The Enlightenment and Original Sin

The Enlightenment and Original Sin PDF Author: Matthew Kadane
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226832899
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 251

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Book Description
"What was the Enlightenment? This question has been endlessly debated. In this book, historian Matthew Kadane advances the bold claim that Enlightenment is best defined through what it set out to accomplish, which was nothing short of rethinking the meaning of human nature. Kadane argues that this project centered around the doctrine of original sin and, ultimately, its rejection, signaling the radical notion that an inherently flawed nature can be overcome by human means. Kadane explores these ambitious, wide-ranging themes through the story of the largely unknown Pentecost Barker, an eighteenth-century "purser" and wine merchant. Examining Barker's diary and correspondence with a Unitarian minister, Kadane tracks the transformation of Barker's consciousness from a Puritan to an Enlightenment outlook. In one man's conversion, Kadane tracks large-scale shifts in self-understanding whose philosophical reverberations would (and have continued to) shape debates on human nature for centuries to come"--

The Enlightenment and Original Sin

The Enlightenment and Original Sin PDF Author: Matthew Kadane
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226832899
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 251

Get Book Here

Book Description
"What was the Enlightenment? This question has been endlessly debated. In this book, historian Matthew Kadane advances the bold claim that Enlightenment is best defined through what it set out to accomplish, which was nothing short of rethinking the meaning of human nature. Kadane argues that this project centered around the doctrine of original sin and, ultimately, its rejection, signaling the radical notion that an inherently flawed nature can be overcome by human means. Kadane explores these ambitious, wide-ranging themes through the story of the largely unknown Pentecost Barker, an eighteenth-century "purser" and wine merchant. Examining Barker's diary and correspondence with a Unitarian minister, Kadane tracks the transformation of Barker's consciousness from a Puritan to an Enlightenment outlook. In one man's conversion, Kadane tracks large-scale shifts in self-understanding whose philosophical reverberations would (and have continued to) shape debates on human nature for centuries to come"--

Simon Episcopius' Doctrine of Original Sin

Simon Episcopius' Doctrine of Original Sin PDF Author: Mark A. Ellis
Publisher: Peter Lang
ISBN: 9780820481098
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
Simon Episcopius (1583-1643), who began his theological career as the protégé of Jacobus Arminius, led the Arminians at the Synod of Dort and was instrumental in guaranteeing Arminianism's survival. This book breaks new ground by clearly showing how, in the process of working out the implications of the theological trajectories which Arminius established, Episcopius introduced significant changes in his master's theology. It begins by demonstrating changes between Episcopius' early theological works and Arminius' writings, and then even greater changes in his mature theological work, Institutiones Theologicæ. It defends the idea that Arminianism represented a pre-Calvinist movement within the Netherlands, which not only rejected Genevan predestination, but also intentionally moved away from Reformed Scholasticism. This book is useful for seminars in early Arminian theology and the Arminian controversy in the Netherlands.

Arminian Theology

Arminian Theology PDF Author: Roger E. Olson
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830874437
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 251

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Book Description
Roger Olson sets forth classical Arminian theology and addresses the myriad misunderstandings and misrepresentations of it through the ages. For anyone interested in the Calvinist/Arminian debate, this irenic yet incisive book argues that classical Arminian theology has a rightful place in the evangelical church because of its deep roots within Reformational theology.

Perfecting Perfection

Perfecting Perfection PDF Author: Robert Webster
Publisher: James Clarke & Company
ISBN: 0227905466
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 298

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Book Description
Henry D. Rack is one of the most profound historians of the Methodist movement in modern times. He has spent a lifetime researching and writing about the rise and significance of John Wesley and his Methodist followers in the eighteenth century and has also uncovered the historical significance of the Methodist Church in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Collected in Perfecting Perfection are thirteen essays honouring the life and scholarship of Dr. Rack from a host of international scholars in the field. The topics range from Wesley's view of grace in the eighteenth century to the dynamic intersection of the Methodist and Tractarian movements in the nineteenth century. Ultimately, the collection of essays offered here in honour of Dr. Rack will be engaging and provocative to those considering Methodist Studies in the present and future generations.

