Modern Christian Theology

Christopher Ben Simpson

Bloomsbury T&T Clark

An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

BLOOMSBURY

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Bloomsbury T&T Clark

An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

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First published 2016

© Christopher Ben Simpson, 2016

Christopher Ben Simpson has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Author of this work.

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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN:	HB:	978-0-56766-476-1
	PB:	978-0-56766-477-8
	ePDF:	978-0-56766-478-5
	ePub:	978-0-56766-479-2

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

Contents

Acknowledgments

List of images and figures

Introduction

0.1 Our theological situation

0.2 The history of secular modernity (a first sketch)

0.3 “Theology”

0.4 The Secular and three “secularities”

0.5 “Modern”

Part I Emerging Modernity

1 The Middle Ages and the Lost World

1.1 The Modern and the Pre-modern

1.2 The Lost World

1.2.1 Characteristics and Practices

1.2.2 The Classical Synthesis

1.2.3 Divine Transcendence and Creation

1.2.4 Paradoxical Harmonies

1.3 The Late Middle Ages

1.3.1 Nominalism and Voluntarism

1.3.2 Nature and Grace

1.3.3 Reform

1.3.4 Disconnections

2 Reformation and Humanism: 1400–1650

2.1 Reform and Reformation

2.2 Discord

2.2.1 Sola scriptura

2.2.2 Authority and Certainty

2.3 Voluntarism in the Reformation

2.4 Renaissance Humanism

2.5 Nominalism and Skepticism

2.6 The Wars of Religion and Changing Political Order

3 Enlightenments and Awakenings: 1650–1800

3.1 The Second Wave of Modernity, Tension, Variety

3.2 The Enlightenment and its Contexts

3.2.1 Enlightenments

3.2.2 The Wake of Confessional Anarchy

3.3 Enlightenment Thought

3.3.1 Descartes

3.3.2 Autonomy

3.3.3 Reason and Natural Science

3.3.4 Progress and Optimism

3.4 Enlightenment Religion

3.4.1 Dangerous Religion

3.4.2 Rational Religion

3.4.2.1 Locke

3.4.2.2 Spinoza

3.4.2.3 Lessing

3.4.2.4 Wolff

3.5 Biblical Criticism

3.5.1 Spinoza

3.5.2 The Academic Bible

3.5.3 Reimarus

3.5.4 Semler

3.6 Deism

3.6.1 Deist View of Humanity

3.6.2 Deist View of God

3.7 Exclusive Humanism

3.7.1 Hume

3.7.2 Radical Enlightenment

3.8 Awakenings

3.8.1 French ...