Freedom and Responsibility

In Chapter 4, we survey how claims to knowledge of God were defended in the nineteenth-century Methodist context; we look both at the theological methods that were employed and how apologetic impulses functioned within those prolegomena. Turning to the doctrine of God, we trace some of the momentous changes that took place as Wesleyan theology wrestled with modern challenges in relation to its classical inheritance (especially in relation to classical doctrines of perfection, simplicity, aseity, immutability, and omniscience as well as Trinitarian theology). With regard to theological anthropology, we see how the major Methodist theologians wrestled not only with long-standing disputes (for example, the mind–body relation) but also with current debates (for example, race and ethnicity). We trace the Wesleyan debates (both internally, and against traditional Reformed theology as well as revisionism and modernism) over the doctrine of original sin.

Arminianism

Chapter 1 discusses the purpose of the book as an introduction to the historical development of Arminian theology. It then offers a preliminary description and definition of Arminianism. The late medieval and early modern background of Arminianism is summarized. This background includes a brief overview of the most well-known aspects of Arminius’s thought. The chapter concludes with an outline of the contents of the subsequent chapters.

Yesterday and Today

In Chapter 6, we take brief notice of other anti-Calvinist (and distinctly Protestant) movements that emerged after the sixteenth century, including some groups that did not always self-designate as Arminian, such as the English Baptists, nonsubscribing Presbyterians, and the American (Stone-Campbell) Restoration Movement. We then take stock of the breadth of Arminian views in the twentieth and early part of the twenty-first centuries, with a special emphasis on movements arising from Methodist and Wesleyan influences. We conclude with a summary of Arminianism, its historical development, and the major themes that are common to the various expressions of Arminian theology.

Holiness and Hope

In Chapter 5, we note the varied reception among nineteenth-century Methodists of contemporary revisionist Christologies in relation to classical and creedal approaches. Distinctly Wesleyan understandings of salvation are then described, and the intra-Methodist disagreements and squabbles over the doctrine of sanctification are catalogued. The chapter concludes with a sketch of Wesleyan ecclesiology—including the church’s ethical witness in concrete acts of mercy and social reform—and eschatology.

Hearts and Hands

In Chapter 3, we explore some of the theological developments of eighteenth-century Arminianism; here focused attention is given to the very influential, classically orthodox expressions of Arminian theology that are found within early Methodism and especially the thought of John Wesley and his colleagues. A brief examination of religious epistemology leads in turn to a look at the doctrine of the Triune God, the doctrines of creation, and providence. Wesley’s understanding of theological anthropology is then explored further. The heart of Wesley’s theology is soteriology; accordingly, we examine his “scripture way of salvation” and pay close attention to early Methodist understandings of the relationship between justification, regeneration, and sanctification. The chapter concludes with a summary of how Wesley’s theology informed and shaped the Methodist ethos with respect to mission and ethics.

Heat and Light

Chapter 2 begins the account of Arminian theology after Arminius, turning attention to the complexities of the continental Remonstrant and English Arminian theologies as they took shape in the seventeenth century. After a historical overview of the controversies surrounding the Synod of Dordt (including the British involvement in the Dutch controversies), we provide an account of the theology of Dutch Remonstrantism. After examining the relationship between Scripture and reason, we then turn attention to the doctrine of God, theological anthropology, and the doctrines of salvation. Moving across the North Sea, we then explore the development of doctrine within the English variants of Arminian theology, describing issues related to the doctrine of the Trinity, the proper understanding of the divine attributes, the extent of the atonement, and the doctrine of justification and its relation to good works.