Bavinck thoughtfully and systematically discusses mans ability to know god despite his incomprehensibility. Buy doctrine of god students reformed theological library reprint by bavinck, herman, hendriksen, w. Bavincks insight was that theological method must be grounded in the substance of theology itself, speci fically in its trinitarian and covenantal aspects. Sin and salvation in christ, and reformed dogmatics, vol.
A critique of religious reason is a book by the dutch philosopher herman philipse, written in english and published in the. Oct 01, 2004 the other volumes in this series are reformed dogmatics, vol. Who was herman bavinck, and why is this work of theology so important. Abraham kuyper and herman bavinck and the doctrine of scripture 2008. Specifically, i want to recommend the dutch reformed theologian herman bavincks doctrine of god. Bavinck s early life and education herman bavinck was born in hoogeveen, the netherlands, on december. The doctrine of god is the foundation of christian theology and the prerequisite of all true faith. How is grace related to nature what is the connection between creation and re. I give it 4 stars because bavinck is both thorough in his handling of the material, wellorganized the material is laid out within an outline format and of course thoroughly scriptural.
While many today might place rigorous intellectual engagement and spiritual edification at odds with one another, bavinck sees them as inseparably related. After theological study in kampen, and at the university of leiden, he graduated in 1880, and served as the minister of the congregation at. Here is herman bavinck s statement of the doctrine. There are innumerable reasons why bavinck 18541921, who lived and wrote at the turn of the 20 th century, is worth reading on pretty much any theological topic. The attributes of god herman bavinck, reformed dogmatics, vol. Bavinck begins his book by saying mystery is the vital element of dogmatics. Buy herman bavinck ebooks to read online or download in pdf or epub on your pc, tablet or mobile device. An introduction to the reformed doctrines of grace.
Deeply concerned with the problem of objectivism and subjectivism in the doctrine of revelation, he employed schleiermachers doctrine of revelation in his own way and regarded the bible as the objective standard for his. Given, however, that we are living in the age of science, philipse argues that the natural theologian is faced with a dilemma he calls the. Herman bavinck christian classics ethereal library. The christian family bavinck reformation heritage books. On the whole, its teaching has been that god is simple, that is, sublimely free from all composition, and that therefore one cannot make any real i. This volume presents the core of bavinck s thought and offers explanatory material, making available to a wider audience some of the finest dutch reformed theology ever written. This is the first english translation of the second volume of herman bavinck s complete reformed dogmatics. Cory brock rated it it was amazing apr 05, it has served well as a synopsis of bavinck s larger, fourvolume dogmaticsfor it presents in clear persepctive all the fundamental doctrines of the bible. In ontmoetingen met herman bavinck, edited by george harinck and gerrit neven, 16582. In the end, the transcendent beauty who is god can be known only in worship and praise. Abridged in one volume recently asked me how to correlate the text of the abridgement with the unabridged translation. Start studying herman bavinck reformed dogmatics chapter 3. Each of these of course is further subdivided in a logical format.
Yet, despite this, few books expound the biblical teaching on. Mar 19, 2018 his result, at least in this volume, is a budding neocalvinist take on the doctrine of god, and more particularly the doctrine of creation. Buy doctrine of god by herman bavinck online at alibris. Bavinck was born in the town of hoogeveen in the netherlands to a german father. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
The blessings of herman bavinck christian reformed church. He graduated magna cum laude in 1880 from leiden with a double major in systematic theology and old testament. Herman bavinck 18541921 succeeded abraham kuyper as professor of systematic theology at the free university in amsterdam in 1902. Our reasonable faith by herman bavinck, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. Herman bavincks doctrine of god is like no other credo. Born on december, 1854, in hoogeveen, drenthe, holland, herman bavinck was the son of the reverend jan. His doctoral dissertation was on the concept of the state in zwinglis theology. The whole human being is the imago deithe body as well as the soul belongs integrally to the image of god. God s incomprehensibility, god s knowability, god s names, god s incommunicable attributes, god s communicable attributes, the holy trinity, and god s counsel. Aug 25, 2016 bavinck on divine simplicity now christian theology has always been more or less conscious of this calling. Born on december, 1854, in hoogeveen, drenthe, holland, herman bavinck was the son of the reverend jan bavinck, a leading figure in the secession from the state church of the netherlands in 1834.
