9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Grace Restores Nature, August 18, 2007
This review is from: Reformed Dogmatics, Vol. 1: Prolegomena (Hardcover)
What I say about this volume will suffice for the others. Herman Bavinck stood at the pinnacle of the Reformed tradition. It was his desire to assimilate the greatest minds of Christendom, and reapply their insights for the sake of the contemporary church.
Bavinck shares the same standard assumptions and arguments found in all Reformed systematics. His genius lies in another area: the relation of grace to nature, Christ to culture, theology to philosophy. Bavinck is the first great Reformed *creational* theologian. Grace does not flank, detract, or add to nature. If so, then creation is ancillary to the plans of God. Rather, grace *restores* nature, brings it back to communion and participation in the divine.
Prolegomena:
Bavinck begins with the revealed word of God as the only sure foundation for theology and knowledge. While his discussions are at times dry, given the nature of late 19th century philosophy, he set the stage for the great Reformed thinkers of the 20th century, namely Cornelius Van Til. It is safe to say that without Bavinck there would be no Van Til.
Bavinck breaks from many elements of Christendom on the point of nature-grace. How is the theologian to approach Creation, especially given the troubling fact that creation has been marred by sin? For Bavinck, the essence of the Christian religion is the re-creation of the cosmos into the Kingdom of God. This means, as I understand it, that Christ's work re-focused creation and the redeemed humanity into a kingdom , still embryonic in form, eagerly awaiting the Consummation.
This means, practically speaking, that the Christian may apply his theology into "secular" spheres. Creation (nature) has been restored. It means that sin no longer has dominion and that the redemption of Christ spreads as far "as the curse is found."
I do recommend this work. He is not as exegetical as modern theologians, but his work represents an important move in Reformed theology. I have some issues, though: most of the time Bavinck is simply giving conclusions of summaries of Christian thought. This presents an unusual problem. Unless you actually have the philosophical background, much of what he says will be unclear. But if you do have the background in philosophical history, much of what he says will be irrelevant.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
