The conciliar intent of Richard Hooker’s theological hermeneutic

Abstract

Recent research has sought to resolve the question of Richard Hooker’s theological relationship to the Reformation by identifying a hermeneutical framework that supports and guides his work as a whole. Two proposals are noteworthy: Torrance Kirby’s thesis on Hooker’s alignment with the Continental reformers and William Haugaard’s thesis on Hooker’s role in the development of ‘Anglicanism.’ This paper holds that these proposals should be understood within the context of Hooker’s conciliar intent. With a focus primarily on the preface to the Lawes, it is suggested that Hooker’s conciliar intent is motivated by the theological and ecclesial principles found in the premise, namely, the connection between the divine peace and order of 1 Corinthians 14:33 and the Council of Jerusalem. In clarifying the correlation of these two principles, the article asserts that the priorities of Hooker’s preface are first, to identify the hermeneutical crisis of his day as the crisis over the public criteria of Christian truth, and then to respond to this crisis by connecting spiritual discernment amidst controversy to conciliar judgment. Accordingly, ecumenical implications rather than doctrinal demarcation appear as central to Hooker’s theological project.     

Antiquarian studies on ancient banqueting during the Renaissance

Abstract

During the Renaissance, studies on ancient banqueting became part of mainstream ancient history. Among the early treatments of the subject, the monumental treatise, Antiquitatum convivialium libri, written by the Swiss humanist and Reformed theologian, J. W. Stucki, was a notable breakthrough. The article argues that Stucki was the first humanist to conceive of ancient banqueting as having universal significance, influencing all later writers on the topic. In addition, he used his book as a resource to intervene in confessional disputes with data from antiquarian erudition. After Stucki’s publication and its censorship by the Roman Catholic Church, there was a significant boost in such works throughout Europe. The phenomenon was very heterogeneous in light of diversities relating to contrasting Protestant and Catholic regions. This article focuses on the development of different approaches to the topic arising from diverse religious and cultural backgrounds at the time.     

Richard Hooker’s ‘labour’ on behalf of the puritan conscience

Abstract

Although Hooker’s Lawes contains no discussion of conscience, the text is concerned with effecting the puritan conscience in leading nonconformists to understand and obey the ordinances of the Elizabethan Church of England. Through close reading of Hooker’s textual performance, the essay demonstrates how his argumentation strategy defines the conscience to satisfy his polemical goals. In his exploration of the potential of reason to resolve doubts, Hooker designs his discourse to persuade the puritan of how unwise it is to plead conscience as the basis for disobedience. The text’s purpose is to convince puritans to ‘better frame them selves’ and surrender to the guide. Hooker also indicates ways the conscience, standing before public exposure, can know it is following God’s will. This essay suggests how Hooker manipulates his opponents so that if they are reasonable there is no ‘necessitie’ of disobedience. He exposes nonconformity as hardness of heart and weakness of brain. Importantly, however, Hooker’s text, suspicious of conscience as an inner voice, circumscribes the work of conscience in terms of civil obedience. Thus he argues that his ‘labour’ has produced a public exposition that should persuade puritans to embrace their public responsibilities as citizens.     

Peter Martyr Vermigli,history, and the Anabaptist menace

Abstract

This article demonstrates Peter Martyr Vermigli’s use of historical perspective in his exegesis in his opposition to Anabaptists, taking as a test case the subject of prophecy. By contrasting the material on prophecy found in Vermigli’s Loci communeswith his handling of a number of key Pauline passages, the essay also seeks to make a point about our understanding of the man and his genius, namely, that one fails to obtain a full sense of the latter if one restricts oneself to the Loci communes. For while Vermigli’s loci on prophecy contain mostly standard medieval fare, his expositions of Paul exhibit originality and ingenuity.     

‘That is Best,Which Was First’: Christian Primitivism and the Reformation Church of England, 1548-1722

Abstract

This essay explores the Church of England's theologico-historical sense of self during the tumultuous period of the ‘long Reformation.’ By taking its claim to be ‘primitive Christianity restored’ seriously it is argued that Church of England polemical apology was guided by Christian primitivism, an ideology shaped by a belief in the theological primacy of the beginning of Christianity. This made it intellectually possible to conceive of a past true, pure Church that should and could be re-formed in the present. In a more speculative vein it is also argued that this primitivism was formative in the Church's self-defining apologetic recourse to Scripture, reason, and tradition.     

William Tyndale on Covenant and Justification

Abstract

This article offers a fresh interpretation of William Tyndale’s doctrine of justification with particular reference to his concept of covenant. It resists past scholarly attempts to resolve the apparent tension in his theology between faith and works in favour of either solifidianism or legalism. Instead, a close examination of Tyndale’s publications suggests that he maintained the gracious nature of justification without adopting justification by faith alone in the style of Martin Luther. Tyndale emphasized love for divine law as the essence of Christian righteousness. The gradual development of reciprocity in his concept of covenant came to undergird this formulation. Greater clarity with regard to Tyndale’s own theological position exposes misplaced comparison between Tyndale and Luther whilst encouraging the identification of views shared with Erasmus and the Swiss reformers consistent with certain trends in late-medieval theology.     

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A structured teaching and experience-based program for therapists,teachers, and parents

This study is aimed at validating the Separation Anxiety Scale for Children (SASC) in a sample of 802 Italian children aged 8–11. Confirmatory factor analysis replicated the original model. The tool showed adequate reliability and good convergent validity with the Spence Children Anxiety Scale. Results confirmed a decrease of separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD) with age and girls reported higher levels of SAD than boys. Findings suggested that the SASC is a suitable measure to assess SAD in Italian children.     

Early evidence of the Italian validation of Separation Anxiety Assessment Scale for Children

The current study examined the validity of the Separation Anxiety Assessment Scale for Children (SAAS-C) in a sample of 1397 Italian children (aged 8–11 years). Scalar invariance across gender was established. Results reported higher levels of separation anxiety in girls and younger children. Moreover, the measure demonstrated good convergent validity with the Spence Children Anxiety Scale. Overall, findings support the validity of the SAAS-C as a brief diagnostic tool to assess separation anxiety disorder in Italian children in line with DSM-5 criteria.     

“Faith Alone”—Primus Inter Pares: Welcome to the Banquet

Faith alone represents the primus inter pares of the sixteenth‐century Reformation's four solas. Gary Simpson introduces five authors who critically explore and creatively extend the doctrine of justification by faith alone as Dialog with its Fall issues (2013–2017) leans into the 500^th anniversary of the Reformation (2017).