The Kingdom of God, the Highest Good Herman Bavinck Translated by Nelson D
TBR 2 (2011): 133–170 The Kingdom of God, The Highest Good Herman Bavinck Translated by Nelson D. Kloosterman * INTRODUCTION [28] Amid all the distress surrounding the discipline of theology today, it is undoubtedly a heartening phenomenon that the science identified as Ethics seems to be enjoying an unheralded resurgence of interest, compared to former times. This does not mean, of course, that everything in this discipline is flourishing. Not all of the causes to which Ethics is indebted for this resurgence are heartwarming. The way in which people try to dislodge the firm foundations of this discipline, or seek to caricature and deny its eternal principles, is far from encouraging. But that people are curious about the moral life and attempt to clarify its nature, principle, and essence, do provide reasons for rejoicing and gratitude, I think. Formerly, the discipline of Ethics received sparse attention, consisting mostly of explaining the doctrines of virtues and duties. Simply knowing what kind of persons we must be is inadequate, *The following essay is a lecture that Bavinck delivered to the Student Corps of the Theological School in Kampen—Fides Quaerit Intellectum—on 3 February 1881. The lecture was originally serialized in De Vrije Kerk: Vereeniging van Christelijke Gereformeerde Stemmen 7 (April–August 1881): 4:185–92; 5:224– 34; 6:271–77; 7:305–14; 8:353–60. These articles were republished as a single essay in the collection of Bavinck essays prepared by his brother, C.B. Bavinck, Kennis en Leven (Kampen: Kok, 1922), 28–56. The pagination from Kennis en Leven is provided in brackets: [ ].
[Show full text]