Neo-Calvinism and the French Revolution

Paris, France – August 23rd-24th, 2012

Conference

Kampen Theological University, the Archive and Documentation Centre and the Historical Documentation Centre at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam invite you to a two-day conference on neo-Calvinism (Abraham Kuyper, Herman Bavinck, Groen van Prinsterer et al) and the French Revolution.

Speakers

• Prof. George Harinck (VU Amsterdam, TU Kampen)
• Prof. James Bratt (Calvin College)
• Dr. Mark Elliott (St Andrews)
• Dr. James Eglinton (TU Kampen)
• Robert Covolo (Fuller)

Theme

The French Revolution was the scene of much intellectual and social upheaval. Its impact touched a wide range of subjects: the relationship of the church to the state, social relationships, science, literature, fashion, philosophy and theology. Although the French Revolution’s momentum was felt across Europe and North America, it met a particularly interesting response in the Netherlands, at that time the scene of a burgeoning neo-Calvinist movement. In that context, the likes of Groen van Prinsterer, Abraham Kuyper and Herman Bavinck responded to the French Revolution’s ideals and influence in a variety of intellectual and practical ways.

This conference will focus on the historical and theological aspects of this neo-Calvinist response to the French Revolution.

Call for Papers

The conference organisers welcome proposals for short papers. Proposals (approximately 300 words) should be sent to jeglinton@tukampen.nl by May 4th. Conference papers will be in English.

Registration

The conference registration fee is €40. Conference places must be reserved by email (jeglinton@tukampen.nl) by May 30th.

Location and Accommodation

The conference will be held at:

The Library
The American Church in Paris
65 quai d’Orsay
75007 Paris
France

Participants are responsible for finding their own accommodation. The organisers suggest the Adveniat Youth Hostel (http://www.adveniat-paris.org/) as a well-priced, comfortable and convenient option.

Bavinck Issue (29/1 — Spring 2011)

Guest Editorial
JAMES EGLINTON
1-3

Bavinck’s Use of Wisdom Literature in Systematic Theology
JOHN BOLT
4-23

Bavinck’s Use of Augustine as an Antidote to Ritschl
MARK W. ELLIOTT
24-40

Herman Bavinck and His Reformed Sources on the Call to Grace: A Shift in Emphasis towards the Internal Work of the Spirit
HENK VAN DEN BELT
41-59

The Religious Character of Modernism and the Modern Character of Religion: A Case Study of Herman Bavinck’s Engagement with Modern Culture
GEORGE HARINCK
60-77

Herman Bavinck on the Imitation of Christ
DIRK VAN KEULEN
78-91

Herman Bavinck and the Basis of Christian Certainty
DONALD MACLEOD
92-107

Bavinck, Barth, and the Uniqueness of the Eucharist
PAUL T. NIMMO
108-126

HT: Naselli

In the editorial Trueman recounts his introduction to Bavinck’s writings and then asks a pointed question: Is Bavinck relevant today?

In conversation with theological students around the country, it often seems to me that one major problem faced by many is the development of a way of thinking theologically which neither retreats into a ghetto and adopts a ‘seek out and destroy’ mentality towards every new idea which crosses their path, nor capitulates unconditionally at the first objection to their faith which they cannot immediately answer. Such students need their theological confidence boosted by good role models of a kind provided neither by the tunnel-vision of the specialist scholars who epitomise the fragmented nature of the theological discipline today, nor the platitudes of self-appointed evangelical gurus whose latest blockbuster tells them what they know already. What they really need to do is to read someone like Bavinck…

Download the entire editorial here (pdf).

This side of several months pondering Bavinck’s writings on justification, here’s my best attempt at a single (run-on) sentence articulating his view–

Justification, the outstanding blessing of salvation, is the Triune God’s counterintuitive gift of forensic acquittal and right status, an end-time decision announced now in the middle of history, consisting of Christ’s own righteous obedience freely imputed to sinners united to Christ through self-divesting and Christ-riveted faith.

It is a real gift. Many of us have been exposed to Bavinck for the first time in any significant way this past decade, with the translation (an excellent one) of his Reformed Dogmatics into English. Rich, wise, Bible-saturated, philosophically aware, reverent, courageous–it makes one want to know more about this man who wrote the systematic theology Henri Blocher calls the best in the Reformed tradition since Calvin.

Ron Gleason has come through for us. Ron spent many years in Holland, giving him facility with Dutch and a front-row knowledge of Dutch culture and history. This included studying at the university where both Kuyper and Bavinck taught a century ago. He did a PhD at Westminster (East), finishing in 2001 and writing a dissertation on Bavinck, arguing that the notion of union with Christ is the centerpoint of Bavinck’s theology. Today Ron pastors here.

