DOCSLIB.ORG

An Analysis of Petrus Van Mastricht's Polemic Against Balthasar

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
An Analysis of Petrus Van Mastricht's Polemic Against Balthasar Reformed Forum Featured Article Beginning with Scripture, Ending with Worship An Analysis of Petrus van Mastricht’s Polemic against Balthasar Bekker Daniel Ragusa nd though this world with devils filled, should threaten to undo us. .”—so penned Luther in his famous hymn A Mighty Fortress is Our God. But on what epistemo- “Alogical basis could Luther (and the whole Christian church for that matter) affirm the existence of devils and spirits in this world? Was it rational to believe that spirits could interact with material bodies so that they could even be deemed a real threat to undo the church? The claim of the existence of the supernatural and the working of the supernatural upon the natural world, including men, was not a self-given, nor a datum of sense experience, but ultimately founded upon the simple teaching of Scripture. There, in the revelation of the triune God, the real struggle between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness is made known, in which heaven and earth, the spiritual and the material, angels and men are shown to be in a dynamic relationship with one another, all according to the wisdom and providence of God. 1 2 Daniel Ragusa It should come as no surprise, then, that as submission to God’s revelation in Scripture was replaced with the autonomy of man (whether in the form of rationalism or empiricism, as happened with the Enlightenment), the reality of Satan, spirits, and the su- pernatural would be, at first, doubted and, eventually, rejected in favor of either a dualistic or purely naturalistic conception of real- ity. This occurred not only in the realm of secular philosophy, but unfortunately also within the church as Cartesian philosophy began to infiltrate and theologians attempted to synthesize it with their theological systems. One such figure within the church, Balthasar Bekker (1634– 1698), a Dutch Reformed preacher, came under the “spell” of the new philosophy dominating the age and so deemed it his life mission to “disenchant the world.” And he pursued this in the most danger- ous fashion: under the guise of Reformed language and concepts. He received heavy opposition, however, from those within the Re- formed church who saw behind his façade, most notably from Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706). Mastricht responded to Bekker’s inter- nationally influential work, Betoverde Weereld (The World Bewitched), in a treatise presented to Classis Amsterdam, entitled, Ad Verum Clariss. D. Balthasaren Beckerum, S. S. Theol. Doct. Epanorthosis gratulatoria.1 Mastricht recognized that Bekker’s teaching ultimately compromised the basic Reformed principle of the authority of Scripture by subordinating it to philosophy. Yet, there was more than just the relationship of Scripture and philosophy at the (pastoral) heart of Mastricht’s polemic against Bekker. As this paper will seek to demonstrate, Mastricht perceived that by not beginning with Scripture as his principium cognoscendi, Bekker had removed the only foundation for true religion, which prohibited him entirely from building a practical superstructure of doxology and worship. In other words, Mastricht’s polemic against 1. Petrus van Mastricht, Ad Verum Clariss. D. Balthasaren Beckerum, S. S. Theol. Doct. Epanorthosis gratulatoria. Occasione Articulorum, quos Venerandae Classi Amstelodamensi exhibuit. die XXII Janu. 1692. Exarata a Petro van Mastrioht (Anthenium Schouten, 1692). Beginning with Scripture, Ending with Worship 3 Bekker included the fact that by not beginning with Scripture, his the- ology did not and could not end with worship. Thus, it was not mere- ly a matter of whose principium was correct, but who worshiped the one true God in spirit and truth. The teleological end (worship) of doctrine and theology was directly dependent upon its protological beginning (Scripture) in the mind of Mastricht. Herein we are given a view into the wedding of doctrine and life, theology and piety in the Post-Reformation Reformed thought of Mastricht, which recent scholarship has been beginning to notice in this time period in general. Mastricht does not formulate his doctrine in a rigid, cold way, but in correlation with the exegesis of Scripture and a deep concern for right praxis, a true living to God. Survey of Past Scholarship Studies on Mastricht in