From Puritanism to Platonism in Seventeenth Century England

I. Benjamin Whichcote: A Man of Good-Nature.- His Childhood.- Life as a Student.- Ordination and Campus Ministry.- Tutor at Emmanuel College.- Parish Ministry at Somersetshire.- Provost of King’s College.- The Collin’s Incident and the Covenant.- Whichcote Meets Anthony Tuckney.- Ministry at Milton.- Vice-Chancellor at Cambridge University.- Whichote and Cromwell.- Town and Gown During Civil Strife.- The Whichcote-Fleetwood Incident.- Whichcote and Lord Lauderdale.- Whichcote’s Dismissal from the University.- Ministry in London.- At St. Anne’s Blackfriars.- Whichcote and Bishop Wilkins of Chester.- At St. Lawrence Jewry.- Whichcote’s Death.- Tillotson’s Eulogy.- II. From Athens to Cambridge.- The Insights of Socrates and Plato.- Aristotle as The Philosopher.- Cicero the Stoic (Tully).- The Philonic Synthesis.- The Christian Platonists of Alexandria.- His Use of Plotinus.- The Augustinian Metaphysic of Light.- Renaissance Platonism.- Ficino and Whichcote.- English Humanism.- Colet and Erasmus.- The Socinian and Arminian Reaction to the Reformation.- Oxford Rational Theologians.- Tuckney as Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University.- Hooker and Whichcote.- Bacon’s Novum Organum.- Hobbes.- Locke.- Descartes.- Chillingworth.- Jeremy Taylor and Edward Stillingfleet.- III. Controversy with a Puritan.- Puritanism as a Politico-Theological Force.- The Revolt of the Masses and the Westminister Divines.- Emmanuel College as the Cradle of Puritanism.- Whichcote Rejects the Calvinism of Puritanism.- Pronouncements of the Westminister Assembly.- On Scripture.- On the Light of Nature.- Tuckney as a Westminister Divine.- The Whichcote-Tuckney Controversy Begins.- Whichcote Presents the Germ of Cambridge Platonism.- Tuckney Criticizes Whichcote’s Proposals.- The Issues Set Forth.- The Problem of Religious Authority.- Christian Tolerance.- The Doctrine of Reconciliation.- Agreement to Differ.- Divergence from Puritanism.- IV. Religion of First-Inscription — The Candle of the Lord (i).- Natural Religion.- The Intellectual Search for God.- Natural Truth.- Cudworth’s Commentary.- The Light of Nature and the Universal Logos.- From Natural to Revealed Truth.- Concerning Atheism.- The Self-Evident Nature of Theism.- The Via Negativa of Platonism.- From Natural Phenomena to a Primal Cause.- Supra-rational Knowledge and Divine Illumination.- The Perfections of God.- God in Creation and Providence.- The God — Man Encounter.- Self — Fulfillment and Divine Communion.- V. Religion of First-Inscription — Natural Ethics (ii).- Eternal and Immutable Morality.- Truth and Goodness as Things — In Themselves.- Natural Principles and Moral Duties.- The Context of Decision.- The Growth of Conscience.- Of Ends and Goals.- Knowledge and Goodness.- The Voice of God.- The Nature of Moral Evil.- Evil and God.- Evil, Finite Rationality and Freedom.- The Meaning of Virtue.- Cardinal Virtues.- On Sobriety, Justice and Piety.- Social Responsibility.- Morality and Religion.- Summum Bonum and Beatitude.- VI. Religion of after-Revelation—Saving Knowledge (i).- On Natural and Revealed Theology.- Reason Divinely Illuminated.- The Logic of Belief.- The Authority of Scripture.- Implicit Faith.- Revelation.- Man as Imago Dei.- The Fall.- Guilt.- Temptation.- A Concept of Sin.- Social Sin.- Incarnation as Atonement.- Goodness as Agape in God.- The Mediatorial Office of Christ.- From Middle Power to Middle Person.- The Cruciality of the Cross.- The Author of Nature as the Giver of Grace.- Knowledge of Christ as Saving Wisdom.- The Christian Experience of Forgiveness.- Faith Seeking Knowledge.- Conversion.- Regeneration.- Justification.- Christ’s Righteousness and Ours.- VII. Religion of after-Revelation — Christian Morals (ii).- The Christian Faith and Social Action.- On Righteousness.- Equity.- Piety.- In Defense of Christian Morality.- The Inner Reformation.- Love of Self and Love of God.- Christian Graces as Fruits of the Spirit.- The Love of Mercy as Neighbor-Love.- The Divine Example.- Purity as Holiness.- The Stewardship of Wealth.- The Spirit of God as a Living Law.- Christian Morals and Last Things.- Heaven Moral as Heaven Local.- Hell Moral as Inward Torture.- Eternal Life as Participation in the Divine Nature.- Life against the Background of Eternity.- God as Governor of the Moral Order.- The Death of Socrates and Christus Victor.- Christ brings Life and Immortality.- The Resurrection and Christian Hope.- VIII. Religion of after-Revelation — The Universal Church (iii).- Against Romanism.- On Transubstantiation.- Against an Infallible Pope.- The Reformed Church.- Whichcote and the Liberals.- His Doctrine of the Ministry.- The Intellect and Devotion.- The Meaning of Prayer.- Faith and the Sacraments.- Tolerance in Religion.- Mono-episcopacy as the Bene Esse rather than the Esse of the Church.- The Centrality of Scripture to Church Theology.- IX. The Father of the Christian Platonists of Cambridge.- Whichcote as a Platonist.- As Founder of Cambridge Platonism.- Joseph Mead and Whichcote.- The Fellowship of Kindred Minds.- John Smith.- Ralph Cudworth.- Henry More.- A Critical Comparison.- X. Whichcote and the Intellectual Tradition.- The Latitudinarians and the Cambridge Platonists.- Stillingfleet and Tillotson.- Whichcote and the Friends.- John Locke and the Lights of Reason and Faith.- John Toland and the New Rationalism.- Samuel Clarke.- The Third Earl Of Shaftesbury.- Bishop Butler’s Analogy.- John Norris.- S. T. Coleridge.- F. D. Maurice.- Bishop Westcott.- Archbishop William Temple.- Dean Inge.- Whichcote and British Modernism.- Canon C. E. Raven.- XI. Epilegomena.- Whichcote’s Lasting Contribution to Theology.- The Province of Christian Philosophy.- Whichcote on Faith and Philosophy.- An Inadequate Intellectualism.- The Rationality of Faith.- Faith and Ethics.- The Rational Basis of the Union of Religion and Morality.- Johannine Ethics.- Eternal Life as a Quality of Existence.- Christian Tolerance.- Anticipating Christian Unity.- A Concluding Word.- Selected Bibliography.