The Divine Decree

2020 ◽  
pp. 403-419
Author(s):  
Paul T. Nimmo
Keyword(s):  
Karl Barth ◽  
Friedrich Schleiermacher ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
The Way

This chapter explores the doctrine of the divine decree in Reformed theology, with specific attention to the tradition’s teaching on election and reprobation. It begins by considering the shape of the doctrine in general, noting some of the doctrine’s more controversial possibilities. It proceeds to focus on the way in which the early Reformed tradition understood the decree in both its positive and negative aspects, drawing variously on the texts of early Reformed writers and confessions and the works of Reformed orthodoxy. It then turns to the work of two more recent figures who have advanced significant revisions of the classical Reformed doctrine—Friedrich Schleiermacher and Karl Barth. It concludes with a concise series of recommendations in respect of ongoing reflection on this doctrine.

scholarly journals Probleme rondom die Bybel in die gereformeerde teologie: besinning vanuit ’n Christelike filosofie

2008 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
B. J. Van der Walt
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Philosophical Perspective ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
The Bible ◽  
God's Word ◽  
The Moment ◽  
The Way

Problems with the Bible in reformed theology: reflections from a Christian philosophical perspective The motivation for undertaking this investigation is the present tension in the reformed theology and in the reformed churches in South Africa. In spite of the fact that the reformed tradition confesses the authority of the Bible, theologians and church leaders are at the moment divided on how to view and interpret the Scriptures. They disagree about the message of God’s Word in the case of topical issues, for instance whether women should be allowed in ecclesiastical offices or on what the Bible has to say about homosexuality. The author is of the opinion that these tensions in the same church are caused, not only by different methods of interpreting the Bible but, at a much deeper level, also by the way in which one views the Bible according to different worldviews. In trying to resolve these problems and the resulting conflict of opinion, a Christian philosophical approach will be taken instead of the current theological efforts.

Prayer and Ethics: Reflections on Calvin and Barth

1989 ◽  
Vol 82 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-184
Author(s):  
John Kelsay
Keyword(s):  
Spiritual Exercises ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
Vision Of God ◽  
The Way

Because the title of this article is ambiguous, I will begin by sharpening the issue of the justification of prayer. The point, in the first place, is to see how Calvin and Barth, as Reformed theologians, answer the question, “Why pray?” A second interest emerges in the discussion: prayer provides a case for illustrating the significant differences in the reasoning of Calvin and Barth on matters of ethics. In particular, the case of prayer indicates the way that Calvin's ruledeontology allows an important (albeit circumscribed) role for teleological appeals in the justification of prayer. Barth's act-deonotological theory consistently eschews such appeals. And this fact leads to a third interest of the paper: what are the strengths and weaknesses of the Reformed tradition for discussions of “spirituality” and ethics? If “spirituality” entails, as some would argue, a notion of “spiritual exercises” aimed at the cultivation of certain dispositions/virtues requisite to the vision of God, can Reformed theology have a “spirituality”? I argue that it can, but only if it is possible to preserve the teleological dimensions of Calvin's justification for acts such as prayer, which (as he would have it) is the “chief exercise of faith.”

scholarly journals 'That God May Have Mercy Upon All': A Review-Essay of Matthias Gockel's Barth and Schleiermacher on the Doctrine of Election

2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Goroncy
Keyword(s):  
Review Essay ◽  
Karl Barth ◽  
Friedrich Schleiermacher ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Universal Salvation ◽  
Doctrine Of Election

AbstractThe doctrine of election lies at the heart of Reformed theology. This essay offers a review of Matthias Gockel's recent comparison between two of Reformed theology's greatest voices: that of Friedrich Schleiermacher and Karl Barth. Gockel outlines Schleiermacher's contribution to the doctrine before turning to consider its modifications in Barth's work. The advance of these two thinkers on this issue has significant implications for the ongoing questions of universal election and universal salvation. Consequently, the possibility of an apokatastasis panton arises naturally from their theology. This possibility is briefly explored.

The Election of Jesus Christ

2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-150
Author(s):  
Oliver Crisp
Keyword(s):  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Karl Barth ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Alternative Account ◽  
Popular Belief ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
Doctrine Of Election

AbstractIn modern theology the election of Christ is often associated with the work of Karl Barth. In this paper, I offer an alternative account of Christ's election in dialogue with the Post-Reformation Reformed tradition. It turns out that, contrary to popular belief, there is no single 'Reformed' doctrine of election; a range of views has been tolerated in the tradition. I set out one particular construal of the election of Christ that stays within the confessional parameters of Reformed theology, while arguing, contrary to some Reformed divines, that Christ is the cause and foundation of election.