The Theology of Liberalism

The Theology of Liberalism PDF Author: Eric Nelson
Publisher: Belknap Press
ISBN: 0674240944
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 233

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Book Description
One of our most important political theorists pulls the philosophical rug out from under modern liberalism, then tries to place it on a more secure footing. We think of modern liberalism as the novel product of a world reinvented on a secular basis after 1945. In The Theology of Liberalism, one of the country’s most important political theorists argues that we could hardly be more wrong. Eric Nelson contends that the tradition of liberal political philosophy founded by John Rawls is, however unwittingly, the product of ancient theological debates about justice and evil. Once we understand this, he suggests, we can recognize the deep incoherence of various forms of liberal political philosophy that have emerged in Rawls’s wake. Nelson starts by noting that today’s liberal political philosophers treat the unequal distribution of social and natural advantages as morally arbitrary. This arbitrariness, they claim, diminishes our moral responsibility for our actions. Some even argue that we are not morally responsible when our own choices and efforts produce inequalities. In defending such views, Nelson writes, modern liberals have implicitly taken up positions in an age-old debate about whether the nature of the created world is consistent with the justice of God. Strikingly, their commitments diverge sharply from those of their proto-liberal predecessors, who rejected the notion of moral arbitrariness in favor of what was called Pelagianism—the view that beings created and judged by a just God must be capable of freedom and merit. Nelson reconstructs this earlier “liberal” position and shows that Rawls’s philosophy derived from his self-conscious repudiation of Pelagianism. In closing, Nelson sketches a way out of the argumentative maze for liberals who wish to emerge with commitments to freedom and equality intact.

After Arminius

After Arminius PDF Author: Thomas H. McCall
Publisher:
ISBN: 0190874198
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 305

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Book Description
Inspired by the ideas of the Dutch theologian Jacob Arminius, Arminianism was the subject of important theological controversies in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and still today remains an important position within Protestant thought. What became known as Arminian theology was held by people across a wide swath of geographical and ecclesial positions. This theological movement was in part a reaction to the Reformed doctrine of predestination and was founded on the assertion that God's sovereignty and human free will are compatible. More broadly, it was an attempt to articulate a holistic view of God and salvation that is grounded in Scripture and Christian tradition as well as adequate to the challenges of life. First developed in European, British, and American contexts, the movement engaged with a wide range of intellectual challenges. While standing together in their common rejection of several key planks of Reformed theology, supporters of Arminianism took varying positions on other matters. Some were broadly committed to catholic and creedal theology, while others were more open to theological revision. Some were concerned primarily with practical matters, while others were engaged in system-building as they sought to articulate and defend an over-arching vision of God and the world. The story of Arminian development is complex, yet essential for a proper understanding of the history of Protestant theology. The historical development of Arminian theology, however, is not well known. In After Arminius, Thomas H. McCall and Keith D. Stanglin offer a thorough historical introduction to Arminian theology, providing an account that will be useful to scholars and students of ecclesiastical history and modern Christian thought.

The Arminian Confession of 1621

The Arminian Confession of 1621 PDF Author: Mark A. Ellis
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1597523372
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 157

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Book Description
In 1621, two years after their hopes for free and open debate were dashed at the Synod of Dort, the colleagues and students of Jacobus Arminius published the 'Confession or Declaration of the Pastors, which in the Belgian Federation are called the Remonstrants, on the principle articles of the Christian Religion.' The first and perhaps most important of Arminian confessions, written by Simon Episcopius (Arminius' successor at the University of Leiden and leader of the Remonstrant party at Dort) and then approved at a gathering of Remonstrant pastors, provided not only a defense of the Òfive pointsÓ condemned at Dort, but also a succinct declaration of the entire range of their theology. This fresh, unabridged translation of the Confession, the first since 1676, together with the original Latin, allows the contemporary reader to interface directly with theology of the original Remonstrant leaders without the intervening interpretations of either their opponents or later admirers.

