Stephen Charnock The Existence & Attributes of God Vol. 1: Christian Classics

[NOT A FACSIMILE]The Existence and Attributes of God has become a classic text on the doctrine of God, and examines in meticulous detail Gods foreknowledge and sovereignty, and discusses the possibility of free will and natural law. No Reformed theologian prior to Charnock treated Gods existence and attributes with such clarity and depthin fact, his was one of the first works solely devoted to the subject to appear in the Reformed theological tradition, and has become a standard work on the subject. His positions have been echoed and refined by generations of theologians, and most recently have contributed to contemporary debates over free will, foreknowledge, and the openness of God. No doubt the sheer size of the volume has caused not a few persons to direct their reading efforts elsewhere. This is regrettable for a number of reasons, not the least of which is Charnocks ability to combine rigorous theological discourse on the doctrine of God with the typical Puritan emphasis on "uses" of the doctrine (relating doctrine and life). His work has much value on a practical level, which should be the goal of all theology. Charnock studied at Cambridge and was later made senior proctor at Oxford from 16521656. At Oxford he belonged to a"gathered church" with fellow Puritan stalwarts, Thomas Goodwin (16001680), Thankful Owen (16201681), and Theophilus Gale (16281678). After Oxford, Charnock went to Ireland where he served various churches, becoming one of the highestpaid clergy... | Stephen Charnock The Existence & Attributes of God Vol. 1: Christian Classics