general have been sparse in the English lan- guage, primarily due to the lack of his work having been translated. The Reformed scholastics in the Netherlands, including Mastricht, were first introduced into the English world with Ernst Bizer’s essay that was translated from the German in 1965.2 This was the primary source at the time in English on conservative Calvinism in the Dutch Republic. He purports a pro-Cartesian interpretation of the Dutch Reformed theologians and argues that while Mastricht and others opposed Cartesianism, they were nevertheless “bound to confuse their outmoded worldview with their faith [and] their concept of truth was closer to the ‘new philosophy’ than is suspect.”3 This posi- tion, however, has been challenged by more recent scholarship. Aza Goudriaan, in his volume, Reformed Orthodoxy and Philosophy, 1625–1750, focuses on the relationship of theology and philosophy as 2. Ernst Bizer, “Reformed Orthodoxy and Cartesianism,” in Journal for Theology and the Church, vol. 2, Translating Theology into the Modern Age, ed., Robert Funk (New York, 1965); orig. “Die reformierte Orthodoxie und der Cartesianismus,” Zeitschrift für Theologie und Kirche 55 (1958). 3. Ernst Bizer, “Die reformierte Orthodoxie und der Cartesianimus,” in Zeitschrift für Theologie und Kirche 55 (1958), cited by Adriaan C. Neele, Petrus van Mastricht (1630– 1706), Reformed Orthodoxy: Method and Piety, Brill’s Series in Church History vol. 35 (Leiden, the Netherlands: Brill, 2009), 7. 4 Daniel Ragusa formulated in the thought of three key Dutch Reformed theologians: Gisbertus Voetius (1589–1676), Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706), and Anthonius Driessen (1684–1748).4 All three were at the fore- front of the philosophical debates that swirled in the Dutch Repub- lic in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, especially instigated by the arrival of René Descartes (1596–1650) in the Netherlands in 1628. “If it is true,” Goudriaan writes, “that orthodox Protestant theologians made more extensive use of philosophy than the Ref- ormation itself, the question can be posed how they actually used philosophy. Or it can be asked what theological positions they held in areas that philosophers could also reckon to their territory.”5 By studying these three theologians, Goudriaan “seeks to understand better how Dutch Reformed theology integrated and responded to philosophical views in the period from 1625 through 1750.”6 Voetius, professor of theology at the University of Utrecht, was initially the premier defender against the Cartesian encroachment upon the Dutch Reformed Church that sought to undermine both her theology and piety. This mantle would be taken up by his suc- cessor at the university, Petrus van Mastricht. As might be expected, Goudriaan demonstrates that Voetius and Mastricht were in es- sential agreement with one another in their theology and polemic against Cartesianism as they engaged it from distinctly Reformed premises and commitments. Goudriaan deals successively with specificloci where the relation- ship between theology and philosophy was acutely tried and tested, including: reason and revelation; creation and the physical world; the providential rule of God over the world; anthropological issues of the relationship between the soul and the body; and divine and natural law. He notes that both Voetius and Mastricht had aligned themselves with the older Aristotelian philosophy against the newer 4. Aza Goudriaan, Reformed Orthodoxy and Philosophy, 1625–1750: Gisbertus Voetius, Petrus Van Mastricht, and Anthonius Driessen, Brill’s Series in Church History vol. 26 (Leiden, the Netherlands: Brill, 2006). 5. Ibid., 2. 6. Ibid., 5. Beginning with Scripture, Ending with Worship 5 Enlightenment philosophy, yet the debate was not waged over whose philosophical system was correct. This in itself would have been a losing concession, for it was precisely their aim that Reformed the- ology not be corrupted by alien philosophical concepts or categories that ultimately undermined Scripture. Philosophy was instead viewed by them as an instrument or ser- vant of the most basic Reformed principle, namely, the authority of Scripture as their principium cognoscendi. For them Scripture was not subordinated to philosophy, as Bekker purported, but philosophy to Scripture. This starting point alone accounted for the full-orbed na- ture of creation with its rich diversity, including spirits and bodies, heaven and earth, which Cartesian dualism could not