Alfred Firmin Loisy

Alfred Firmin Loisy was a French Roman Catholic priest, professor and theologian who is generally credited as a founder of modernism in the Roman Catholic Church. He was a critic of traditional views of the interpretation of the Bible, and argued that biblical criticism could be helpful for a theological interpretation of the Bible. He famously wrote "Jesus announced the kingdom, and it is the Church that came". His theological positions brought him into conflict with the church's authorities, including Pope Leo XIII and Pope Pius X. In 1893, he was dismissed as a professor from the Institut Catholique de Paris. His books were condemned by the Roman Curia, and in 1908 he was excommunicated. He continued to write and teach until his death in 1940. He is regarded as one of the most influential figures of biblical modernism and a pioneer of historical criticism of the Bible.