tents. The merits of these expositors, as must be the case, were unequal. Some investigated merely the import of the words and the sense of the text. Others, besides this, encountered adverse parties, and either confuted false expositions, or brought forth true ones for the subversion of erroneous opinions. Others, after exhibiting briefly the sense of the [inspired] writer, applied it to morals and to instruction in Christian duty. Some are represented, and perhaps not unjustly, as having, by assiduously reading the books of the Cocceians, fallen into certain faults of theirs; and as inconsiderately turning the sacred histories into allegories, by searching after recondite and remote senses rather than the obvious sense of the words.

§ 18. The principal divines of this century, at first, presented the doctrines of religion derived from the Scriptures, in a loose and disconnected form, after the manner of Melancthon ; that is, arranged under general heads (Loci Communes): yet this did not prevent them from employing the terms, the distinctions, and the definitions of the then reigning and admired Peripatetic philosophy, in the explanation and statement of particular doctrines. Afterwards, George Calixtus, who was himself addicted to the Aristotelian philosophy, first clothed theology in a philosophic dress; that is, reduced it to the form of a science, or system of truths: but he was censured by many, not so much for doing such a thing, as because he did not give to this most sacred science a suitable form. For he divided the whole science into three parts, the object, the subject, and the means; which, though accordant with the precepts of Aristotle, to whom he was exclusively attached, was, in the opinion of some, an unsuitable distribution. A number of the best teachers, however, eagerly adopted that arrangement; and even in our times there are some who commend it, and follow it in practice. Some arranged religious doctrines in a different manner: but they had not many imitators. In the mean time, there were many respectable and pious men, all through the

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the doctrines concerning God, creation, man's state of innocency and apos tasy, with its consequences. Under the third, he considered the doctrines concerning the grace of God, the merits of Christ, his person and offices, faith, and justification, the word of God, the sacraments, conversion, good works, &c. Tr.]

century, who were very much displeased with this mode of teaching theology philosophically, and of combining sacred truths with the dictates of philosophy: they earnestly desired to see all human subtilties and nice speculation laid aside, and theology exhibited just as God exhibits it in the holy Scriptures; that is, in a simple, perspicuous, popular form, cleared and freed wholly from any philosophical fetters. These persons were gratified to some extent, as the century drew to a close, when Philip James Spener, and not a few others, animated by his exhortations and example, began to treat on religious subjects with more freedom and clearness; and when the Eclectics drove the Peripatetic philosophy from the schools. Spener could not indeed persuade all to follow his method; yet he persuaded a great many. Nor can there be any doubt that from this time onward, theology acquired a more noble and agreeable aspect. Polemic theology experienced much the same fortunes as dogmatic. For it was, for the most part, destitute of all elegance and perspicuity, so long as Aristotle had dominion in the theological schools: but after his banishment, it gradually received some degree of light and polish. Yet we must acknowledge, with regret, that the common faults of disputants were not effaced even after those times. For if we turn over the pages of the earlier or the later religious controversialists of this century, we find few whom we can truly pronounce desirous of nothing but the advancement of truth, or not deceived and led away by their passions.

§ 19. Our theologians were tardy in cultivating moral theology. Nor, if we except a few eminent men, such as John Arndt and John Gerhard, and others who treated in a popular way upon the conformation of the soul to the true and internal worship of God, and upon the duties of men, was there a single excellent and accurate writer on the science of morals in all the first part of the century. And hence those who laboured to elucidate what are called cases of conscience, were held in estimation. Still, this is a class that could not help falling very often into mistakes, inasmuch as the first and fundamental principles of morals were not yet accurately laid down. George Calixtus, whose merits are so great in regard to all other branches of theology, first separated the science of morals from that of dogmatics, and gave it the form of an independent science. He was not indeed allowed to complete the design

which all admired in its commencement; but his disciples made use, with good success, of the materials which they got from him, to construct a proper system of moral theology. Scarcely any thing was more injurious to their labours, in process of time, than the Peripatetic dress, with which Calixtus chose to invest also this part of divine truth. Hence the moderns have torn off this dress, and calling in the aid of the law of nature, which Puffendorf and others had purified and illustrated, and collating it carefully with the sacred Scriptures, have not only more clearly laid open the sources of Christian duties, and more correctly ascertained the import of the divine laws, but have also digested and arranged this whole science in a much better

manner.

