DOCSLIB.ORG

Seventeenth Century Prayer Guides and the Practice of Prayer In

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Seventeenth Century Prayer Guides and the Practice of Prayer In Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2005 Seventeenth-Century Prayer Guides and the Practice of Prayer in Paradise Lost Kelly A. Herring Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY PRAYER GUIDES AND THE PRACTICE OF PRAYER IN PARADISE LOST By KELLY A. HERRING A Thesis submitted to the Department of English in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree Awarded: Spring Semester, 2005 The members of the Committee approve the thesis of Kelly A. Herring, defended on April 6, 2005. __________________________ Bruce Boehrer Professor Directing Thesis __________________________ Daniel Vitkus Committee Member __________________________ Nancy Warren Committee Member Approved: _______________________ Department Chair _______________________ Dean, College of Arts and Sciences The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii This thesis is dedicated first and foremost to my inspiration—the Lord Jesus Christ—and second to my always-faithful husband, Charlie. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I must acknowledge Bruce Boehrer who read and commented on each draft. His guidance, suggestions, and insight helped me to understand the nature and scope of this project. My committee members, Daniel Vitkus and Nancy Warren, offered advice and encouragement through scholarly conversation. I’d also like to acknowledge a few undergraduate professors who believed in me and gave me a love of literature through their passionate teaching. John Walker, Keith Callis, John Hodges, and Deborah Graham, thank you. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract..................................................................................................................................vi INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................1 1. TAVERN BRAWL OR TUG OF WAR: THE CONTROVERSY OVER SET FORMS.6 2. CONFESSION AS PRAISE IN THE ANGELIC AND PRELAPSARIAN WORLD......10 3. REPENTANCE AND CONFESSION ..............................................................................17 4. GOD ANSWERS PRAYER ..............................................................................................23 CONCLUSION......................................................................................................................29 REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH ................................................................................................. v ABSTRACT Because Milton wanted his readers to recognize the theological ideas depicted in Paradise Lost as opportunities to meditate and pray, I will focus on the dramatization, definition, and descriptions of prayer in Paradise Lost. The body of my thesis will align four episodes of prayer with contemporary prayer manuals and meditation guides. The episodes I will discuss are: the angelic hymn in Book III, Adam and Eve’s morning prayers before the fall in Book V, Adam and Eve’s prayers after the fall in Book X, and the answers to prayer that they receive in Book XI. Throughout the discussion of these episodes, I will identify signs of human fallenness that appear in Adam and Eve’s prayers. Spontaneity, unselfconsciousness, and a large portion of praise characterize prelapsarian and angelic prayers. Postlapsarian prayer occurs only because of prevenient grace. After the fall, when God gives grace to Adam and Eve so that they can pray, they are self-conscious, extremely concerned with where to pray, what words to use, and how to convince God to listen. The Introduction will identify specific authors of contemporary prayer manuals and sermons that I will cite and analyze throughout my thesis so that readers will be familiar with them before approaching the in-depth discussion of their writings in connection with Paradise Lost. Chapter 1 will outline the main conflict between Anglicans and Puritans over set forms of prayer. Anglicans embraced and promoted the use of set forms while Puritans looked suspiciously at the practice. I will identify the reasons Anglicans and Puritans held these beliefs about prayer and how this conflict relates to reading Paradise Lost. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 will include a detailed analysis of the prayers in Paradise Lost and their relation to the advice presented in contemporary prayer guides. Chapter 2 will focus on the aspect of praise (as a major component of prayer) in angelic and human hymns. Chapter 3 will develop the stages of prayer found in Adam and Eve’s prayers of repentance: praise, thanksgiving, confession, and petition. Chapter 4 will explore God’s answers to Adam and Eve’s prayers and how manualists instructed devotees to decipher divine replies to their petitions. In the conclusion, I want to offer some ideas about Milton’s contribution to the religious literature of his day and highlight what he offered readers in a dramatic poem that the prayer manualists could not. vi INTRODUCTION Consumption of religious books and manuals created various perspectives on the practice of prayer in seventeenth-century England, where nearly every literate person cultivated spiritual knowledge. We might say that religious books and manuals were “in vogue” during this century, much as health and fitness books are today. By studying popular religious manuals, we gain contemporary