account for or bring into any real, dynamic relation. Because of this common commitment to the Reformed principle of Scripture’s authority, Goudriaan observes, “the theological development from Voetius to Driessen supports the broader claim that biblical Christianity out- lives the philosophical and conceptual apparatus with whose help it is explained.”7 To put it another way, philosophy was not the indis- pensable lord of theology, but its disposable handmaiden—it would, therefore, continue even when philosophies changed or failed. Goudriaan’s conclusions are consistent with what we see in Mas- tricht’s Ad Verum Clariss. D. Balthasaren Beckerum. He does not utilize Ar- istotelianism to combat Bekker’s Cartesian and Spinozistic inten- tion of disenchanting the world by casting doubt on the existence of spirits, including the devil, and rejecting any interaction between spirits and bodies. Rather, he formulates his argument on the basis of Scripture as its starting point and the true worship of God as its goal, thus wedding theology and piety. The only book-length treatment devoted wholly to Mastricht in English is Adriaan Neele’s Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706), Reformed Or- thodoxy: Method and Piety.8 In this work Neele “deals with the post-Ref- 7. Ibid., 331. 8. Adriaan C. Neele, Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706), Reformed Orthodoxy: Method and Piety, Brill’s Series in Church History vol.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Directions in the Study of Early Modern Reformed Thought
    Perichoresis Volume 14. Issue 3 (2016): 3-16 DOI: 10.1515/perc-2016-0013 DIRECTIONS IN THE STUDY OF EARLY MODERN REFORMED THOUGHT RICHARD A. MULLER * Calvin Theological Seminary ABSTRACT. Given both the advances in understanding of early modern Reformed theology made in the last thirty years, the massive multiplication of available sources, the significant liter- ature that has appeared in collateral fields, there is a series of highly promising directions for further study. These include archival research into the life, work, and interrelationships of var- ious thinkers, contextual examination of larger numbers of thinkers, study of academic faculties, the interrelationships between theology, philosophy, science, and law, and the interactions pos- itive as well as negative between different confessionalities. KEY WORDS: Reformed orthodoxy, post-Reformation Reformed thought, early modernity, ex- egesis, philosophy Recent Advances in Research The study of early modern Reformed thought has altered dramatically in the last several decades. The once dominant picture of Calvin as the prime mover of the Reformed tradition and sole index to its theological integrity has largely disappeared from view, as has the coordinate view of ‘Calvinism ’ as a monolithic theology and the worry over whether later Reformed thought re- mained ‘true ’ to Calvin. The relatively neglected field of seventeenth-century Reformed thought has expanded and developed both in the number of di- verse thinkers examined and in the variety of approaches to the materials. (Given the number of recent published studies of early modern Reformed thought, the following essay makes no attempt to offer a full bibliography, but only to provide examples of various types of research.
    [Show full text]
  • Scholasticism and the Problem of Intellectual Reform
    Tilburg University Introduction Wisse, P.M.; Sarot, M. Published in: Scholasticism reformed Publication date: 2010 Link to publication in Tilburg University Research Portal Citation for published version (APA): Wisse, P. M., & Sarot, M. (2010). Introduction: Reforming views of reformed scholasticism. In P. M. Wisse, M. Sarot, & W. Otten (Eds.), Scholasticism reformed: Essays in honour of Willem J. van Asselt (Published on the occasion of the retirement of Willem J. van Asselt from Utrecht University) (pp. 1-27). (Studies in theology and religion; No. 14). Brill. General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 30. sep. 2021 Reforming Views of Reformed Scholasticism Introduction Maarten Wisse and Marcel Sarot 1 Introduction The title of the present work is intentionally ambiguous: Scholasticism Reformed. It may be read, firstly, as a simple reversion of “Reformed scholasticism,” as indeed some of the contributions to this volume study aspects of the type of theology between the early Reformation and the Enlightenment that continued to use the traditional methods rooted in the medieval period.