This year marks the one hundredth anniversary of bavinck s stone lectures at princeton theological seminary, and the appearance in english of the final volume of his fourvolumed reformed dogmatics1. At the time, it took me about an hour to read one page. Herman bavinck 18541921, a dutch reformed theologian, was a contemporary of abraham. Throughout this volume, bavinck lays out his theology in a very methodical fashion through analysis of gods attributes, development of a trinitarian dogma, gods will, creation, providence and the imago dei. It has served well as a synopsis of bavinck s larger, fourvolume dogmatics, for it presents in clear persepctive all the fundamental doctrines of the bible. Works on dogmatic or systematic theology generally begin with the doctrine of god. Herman bavinck 18541921, a dutch reformed theologian, was a contemporary of abraham kuyper and b. Readers will discover more than bavinck the theologian in these volumes. Nearly three decades of close involvement with bavinck s theology has given me. May 06, 2017 the doctrine of the trinity is the architectonic principle of the whole theological and apologetic enterprise of herman bavinck. Visser, pastor of the protestant church in the netherlands amsterdam and chairman of the foundation for the promoting of reformed missiology and ecumenics, delivered the following lecture at the 2008 bavinck conference. Doctrine of god by herman bavinck banner of truth usa. Bavinck sensed the open question caused by the subjectivistic tendency of friedrich schleiermachers doctrine of revelation. The whole being, therefore, and not something in man but man himself, is the image of god.
The wonderful works of god, an english translation of herman bavincks magnalia dei, is now widely available. This god can appear and reveal himself in definite places, at definite times, to. Second, work that bavinck did on christian education significantly influenced those who began calvin college in the 1930s. In partnership with the dutch reformed translation society, baker academic is proud to offer the second volume of herman bavinck s complete reformed dogmatics in english for the very first time. Yet, despite this, few books expound the biblical teaching on the being and character of god himself, or encourage that glorifying of his name for which man is made and redeemed. Herman bavinck s 18541921 fourvolume reformed dogmatics is one of the most important theological works of the twentieth century. Buy a cheap copy of the doctrine of god book by herman bavinck. Under the title of magnalia dei, the wonderful works of god, i wish to give a simple explanation of the christian faith in a book of modest scope, as confessed by the reformed churches herman bavinck, from his foreword 110 years after its original publication, the wonderful works of god remains one of the finest singlevolume systematic theologies ever written. This translation provides, in the words of hendriksen, a spiritual treat for the serious reader. Every human person, in bavinck s words, is a microdivine being p.
In the doctrine of god, bavinck engages this foundational aspect of christian theology by devoting his chapters to i gods incomprehensibility, ii gods knowability, iii gods names, iv gods incommunicable attributes, v gods communicable attributes, vi the holy trinity, and finally to vii gods. A practical handbook of theology, it is an outstanding comprehensive statement of christian faith and doctrine. While it may be debated as to how consistent he was in the application of this principle with his occasional nod to realism, it cannot be denied that he was selfconscious. This is the first english translation of the second volume of herman bavincks complete reformed dogmatics. Bavinck s doctrine of god is richly informative, very detailed, and difficult to read. Pdf doctrine of god download full pdf book download. After mulling it over, i concluded that combining the subparagraph numbers and bavinck s original outline for the gereformeerde dogmatiek pdf. The first reason to read bavincks doctrine of god is that it is intellectually edifying and spiritually enriching. This masterwork will appeal to scholars, students, pastors, and laity interested in reformed theology and to research and theological libraries.
His reformed dogmatics is a standard text for modern reformed theology. The recently completed english translation has received wide acclaim, and has now been distilled into a more accessible one volume abridged edition likewise entitled reformed dogmatics focuses on the most crucial elements of the reformed theological tradition. Nearly three decades of close involvement with bavincks theology has given me a great respect for the man and his achievement. He graduated magna cum laude in 1880 from leiden with a double major. The net result of bavinck s investigation is a moderate realism5 which seeks on the one hand to avoid the extremes of realism, but on the other hand to avoid the extremes of idealism.
Doctrine of god students reformed theological library. Jan 01, 1978 the doctrine of god is the foundation of christian theology and the prerequisite of all true faith. The prevailing opinion has always recognized this as. A comparison of herman bavinck and johan herman bavinck. Nevertheless, reformed theology has most vividly brought out the fact that the image of god in the narrower sense is most intimately bound up with that image in the broader sense, and that the two components together make up the full image of god. As a human being a man is the son, the likeness, or offs. Doctrine of god theology book information in partnership with the dutch reformed translation society, baker academic is proud to offer the second volume of herman bavinck s complete reformed dogmatics in english for the very first time. The outline of bavincks reformed dogmatics herman bavinck. Topics covered in this volume include to doctrine of god, the trinity, creation, heaven and earth, and the doctrine of humanity. The rejection of the classical doctrine of god and what it says about the state of the evangelical movement.
