From Calvin to Gillespie on Covenant: Mythological Excess or an Exercise in Doctrinal Development?

Much of the discussion about the development of Reformed theology in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries has focused on the elaboration of the covenantal understanding of theology. While the covenant of works has received much attention, the covenant of redemption, a term which emerges in the middle of the seventeenth century, has been comparatively neglected and, when referenced at all, has tended to be dismissed as a highly speculative addition to Reformed theology, a piece of mythology, as Barth famously quipped. In fact, a close examination of the concerns underlying the doctrine, particularly those touching on the Reformed emphasis on Christ as Mediator according to his person (and thus both natures) indicates that this later development stands in positive relation to the earlier work of Calvin and company; and a close examination of the work of its major exponent, Patrick Gillespie, also indicates that it is a great example of how later Reformed theology did not abandon the earlier Protestant concern for connecting exegesis to doctrinal synthesis.     

Reformed and Radically Orthodox?: Participatory Metaphysics,Reformed Scholasticism and Radical Orthodoxy's Critique of Modernity

Radical Orthodoxy locates the intellectual roots of secular modernity in the attenuation of Thomistic participatory metaphysics in the late medieval period. John Milbank implicates Reformational theologies in this unintentionally secularizing movement. I examine seventeenth‐century Reformed scholastic Stephen Charnock, contending that he articulates an account of participatory metaphysics similar to Thomas Aquinas, and even further, fails to exhibit the negative trends which Milbank and Catherine Pickstock associate with Scotus and the via moderna. This analysis of Charnock calls into question the location of Reformed theology in Radical Orthodoxy's genealogy of secular modernity, and opens up possibilities for rapprochement between Reformed theology and Radical Orthodoxy.     

Richard Hooker and the Principle of Sola Scriptura

The traditional view that Richard Hooker argued for the religiousauthority of Scripture, reason, and tradition, in that order,has come under sustained criticism in recent years, especiallyfrom those scholars who assert that Hooker was in fact an orthodoxReformed theologian. Although Hooker placed a distinctivelyhigh value on the role of reason in authenticating Holy Scripture,it is claimed that this is fully compatible with the Protestantprinciple of sola Scriptura, and reflects wider developmentsin the Reformed tradition on the role of reason in proving thatScripture is divine revelation. This article seeks to refutethese claims by examining Reformed thought on the religiousauthority of Scripture and reason in matters of Christian doctrine,looking at representatives from the Reformers, early orthodoxy,and high orthodoxy. This is then compared with Hooker's work,where, it is argued, the Reformed doctrine that Scripture isthe principium cognoscendi theologiae, with reason merely anancillary ‘handmaid’, is replaced by the radicalposition that Scripture and demonstrative reasoning are bothprincipial authorities in matters of Christian doctrine. Inpropounding his triple-source theory of religious authority,therefore, Hooker is concluded to have broken fundamentallywith the principle of sola Scriptura.     

Herman Bavinck and the Problem of New Wine in Old Wineskins

Recent years have witnessed a flowering in Bavinck studies and a new focus on the synthetic character of Bavinck's theology. Bavinck's epistemology represents a prime example of this synthetic character, as Bavinck recasts the principia of Reformed Orthodoxy in a trinitarian framework, which in turn is used to address a residual problem of post‐Enlightenment philosophy. While ingenious, certain inconsistencies emerge on account of the sheer complexity of Bavinck's principia. This article explores two inconsistencies that have been identified in the secondary literature and the extent to which these inconsistencies threaten the coherence of Bavinck's epistemology as a whole.     

Eucharistic Action in Early Reformed Churches

Abstract

One of the most significant changes in the use of spaces in early Reformed churches was a shift in the main locus of worship from the chancel to the nave, accompanied by a new emphasis on preaching. But the cause of the greatest controversy within the emerging Reformed tradition (as well as between the Reformed and Lutheran Reformations) was undoubtedly the nature of Christ's presence at communion, and a great deal of theological energy was expended on this issue. On the other hand, scant attention seems to have been paid to the way in which the ‘holy mysteries’ of bread and wine were received by the people, even though the moment of reception was likely to be the high point of the eucharistic service for them, the moment when each would enter into communion with Christ. Many reformers—including Bullinger and Calvin—claimed that the mode of reception (whether into the hand first or directly into the mouth) and the posture adopted by the communicant for reception (whether kneeling, standing, or sitting) were matters of indifference—adiaphora—and should be left to each church to decide. This resulted in the development of various forms of eucharistic action within the early Reformed churches, which is the subject of this paper.     

Calvinist Metaphysics and the Eucharist in the Early Seventeenth Century

This paper wishes to make a contribution to the study of how seventeenth-century scholasticism adapted to the new intellectual challenges presented by the Reformation. I focus in particular on the theory of accidents, which Reformed scholastic philosophers explored in search of a philosophical understanding of the rejection of the Catholic and Lutheran interpretations of the Eucharist. I argue that the Calvinist scholastics chose the view that actual inherence is part of the essence of accidents because it was coherent with their theology. In this paper, I bring to attention the Reformed scholastic philosophy which was taught in the Scottish universities in the first half of the seventeenth century, an area so far neglected by scholars. In so doing, I compare Scottish scholasticism with coeval Calvinist sources, and highlight the differences from authoritative Catholic and Lutheran philosophers. The conclusion is that Calvinist scholasticism, both Scottish and Continental, brought about fundamental changes in seventeenth-century metaphysics, which are coherent with a humanist interpretation of Aristotle, and anticipate some themes of early modern philosophy.     