    [Show full text]
  • The Synod of Dordt (1618–1619) and a Theology of Religions
    In die Skriflig / In Luce Verbi ISSN: (Online) 2305-0853, (Print) 1018-6441 Page 1 of 8 Original Research The Synod of Dordt (1618–1619) and a theology of religions Author: The Synod of Dordt (1618–1619) addressed particular theological concerns raised in a particular 1 Jaco Beyers context. The broader context of the Synod needs to be accounted for. During the 16th and 18th Affiliation: century, Roman Catholic and Protestant relations in Europe were strained. During the same 1Department of Religion period, Christianity and Islam were in conflict. Europe was engaging with foreign cultures and Studies, Faculty of Theology religions exposed through a process of geographical discoveries. Within this context the and Religion, University question arises as to how Christianity relates to non-Christian religions. The contribution of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa by the theologian, Gijsbertius Voetius (1589–1676), in creating a theological position on non-Christian religions is paramount in discerning a theology of religions (theologia religionum). Corresponding author: The Synod of Dordt and the contribution of Voetius in creating such a theology of religions will Jaco Beyers, here be the focus of the research. Voetius suggests an openness towards non-Christian religions, [email protected] as all humans are corrupt in nature and in need of redemption. God elects and saves humans Dates: from all humankind. Received: 08 Jan. 2019 Accepted: 03 Apr. 2019 Keywords: Dordt; Missional; Theology of religions; Voetius; Inter-religious relations. Published: 27 May 2019 How to cite this article: Beyers, J., 2019, ‘The Synod Introduction of Dordt (1618–1619) and Reflections on inter-religious relations are important today within a multi-religious society.
    [Show full text]
  • Calvin and World Mission
    edition afem mission classics 6 edition afem • mission classics 6 At the end of the ‘Calvin-Year’, in which Christians all over the world celebrate Calvin’s 500th birthday, this books emphasizes Calvin’s role for establishing a Protestant mission theology which later led to a worldwide expansion of Protestant Christianity. The book Thomas Schirrmacher (Ed.) presents major articles on the topic through 125 years of history and from different viewpoints from 1882 to 2002. Some of the articles discuss Calvin and his writings and thinking on mission alone. Some add the question, what kind of mission has been organized from Geneva during Calvins time, because Calvin did not only speak about evangelism and mission, but also helped establish it in reality, even though on a quite small scale compared to later centuries. CalvinCalvin and and Some articles go further, and follow the students and followers of Calvin and their relation to mission through history. Thus sometimes the wider topic of ‘Calvinism and Mission’is included. This book has not been edited to defend ‘Calvinism’ and its dogmatic system. This has WorldWorld Mission Mission even from Calvinism’s own firm position to be done on exegetical grounds. Nevertheless some of the authors wrote their articles as a defence of Calvinism or at least as very convinced Calvinists. Others write more from a neutral point of view as historical researchers. Schirrmacher (Ed.) • Calvin and W THOMAS SCHIRRMACHER (*1960) earned doctorates in Theology (Dr. Theol., 1985, Netherlands), in Cultural Anthropology (PhD, 1989, USA), in Ethics (ThD, 1996, USA), and in Sociology of Religions (Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Petrus Van Mastricht (1630-1706)
    Adriaan C. Neele (ed.) Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706) Text, Context, and Interpretation Adriaan C. Neele (ed.): Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706): Text, Context, and Interpretation © 2020, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co. KG, Göttingen ISBN Print: 9783525522103 — ISBN E-Book: 9783647522104 Adriaan C. Neele (ed.): Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706): Text, Context, and Interpretation Reformed Historical Theology Edited by Herman J. Selderhuis in Co-operation with Emidio Campi, Irene Dingel, Benyamin F. Intan, Elsie Anne McKee, Richard A. Muller, and Risto Saarinen Volume 62 © 2020, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co. KG, Göttingen ISBN Print: 9783525522103 — ISBN E-Book: 9783647522104 Adriaan C. Neele (ed.): Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706): Text, Context, and Interpretation Adriaan C. Neele (ed.) Petrus vanMastricht (1630–1706): Text, Context, and Interpretation With aForeword by Carl R. Trueman Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht © 2020, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co. KG, Göttingen ISBN Print: 9783525522103 — ISBN E-Book: 9783647522104 Adriaan C. Neele (ed.): Petrus van Mastricht (1630–1706): Text, Context, and Interpretation Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek: The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data available online: https://dnb.de. © 2020, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co. KG, Theaterstraße 13, D-37073 Göttingen All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the publisher. Typesetting: 3w+p, Rimpar Printed and bound: Hubert & Co. BuchPartner, Göttingen Printed in the EU Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht Verlage | www.vandenhoeck-ruprecht-verlage.com ISSN 2197-1137 ISBN 978-3-647-52210-4 © 2020, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht GmbH & Co.
