Si deus pro nobis,
quis contra nos?
If God is for us, who can be against us?
Romans VIII
Philipp Melanchthon’s motto
The Institute is named for Philipp Melanchthon, the educator and first systematic theologian of the Reformation. Melanchthon was born on February 16, 1497, in the town of Bretten in the northern Black Forest. His German name was Schwarzerd, meaning "black earth." Philipp’s uncle, the Christian Humanist and Hebraicist Johann Reuchlin, changed Philipp’s name from Schwarzerd to its Greek equivalent, Melanchthon.
The child prodigy studied at the universities of Tübingen and Heidelberg. His works on Greek grammar were "bestsellers" of his day. He became protegé and friend of Martin Luther when he joined the faculty of the University of Wittenberg in 1517.
As author of the Augsburg Confession and its Apology, and the first systematic theology of the Reformation, the Loci communes, Melanchthon had an invaluable impact on Western Christendom. His influence was felt from Scandinavia to Rome, from London to Constantinople. Because of his far-reaching educational reforms throughout Germany, Melanchthon is honored to this day as Praeceptor Germaniae, the Teacher of Germany. Melanchthon died in Wittenberg on April 19, 1560.