Dutch theologian herman bavinck 18541921 is widely celebrated as a leading divine in the reformed tradition, and through the ongoing labor of translation teams, editors, and publishers, his vast writings are reaching english readers. Bavinck taught at the theological seminary in kampen, holland. Bavincks early life and education herman bavinck was born in hoogeveen, the netherlands, on december. In bavincks view of gods counsel or decree, the doctrine of election deals with gods eternal purpose to save his people in christ. In partnership with the dutch reformed translation society, baker academic is proud to offer in english for the very first time the fourth and final volume of herman bavinck s complete reformed dogmatics, now also available as a. The invisible god must be seen and known in the visible. He first went to theological school at kampen, but then moved on to leiden for further training. Herman bavinck on the image of god and original sin ijst 2016. Sep 24, 2015 in our treatment of the doctrine of the image of god, then, we must highlight, in accordance with scripture and the reformed confession, the idea that a human being does not bear or have the image of god but that he or she is the image of god. Oct 17, 2008 this year marks the one hundredth anniversary of bavincks stone lectures at princeton theological seminary, and the appearance in english of the final volume of his fourvolumed reformed dogmatics1. Pdf reformed dogmatics download full pdf book download. Yet, despite this, few books expound the biblical teaching on the. Today we received at rhb copies of herman bavinck s the wonderful works of god a great, basic one volume work of systematic theology that, as derek thomas writes, remains the gold standard.
Selected shorter works of herman bavinck ebook monergism. He means not mystery in the abstractsupernatural truth in the romish sense. Contemplation visio, understanding comprehension, an enjoyment of god fruition dei make up the essence of our future blessedness. This means we must approach the study of god with fear and trembling. Herman bavinck uncluttered collection of writings from and. Abraham kuyper and herman bavinck on the doctrine of scripture jackson, ms. Taking on the project of pre paring a onevolume outline of a fourvolume magisterial work like bavincks is not something to be done lightly. The doctrine of god by herman bavinck trinity book service. In his purpose of election, god intends nothing less than the redemption of a new humanity within the context of his comprehensive work of recreation.
Eric bristley, guide to the writings of herman bavinck rhb, 2008. Herman bavinck on the beatific vision the calvinist. Hart, author of the lost soul of american protestantism bavinck s dutch masterwork was the everest of which the textbooks by louis berkhof and auguste lecerf were foothills and berkouwers studies in. God is a personal being, selfexistent, having the source of life in himself, selfconscious, and selfwilling, not shut in by nature but exalted above nature, creator of heaven and earth.
Against this position bavinck once again reiterates the doctrine that all knowledge must begin from observation. The masterwork will appeal to scholars, students, pastors, and laity interested in reformed theology and to research and theological libraries. This english translation by henry zylstra was originally published in 1956 under the title our reasonable faith. He graduated in 1880 from leiden having completed a dissertation on ulrich zwingli. This comprehensive treatment of christian doctrine was first issued in 1909 under the title the wonderful works of god. Now, as we look into the mirror of god s revelation, we only see his image. Bavinck breaks down the doctrine of god into 7 categories. Observing this need, william hendriksen also saw how admirably it had been met, for those able to read dutch, in the second volume of herman bavincks. Yet by gods power the unchanging essence of marriage and the family remains proof, as bavinck notes, that gods purpose with the human race has not yet been achieved. It is not an abridgement of his 4volume work, but a fresh restatement of the same truths clothed in plain language for popular use. Neither a tenstep guide nor a onesided approach, this book embodies a christian theology of marriage and the family. Natural law and the two kingdoms in the thought of herman bavinck by nelson d. Herman bavinck 18541921 theologian of the word, by johan d. A cathartic reading of herman bavinck and an invitation to overcome the plausibility crisis of christianity.
However, i want to highlight just three aspects of his doctrine of god that show. Then you can start reading kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer no kindle device required. In this way, god and god s relation to creation are distinguished but not separated from christology, the doctrine of perfections from redemption. God in the age of science a critique of religious reason. Roberts abstract this article outlines the main contours of herman bavincks prolegomena.
The time is ripe, therefore, to get reacquainted with bavinck. This now sets the once upon a time stage in the biblical. The catholicity of christianity and the church 1888, translated into english by john bolt in 1992 and published in ctj 27, 22051. God moved us to the netherlands and eventually to kampen, the city where bavinck taught systematic theology and ethics for twenty years. The great iam of god in biblical covenant relationship with his people in the old testament world. Jun 28, 2017 berkhof, however, did not present his own original theology, it was for the most part, in structure and content, the theology of herman bavinck. Magnalia dei has long been prized as a faithful onevolume summary of systematic theology. Herman bavinck uncluttered collection of writings from. This popular digest of herman bavinck s classic fourvolume reformed dogmatics clearly presents the fundamental doctrines of biblical theology. If i were ever to teach a systematic theology class, i would use our reasonable faith by herman bavinck to do it. He graduated in 1880 from leiden having completed a dissertation on ulrich zwingli a year later, bavinck was appointed professor of dogmatics at kampen theological seminary. Because the essence of the christian religion consists in the recreation of the cosmos into a kingdom of god, bavinck writes that the great question, which returns always and everywhere, is this.