Work Classification Layer
Compare Works
Pick two or more works to set their attribute fingerprints, dimension-by-dimension passages, and shared school embodiments side by side. Especially useful for author-stage comparisons (Wittgenstein early vs late) and for setting a single tradition's foundational texts against each other.
Enchiridion Militis Christiani
"The Christian Soldier's Handbook" — Erasmus's 1503 manual of interior Christianity, the founding text of Christian humanism and a major source for the Reformation
Attribute Fingerprint
Rows where works disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid is shown.
| Attribute | Enchiridion Militis Christiani (Early (Erasmus's first major work)) |
|---|---|
| Time · Extent | Infinite |
| Time · Ontological Status | Substantival |
| Time · Grain | Continuous |
| Time · Freedom | Non-Deterministic |
| Time · Traversability | Linear |
| Time · Dimensionality | One |
| Time · Direction | Uni-directional |
| Space · Extent | Infinite |
| Space · Ontological Status | Substantival |
| Space · Curvature | Flat |
| Space · Dimensionality | Three |
| Space · Locality | Local |
| Matter · Extent | Finite |
| Matter · Ontological Status | Substantival |
| Matter · Conservation | Conserved |
| Matter · Dimensionality | Three |
| Matter · Locality | Local |
| Observer · Time Instance | Single |
| Observer · Space Instance | Single |
| Observer · Knowledge Extent | Partial |
| Observer · Knowledge Retainment | Total |
| Observer · Physicality | Embodied |
| Observer · Agency | Both |
| Observer · Number | Plural |
| Observer · Metaphysical Agency | Personal |
| Observer · Moral Authority | Scripture |
| Observer · Theological Method | — |
| Energy · Extent | Infinite |
| Energy · Ontological Status | Substantival |
| Energy · Conservation | Conserved |
| Energy · Dispersibility | Irreversible |
| Information · Ontological Status | Substantival |
| Information · Cosmic Conservation | Conserved |
| Information · Personal Conservation | Conserved |
| Information · Granularity | Continuous |
Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence
What each work's passages reveal about its stance on each of the six dimensions.
Time
Enchiridion Militis Christiani
The temporal life of the Christian soldier — the daily rhythm of prayer, scripture, and cultivation.
Space
Enchiridion Militis Christiani
The interior space of the soul as the proper theatre of Christian struggle; the world as the outward space of temptation.
Matter
Enchiridion Militis Christiani
Embodied Christian life; flesh as the field of spiritual struggle.
Observer
Enchiridion Militis Christiani
The Christian soldier — embodied, plural, both active in struggle and passive in receiving grace. Personal-providential God as framework.
Energy
Enchiridion Militis Christiani
The energies of prayer, scripture, virtue — cultivating the Christ-like character against the energies of the flesh.
Information
Enchiridion Militis Christiani
Scripture and patristic wisdom as the preserved information of the Christian tradition; the soul's cultivation preserves this information through embodied practice.
Internal Tensions
Where each work's argument pulls against itself.
The Enchiridion's status as both Catholic-humanist and Protestant-preparatory has been a continuing scholarly question. Erasmus's 1524 break with Luther over free will (De libero arbitrio vs. De servo arbitrio) marks the decisive separation. The 1559 placement of Erasmus's works on the Index of Forbidden Books was a major Catholic-political event but subsequently relaxed. The relation between Erasmus's irenic humanism and the political-religious violence of the Reformation era is the central historical-theological question.