Juan de Valdés (c. 1490–1541) in Light of his Religious Background

Having been discarded into the oblivion of “heretics”, the figure of Juan de Valdés only began to be recovered at the end of the 19th century. Initially associated with Protestantism, Valdés has been portrayed by a range of writers who have each tried to classify him in one of the religious categories of the time: erasmian, catholic, alumbrado or protestant. However, the very diversity of portraits only confirmed the need for a more eclectic point of view. In his book Manuel Martínez-Ortega examines particular religious trends, texts and tendencies of Valdes’ time and context in order to identify, through the analysis of his writings, the particular characteristics and emphases of his eclecticism. His writings include commentaries on the Bible, with translation from Greek into Spanish, as well as a sizable “spiritual manual” and something like theological sketches, all of which portray his convictions and message. The analysis of his writings and their background reveal that, within the movement of Spanish Protestantism, Juan de Valdés constitutes a clear example of religious currents that received and assimilated key principles of the Protestant Reformation.