Latitudinarianism in the Seventeenth-Century Church of EnglandBRILL, 1992 - 213 pages The Latitudinarians, a group of prominent clergymen in the late seventeenth-century Church of England, were articulate opponents of Anglicanism's intellectual foes. Against the challenges of Hobbism, Spinozism, Deism, scepticism, and Roman Catholicism, they presented a body of thought emphasizing reason in religion and practical morality over credal speculation. Their theology was designed to combat "practical atheism" and their sermons stressed that the chief design of Christianity was "to make men good." They advocated an alliance of religion and science, and were early participants in the Royal Society. In preaching, they developed a simpler sermon style influential for English prose. As an important part of the Anglican Church at the time of the Glorious Revolution, they helped in drafting the Revolution Settlement, the seedbed, in Macaulay's words, of subsequent personal liberties. This definition and analysis of Latitudinarianism was completed by the late Martin Griffin in 1962. A teacher and dean at Yale College, he was unable to complete its updating before his untimely death in 1988. That task has been undertaken by Richard H. Popkin. |
Contents
LATITUDINARI ANISM DEFINED | 43 |
A SYSTEM FOR THE TIMES | 49 |
THE LATITUDINARIANS CONCEPTION OF REASON | 60 |
1 | 170 |
VIII | 178 |
PART THREE THE DESIGN OF CHRISTIANITY | 189 |
BIBLIOGRAPHY | 195 |
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Latitudinarianism in the Seventeenth-Century Church of England Martin I.J. Griffin Jr Limited preview - 1992 |
Common terms and phrases
Anglican Anti-fanatical Religion Archbishop of Canterbury arguments Arianism Arminians assent atheism believe Bible Bishop Burnet Cambridge Platonism Cambridge Platonists Catholic chief Chillingworth Christ church government Church of England clergy concerning Cudworth declared Deism Deist Design of Christianity Dissenters divine doctrine duties Edward Stillingfleet eighteenth century English episcopacy Essays evidence faculties faith Falkland's Fowler Free Discourse Gilbert Burnet Glanvill Glanvill's God's grace History Holy Hooker Ibid John John Tillotson Joseph Glanvill Latitudinarians Latitudinarians thought Lloyd Locke Locke's London Lord machine de guerre mind miracles moral certainty natural religion Nonconformist notion opinions Origines Sacrae Oxford Patrick Philosophy political Popkin preaching principles Ralph Cudworth rational theology reason religious Restoration revelation Revolution Roman Royal Society salvation Scepticism Scriptures sense Sermon seventeenth seventeenth-century Latitudinarianism Socinianism Spinoza Stillingfleet supernatural Tenison things Thirty-Nine Articles Thomas Tenison Tillotson tion tradition true truth tudinarians Whichcote Wilkins Wilkins's William William Chillingworth word wrote