Gerard Schneemann

Born at Wesel, Lower Rhine, 12 Feb., 1829; d. at Kerkrade, Holland, 20 Nov., 1885. After studying law for three years, he entered the seminary at Munster where he was ordained subdeacon in 1850. He became a member of the Society of Jesus, 24 Nov., 1851, and was ordained priest on 22 Dec., 1856. For some years he taught philosophy at Bonn and Aachen, and subsequently lectured on church history and canon law in the Jesuit scholasticate at Maria Laach. His first notable publication was "Studien über die Honoriusfrage" (Frieburg, 1864) in which he refuted the opinion of Döllinger. Between the years 165 and 1870, he contributed a number of timely and important dissertations to "Die Encyclica Papst Pius IX" and "Das öcumenische Concil", two series of papers that were published at Freiburg under the general title of "Stimmen aus Maria-Laach". In 1871 the "Stimmen" became a regular monthly review and for six years was edited by Father Schneemann. He was moreover the chief promoter in the collaboration and publication of the "Acta et decreta sacrorum conciliorum recentiorum", commonly called "Collection Lacensis", and died while preparing the documents of the Vatican Council for the seventh and last volume. His work "Controfersiarum de divinae gratiae liberique arbitrii concordia initia et progressus" (Freiburg, 1881), was the occasion of a renewed controversy on the nature of grace and free will.