The Christian System
P R E F A C E.
SINCE the full development of the great apostacy foretold by Prophets and Apostles, numerous attempts at reformation have been made. Three full centuries, carrying with them the destinies of countless millions, have passed into eternity since the Lutheran effort to dethrone the Man of Sin. During this period many great and wonderful changes have taken place in the political, literary, moral, and religious conditions of society. That the nations composing the western half of the Roman empire have already been greatly benefited by that effort, scientifically, politically, and morally, no person acquainted with either political or ecclesiastical history can reasonably doubt. Time, that great arbiter of human actions, that great revealer of secrets, has long decided that all the reformers of the Papacy have been public benefactors. And thus the Protestant Reformation is proved to have been one of the most splendid eras in the history of the world, and must long be regarded by the philosopher and the philanthropist as one of the most gracious interpositions in behalf of the whole human race.
posted by Ken | 8:00 PM
5 Comments:
In light of his argument about the superiority of Protestantism and the benefits of the Reformation based upon how much better England was than Spain or Italy, I wonder what the author would think of moder religious and social conditions in the modern "Post-Christian" Europe, with churches empty in most of the Protestant countries and the moral decay that's common throughout the society.
I wonder if he'd change his mind about the benefits of the Reformation?
BOG
Welcome to the Blogging world.
Shalom,
Bobby Valentine
Stoned-Campbell Disciple
BV,
This isn't my first blog, the other one isn't very active.
Ken
BOG,
It seems that AC was using the standard Protestant polemic against the Catholic Church, i.e. the morality of Protestant vs. Catholic countries. Cardinal Gibbons actually addresses this point in his book "Faith of our Fathers" published in the 1860's (I think).
What seems strange to me is that he states that the Protestant reformation was the cause of much progress then spends a good bit describing how the reformer's descendents corrupted the Protestant reformation.
I was interested by the last comment of chapter 1 in which the author seems to state that you can't know anything unless you know everything.
BOG
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