insight into how Milton’s early readers understood Paradise Lost, particularly the episodes dealing with prayer. I want to explore the influence the religious books had on the minds of Milton’s readers and how that influence shaped their experience of Paradise Lost. By participating in the political and religious controversies of his day, John Milton demonstrated his knowledge of the prominent theories, practices, and suggestions contemporary prayer manuals made and proposed. When writing about the seventeenth century, one must keep in mind the tremendous changes England endured throughout this time. Christopher Hill focuses on the changes in religious belief, economics, science, government, worship, and religious toleration. He examines the conflicts that erupted between monarchs (like James I and Charles I) and parliament over taxes, wars, and religious freedom. He reiterates that the boundaries between these aspects of life (religion, economics, government) are arbitrary, and inconsistent because no real separation exists between them. Hill writes, “Monopolies have constitutional and political implications. Foreign policy involves economic and religious considerations, as well as political. The Church is a political as well as a religious organization and a great landowner; disputes over tithes involve religious, legal, and economic questions” (101). As we examine prayer manuals and their relation to Paradise Lost, we should remember the contemporary context: Revolution and Civil War in the 1640’s, regicide in 1649, and the Restoration of monarchy in 1660. During these years England’s government struggled with ways to combine democratic rule with monarchy so that the nation could be united. Governmental issues did not stand alone; economic and religious strife also tore at the country. The Church of England pulled away from Rome early in this century, but many Protestants and religious sects did not think the Church had separated itself far enough from Roman styles of worship. Religious controversies raged over forms of worship, decoration (or lack of decoration) in the Church, liturgical prayers, prayers to saints or the Virgin Mary. To define a major rift among the people, John Spur explains that Puritans valued individual experience and a personal realization of “justification, election, and regeneration” (8). However, Anglicans valued tradition and conformity to established programs of worship, which they felt would induce piety and godliness. With such dissension, conflict, and debate over religious ideas and belief, contemporary pastors and theologians eagerly published books about godliness and Christian living to satisfy 1 the growing desires of contemporary readers who sought political direction and spiritual insight. Six authors in particular have become very important to this project: Richard Allestree, Lancelot Andrewes, William Annand, Richard Baxter, John Brinsley, and Robert Hill. Some of these names are well-known (Andrewes and Baxter) while others are more obscure (Hill and Brinsley); yet, all of them present ideas that are valuable to our discussion of Paradise Lost. A thorough royalist, Richard Allestree (1619-1681), contributed much of his influence and resources to the royalist cause. To illustrate his devotion, the Dictionary of National Biography (DNB) records a scene at Christ Church, Oxford during 1641: Allestree took up arms for the King…. Shortly afterwards the parliamentary forces, under Lord Say, entered the city, and proceeded to rifle the colleges of such of their plate as had not been put to the King’s use. On breaking into Christ Church treasury the soldiers discovered nothing but a groat and a halter. Then they went to the deanery, collected everything of value, locked up their prize in a chamber, and retired. The next morning the chamber was found empty; and it appeared on inquiry that Allestree, who, in the absence of the dean
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Richard Baxter – Puritan, Theologian and Mere Christian
    Can any good come from Kidderminster? Richard Baxter as Puritan, theologian and mere Christian WH Chong Author’s Preface How does one measure success in Christian ministry? Lessons abound from the life and work of Richard Baxter. Well-known for his pastoral labours in the town of Kidderminster, England, Baxter was also renowned for his Christian learning and advocated unity and comprehension during a turbulent, divisive age. In writing, teaching, pastoring and visiting, he successfully modelled a Puritan’s single-minded zeal to holy living, personal work, evangelism and devotional piety. He was less successful as a theologian, in particular setting forth controversial views of justification. More positively, Baxter as a “mere Christian” persistently advocated for unity and comprehension between ministers during the divisive era of 17th century England. Ultimately, Baxter’s life and work challenges Christian leaders to stay focused on proclaiming repentance and faith in Christ, and to continually realign our heart motives for gospel ministry to be fixed on God’s glory alone. 2 Can any good come from Kidderminster? How does one measure success in Christian ministry? Christian leaders and workers wrestle with this question frequently. Evangelical Christians fawn over examples of large churches such as Hillsong in Sydney, or Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York. As impressive as these congregations are, however, the church in Kidderminster, England, offers a more dramatic “success story”. In 1641, when the newly appointed pastor first