§ 20. During this whole century the Lutheran church was greatly agitated; partly by controversies among the principal doctors, to the great injury of the whole community; and partly by the extravagant zeal and plans of certain persons who disseminated new and strange opinions, uttered prophecies and attempted to change all our doctrines and institutions. The controversies, which drew the doctors into parties, may be fitly divided into the greater and the less; the former such as disturbed the whole church, and the latter such as disquieted only some part of it. Of the first kind there were two, which occupied the greatest part of the century; the Syncretistic, which, from the place whence it arose, was called the Helmstadian controversy, and from the man chiefly concerned. in it, the Calixtine controversy; and the Pietistic, which some call the Hallensian controversy, from the university with which it was waged. Both were occasioned by principles, than which nothing is more holy and lovely: the former, by the love of peace and Christian forbearance, so highly commended by our Saviour; and the latter, by the desire of restoring and advancing fallen piety, which every good man admits should be among the first cares of a Christian teacher. Against these two great virtues, zeal for maintaining the truth and for preserving it from all mixture of error, which is likewise an excellent and very useful virtue, engaged in open war. For so critical and hazardous is the condition of human nature, that wars and pests may flow from the very best of sources, if they be acted upon by the turbid movements of men's minds.

§ 21. George Calixtus, of Sleswick, a theologian who had few equals in this century, either for learning or for genius,

while teaching in that university which from its first establishment granted proper liberty of thought to its professors, early intimated that in his view there were some defects in the common opinions of theologians. Afterwards he went further, and showed in various ways that he had a strong desire, not so much to establish peace and harmony among disagreeing Christians as to diminish their anger and implacable hatred to each other. Nor did his colleagues differ much from him in this matter which will the less surprise those who know that such as are created doctors of theology in the university of Helmstadt, are accustomed, all of them, to make oath that they will endeavour, according to their ability, to reconcile and settle the controversies among Christians. The first avowed

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attack upon them was made in 1639 by Statius Buscher, a minister of St. Giles' church in Hanover, an indiscreet man, of the Ramist school, and hostile to [the prevailing] philosophy; who was much displeased because Calixtus and his associates preferred the Peripatetic philosophy to that of the sect which he had embraced. The attack was made in a very malignant book, entitled, Crypto-Papismus Nova Theologiæ Helmstadiensis2; in which he accused Calixtus especially of numerous errors. Though Buscher made some impression on the minds of individuals, he would perhaps have incurred the reproach of being a rash and unjust accuser, if he had only induced Calixtus to be more cautious. But the latter possessing a generous spirit that disdained all dissimulation, not only persevered with his colleague Conrad Horneius, in confidently asserting and defending the things which Buscher had brought many to regard as novelties and dangerous; but likewise, in the conference at Thorn, in 1645, he incurred the indignation and enmity of the Saxon divines, who were there present. Frederic William, elector of Brandenburg, had made him colleague and assistant to the divines whom he sent from Königsberg to that conference: and the Saxon deputies thought it horrible, that a Lutheran divine should afford any aid to the Reformed. This first cause of offence in that conference, was followed by others, which occasioned the Saxons to accuse Calixtus of being too friendly to the Reformed. The story is too long to be fully stated here. But after the conference broke up, the Saxon

[i. e. The disguised popery of the new theology at Helmstadt. Tr.]

divines, John Hülsemann, James Weller, John Scharf, Abraham Calovius, and others, attacked Calixtus in their public writings, maintaining, that he had apostatized from the Lutheran doctrines to the sentiments of the Reformed and the papists. These their attacks he repelled, with great vigour and uncommon erudition, being profoundly versed in philosophy and all antiquity, until the year 1656, when he passed from these scenes of discord to heavenly rest.3