Rovenius, Philippus
ROVENIUS, PHILIPPUS
Archbishop of Philippi in partibus, second vicar apostolic of the Dutch mission; b. Deventer, Jan. 1, 1574;d. Utrecht, Oct. 10, 1651. After studies at Louvain, he was ordained (1599), became president of the Dutch seminary at Cologne (1602), and vicar-general of Deventer diocese (1606). On Oct. 11, 1614, Paul V appointed him to succeed Sasbout Vosmeer as vicar apostolic of the Dutch mission. Rovenius was nominated archbishop of Philippi on Aug. 17, 1620. His rule as vicar apostolic, important for the organization of the mission, brought him into conflict with the Jesuits and other regulars. He stimulated interest in the cult of national saints, such as Willibrord and Boniface, and published a catechism, a prayer book (Het gulden wierookvat ), and books on the liturgy. Though friendly with Cornelius Jansenius, he himself was not a Jansenist. Because of the Spanish-Dutch war, Rovenius was condemned by a civil court on May 11, 1646, and banished. His major writings include the Tractatus de Missionibus (1626), Institutionum christianae pietatis libri 4 (1635), and Reipublicae christianae libri 2 (1648). The Tractatus establishes him as an eminent missiologist.
Bibliography: r. r. post, ed., Romeinsche bronnen (The Hague 1941). l. j. rogier, Geschiedenis van het katholicisme in Noord-Nederland, 3 v. (Amsterdam 1945–47) 2:66–164.
[p. polman]