It is a good biography. I know neither the Dutch language nor the Dutch culture and history like Ron does, so any kind of review is a bit like me critiquing Lebron’s dunks when I can’t even touch the rim.

But some might be pondering whether they should invest the money and (more importantly) the time into reading this biography, so perhaps a few thoughts would be useful.

1. I find that Christian biography of people who have made an unusual difference in the world is almost invariably encouraging. Yes, it can be paralyzing or threatening, I suppose, to read about the giants of the faith, but far more pervasive in reading Christian biography is the encouragement of seeing, in specific historical circumstances, how God used a frail man or woman to accomplish great things. This biography was no exception.

2. There’s hardly a better man to write the book–someone who did a PhD on Bavinck, who is serving in the local church and thus immersed in the realities of life in a fallen world, who has a deep conviction about the Lord’s providence in all things (this came through often in the book), and, most of all, who knows Herman Bavinck the way you know your own signature.

3. Ron does an outstanding job tracing Bavinck’s career as a churchman and politician (American readers should understand how intertwined the two often were in nineteenth century Holland). Bavinck’s involvement in seeking to unify the two Reformed separatist movements is an interesting story, well told. Perhaps the greatest strength of the book is fleshing out the ecclesial world in which Bavinck was immersed throughout his life.

4. Readers wanting to learn about Bavinck’s personal life and theology will need to look elsewhere. No biography can do everything, and we are much the richer for having this account of ecclesial, academic, and political events surrounding Bavinck’s life. Yet one wishes the book had painted a bit more of a portrait of the man himself, his family (the brief comments on his daughter and wife on pp. 416-17, 426, respectively, cry out for elaboration), and his theology (one finds occasional forays into Bavinck’s interaction with Kuyper’s supralapsarianism and the related notion of eternal justification, but not much more). Yet for what I learned of Bavinck’s life in other ways, I am enriched and grateful. And it could be that there simply is not much to be found, historiographically, on his personal and family life.

5. The book errs a bit on the side of hagiography. Ron speaks extensively and repeatedly on the errors of Kuyper and some of the other men with whom Bavinck worked, but Bavinck seems to receive special treatment. Perhaps he truly was in a category of his own when it comes to personal integrity and relational wisdom and the exercise of love. I think to some extent this is likely true. Yet more needs to be candidly said of Bavinck’s weaknesses. Yes, Ron does affirm that Bavinck had ‘feet of clay’ (pp. 125, 223), and there is an extended section on Bavinck’s error in going ahead too fast with his 1899 proposal to unite the churches. But the former is not explained, and the latter receives mere puzzlement from the author.

6. Regarding style, the book moves along fairly well, footnotes are kept to a minimum, Dutch words and phrases are used judiciously, and the book (mercifully) is not written to impress but to illumine. Yet there are some annoying stylistic idiosyncrasies (such as a penchant for using ‘vis-a-vis’ to a distracting degree), is frequently overdramatic in a way that feels forced, and is stilted and at times confusing in terms of flow (e.g., ch. 7 is entitled ‘A Tear in a Laugh’ yet this phrase is not explained until ch. 14). Overall, the book is not elegantly written (as, e.g., Fred Zaspel’s recent theology of Warfield is), and one wishes an editor had improved the style and ensured that the content flowed well.

Summary: While there are weaknesses in content and tone, the overriding feeling in closing the book is one of immense gratitude for this work. This was a significant labor and we in the English-speaking world are greatly enriched by our brother Ron Gleason’s fruitful labors. I hope this is not the last that Gleason teaches us about this theologian he knows so well.

A few days later my friend and gracious boss surprised me with a new iPad which added to the fun of the latest addition to my electronic library. The free Logos app for the iPad grants users access to just about their entire library. Together the iPad and the Logos app combine to create a highly portable library on the road. For a closer look at this recent fusion of the iPad, Logos, and Bavinck, here are three screenshots (click for larger):

• Who was Herman Bavinck?
• What is the mission and role of the Dutch Translation Society in translating the works of Bavinck and other theologians?
• The translation project took a decade to complete. Can you describe the process? What was your role in the translation and editorial process?
• You write in the introduction to Bavinck’s Prolegomena in volume 1 that “the Gereformeerd Dogmatiek represents the concluding high point of some four centuries of remarkably productive Dutch Reformed theological reflection,” including “Voetius, De Moor, Vitringa, van Mastricht, Witsius, and Walaeus.” How does Bavinck both reflect and develop the theological system of his predecessors?

Read Bolt’s answers here.

… Gleason has certainly captured the character and career of this essential theologian in a rare non-stuffy, non-boring lucid biography. We highly recommend this book especially to young pastors and seminarians worried about the great divide between the academy and the church, evangelism and a gospel-centered family. Gleason’s book is available May 31, 2010 from P&R Publications. Pray for hardcover.