Ordained ministry in Free Church perspective : retrieving Robert Browne (c. 1550-1633) for contemporary ecclesiology / by Jan Martijn Abrahamse.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Abrahamse, Jan Martijn, author.

Series:

Studies in Reformed theology ; Volume 41.

Studies in Reformed theology ; Volume 41

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Browne, Robert, approximately 1550-1633.

Browne, Robert.

England--Church history.

England.

Pastoral theology--History of doctrines.

Pastoral theology.

Brownists.

Separatists--England.

Separatists.

Physical Description:

1 online resource.

Place of Publication:

Leiden, The Netherlands ; Boston : Brill, [2021]

Summary:

In Ordained Ministry in Free Church Perspective Jan Martijn Abrahamse presents a constructive theology of ordained ministry by returning to the life and thought of the English Separatist Robert Browne (c. 1550-1633). This study makes a substantial contribution not only by solving one of the most thorny problems in congregational ecclesiology, but also by recovering the legacy of this ecclesial pioneer. Through an in-depth analysis of Browne's literature, the author provides a covenantal theology of ordained ministry in conversation with present-day authors Stanley Hauerwas and Kevin Vanhoozer. Inspired by the emerging trend of 'theology of retrieval' Abrahamse offers a methodologically innovative way of doing systematic theology in a manner in which voices from the past can be made fruitful for today.

Contents:

Preface

Abbreviations

1 Introduction: Challenges and Controversies

1.1 Ministering a Gathering

1.2 Restoring Our Story

1.3 Doing Systematic Theology by Retrieval

1.4 Historical Challenges

1.5 Systematic Challenges

1.6 Ordained Ministry in Browne's Historiography

1.7 Ordained Ministry: Areas of Controversy

1.8 Outline and Prospect

Part 1: A Reconstruction of Robert Browne's Theology of Ordained Ministry

2 Ordained Ministry in the Context of Sixteenth-Century Cambridge: A History of Controversy

2.1 Introduction

2.2 The Story of Robert Browne

2.3 Reformation and Nonconformity at Cambridge University

2.4 Ordained Ministry in the Context of Cambridge

2.5 Conclusions

3 Ordained Ministry in Browne's Separatist Literature (1582-1585): A Theology of Covenant

3.1 Introduction

3.2 A Treatise of Reformation without Tarying for Anie (1582)

3.3 A Treatise vpon the 23. of Matthewe (1582)

3.4 A Booke Which Sheweth the Life and Manners (1582)

3.5 A True and Short Declaration (1583)

3.6 An Answere to Master Cartwright (1585)

3.7 Ordained Ministry in Robert Browne's Ecclesiology: An Assessment

3.8 Conclusions

part 2: A Retrieval of Robert Browne's Theology of Ordained Ministry

4 Controversy After Christendom: Ordained Ministry in the Ecclesiologies of Stanley Hauerwas and Kevin Vanhoozer

4.1 Introduction

4.2 The Problem of a Distinctive Ministry

4.3 The Suspicion Toward Authority

4.4 Ordination and the Fear of Clericalism

4.5 Systematic Directions and Browne's Contributions

4.6 Conclusions

5 Reforming Controversy into Covenant: A Retrieval of Robert Browne's Theology of Ordained Ministry

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Criterion 1: Communal Priesthood

5.3 Criterion 2: Permanent Accountability

5.4 Criterion 3: Interdependence

5.5 Conclusions

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

90-04-44072-0

Publisher Number:

10.1163/9789004440722 DOI