    [Show full text]
  • 4 Richard Baxter
    Richard Baxter (1615-1691): A Model of Pastoral Leadership for Evangelism and Church Growth Timothy K. Beougher Timothy K. Beougher is Billy Introduction And one biographer warns of trying to Graham Professor of Evangelism and In his autobiography, nineteenth century compress Baxter’s life into a few pages, Church Growth at The Southern Baptist preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon saying, “Men of his size should not be Theological Seminary, where he has records a conversation he had with his wife drawn in miniature.”4 taught since 1996. Dr. Beougher co- one Sunday evening: “I fear I have not edited Accounts of Campus Revival and been as faithful in my preaching today as I Early Life Evangelism for a Changing World, and should have been; I have not been as much Richard Baxter was born November 12, is the author of several scholarly articles. in earnest after poor souls as God would 1615, at Rowton, a village in Shropshire, He is currently at work on a biography have me be. Go, dear, to the study, and England.5 It was his destiny to live and of Richard Baxter. fetch down Baxter’s Reformed Pastor, and minister throughout most of the seven- read some of it to me; perhaps that will teenth century, a watershed in English quicken my sluggish heart.”1 history. Before his death in 1691, he would Spurgeon was not the only one helped witness the English Civil War, the behead- by the seventeenth century British Puri- ing of Charles I, the Commonwealth tan’s writings. Baxter has been called the under Oliver Cromwell, the Restoration of greatest of all English preachers, the vir- the monarchy under Charles II, the perse- tual creator of popular Christian literature, cution of Nonconformity, the Great Ejec- and “the most successful preacher and tion of some two thousand Puritan pastors winner of souls and nurturer of won souls from their churches, and the struggle for that England has ever had.”2 Who was this toleration, which culminated in the Act of man? What does he have to say to us Toleration of 1689.
    [Show full text]
  • Grace Overwhelming
    Religions and Discourse 22 Grace Overwhelming John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress and the Extremes of the Baptist Mind von Anne Dunan-Page 1. Auflage Grace Overwhelming – Dunan-Page schnell und portofrei erhältlich bei beck-shop.de DIE FACHBUCHHANDLUNG Peter Lang Bern 2006 Verlag C.H. Beck im Internet: www.beck.de ISBN 978 3 03910 055 2 Inhaltsverzeichnis: Grace Overwhelming – Dunan-Page Introduction Sometime in the mid-1660s, when pondering the twenty most significant aspects of his ministry in the ‘language of my heart’, the Yorkshire Presbyterian Oliver Heywood expressed the difficulties of his calling with a horticultural metaphor: I find christians of different tempers, some apt to run into one extreme others into another. I find it very hard to suit every condition, so as to give every one their grain of allowance and yet indulge them in no sin, to curb their frowardnes so as not to nip the buddings of grace, and prevent the sproutings of what is good in their harts and lives.1 Heywood had daily experience of a spiritual garden which was tempted to extremes, whether that meant falling into despair of 1 The Reverend Oliver Heywood: His Autobiography, Diaries, Anecdote and Event Books, ed. J. Horsfall Turner, 4 vols (Bridgehouse: A. B. Bayes; Bingley: T. Harrison, 1881–85), 1: 206. On Heywood, see Joseph Hunter, The Rise of the Old Dissent, exemplified in the Life of Oliver Heywood, one of the Founders of the Presbyterian Congregations in the County of York, 1630–1702 (London: Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans, 1842); ‘Oliver Heywood’, Calamy Revised: Being a Revision of Edmund Calamy’s Account of the Ministers and Others Ejected and Silenced, 1660–1662, ed.
    [Show full text]
  • Historical Focus: 1550
    How to be a Puritan Atheist Alec Ryrie John Earle (c. 1600-1665), poet, satirist and bishop of Salisbury ‘A sceptick in Religion.’ ‘He would be wholly a Christian, but that he is something of an Atheist, and wholly an Atheist, but that he is partly a Christian ... His whole life is a question. He finds doubts and scruples better then resolves them, and has always some argument to non-plus himself. The least reason is enough to perplex him, and the best will not satisfy him. Whilst he fears to believe amiss, he believes nothing.’ John Earle, Micro-cosmographie (1628) These two thoughts, There is a God, and there is no God, may be, and are, both in one and the same heart. William Perkins, A treatise of mans imaginations (1607) My condition is unparalleled; there was never such a one [as me] since God made any Creature, either Angels or Men, nor never will be to the end of the world. … My Sins are so great, that if all the Sins of all the Devils and Damned in Hell, and all the Reprobates on Earth were comprehended in one man, mine are greater. There is no word comes so near the comprehension of the dreadfulness of my Condition; as that, I am the Monster of the Creation. I could see nothing but Hell, and wrath: I was as desperate, as ever was any. ... I felt myself, soul and body, in fire and brimstone already. … And I thought, there was no other Hell, but that which I felt. … I thought, if I made away myself, there was an end of my misery, and that there was no God, no Heaven; and no Hell, but what I had already.