    [Show full text]
  • Johannes Cocceius on Covenant
    MJT 14 (2003) 37-57 EXPROMISSIO OR FIDEIUSSIO? A SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY THEOLOGICAL DEBATE BETWEEN VOETIANS AND COCCEIANS ABOUT THE NATURE OF CHRIST’S SURETYSHIP IN SALVATION HISTORY by Willem J. van Asselt Voetians and Cocceians TOWARDS THE END of the seventeenth century a controversy erupted over the interpretation of the relation between the historical death of Christ and the associated doctrine of the forgiveness of sins. This controversy had its origin in the dissemination of the ideas of the Leyden professor Johannes Cocceius (1603-1669) and his followers. Resistance to these ideas came from the followers of the Utrecht professor Gisbertus Voetius (1587-1676). The discussion centered on the interpretation of the concept of Christ’s sponsio or suretyship and was essentially an intensification of standing differences between these two strands in the Reformed Church of the seventeenth century, namely, on the interpretation of the fourth commandment (the Sabbath) and the doctrine of justification. While these issues may initially seem of merely academic interest, much more proved to be at stake as the debate developed. The theological quarrel had repercussions at the social and political level, and worked as a catalyst in the formation of group identity. Although the altercations between Voetians and Cocceians continued far into the eighteenth century, they were not as destructive as the Arminian/Gomarian conflict of the first half of the seventeenth century. Voetians and Cocceians continued to worship in the same church, and accepted a degree of pluriformity in church practice. To understand why the quarrels between Voetians and Cocceians dominated the life of the Republic for so long, one has to realize the extent of the uneasiness among 38 • MID-AMERICA JOURNAL OF THEOLOGY members of the Reformed Church over the rise of the new Cartesian philosophy and certain developments in natural science.
    [Show full text]
  • Calvinist, Arminian, and Baptist Perspectives on Soteriology CONTENTS Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry SPRING 2011 • Vol
    SPRING 2011 • VOLUME 8, NUMBER 1 Calvinist, Arminian, and Baptist Perspectives on Soteriology CONTENTS Journal for Baptist Theology and Ministry SPRING 2011 • Vol. 8, No. 1 © The Baptist Center for Theology and Ministry Editor-in-Chief Associate Editor Assistant Editor Charles S. Kelley, Th.D. Christopher J. Black, Ph.D. Suzanne Davis Executive Editor & Book Review Editors Design and Layout Editors BCTM Director Page Brooks, Ph.D. Frank Michael McCormack Steve W. Lemke, Ph.D. Archie England, Ph.D. Gary D. Myers Dennis Phelps, Ph.D. Calvinist, Arminian, and Baptist Perspectives on Soteriology EDITORIAL INTRODUCTION Calvinist, Arminian, and Baptist Perspectives on Soteriology 1 Steve W. Lemke PART I: THOMAS GRANTHAM’S VIEW OF SALVATION Thomas Grantham’s Theology of the Atonement and Justification 7 J. Matthew Pinson RESPONSE to J. Matthew Pinson’s “Thomas Grantham’s Theology of the Atonement and Justification” 22 Rhyne Putman RESPONSE to J. Matthew Pinson’s “Thomas Grantham’s Theology of the Atonement and Justification” 25 Clint Bass RESPONSE to J. Matthew Pinson’s “Thomas Grantham’s Theology of the Atonement and Justification” 29 James Leonard RESPONSE to Panel 34 Matthew Pinson CONTENTS PART II: CALVINIST AND BAPTIST SOTERIOLOGY The Doctrine of Regeneration in Evangelical Theology: The Reformation to 1800 42 Kenneth Stewart The Bible’s Storyline: How it Affects the Doctrine of Salvation 59 Heather A. Kendall Calvinism and Problematic Readings of New Testament Texts 69 Glen Shellrude Beyond Calvinism and Arminianism: Toward a Baptist Soteriology 87 Eric Hankins Joe McKeever’s Cartoon 101 Book Reviews 102 Reflections 127 Back Issues 128 The Baptist Center for Theology and Ministry is a research institute of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.
