One of the more important debates that rocked the French Reformed Church in the 17th century was that concerning the doctrine of Moises Amyraut (1596–1664). He was part of a broader movement to revise Reformed theology among the French in a variety . . . Continue reading →
Though the erosion of Protestant liberties had already begun, the sessions of the Synod of Loudun give us a window into the government over-reach that was beginning to ramp up and would eventually take away all liberties of French Protestants. Continue reading →
I had fun talking with Nick Fullwiler and Peter Bell of the Guilt, Grace, Gratitude podcast about the history of the Reformation. What led to it and why did it happen? Is there a new Reformation under way today? Do we need . . . Continue reading →
I stumbled upon this passage whilst looking for something else. It is an excellent summary of what was widely held and taught from the first half of the 19th century through the first half of the 20th century. There are more than a few Reformed, evangelical, and Lutheran folk who continue to repeat this narrative and it is one which I have been trying to overturn. Why? Because it is simply untrue. Continue reading →
The Synod of Dort is one of the most important events in the history of the Reformed Churches. From 1618–16 delegates from the Reformed Churches the Netherlands, the British Isles, and Europe attended (or, in the case of France, were prevented by . . . Continue reading →
Heinrich Bullinger (1504–75) was Hulrych Zwingli’s successor as the Antistes (Chief Preacher) in Zürich and an influential figure in the transition between the first- and second-generation Reformers. He wrote the Second Helvetic Confession in 1561 as a private document but at the request . . . Continue reading →
[T]he metrical psalms were the ‘secret weapon of the English Reformation,’ ‘perhaps the most powerful of the persuasive weapons in the armoury of English Protestantism,’ ‘a potent weapon’ against Catholicism….Psalm-singing was never universally welcomed (Queen Elizabeth seems snobbishly to have disapproved of . . . Continue reading →
This volume was published in 2010 in celebration of Bob Godfrey’s sixth-fifth birthday. It is a collection of essays by Reformed scholars on a variety of topics. Contributors: Sinclair Ferguson, D. G. Hart, Richard Muller, Michael Horton, Kim Riddlebarger, R. C. Sproul, . . . Continue reading →
…one of the justifications for Protestants today revising and rejecting the classical theism of Nicaea and subsequent Nicene developments is the assertion that the Reformers did not subject the doctrine of God to the same rigorous examination in light of scripture as . . . Continue reading →
Because the followers of Arminius have been (mostly) ecclesiastically separated from the Reformed churches for centuries it is easy to lose sight of the fact that the Arminian crisis occurred originally within the doors of the Reformed church. Despite the grave reservations about his theology and teaching expressed by Plancius and other ministers in his Classis (Presbytery), and by his colleagues Gomarus and Trelcatius Jr, Arminius was and remained a minister in good standing in the Reformed church (Hervormde Kerk) in the Netherlands. In a way, that he conducted his minister and died within the church intensified the problem because, in the absence of any unequivocal ecclesiastical pronouncement, that fact made it possible for his apologists to say (as apologists for the Federal Vision to say today about some of their theologians, e.g., Norman Shepherd) that “he is a minister in good standing.” Continue reading →
Few of our Reformed confessional documents are as valuable and yet as neglected as the Canons of Dort. Today most who know about them think of them as the so-called and quite misleading “Five Points of Calvinism” or TULIP: Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints. Strangely, for many, especially those in the self-described Young, Restless, and Reformed movement, the “Five Points” have become the be all and end all of “Reformed theology.” The truth is that there is much more to Reformed theology than the five points. Continue reading →
It was on 18 April 1521 that Luther appeared before the powers of this world and, ostensibly, the next at at the Diet of Worms. It was there he announced publicly the formal cause of the Reformation, sola Scriptura. That doctrine says that . . . Continue reading →
It was on 18 April 1521 that Luther appeared before the powers of this world and, ostensibly, the next, at at the Diet of Worms. It was there he announced publicly the formal cause of the Reformation, sola Scriptura. That doctrine says . . . Continue reading →
Thomas Müntzer (c. 1489–1525) was a university-trained pastor and theologian. Martin Luther recommended him to be the pastor of St Catharine’s Church in Zwickau (117 km south of Leipzig). There he came into contact with three fiery souls, Nicholas Storch (c. 1500–25), Thomas . . . Continue reading →
In October of 1545, Heinrich von Wolfenbüttel (1489–1568), the Romanist Duke of Braunschweig-Lüneberg-Wolfenbüttel, in the process of a attempting to recover lands taken from him by the Protestant Schmalkald League (in 1542), was taken captive along with his sons. The Lutheran territories . . . Continue reading →
Introduction When in 1618 the Reformed theologian J. H. Alsted (1588–1638) declared that the Protestant doctrine of justification is that “article of faith by which the church stands or falls” (articulus stantis et candentis ecclesiae), he was only repeating what all Protestants . . . Continue reading →
In the course of research for a couple of purposes (a journal article and a course) I have had opportunity to read the church orders and church laws of the Dutch (Reformed) churches of the 16th and 17th centuries. I have been . . . Continue reading →
77. We do not consider the use of organs in the churches to be good especially for the preaching (services). Therefore, we judged that ministers should labor, even though organs are tolerated for a time, that they be removed at the earliest . . . Continue reading →
76. The Psalms of David translated by Pieter Datheen shall be sung in the Christian gatherings of the Netherlands churches as has been done until now, excluding the hymns which are not found in the Bible. National Synod of the Netherlands, German, . . . Continue reading →
Some years back I published a book review in the pages of Modern Reformation magazine. Some responded with a letter to the editor complaining that I had distinguished between the Reformed churches and the Baptist churches. My revised response is below. § . . . Continue reading →