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William was born in Ockham, Surrey, near London, between 1280 and 1290.
He joined the Franciscan order as a young man. In 1309 or 1310, he went to
Oxford, where his studies included the work of Duns Scotus. Despite his success
as a student and, later, as a student lecturer, Ockham was denied a license to
teach. The chancellor of the university accused him of heresy, even going to the
papal court in Avignon, France, in 1323 to press charges. The following year
Ockham was summoned to Avignon by Pope John XXII. The affair dragged on
for four years. Meanwhile, Ockham kept writing and came into conflict with the
pope again when he joined the general of his Franciscan order in advocating
apostolic poverty.
In 1328, Ockham was forced to flee Avignon when the pope was prepared to
condemn the Franciscan position on poverty. He eventually found refuge in
Munich under the protection of Emperor Ludwig of Bavaria, who was angry with
the pope for not recognizing his crown. Ockham reportedly told the emperor,
“Defend me with your sword, and I will defend you with my pen.”
Over the next twenty years, Ockham did indeed defend the emperor, arguing
that imperial power flows from God through the people, not through the pope—
a position that anticipated later political theories. Following Ludwig’s death in
1347, Ockham sought reconciliation with the pope (now Clement VI), and a
document of submission was drawn up. We do not know whether Ockham ever
signed the document, for he died in 1349, apparently from the plague.
Ockham’s philosophy reflects his times: He is much less optimistic than was
Thomas Aquinas about the ability of human reason to understand the things of
God. Ockham criticized the proofs for God’s existence, arguing that theological
truth can be known only by revelation, not reason. In so arguing, he separatedWILLIAM OF OCKHAM
ca. 1285–1349