A Brief History of Reformed Theology

The material of this article is taken from Herman Bavinck’s Reformed Dogmatics: Prolegomena Volume 1 pages 175 – 204. My goal is just to provide a brief overview of the history of Reformed theology. The first that comes to mind is the connection of Reformed theology with the Lutherans. Bavinck identifies that the major difference between Lutherans and Calvinists is one of principle. Calvinists think theologically whereas the Lutherans think anthropologically. This difference in principle is evident in matters of emphasis. The Calvinists emphasize the eternal decree of God, election, the glory of God, and the battle against paganism and idolatry. On the other hand, Lutherans emphasize the history of redemption, justification, salvation of man, and the war against Judaism and works-righteousness. This difference in principle explains the controversies in other areas of theology between these two versions of Reformation.

Bavinck admits the scarcity in the study of the history of Reformed theology. The task is not easy. It has to overcome at least two difficulties. One, Reformed theology is not confined in just a single country. Another thing is that no single creed represents the entire Reformed theology.

Bavinck acknowledges that Reformed theology starts with the work of Zwingli. However, unlike Calvin, Zwingli was not able to free himself from humanistic and philosophical ideas in his theological formulation. He also failed to come up with a coherent system of thought. Regarding Bullinger, Bavinck claims that Calvin does not differ with him in terms of material substance but only in the aspect of methodology. All in all, it was the works of Calvin, which were considered as the primary force behind the expansion of Reformed Theology in Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, England, and Scotland. However, Reformed theology encountered great difficulty both in England and Scotland not only under Roman Catholicism but also under English reformation. In Germany, Reformed theology was less dependent on Calvin due to the presence of many scholars such as Heppe.

After a brief period of triumph during the early part of 16th century, Reformed theology suffers consistent decline. By the end of 16th century this decline was first evident by the appearance of the influence of scholasticism among reformed thinkers through the leadership of Zanchius and Polanus (180). During 17th century various principles spread, which undermined Reformed theology. Humanism ranks first. The Anabaptists and Socinians, which “represent the mystical and rational element in religion and theology”(184) add to its decline. The common features among these ideas were “break with authority, subjectivism, and human autonomy” (ibid.). In philosophy, Cartesianism began its rule. Bavinck explains the nature and influence of Cartesianism during this period:

In principle Cartesianism was a complete emancipation from all authority and objectivity and an attempt, epistemologically, to build the entire cosmos from within the subject, out of his thinking: ‘I think, therefore I am; therefore the world exists; therefore God is.’ The repudiation of all tradition and the seeming certainty of the mathematical method, by means of which Descartes concluded to the existence of the world, of God, and of the mind, was pleasing to many people…all adopted Cartesianism and introduced rationalism into the church. The relation between reason and revelation now became the most crucial issue. Reason emancipated itself from revelation and attempted to regain its independence (185).

In theology, a method similar to Cartesianism gained the upper hand. This time, it was through the work of Johannes Cocceeius (1603-69). Bavinck identifies the uniqueness of Cocceianism with its federalist method. Again, Bavinck explains the nature and danger of Cocceianism:

… was a dogmatics along biblical-historical lines. It made Scripture not only the primary principle and norm but also the object of dogmatics and thus advanced a theology of Scripture against the theology that had been handed down, the covenant against the decree, history against the idea, the anthropological against the theological method. The danger of this method consisted in the fact that it drew the eternal and immutable down into the stream of the historical and the temporal and thus transferred the notion of becoming to God himself” (185).

Both Cartesianism and Cocceianism completed their victory by the end of 18th century (186). Other forces that weakened Reformed theology are deism, independitism, Quakerism. realism, nominalism, empiricism, and skepticism. The common vision in all these individualistic currents is described by Bavinck as:

Emancipation from tradition, from the creeds, and from ecclesiastical organization culminated in a situation in which every believer was on his own, detached from Scripture, possessing within himself – his mind, the inner light – the source of his religious life and knowledge. All that which is objective – Scripture, Christ, church, office, sacrament – was set aside” (188).

“In the beginning of the 19th century, reformed theology was almost everywhere in a sad state of decline” (192). In Germany, “the Enlightenment, the Union (1718), and the influence of Kant and Schleiermacher all combined forces that contributed to the deterioration of Reformed theology. Bavinck describes that during his day “there is not a single theological university or school left that stands on the basis of the Reformed confession” (194). Bavinck turning to describe Reformed theology in North America paints the same unpromising future. He concludes, “Reformed churches and theology in America are in serious crisis. The dogmas of the infallibility of Holy Scripture, of the Trinity, of the fall and human impotence, or particular or limited atonement, of election and reprobation, and of everlasting punishment are either secretly denied or openly rejected. There is clearly no rosy future awaiting Calvinism in America” (204).