Protestant Scholasticism: Essays in Reassessment

Traditionally, Protestant theology between Luther's early reforming career and the dawn of the Enlightenment has been seen in terms of decline and fall into the wastelands of rationalism and scholastic speculation. In this volume a number of scholars question such an interpretation. The editors argue that the development of Post-Reformation Protestantism can only be understood when a proper historical model of doctrinal change is adopted. This historical concern underlies the subsequent studies of theologians such as Calvin, Beza, Olevian, Baxter and the two Turrentini. The result is a significantly different reading of the development of Protestant Orthodoxy, one which both challenges the older scholarly interpretations and cliches about the relationship of Protestantism to, among other things, scholasticism and rationalism, and which demonstrates the fruitfulness of the new, historical approach. Contributors: D. V. N. Bagchi, David C. Steinmetz, Richard A. Muller, Frank A. James III, John L. Farthing, Lyle D. Bierma, R. Scott Clark, Donald Sinnema, Paul R. Schaefer, W. Robert Godfrey, Carl R. Trueman, Philip G. Ryken, John E. Platt, Joel R. Beeke, James T. Dennison Jr., Martin I. Klauber, Lowell C. Green, and David P. Scaer. ""This collection of essays…goes extensively toward a revaluation or re-examination of the phenomenon of 'scholasticism'."" –Eef Dekker, Nederlands Theologisch Tijdschrift ""This volume will serve as an excellent point of reference for the discussion of the nature of Protestant Orthodoxy and its use of scholastic method."" –Robert Kolb, Church History ""This diverse (and sometimes polemical) collection of essays will provoke discussion and stimulate further research. . . . It challenges the traditional denigration of Post-Reformation theology and makes a significant contribution to the more positive interpretation and evaluation of a range of Reformed and Lutheran theologians."" –W. P. Stephens, Emeritus Professor of Church History, University of Aberdeen Carl R. Trueman is Professor of Church History and Historical Theology, Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia. R. Scott Clark is Associate Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology, Westminster Theological Seminary, California.