Rewriting Death and Burial in Early-Modern Scotland

In early-modern Scotland various religious writings addressed dying, death, burial, or funerals. The intention was to further the aims of the Scottish reformers to correct what they perceived to be superstition or idolatry, and to align the burial service explicitly to the Reformed ideal. This was not straightforward, however, and in the late-sixteenth and seventeenth centuries many writings reaffirmed the new forms of ministry to the dying and burial. Attempts were also made to educate the population directly, through the production of works in the ars moriendi tradition, although considered from a Reformed Protestant perspective. Both genres were influenced by external material, particularly from England, but also from Geneva. Finally, the difficulties of the reform are highlighted in the fact that in the seventeenth century several funeral sermons were printed in violation of prohibitions. This article engages with the publications employed in Scotland on the reform of death rites, burial, and funerals, and highlights the continuing process in the seventeenth century.     

Histories and Landscapes: Two Categories of Artwork Suitable for Reformed Churches

Abstract

There are few examples of paintings or sculptures in churches of the Reformed tradition today. I argue that, despite this, it is in fact consonant with the writings of early Reformed thinkers, such as John Calvin, Martin Bucer, and Huldrych Zwingli, to allow for the use of certain types of artwork in these churches. I make a start by arguing that each of these thinkers affirmed works of art that may be described as histories. I then go on to look at how we can use ideas central to the theology of John Calvin to argue for the use of landscapes in Reformed churches. Finally, I consider how we might use such works of art in churches in order to address concerns about their use that members of the Reformed community may have.     

The Form of Reason: Participation in the Work of Richard Hooker, Benjamin Whichcote, Ralph Cudworth and Jeremy Taylor

The article traces the centrality of the patristic doctrine of theosis in the work of four significant figures in seventeenth century Anglican theology. Particular attention is paid to their understanding of reason as a participation in the incarnate Logos. Attention is drawn to their pedagogical method, which sees theology as 'rather a divine life than a divine knowledge' (Taylor), and to their reticence in defining too precisely the content of doctrine. Finally the Anglican via media is seen not as a political compromise, but as one way of fruitfully expressing the mediating grace between Creator and creation.     

The Form of Reason: Participation in the Work of Richard Hooker,Benjamin Whichcote,Ralph Cudworth and Jeremy Taylor

The article traces the centrality of the patristic doctrine of theosis in the work of four significant figures in seventeenth century Anglican theology. Particular attention is paid to their understanding of reason as a participation in the incarnate Logos. Attention is drawn to their pedagogical method, which sees theology as ‘rather a divine life than a divine knowledge’ (Taylor), and to their reticence in defining too precisely the content of doctrine. Finally the Anglican via media is seen not as a political compromise, but as one way of fruitfully expressing the mediating grace between Creator and creation.     

Orthodox–Reformed Dialogue and the Ecumenical Recovery of Theosis

Agreement about theosis in Orthodox–Reformed dialogues played a small but strategic role in the ecumenical recovery of the patristic doctrine of deification and its emergence as a locus of Reformed theology. Ecumenical dialogue helped dispel the idea that theosis is a distinctively Orthodox doctrine incompatible with the Western tradition. This idea was first propounded in the 19th century by Albrecht Ritschl, Ferdinand Kattenbusch, Adolf von Harnack, and others associated with the Ritschlian school. It was later appropriated by émigré Orthodox scholars. Orthodox–Reformed dialogue helped correct this and other misconceptions about theosis. This began informally in correspondence between Thomas F. Torrance and Georges Florovsky and continued in formal dialogue meetings. Orthodox–Reformed dialogue also highlighted patristic ways of thinking about salvation that were not then prominent in Reformed theology. However, as the Reformed participants consulted the works of John Calvin, they realized that he shared those patristic ways of thinking. Today, Reformed theologians are eager contributors to the ecumenical recovery of theosis. They increasingly discuss theosis as a doctrine native to the Reformed tradition.     

Not Scotist

Abstract

Several lines of recent scholarship have identified developing Protestant thought as Scotist and, specifically, have contended a dominance of the Scotist concept of the univocity of being in early modern Protestantism. The present essay examines early-modern Reformed metaphysics and theology and demonstrates that the contention is unfounded. Rather, the more typical approach to the language of being and related issues of predication concerning God and creatures in Reformed circles was advocacy of the analogia entis, often understood in a classical Thomist manner as an analogy of proportionality.     

