Calvin and Winthrop Between the Ages: Theological Aesthetics and the Affirmation of Ordinary Life (Part 3 of 4)

The Sick Bed by Edward Prentis (1836) This is part 3 of a four-part series (see Part 1 and Part 2). In this post I discuss Calvinist theological aesthetics. It relates to my posts on natural beauty and the Art of Being Calvinist. Calvin’s Ephemeral Aesthetics To a certain extent, the theological shift in the …

Groundwork for a Reformed Theology of Public Aesthetics

The Apostle Paul said that “the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Galatians 5:14). How one goes about loving one’s neighbor is the subject of much discussion and controversy in Christianity. Among Reformed Christians, the debate on Christian public engagement between the Two-Kingdom advocates, the Kuyperians, the …

Fudging Aristotle: A Digression (Part 6): Fudging God?

“The Roman Communion is a creature of the 14th century and even more profoundly, of the 16th century (Trent). The sacramental system she reveres is a 14th century invention. As late as 9th century no one knew anything about 7 sacraments. Ask Radbertus and Ratramnus, and ask the latter about transubstantiation; he thought it was …

The Art of Being Calvinist: Imitating God in the Divine Drama

γίνεσθε οὖν μιμηταὶ τοῦ θεοῦ, ὡς τέκνα ἀγαπητά, καὶ περιπατεῖτε ἐν ἀγάπῃ, καθὼς καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς.  Ephesians 5:1 Calvinism and art have a troubled history. From the iconoclasm of the French Reformation to the “plain style” of the New England meetinghouse, it is clear that the Reformed mind is suspicious of and sometimes …

Reformed Aesthetics – Introduction

My contributions to this site will be an attempt to formulate a Reformed view of aesthetics.[1] Though Anglicans, Roman Catholics, and Eastern Orthodox think on these things regularly, Reformed Christians rarely discuss issues in art, poetics, music, and other things with the form and felt qualities of meaning. One would struggle to find any detailed …