Journal: Puritan Reformed Journal
Volume: PRJ 01:2 (Jul 2009)
Article: “To Walk According To The Gospel”: The Origin And History Of "The Marrow Of Modern Divinity"
Author: William VanDoodewaard

PRJ 1:2 (July 2009) p. 96

“To Walk According To The Gospel”: The Origin And History Of The Marrow Of Modern Divinity

William VanDoodewaard

A popular, practical theology of the English Puritan era, The Marrow of Modern Divinity sees what is at least its 40th republication this year, journeying to the present day through the twists and turns of four centuries of history.1 Its origins are mysterious, though not without hints and clues that yield an intriguing story. It is a volume which, just when it seemed about to slip into obscurity after years of considerable readership in England, ignited a firestorm of controversy in Scotland. As decades and generations passed it seemed time and again that it would fade from memory, but it re-emerged, gaining fresh attention and speaking to new generations. It encouraged many, bringing spiritual clarity and liberty while simultaneously creating fear, concern, frustration, and division among others. The story of The Marrow of Modern Divinity, its author, and the lives it impacted is one strand in the grand saga of the history of the church.

A Journey Into The Past

The Marrow of Modern Divinity first appeared in print during the long days of early summer in 1645 in London, England. Written in a popular dialogue form, the work features three individuals — Nomista, a legalist; Antinomista, an antinomian; and Neophytus, a young Christian—being counseled by a minister, Evangelista, towards a biblical understanding of law and gospel. Joseph Caryl, a leading

PRJ 1:2 (July 2009) p. 97

Independent preacher appointed by the Parliament as imprimatur (official censor) for theological literature, praised the work’s clarity, moderation, and helpfulness in “endeavouring to reconcile and heal those unhappy differences which have lately broken out afresh amongst us.”2 Caryl penned his preface on May 10, a little less than a month before the bloody Battle of Naseby, a decisive military victory marking the gradual ascendancy of the New Model Army against the Royalist forces of King Charles I. Marked by disorder in the nation, these were days of heady freedom in London for both Puritans and Parliamentarians. Newfound liberties allowed for gatherings like the Westminster Assembly but also led to new tensions in the face of the fading religious-political yoke of Charles I and the late Archbishop of Canterbury, William Laud. Although by the 1640’s most Puritans and Parliamentarians shared a common dislike for the policies of Charles and laud, including heavy taxation, imprisonment without trial, and the direction of the Church of England, they were not immune to fractious controversy with its att...