    [Show full text]
  • Toward the Worship of God As Actus Purus
    TMSJ 31/2 (Fall 2020) 213–230 TOWARD THE WORSHIP OF GOD AS ACTUS PURUS Alan Quiñones Ph.D. Candidate, The Master’s Seminary God is Actus Purus, which is to say that He is eternally all that He can be. Potentiality is a trait of creatures, not God. The concept of Actus Purus was first articulated by Aristotle in his argument for the unmoved mover, and through its history, the church has considered this notion a valid articulation of the absolute perfection and preeminence of God over all things. This paper, then, explores the exegetical footing of Actus Purus. It also will seek to understand its implications for systematic theology. Careful exegesis will demonstrate that the doctrine of pure actuality is deducible from Scripture by good and necessary consequence. It is an instrument that helps to sound the unbounded perfection of God and arrive at a more settled understanding of His meticulous sovereignty. In short, pure actuality conveys that life cannot but belong to God, because He decrees, wills, knows, and does everything entirely from Himself. * * * * * Introduction There is an unfathomable chasm between God and creation. The soul can therefore only rise toward God by first supporting itself on the created order, where the Divine perfections are stamped.1 Christian theology, on the other hand, faces a monumental challenge in seeking to articulate the fundamental perfection and primacy of God over His creatures. After all, He is the eternal and infinite Creator of a temporal and finite world. More than that, He is Being, from whom all existence is derived; Sustainer, through whom all things are upheld; and End, to whom all things are (Rom 11:36).
    [Show full text]
  • Voet's Criticism of De Groot
    1NATURAL LAW: VOET’S CRITICISM OF DE GROOT HJ Erasmus* Keywords: Hugo de Groot; Jacobus Arminius; Franciscus Gomarus; Gisbertus Voetius; Johannes Voet; freedom of will; predestination; determinism; Remonstrants and Counter-Remonstrants; orthodox Calvinism; lapsarianism; Synod of Dordt; the law of nature 1 Introduction Hugo de Groot (Grotius) (1583-1645), internationally known as the father of international law, is also celebrated for his seminal works on the law of nature and for his exposition of seventeenth century Dutch civil law in his Inleidinge tot de Hollandsche Rechts-geleerdheid, first published in 1631. Johannes Voet’s principal work is his comprehensive Commentarius ad Pandectas, published in two volumes in 1698 and 1704. In the commentary, his explanations of Roman law are followed by that of modern law (the jus hodiernum). The latter are to a large extent based on his lectures, and among the sources quoted, De Groot’s Inleidinge “occupies pride of place”.1 1 See Feenstra &Waal 1975: 41. * Former Judge of the High Court of South Africa; Research Associate, Department of Private Law, University of Stellenbosch. † We regret to announce that the author of this article, former Judge HJ Erasmus, passed away on 15 June 2016. An obituary of this much-valued contributor to our journal appears in this volume of Fundamina. Fundamina DOI: 10.17159/2411-7870/2016/v22n1a3 Volume 22 | Number 1 | 2016 Print ISSN 1021-545X/ Online ISSN 2411-7870 pp 40-52 40 NATURAL LAW: VOET’S CRITICISM OF DE GROOT Voet does not enjoy the international acclaim accorded to De Groot, and his general views on the nature of law and the law of nature, as expounded in the first part of the first title of his Commentary, has not received much attention in scholarly discourse.2 Yet he remains a foremost representative of Dutch legal scholarship of the seventeenth century.
