What is reformedorthodoxy.org?
Since 2023, reformedorthodoxy.org has sought to make the theology and philosophy of the Reformed orthodox accessible to students and scholars alike. We are dedicated to translating primary sources, providing valuable commentary, and curating online resources pursuant to that end.
Our vision is to advance the study of Reformed orthodox theologians and philosophers by translating their works and situating them in their early modern context.
Early Modern Philosophy and Theology
Though periodization is a source of endless dispute, we may say, for our purposes here, that early modernity stretches from the late middle ages and Renaissance in the 15th century to the beginning of the Age of Revolution in the late 18th century. The intellectual production of the early modern period is prodigious in comparison to any period preceding it. This profuse output is matched by an equally impressive diversity of perspectives.
While nearly every school of thought in the early modern period had some theological or philosophical precedent—whether classical or medieval—these old ideas were invariably subject to refinement. The rigorous fidelity of traditional schools led them to synthesize the sentiments of their forebears. Questions which never entered the minds of their masters were answered according to the internal logic of their thought. The untethered ingenuity of the progressive factions, by contrast, subjected previously unquestioned principles and practices to skeptical inquiry and methodical doubt. Long-held convictions and prejudices were often found wanting, while the recent conclusions of empirical science replaced antiquated dogmas.
This age of unrestrained inquisition served as a catalyst for precise answers. Dominicans and Franciscans, most notably, followed the minds of their respective masters in an advancement of their thought far beyond what was explicit in the oeuvres of Thomas Aquinas or Duns Scotus. Protestants, with equal vigor if not equal precision, debated a host of issues which only arose after the Reformation. The eclectic reception of medieval thought by Lutheran and Reformed scholastics was accompanied by a contemporary engagement of the second (Baroque) scholasticism. Debates among Roman Catholic theologians often precipitated equally fierce disputes among protestants. Maverick and irreligious philosophers presented atheological difficulties previously unfaced by advocates of piety. These objections, in turn, prompted novel defenses of God’s existence and the credibility of his revelation.