Temporal Creation and Cosmological Arguments in Early-Modern Calvinism

This study examines the varieties of cosmological arguments deployed in the natural theologies of early-modern Calvinism. Some of the first Reformed forays into theistic proofs make use of Thomist arguments which allow for the logical possibility of creation from eternity. In the seventeenth century, many Reformed theologians prefer to use arguments against the possibility of an eternal world – arguments which had been defended by medieval theologians such as Bonaventure. But these arguments in turn faced criticism in the seventeenth century, and many of the Reformed supplemented them or replaced them with others. The argument from the mutability of the world to its temporal beginning became increasingly popular among Reformed thinkers. Historical arguments from the recent rise of arts and sciences or biological species supplemented the philosophical arguments for the world's beginning. Their theological commitment to the impossibility of eternal creation may explain why the Reformed did not typically use the Clarke and Leibniz argument from contingency.     

Iconoclasm, Incarnation and Eschatology: Toward a Catholic Understanding of the Reformed Doctrine of the 'Second' Commandment

Abstract: Reformed Christianity has traditionally understood the second commandment (‘Thou shalt not make for thyself any graven image . . .’) as prohibiting the manufacture or use of images of Jesus Christ. The arguments in support of this position have often been inadequate and have paid insufficient attention to the catholic doctrine of the incarnation. This article argues that the traditional Reformed prohibition of images is sound, but that a revised defense of this view is needed. I conclude that the specificity of the visual revelation of God in the incarnate Christ, particularly in light of the eschatological timeframe, serves as a more catholic and theologically compelling rationale for Reformed theology and practice.     

Foucault and the Imperatives of Education: Critique and Self-Creation in a Non-Foundational World

This article outlines Foucault’s conception of critique in relation to his writings on Kant. In that Kant saw Enlightenment as a process of release from the status of immaturity in that we accept someone else’s authority to lead us in areas where the use of reason is called for, it is claimed in this article that Foucault’s notion of critique reveals his own conception of maturity. Whereas Kant sees maturity as the rule of self by self through reason, Foucault sees it as an attitude towards ourselves and the present through an historical analysis of the limits, and the possibility of transgression, of going beyond. Critique is thus a permanent interrogation of the limits, an escape from normalization, and a facing-up to the challenges of self-creation while seeking to effect changes in social structures on specific regional issues of concern. The article concludes by suggesting that the problem of historical and epistemological relativism, which a conception of total critique gives rise to, may not be as insurmountable as some critics of Foucault have claimed.     

The Eucharistic Theology of Richard Field (1561-1616): Confusion,Contradiction, or Creative Synthesis?

Abstract

This examines the eucharistic thought of Richard Field, a Church of England clergyman scholar, as found in his major work, Of the Church (1610). This provided thorough treatment of a number of other topics. He argued that many of the differences apparently dividing Protestants were illusory. Field tends to be portrayed in the secondary literature as having obscured his own eucharistic views in his efforts to reconcile Lutheran and Reformed eucharistic doctrine. In addition, his eucharistic theology tends to be viewed in the literature as conforming to the English Reformed tradition. This paper argues that Field actually clarified his beliefs through his attempts to reconcile differing Protestant camps, and that he espoused not so much a wholly Reformed eucharistic doctrine as a creative synthesis of Lutheran and English Reformed elements, somewhat in tension but not necessarily in contradiction.     

Free will and the human act in seventeenth century Eastern Orthodox theology

This article analyses the doctrine of free will (autexousion) in the confessions of St. Peter Mogila and Dositheos II Notaras of Jerusalem. Free will is a central concept in Eastern Christian anthropology and these two monuments of theology represent how the understanding of the concept of free will developed in Eastern Orthodox theology in the context of the confrontation with Western theologies in the seventeenth century.     

HAUERWAS'S WITH THE GRAIN OF THE UNIVERSE1 AND THE BARTHIAN OUTLOOK: A Few Observations

This article has two main divisions, the first consisting in parts 1–3, the second in parts 4–8. The purpose of the first division is to assess Hauerwas's contentions regarding what he takes to be serious debilities in modern theological culture. The objects of Hauerwas's criticism are: (1) natural theology; (2) reason as it is represented in the structure of the modern university and in the “Enlightenment Project”; and (3) liberal Protestantism—the latter particularly as it turns up, by his account, in Reinhold Niebuhr's theology. The article will offer a defense of natural theology and an alternative approach to Niebuhr's theology while showing how Hauerwas's contentions concerning these two matters are mistaken. Parts 4–8 are theological studies. These studies concentrate on selected though main aspects of Hauerwas's outlook. Part 4 concerns a problematic implication of the notion, mainly from Barth, of divinity's humanity; Part 5 a note of difficulty from William James about the idea of the theistic God and its pertinence to the Barthian or Hauerwasian God; Part 6 the relation between belief and witness; Part 7 theology's discourse and analogy; Part 8 the Barthian‐Hauerwasian theology as a metaphysics. Part 1, concerning natural theology, stands over both divisions. These observations are not in the main intended as textual studies, though in certain passages the analysis is closely attentive to Hauerwas's text. Also, the paper does not offer the sort of account that would come from a historian, intellectual biographer, or social or cultural analyst or critic. Its focus is philosophical‐theological criticism.