Three major presuppositions underlie the historic Protestant system. The first is that the New Testament should explain the Old. This is one of the most basic principles of Bible study. The New Testament must be seen as the final authority and interpreter . . . Continue reading →
Reformation History
Whence the Reformation Solas?
From where do we get the Reformation solas? I get this question with some frequency, usually around Reformation Day. Here is a preliminary answer: The ideas were present from the earliest stage of the Reformation, but the actual phrases developed over time. . . . Continue reading →
A Topical Index To Luther’s Sermons
Trans. J. N. Lenker et al. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001) prepared by Shane Lems, M.Div © 2007 Shane Lems. All Rights Reserved. Usage: You may link to this index but it may not be copied wholesale without the permission of the author . . . Continue reading →
PT730 Studies In Distintives And Issues In The United Reformed Churches In North America (URCNA)
A directed study intended to supplement the existing preparation of URCNA students studying for the pastoral ministry and to focus their preparation for classical examinations. Prerequisite (may be taken simultaneously): HT/ST615 Reformed Confessions. 1 credit (without a term paper) or 2 Credits . . . Continue reading →
The Decades of Heinrich Bullinger
Fifty Sermons Divided into Five Decades Containing the Chief and Principle Points of Christian Religion (1587 English Translation) Table of Contents Prepared by Ryan Glomsrud M.A. (D.Phil. Cand., Pembroke College, Oxon) Volume I The Preface (pp. 1-11) Of the Four General Synods . . . Continue reading →
Summary Of Zwingli On Baptism
Exposition of the Articles (1524) © R. Scott Clark, 2000; 2014. Baptism is being enrolled by an “oath of allegiance” (sacramentum) into the church visible, an initiation into the people of God. If there is one people of God, with one faith, in . . . Continue reading →
A Brief Outline Of Luther’s Bondage Of The Will
© R. S. Clark, 2000; 2014. I Luther’s Critique of Erasmus (2/3) II Luther’s Positive Development of the Doctrine of Predestination from SS (1/3) Major propositions: 1 A fallen sinner is totally unable to cooperate with divine grace. 2 Salvation is exclusively . . . Continue reading →
Select Bibliography Of The Reformation
(rev. January 2006) © R. Scott Clark, 2006. All Rights Reserved. 1. References Bagchi, David and David C. Steinmetz, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Reformation Theology (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004). Bauman, M., M. Klauber, ed., Historians of the Christian Tradition (Nashville, 1995). Brady, T. A., . . . Continue reading →
A Brief Glossary Of The Medieval And Reformation Church
Revised 2007, 2011. This is a study guide for my students that began life in the mid-1990s as a handout revised from a glossary by Alister McGrath for Blackwells. § A Abelard, Peter (1079-1142). Author of Sic et Non, an influential scholastic collection of . . . Continue reading →
CH602 Medieval And Reformation Church
Course Description The first half of the course will study the development of medieval theology, doctrinal controversies, the development of the church, monasticism, mysticism, and the forerunners of the Reformation. The second half will study the theology and practices of the Protestant . . . Continue reading →
Chronology Of the Medieval And Reformation Church
Drafted c. 1995. Revised 2007 1100 c. b. Peter Lombard (1160). Magister Sententiae). 1155-58 Lombard publishes Sententiarum libri quatuor 1200 c. Albertus Magnus (d.1280) 1215 Fourth Lateran Council c. 1225 b. Thomas at Aquino (d. 1274) 1231 Heidelberg becomes capitol of Palatinate . . . Continue reading →
Iustitia Imputata Christ: Alien or Proper to Luther’s Doctrine of Justification?
“Iustitia Imputata Christi: Alien or Proper to Luther’s Doctrine of Justification?” in Concordia Theological Quarterly 70 (2006): 269–310.
Calvin on the Eucharist
by W. Robert Godfrey Originally published in Modern Reformation MAY/JUNE 1997 Both Luther and Zwingli had crucial points to make in the debate over the Lord’s Supper, but in my judgment, it was John Calvin who best resolved the question. Calvin began . . . Continue reading →
Calvin On Natural Law (1998)
R. Scott Clark, “Calvin and the Lex Naturalis,” Stulos Theological Journal 6 (1998): 1–22.
Reformation Charts
Reformation Theology Contrasted with Rome’s (Pt 1) Reformation Theology Contrasted with Rome’s (Pt 2)
The “Calvin as Tyrant” Meme
For a fellow who has been dead since 1564 and for a movement that, socially considered, is little more than a demographic blip (about 500,000 people in North America) Calvin and Calvinism continue to receive a remarkable amount of attention in the . . . Continue reading →
Calvin and Trent on the Causes of Justification
CALVIN AND TRENT ON THE CAUSES OF JUSTIFICATION Causes Trent Calvin Final The glory of God and and Jesus Christ eternal life The glory of divine justice and goodness Efficient The mercy of God The mercy of God Meritorious Merits of Christ’s . . . Continue reading →
What Would Calvin Say About Premillennialism?
In 2007 a prominent evangelical (Bible church) pastor suggested that were Calvin alive today he would be premillennial and that true Calvinists should be (pre-trib, Dispensational) premillennialists. Some of us were a little surprised about this breakthrough in Calvin studies coming from . . . Continue reading →
Whence the Reformation Solas?
I get this question with some frequency, usually around Reformation Day. Here is a preliminary answer: The ideas were present from the earliest stage of the Reformation, but the actual phrases developed over time. The earliest phrases were sola gratia (by grace . . . Continue reading →
Regensburg and Regensburg II: Trying to Reconcile Irreconcilable Differences on Justification
Originally published in Modern Reformation magazine (Sept/Oct, 1998) 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 . . . Continue reading →