    [Show full text]
  • Reformed Confessions and Scholasticism. Diversity and Harmony
    Perichoresis Volume 14. Issue 3 (2016): 17-43 DOI: 10.1515/perc-2016-0014 REFORMED CONFESSIONS AND SCHOLASTICISM. DIVERSITY AND HARMONY ANDREAS J. BECK * Evangelical Theological Faculty, Leuven ABSTRACT. This paper discusses the complex relationship of Reformed confessions and Re- formed orthodox scholasticism. It is argued that Reformed confessions differ in genre and method from Reformed scholastic works, although such differences between confessional and scholastic language should not be mistaken for representing different doctrines that are no longer in harmony with each other. What is more, it is precisely the scholastic background and training of the authors of such confessions that enabled them to place their confessional writings in the broader catholic tradition of the Christian church and to include patristic and medieval theological insights. Thus proper attention to their scholastic background helps to see that at least in some confessions the doctrine of predestination, for instance, is not as ‘rigid’ as one might think at first sight. In order to demonstrate that the doctrine of the Reformed confessions was much in line with the scholastic theology of Reformed orthodoxy, this paper discusses, after having explained the terms ‘Reformed orthodoxy’ and ‘sch olasticism ’, the early Reformed scho- lastic theologians Beza, Zanchi, and Ursinus, who also have written confessional texts. The paper also includes a more detailed discussion of the Belgic Confession and the scholastic background of the Canons of Dordt and the Westminster Confession , thereby focusing on the doctrines of God, providence, and predestination. KEY WORDS: Reformed confessions, scholasticism, Belgic Confession , Synod of Dordt, predesti- nation Introduction Around 1565, we observe not only the rise of most national Reformed con- fessions, but also the beginning of Reformed orthodoxy and scholasticism.
    [Show full text]
  • The Economy of the Covenants
    THE ECONOMY OF THE COVENANTS BETWEEN G OD AND M AN VOLUME 1 Herman Witsius with Introductions by Joel R. Beeke and J. I. Packer Reformation Heritage Books Grand Rapids, Michigan Job Name: 568639 PDF Page: txt_568639.p1.pdf erinw The Economy of the Covenants Reprinted 2010 Published by Reformation Heritage Books 2965 Leonard St., NE Grand Rapids, MI 49525 616-977-0889 / Fax: 616-285-3246 e-mail: [email protected] website: www.heritagebooks.org The facsimile in this volume is of The Economy of the Covenants between God and Man (London, 1822). The publisher is deeply grateful to the den Dulk Foundation for making this reprint possible. ISBN 978-1-60178-095-9 For additional Reformed literature, both new and used, request a free book list from Reformation Heritage Books at the above address. Job Name: 568639 PDF Page: txt_568639.p2.pdf erinw THE LIFE AND THEOLOGY OF HERMAN WITSIUS (1636–1708) by Joel R. Beeke Herman Wits (Latinized as Witsius) was born on February 12, 1636, at Enkhuizen, The Netherlands, to God-fearing parents who dedicated their first child to the Lord even before he was born. His father, Nicholas Wits (1599–1669), was a man of some renown, having been an elder for more than twenty years, a member of Enkhuizen’s city council, and an author of devotional poetry. 1 Witsius’s mother, Johanna, was a daughter of Herman Gerard, pastor for thirty years of the Reformed church in Enkhuizen. Herman was named after his grandfather with the prayer that he might emulate his godly example.
    [Show full text]
  • Gisbertus Voetius A.C. Duker the Presbyterian and Reformed Review 5:714-715
    Gisbertus Voetius A.C. Duker The Presbyterian and Reformed Review 5:714-715. [1894] Voetius occupies a place of high honor among the Dutch theologians of the seventeenth century. He was, perhaps, the ablest, the most learned and the most influential of all Calvinistic divines belonging to that period so rich in eminent names. Well-nigh every factor in the vigorous and multiform life of the Reformed Church of his days has found in him a classical and thoroughly Calvinistic expression. He was a scholastic of the first rank, who knew how to handle the weapons of his craft with great skill and subtlety; a mystic of a deeply pious vein; a writer of exceptional fertility; and a teacher of wide influence. His biography, when fully written, will reflect a piece of Church history covering the greater part of the seventeenth century and of absorbing interest for everybody who desires to study the development of Calvinism in Holland and elsewhere. There is hardly an event of importance in this period with which the name of Voetius has not been associated. He sat in the Synod of Dort, was one of the strongest opponents of Arminianism and Romanism, afterwards entered the lists against Cartesianism, warned against the extravagances of Labadism, and took a prominent share in the battle against Cocceianism—all this in addition to his endless warfare with the warlike Maresius. A biography of Voetius has been wanting hitherto. Dr. Duker in preparing one is doing a most useful work. The part now before us constitutes the first half of the first volume, and deals with the youthful years of Voetius and his period of study spent in the university and the “State’s College” at Leiden.
    [Show full text]