    [Show full text]
  • Wtj 61 (1999)53-71 Richard Baxter on Christian Unity: A
    WTJ 61 (1999)53-71 RICHARD BAXTER ON CHRISTIAN UNITY: A CHAPTER IN THE ENLIGHTENING OF ENGLISH REFORMED ORTHODOXY* CARL R. TRUEMAN n 1707 a group of non-conformist ministers made a fateful decision that Iwas to have a dramatic effect upon the way in which the great Puritan divine, Richard Baxter, would be known to posterity. Their action effec­ tively divorced Baxter's thought from the context of its times and more or less guaranteed that his reputation for subsequent generations would not be that which he himself would have chosen, or perhaps even recognized. This decision separated his so-called practical works from the rest and arranged that only the former should be republished. The result was four huge tomes of writings, covering everything from conversion through catechising to Christian household management.1 While the tomes were indeed huge, however, they actually represented less than half of what Baxter wrote in his lifetime and excluded precisely those doctrinal works upon which Baxter himself hoped that his reputation would come to rest. The practical writings certainly struck a chord with the English-speaking public. Several editions were published over the subsequent centuries, most recently in the early 1990s. The particular brand of piety which they con­ tained also proved popular in the Highlands of Scotland, where the practical writings enjoyed translation into Gaelic and came to form part of the Carl R. Trueman teaches historical theology in the Department of Divinity at the University of Aberdeen. •An earlier version of this paper was presented to the Kerkhistorisch Gezelschap at their summer meeting in Utrecht, June 1998.
    [Show full text]
  • The Autobiography of a 'Meer Christian': Richard Baxter's Account
    159 The Autobiography of a ‘Meer Christian’: Richard Baxter's Account of the Restoration Lee Gatiss While Undertaking research recently for a book on the ejection and persecUtion of the pUritans from the ChUrch of England in 1662, 1 I had the pleasUre of reading a first edition copy of Richard Baxter’s aUtobiography. The aim of this article is to assess the valUe of Reliquiae Baxterianae pUblished in 1696 as a soUrce for the history of the Restoration religioUs settlement, and to examine Baxter’s agenda and bias. ThoUgh this decisive religioUs settlement Underwent varioUs legislative alterations and was enforced with differing degrees of severity dUring the reign of Charles II, its essential foUndations were laid in 1660–1662. It is to these decisive years that we will, therefore, particUlarly confine oUr attention. Baxter’s accoUnt is illUminating at this point both personally and historically, and gives Us an important insight into the mindset of those who were ejected from the national chUrch in the seventeenth centUry. For all its prolix verbosity, it remains a ‘mUst read’. Comparing Baxter to Other Contemporary Sources To begin with, it is instrUctive to compare Baxter’s accoUnt of the Restoration with other contemporary soUrces. Debates in the Lords and Commons from this period ‘are among the most badly reported in all seventeenth-centUry parliaments’; even the ‘government’s own newspapers preferred rather to sUppress information than to disseminate it’. 2 Where evidence exists of intra- governmental discUssion and skirmishing at coUrt ‘it is UsUally to be foUnd in the least trUstworthy soUrces: the fading memories and anecdotes of retired politicians, or the gossip of men only on the fringes of the coUrt’.
