The English Church in the Eighteenth Century | Page 2

40 Beveridge, 42 Sharp, 44 Smalridge, 46 Grabe, 47 Bray, 48 Oglethorpe, Mapletoft, &c., 49 R. Nelson a High Churchman of wide sympathies, 50 Deterioration of the later type of eighteenth century Anglicanism, 51 Harm done to the English Church from the Nonjuring secession, 51 Coincidence at that time of political and theological parties, 52 Passive obedience as 'a doctrine of the Cross', 53 Decline of the doctrine, 55 Loyalty, 56 The State prayers, 57 Temporary difficulties and permanent principles, 58 Nonjuring Church principles scarcely separable from those of most High Churchmen of that age in the National Church, 60 Nonjuror usages, 61 Nonjuror Protestantism, 63 Isolated position of the Nonjurors, 64 Communications with the Eastern Church, 65 General type of the Nonjuring theology and type of piety, 68 Important function of this party in a Church, 73 Religious promise of the early years of the century, 74 Disappointment in the main of these hopes, 75
CHAPTER III.
THE DEISTS.
(_J.H. Overton._)
Points at issue in the Deistical controversy, 75-6 Deists not properly a sect, 76 Some negative tenets of the Deists, 77 Excitement caused by the subject of Deism, 78 Toland's 'Christianity not mysterious', 79 Shaftesbury's 'Characteristics', 80-2 His protest against the Utilitarian view of Christianity, 81 Collins's 'Discourse of Freethinking', 82-3 Bentley's 'Remarks' on Collins', 83-4 Collins's 'Discourse on the Grounds and Reasons of the Christian Religion', 84-5 Woolston's 'Six Discourses on the Miracles', 85 Sherlock's 'Tryal of the Witnesses', 86 Annet's 'Resurrection of Jesus Considered', 86 Tindal's 'Christianity as old as the Creation', 86-7 Conybeare's 'Defence of Revealed Religion', 87 Tindal the chief exponent of Deism, 88 Morgan's 'Moral Philosopher', 89 Chubbs's works, 90-1 'Christianity not founded on argument', 92-3 Bolingbroke's 'Philosophical Works', 93-6 Butler's 'Analogy', 96-7 Warburton's 'Divine Legation of Moses', 97-8 Berkeley's 'Alciphron, or the Minute Philosopher', 98-9 Leland's 'View of the Deistical Writers', 100-1 Pope's 'Essay on Man', 101-2 John Locke's relation to Deism, 102-5 Effects of the Deistical controversy, 106-8 Collapse of Deism, 108 Want of sympathy with the Deists, 110 Their unpopularity, 111
CHAPTER IV.
LATITUDINARIAN CHURCHMANSHIP.
(1.) CHARACTER AND INFLUENCE OF ARCHBISHOP TILLOTSON'S THEOLOGY.
(_C.J. Abbey._)
Use of the term 'Latitudinarian', 112 In the eighteenth century, 113 Archbishop Tillotson:-- His close relationship with the eighteenth century, 115 His immense repute as a writer and divine, 115 Vehemence of the attack upon his opinions, 117 His representative character, 118 His appeal to reason in all religious questions, 119 On spiritual influence, 119 On Christian evidences, 119 On involuntary error, 120 On private judgment, its rights and limitations, 121 Liberty of thought and 'Freethinking' in Tillotson's and the succeeding age, 125 Tillotson on 'mysteries', 127 On the doctrine of the Trinity, 129 On Christ's redemption, 130 Theory of accommodation, 131 The future state, 133 Inadequate insistance on distinctive Christian doctrine, 140 Religion and ethics, 141 Goodness and happiness, 142 Prudential religion, 143 General type of Tillotson's latitudinarianism, 145
CHAPTER V.
LATITUDINARIAN CHURCHMANSHIP.
(2.) CHURCH COMPREHENSION AND CHURCH REFORMERS.
(_C.J. Abbey._)
Comprehension in the English Church, 147 Attitude towards Rome in eighteenth century, 148 Strength of Protestant feeling, 148 Exceptional interest in the Gallican Church, 149 Archbishop Wake and the Sorbonne divines, 149 Alienation unmixed with interest in the middle of the eighteenth century, 152 The exiled French clergy, 154 The reformed churches abroad:-- Relationship with them a practical question of great interest since James II.'s time, 155 Alternation of feeling on the subject since the Reformation, 156 The Protestant cause at the opening of the eighteenth century, 158 The English Liturgy and Prussian Lutherans, 160 Subsidence of interest in foreign Protestantism, 163 Nonconformists at home:-- Strong feeling in favour of a national unity in Church matters, 164 Feeling at one time in favour of comprehension, both among Churchmen and Nonconformists, 166 General view of the Comprehension Bills, 169 The opportunity transitory, 174 Church comprehension in the early part of the eighteenth century confessedly hopeless, 175 Partial revival of the idea in the middle of the century, 177 Comprehension of Methodists, 180 Occasional conformity:-- A simple question complicated by the Test Act, 183 The Occasional Conformity Bill, 184 Occasional conformity, apart from the test, a 'healing custom', 185 But by some strongly condemned, 186 Important position it might have held in the system of the National Church, 187 Revision of Church formularies; subscription:-- Distaste for any ecclesiastical changes, 188 The 'Free and Candid Disquisitions', 189 Subscription to the Articles, 190 Arian subscription, 193 Proposed revision of Church formularies, 195 Isolation of the English Church at the end of the last century, 195 The period unfitted to entertain and carry out ideas of Church development, 196
CHAPTER VI.
THE TRINITARIAN CONTROVERSY.
(_J.H. Overton._)
Importance of the question at issue, 197 Four different views on the subject, 198 Bull's 'Defensio Fidei Nic?n?', 199 Sherlock, Wallis, and South on the Trinity, 200 Charles Leslie on Socinianism, 201-2 William Whiston on the Trinity, 202-4 Samuel Clarke