Federalism and Reformed Scholasticism

2021 ◽  
pp. 182-198
Author(s):  
Willem van Vlastuin
Keyword(s):  
Instrumental Function ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Specific Context ◽  
Reformed Tradition

Jonathan Edwards’s understanding of the covenant is treated in this chapter. It is made clear that Edwards developed this theology in the broader context of reformed theology and in his own specific context. In his reflections on the covenant, Edwards concluded that one must draw a distinction between the covenant of redemption and the covenant of grace if one is to understand Arminianism and Antinomianism. Drawing this distinction also allows one to interpret God’s works in history. In his understanding of the covenant of grace, Edwards developed a stricter view of the covenant. In comparison with the reformed tradition and the puritan tradition of Westminster, he minimized the instrumental function that the covenant has, because he interpreted it as a marriage between Christ and his believers. The emphasis on the indwelling of the Spirit in the covenanted believers caused him to reject the preaching of law to believers. Ultimately he also rejected the Half-Way Covenant.

The Augustinian Type of Theodicy: Is It Outdated?

2011 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nico Vorster
Keyword(s):  
Karl Barth ◽  
John Calvin ◽  
John Hick ◽  
Reformed Theology

AbstractIn his famous work ‘Evil and the God of love,’ John Hick suggests that the ‘Augustinian’ type of theodicy is based on an outdated worldview and ought to be replaced by what he calls an ‘Irenaean’ type of theodicy. This article examines Hick’s claim by analyzing the views of the three main theological exponents of the Augustinian paradigm on evil namely Augustine, John Calvin and Karl Barth. It suggests that Reformed theology rethinks its linear concept of time and considers the possibility that the Fall could be an event in time with an eternal significance that works both ‘backwards’ and ‘forwards’. The article concludes that weaknesses in the Augustinian paradigm can be resolved from within, and that no need exists for Reformed theologians to replace the Augustinian paradigm with an alternative Ireneaen paradigm that reject key Scriptural teachings on creation and sin.

Theological Politics and the Davidic Monarchy: Three Examples of Theological Exegesis

2008 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 137-162
Author(s):  
Michael Allen
Keyword(s):  
Karl Barth ◽  
Divine Action ◽  
Divine Judgment ◽  
Scriptural Exegesis ◽  
Walter Brueggemann ◽  
Davidic Monarchy ◽  
Theological Politics ◽  
The Way

AbstractKarl Barth, Oliver O'Donovan, and Walter Brueggemann explicitly link their constructive political projects to extensive Scriptural exegesis. I will investigate their different readings of the Davidic monarchy within the life of Israel as a means by which to exposit and critique their respective accounts of centralized governmental authority. Along the way, three important judgments will be suggested from their theological exegesis for the task of theological politics: the analogical subordination of human government to divine judgment, an encouragement of prophetic counter-politics to ward off imperial idolatry, and affirmation of a positive creaturely witness to divine action.

scholarly journals Reformed identity revisited: Proposals in the spirit of Ecclesia Semper Reformanda est

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nico Vorster
Keyword(s):  
Historical Narrative ◽  
Original Sin ◽  
Fundamental Aspect ◽  
Reformed Theology ◽  
Reformed Tradition ◽  
Human Uniqueness ◽  
Existential Perspective

This article commences by reflecting on the evolving nature of traditions. In order to pass the continual test of plausibility and authenticity, traditions need to be flexible enough to incorporate new insights into its core intellectual matrix. Implausible elements need to be re-articulated or dispensed with. This rationale is subsequently applied to the reformed tradition who considers the necessity to continually reform itself (Ecclesia Semper Reformanda est) as a fundamental aspect of the tradition. Recently, various tenets of the reformed faith have come under scrutiny. These include the reformed faith’s understanding of God’s relation to creation; its view of human uniqueness; its understanding of original sin and the transmission of sin; and its supposed sola Scriptura approach to ethics. This article addresses these critiques by proposing that reformed theology incorporates the notion of creation as a gift in its thinking; that it dispenses with attempts to provide a historical narrative on the origin and transmission of sin and rather approach the theme from an existential perspective; and that it works towards an ethics that is scripturally based but ecclesiastically shaped.

On the Way from Schleiermacher to Barth: A Critical Reappraisal of Isaak August Dorner's Essay on Divine Immutability

2000 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 490-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthias Gockel
Keyword(s):  
Special Reference ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Karl Barth ◽  
Reciprocal Relation ◽  
Current Debate ◽  
Doctrine Of God ◽  
Historical Life ◽  
The Way

The theme of this article is the reconstruction of the doctrine of God offered by the German theologian and historian of doctrine Isaak August Dorner (1809–84), in his treatise ‘On the Proper Conception of the Doctrine of God's Immutability, with Special Reference to the Reciprocal Relation between God's Suprahistorical and Historical Life.’ Although the theme of God's immutability has received wide attention in the last years, Dorner's essay has gone largely unnoticed, and its contribution to the current debate still awaits appreciation. The following argument shall provide some building-blocks for this goal. It presupposes that Dorner's theology was shaped in dialogue with the thought of Schelling, Hegel, and Schleiermacher, but it will extend this perspective and ask for the particular systematic-theological link between Schleiermacher and Karl Barth that Dorner's essay represents.

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