    [Show full text]
  • Études Épistémè
    25/11/2020 “An Unlearned Antinomian-Anabaptist”: Richard Baxter on John Bunyan Études Épistémè Revue de littérature et de civilisation (XVIe – XVIIIe siècles) OPEN 35 | 2019 The World of Seventeenth-Century English Dissenters: Piety, Theology, Heterodoxy “An Unlearned Antinomian- Anabaptist”: Richard Baxter on John Bunyan « Un antinomien-anabaptiste sans éducation » : Richard Baxter à propos de John Bunyan N. H. K https://doi.org/10.4000/episteme.4294 Résumés English Français As far as is known, Baxter and Bunyan, the two outstanding figures of late seventeenth-century nonconformity, never met, nor, apart from a categorization of Bunyan as an “unlearned Antinomian- Anabaptist”, did either refer to the other in print. That one comment, however, is illuminating: it spans the great ecclesiological and theological fault line of the period, within the established church as well as within nonconformity. Bunyan’s commitment to the autonomy of independent gathered churches was an expression of a convinced Calvinism, intolerant of other theologies. By contrast, Baxter’s commitment to a more inclusive national church was combined with, and articulated through, rationalist and moralistic theological emphases and a liberal disinclination to limit orthodoxy any more than necessary. This contrast was enacted in their responses to The Design of Christianity (1671) by the Latitudinarian Edward Fowler. On the one hand it prompted Bunyan’s heated Defence of the Doctrine of Justification, by Faith (1672) against Fowler’s “Feigned design of Christianity”; on the other, Baxter’s defence of Fowler and his thesis in How Far Holinesse is the Design of Christianity (1671) against those who (like Bunyan) thought the book had “a scandalous design” to substitute “the meer morality of a Heathen” for the Christian doctrine of justification.
    [Show full text]
  • Durham E-Theses
    Durham E-Theses Puritans and the human will : voluntarism within mid-seventeenth century puritanism as seen in the works of Richard Baxter and John Owen. McGrath, Gavin John How to cite: McGrath, Gavin John (1989) Puritans and the human will : voluntarism within mid-seventeenth century puritanism as seen in the works of Richard Baxter and John Owen., Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1418/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 PURITANS AND THE HUMAN WILL: Voluntar ism within mid-seventeenth century English puritanism as seen in the works of Richard Baxter and John Owen Gavin John McGrath A Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Durham Faculty of Arts Theology Department 1989 The copyright of this thesis rests with the author.
    [Show full text]
  • John Owen, Richard Baxter and the Formation of Nonconformity (Book Review)
    Volume 41 Number 1 Article 8 September 2012 John Owen, Richard Baxter and the Formation of Nonconformity (Book Review) Keith C. Sewell Dordt College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/pro_rege Part of the Christianity Commons, and the Higher Education Commons Recommended Citation Sewell, Keith C. (2012) "John Owen, Richard Baxter and the Formation of Nonconformity (Book Review)," Pro Rege: Vol. 41: No. 1, 31 - 33. Available at: https://digitalcollections.dordt.edu/pro_rege/vol41/iss1/8 This Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by the University Publications at Digital Collections @ Dordt. It has been accepted for inclusion in Pro Rege by an authorized administrator of Digital Collections @ Dordt. For more information, please contact [email protected]. and unintended consequences,” Maraniss writes, maybe his Autobiography. His being conceived was almost an a third of the way into the book, “yet I also believe that accident—his mother (a 17-year-old white girl) and there are connections that illuminate our world, revealing father (a 25-year-old African) were husband and wife its endless mystery and wonder.” for barely more than a month and lovers for little more We could do much worse than to listen to someone than that. The senior Obama was already married and who is radically taken by awe. the father of two in Kenya, a family he’d left behind On the other hand, there’s no doubt that Maraniss is when he came to America to study. For all intents and interested in taking on some of the radically conservative purposes, through much of his life, this President grew myth-makers who’ve made outrageous claims about up with his grandparents.
    [Show full text]
  • Heresy Rev.Pdf
    Keeble: Baxter and Orthodoxy 1 /40 John Marshall and David Loewenstein (ed.) HERESY IN EARLY MODERN ENGLISH CULTURE, 1530-1700 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- ‘Take heed of being too forward in imposinge on others’:1 the Baxterian Conception of Orthodoxy in the Later Seventeenth Century by N. H. Keeble Keeble: Baxter and Orthodoxy 2 /40 1. The ‘Over-Orthodox Doctors’ 'No particular Words in the World are Essentials of our Religion'.2 This startling pronouncement was made by the Puritan divine Richard Baxter during a conference convened in London in late 1654 to define the limits of tolerable religious orthodoxy under the Protectorate. What lay behind these words was a deep-seated suspicion of creedal formulae, confessions and platforms which to Baxter’s mind simply ‘multiply controversies, and fill the minds of men with scruples, and ensnare their consciences, and engage men in parties against each other to the certain breach of Charity’. Since ‘the Christian world will never have Concord, but in a FEW, CERTAIN, NECESSARY things’, to insist on subscription to any form of words is a recipe for divisiveness. ‘The great cause of our uncharitable censures and divisions, hath been our departing from the Antient simplicity of Faith, and also from the sufficiency of the holy Scriptures, to be the Rule and Test of Faith’.3 ‘Did the Primitive church require Subscription to all our 39 Articles?’ he pointedly asked.4 This distrust of credal definitions of orthodoxy was a distinctive feature of Baxter’s inclusive churchmanship. Despite his inveterate disputatiousness and a temperament which could be impatient, irritable and severe, he worked tirelessly throughout his career to counter the ecclesiastical fissiparousness of the seventeenth century.
