Controversialist, b. at Lucerne,
1580; d. at Ratisbon, 7 January, 1659. He entered the Society of
Jesus at the age of twenty, in Landshut, and made part of his
studies under Fathers Laymann and Tanner. He taught philosophy at
Ingolstadt (1615-1619), and theology, moral and controversial, for
six years at Dillingen. In the latter institution he held also the
office of chancellor for several years. He spent the years
1632-1643 in the Tyrol, whither he had withdrawn with his
illustrious penitent Heinrich von Knoringen, Bishop of Augsburg,
on account of the inroads of the Swedes. Forer visited Rome
(1645-1646) as the representative of the province of Upper Germany
in the eighth congregation. He became rector of the college of
Lucerne in 1650. Father Sommervogel enumerates sixty-two titles of
publications from the pen of Forer; though not all of them are
very voluminous, they show at least the writer's versatility and
erudition, as well as his zeal for the integrity and the honour of
the Catholic Faith. He wrote one or more treatises each against
the apostates Reihing and de Dominis, against Melchior Nicolai,
Hottinger, Kallisen, Schopp, Molinos, Haberkorn, Voet, Hoe, the
Ubiquists, and others. Such works as "Lutherus thaumaturgus"
(Dillingen, 1624), "Septem characteres Lutheri"
(Dillingen, 1626), "Quaestio ubinam ante Lutherum
protestantium ecclesia fuerit" (Pt. I, Amberg, 1653; P. II,
Ingolstadt, 1654), "Bellum ubiquisticum vetus et novum inter
ipsos Lutheranos bellatum et needum debellatum" (Dillingen,
1627) are directed against all Protestants. Others, as "Anatomia
anatomiae Societatis Jesu" (Innsbruck, 1634), "Mantissa
Ant-anatomiae Jesuiticae" (Innsbruck, 1635; Cologne, 1635),
"Grammaticus Proteus, arcanorum Societatis Jesu Daedalus"
(Ingolstadt, 1636), "Appendix ad grammaticum Proteum"
(Ingolstadt, 1636), attack the enemies of the Society of Jesus;
finally, two of his works, written for Catholics, "Disputirkunst
fur die einfaltigen Catholischen" (Ingolstadt, 1656) and
"Leben Jesu Christi" (Dillingen, 1650-1658), have been
re-edited and republished at Wurzburg (1861) and Ratisbon (1856).
A.J.
MAAS
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