Milton's Theological Process

Milton's Theological Process PDF Author: Jason A. Kerr
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019887510X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
This volume proposes a method for reading Milton's De Doctrina Christiana as an artifact of his process of theological thinking rather than as a repository of his doctrinal views. Jason A. Kerr argues that reading in this way involves attention to the complex material state of the manuscript along with Milton's varying modes of engagement with scripture and various theological interlocutors, and reveals that Milton's approach to theology underwent significant change in the course of his work on the treatise. Initially, Milton set out to use Ramist logic to organize scripture in a way that drew out its intrinsic doctrinal structure. This method had two unintended consequences: it drove Milton to an antitrinitarian understanding of the Son of God, and it obliged him to reflect on his own authority as an interpreter and to develop an ecclesiology capable of sifting divine truth from human error. Consequently, Milton's Theological Process explores the complex interplay between Milton's preconceived theological ideas and his willingness to change his mind as it develops through the layers of revision in the manuscript. Kerr concludes by considering Paradise Lost as a vehicle for Milton's further reflection on the foundations of theology—and by showing how even the epic presents challenges to the fruits of these reflections. Reading Milton theologically means more than working to ascertain his doctrinal views; it means attending critically to his messy process of evaluating and rethinking the doctrinal views to which his prior study had led him.

The Intellectual Consequences of Religious Heterodoxy, 1600-1750

The Intellectual Consequences of Religious Heterodoxy, 1600-1750 PDF Author: Sarah Mortimer
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004221468
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 345

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Book Description
Challenging the common assumption that religious heterodoxy was a prelude to the secularisation of thought, this volume explores the variety of relations between heterodox theology, political thought, moral and natural philosophy and historical writing in both Protestant and Catholic Europe from 1600 to the Enlightenment.

The Crisis of Calvinism in Revolutionary England, 1640-1660

The Crisis of Calvinism in Revolutionary England, 1640-1660 PDF Author: Andrew Ollerton
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
ISBN: 1783277734
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 277

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Book Description
This book investigates a puzzling and neglected phenomenon - the rise of English Arminianism during the decade of puritan rule. Throughout the 1650s, numerous publications, from scholarly folios to popular pamphlets, attacked the doctrinal commitments of Reformed Orthodoxy. This anti-Calvinist onslaught came from different directions: episcopalian royalists (Henry Hammond, Herbert Thorndike, Peter Heylyn), radical puritan defenders of the regicide (John Goodwin and John Milton), and sectarian Quakers and General Baptists. Unprecedented rejection of Calvinist soteriology was often coupled with increased engagement with Catholic, Lutheran and Remonstrant alternatives. As a result, sophisticated Arminian publications emerged on a scale that far exceeded the Laudian era. Cromwellian England therefore witnessed an episode of religious debate that significantly altered the doctrinal consensus of the Church of England for the remainder of the seventeenth century. The book will appeal to historians interested in the contested nature of 'Anglicanism' and theologians interested in Protestant debates regarding sovereignty and free will. Part One is a work of religious history, which charts the rise of English Arminianism across different ecclesial camps - episcopal, puritan and sectarian. These chapters not only introduce the main protagonists but also highlight a surprising range of distinctly English Arminian formulations. Part Two is a work of historical theology, which traces the detailed doctrinal formulations of two prominent divines - the puritan John Goodwin and the episcopalian Henry Hammond. Their Arminian theologies are set in the context of the Western theological tradition and the soteriological debates, that followed the Synod of Dort. The book therefore integrates historical and theological enquiry to offer a new perspective on the crisis of 'Calvinism' in post-Reformation England.