    [Show full text]
  • The Life of the Reverend Richard Baxter (1662-1691)
    Life of Baxter v1.qxp:Life of Richard Baxter 8 01 2009 02:05 Page 1 A LIFE OF THE REVEREND RICHARD BAXTER (1662–1691) Life of Baxter v1.qxp:Life of Richard Baxter 8 01 2009 01:58 Page 3 A LIFE OF THE REVEREND RICHARD BAXTER (1662–1691) by FREDERICK J. POWICKE, M.A., Ph.D. Quinta Press Weston Rhyn 2009 Life of Baxter v1.qxp:Life of Richard Baxter 8 01 2009 01:58 Page 4 Quinta Press Meadow View, Weston Rhyn, Oswestry, Shropshire, England, SY10 7RN Visit our web-site: http://www.quintapress.com ISBN 1 897856 xx x First published Layout copyright Quinta Press © 2009 4 Life of Baxter v1.qxp:Life of Richard Baxter 8 01 2009 01:58 Page 5 FIRST PROOF READING DRAFT 5 A LIFE OF THE REVEREND RICHARD BAXTER 1615–1691 Books by the Same Author JOHN NORRIS OF BEMERTON HENRY BARROW, SEPARATIST ROBERT BROWN, PIONEER OF MODERN CONGREGATIONALISM JOHN ROBINSON, ETC. RICHARD BAXTER From a painting by Robert Walker Life of Baxter v1.qxp:Life of Richard Baxter 8 01 2009 01:58 Page 6 6 THE LIFE OF THE REVEREND RICHARD BAXTER (1662–1691) A Life of the Reverend RICHARD BAXTER 1615–1691 by FREDERICK J. POWICKE M.A., Ph.D. Jonathan Cape, Ltd ELEVEN GOWER STREET LONDON FIRST PUBLISHED IN MCMXXIV MADE & PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY BUTLER & TANNER LTD LONDON CONTENTS PART ONE PREFACE . 7 NOTE TO THE PORTRAIT . 11 INTRODUCTORY . 15 1 KIDDERMINSTER . 35 2 FIRST PERIOD OF MINISTRY (APRIL 1641–JULY 1642) . 47 3 PERIOD OF SEPARATION (1642–1647) .
    [Show full text]
  • Geneva Revisited Or Calvinism Revised: the Case for Theological Reassessment ALAN CLIFFORD
    Geneva Revisited or Calvinism Revised: The case for theological reassessment ALAN CLIFFORD In recent years, the precise character of Calvin's 'Calvinism' has been extensively discussed. 1 Numerous scholarly contributions have been occasioned by Dr. R.T. Kendall's provocative monograph Calvin and English Calvinism to 1649 (1979). The discussion seems to suggest, on balance, that a significant theological gap does exist between Calvin and later Calvinists,2 although many remain unconvinced. Various factors might explain a widespread reluctance to revise what is regarded as the traditional view of Calvin, with all that this might entail for Reformed orthodoxy. (Could our venerated Calvin be wrong, or are we 'out of step' after all?). Tradition is a powerful obstacle to theological revision. The situation may be compounded by personal psychological factors; there is a sense of security in a clear-cut, unquestioned theological stance vis-a-vis the fluctuating uncertainties of much alternative theology. A generation of Reform­ ed scholars and preachers have established their reputations on the strength of their commitment to the 'Five Points', and acceptance within the Reformed fraternity will not be lightly jeopardised. Whereas an idiosyncratic individualism, and a 'unity-at-any-price' ecumenism are alike to be shunned, the true scholar will ever be ready to reach new conclusions if the evidence is deemed sufficiently compelling. In addition to the 'truth-value' of any viewpoint, it will appear all the more attractive if it possesses a distinct tendency to reconcile opposing positions. Although truth, rather than deliberate compromise, must ever lead the way, the pursuit of an orthodox via media will ever be a legitimate concern for the evangelical scholar.
    [Show full text]