MEDINA, JUAN

Moral theologian; b. Alcalá, 1490; d. probably there, 1546. Few facts are known about him except that he taught moral theology at the University of Alcalá from 1526 until his death. He won great renown as a teacher, drawing large crowds to his lectures. He published nothing himself, but after his death two of his works appeared that represent his moral teaching: (1) De restitutione et contractibus tractatus sive codex, nempe de rerum dominio atque earum restitutione et de aliquibus contractibus, de usura, de cambiis, de censibus; (2) In titulum de poenitentia ejusque partibus commentarius, sc. de poenitentia cordis, de confessione, de satisfactione, de jejuniis, de eleemosyna (2 v. Salamanca 1550; new eds. Ingolstadt 1581; Brixen 1589, 1606; Cologne 1607).

In addition to these works, two of Medina's manuscripts have been discovered in the Vatican archives (OTTOB 1044, fol. 162–231, 231v–261). These are a record of a course that he gave on the first book of the Sentences and a part of the second book. The text that he used was an exposition of the Sentences by Gabriel Biel (1425–95), the German nominalist whose commentary Martin Luther is said to have known by heart. The end of the 15th century had seen the introduction of nominalism into the Spanish and Portuguese universities from the University of Paris. The popularity of nominalist teachings in the Iberian schools led eventually to the establishment of a nominalist chair at Alcalá (as well as at Salamanca and Coimbra). Medina occupied this chair at Alcalá, as his exposition of Biel's commentary shows. This was a theological chair and the sophistical logic so highly acclaimed by the followers of Ockham was not allowed. But many of Medina's theses, following Biel, were in accord with Lutheran teaching, especially on justification and penance, and were later corrected by the Council of Trent.

Bibliography: v. heynck, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, ed. j. hofer and k. rahner, 10 v. (2d, new ed. Freiburg 1957–65)(1966) 7:233. É. amman, Dictionnaire de théologie catholique, ed. a. vacant et al., 15 v. (Paris 1903–50; Tables générales 1951–) 10.1:485–486. h. hurter, Nomenclator literarius theologiae catholicae, 5 v. in 6 (3d ed. Innsbruck 1903–13); v. 1 (4th ed. 1926) 2:1559. m. m. c. de wulf, History of Mediaeval Philosophy, tr. e.c. messenger, 2 v. (3d ed. New York 1935–38) 2:289–290.

[p. f. mulhern]