tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7511660846316927244.post1901265546204373591..comments2023-04-13T03:51:38.050-07:00Comments on Religion, Legitimacy and Politics : Seeking, Being and Doing on Our Journey of FaithReligion, Legitimacy and Politicshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17662477474000491980noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7511660846316927244.post-88008680259121549722015-10-11T18:05:02.862-07:002015-10-11T18:05:02.862-07:00Thanks for your comments, Ashley. I am surprised ...Thanks for your comments, Ashley. I am surprised that Jonathan Edwards saw experience and reason as legitimate factors in shaping one’s faith, and that he, unlike Martin Luther, could see the essential correlation of God's grace with good deeds, as did the Evangelist James (James 2:26)—who Luther could not abide. But perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised about Edwards’ embrace of experience and reason since John Wesley, his contemporary, advocated those concepts along with scripture and tradition in what later became known as the Wesleyan Quadrilateral. Like Edwards, Wesley was also impressed by the Enlightenment thinking of John Locke, but neither Edwards or Wesley appreciated the extent to which Locke’s ideas would be used by Thomas Jefferson to fashion the concepts of freedom and democracy that are at the foundation of our Constitution.<br>For an overview of the evolution of the American Religion that emphasizes the role of George Whitefield in the Great Awakening, I recommend a delightful book by Matthew Paul Turner, Our Great Big American God (Jericho Books, 2014), especially the chapter on The Evangelicals are Coming. <br>Rudy Barneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01619352192935409435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7511660846316927244.post-39275625626741696392015-10-11T13:08:52.134-07:002015-10-11T13:08:52.134-07:00You might be surprised to know that the argument y...You might be surprised to know that the argument you've made here would find an ally in Jonathan Edwards, who agrees with your underlying message, at least insofar as he says the surest sign that a person has God's grace is that the person practices acting out God's love. Real faith shows itself in our habits. Edwards was in my head because the students in my "Big Reveal" class (in which we read various versions of "epiphany" across American literature) and I were reading him a couple of weeks ago. He has a long long essay called "A Treatise on Religious Affections" that he wrote as the Great Awakening was winding down. He wants to defend the revival experience, saying that you need to have real emotional responses as part of your faith, but he also argues that the best way to tell if the holy spirit is really dwelling in you by the way you act, what kind of treasure you are seeking. You know the tree by its fruits, is one of the Biblical lines he cites, and that's how we believers on earth can best determine if we ourselves (or our neighbors) have the spirit. It's not what you'd expect from a staunch Calvinist! But Edwards, too, was busy trying to incorporate new scientific knowledge--John Locke especially--into his Christian faith.Ashley Barneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17534959238757970492noreply@blogger.com