a village and civil parish in west Somerset, England, situated on the Bristol Channel coast south-southeast of Minehead and northwest of Taunton. The village has a population of 862 .The village has numerous restaurants and three pubs...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. He entered Lincoln College, Oxford
Lincoln College, Oxford
Lincoln College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is situated on Turl Street in central Oxford, backing onto Brasenose College and adjacent to Exeter College...
, in 1621, obtained a fellowship in 1627, graduated in arts, and in 1637 proceeded B.D. Siding with the presbyterians on the outbreak of the First English Civil War
First English Civil War
The First English Civil War began the series of three wars known as the English Civil War . "The English Civil War" was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651, and includes the Second English Civil War and...
, he was nominated in 1643 one of the Westminster Assembly
Westminster Assembly
The Westminster Assembly of Divines was appointed by the Long Parliament to restructure the Church of England. It also included representatives of religious leaders from Scotland...
, and took the Solemn League and Covenant
Solemn League and Covenant
The Solemn League and Covenant was an agreement between the Scottish Covenanters and the leaders of the English Parliamentarians. It was agreed to in 1643, during the First English Civil War....
.
In 1648, submitting to the parliamentarian visitors, he was appointed by the committee for the reformation of the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
to succeed Dr. Robert Sanderson
Robert Sanderson
Robert Sanderson was an English theologian and casuist.He was born in Sheffield in Yorkshire and grew up at Gilthwaite Hall, near Rotherham. He was educated at Lincoln College, Oxford. Entering the Church, he rose to be Bishop of Lincoln.His work on logic, Logicae Artis Compendium , was long a...
as Regius Professor of Divinity
Regius Professor of Divinity
The Regius Professorship of Divinity is one of the oldest and most prestigious of the professorships at the University of Oxford and at the University of Cambridge.Both chairs were founded by Henry VIII...
. He declined the post, however, and soon afterwards was instituted as vicar of Chew Magna
Chew Magna
Chew Magna is a village and civil parish within the Chew Valley in the Unitary Authority of Bath and North East Somerset, in the Ceremonial county of Somerset, England. The parish has a population of 1,161.To the south of the village is Chew Valley Lake...
in Somerset. At the Restoration he conformed, and as there was nobody to claim his living, he retained it till his death on 12 December 1683. Anthony à Wood says he was a noted philosopher and theologian, an able preacher, and well versed in the Church Fathers and scholastic philosophers.
He had a controversy with Joseph Glanvill
Joseph Glanvill
Joseph Glanvill was an English writer, philosopher, and clergyman. Not himself a scientist, he has been called "the most skillful apologist of the virtuosi", or in other words the leading propagandist for the approach of the English natural philosophers of the later 17th century.-Life:He was...
, on the subject of Aristotelian philosophy. This became sharp when Crosse accused Glanvill, and the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
of which he was a Fellow, of being "downright atheists", based on their experimental philosophy. Crosse then passed the baton to Henry Stubbe, who became a very persistent critic of the Society. A book which Crosse wrote against Glanvill was rejected by the licensers, but Glanvill, having obtained the contents of it, sent it in a letter to Dr. Nathaniel Ingelo
Nathaniel Ingelo
Nathaniel Ingelo was an English clergyman, writer and musician, best known for the allegorical romance Bentivolio and Urania .-Life:He graduated M.A. at Edinburgh, and then was incorporated at the University of Cambridge...
, who had a hundred copies of it privately printed under the title of the Chew Gazette. Afterwards Crosse wrote ballads against Glanvill with the object of ridiculing him and the Royal Society.