by Matthew Gaetano Gisbertus Voetius (1589-1676) was a major Dutch Reformed theologian whose works demonstrate mastery not only of Scripture, the Church Fathers, and medieval theology, but also a command of the works of contemporary Roman Catholic scholastic authors. He studied at Leiden, participated in the Synod of Dort, and then taught at Utrecht, where he confronted the… Read More Gisbertus Voetius and Reformed Catholicity
by Matthew Gaetano A friend of the Regensburg Forum, Darryl Hart, has undertaken a dialogue with me about the authority of the Council of Trent, among other things. This will certainly not be the last time that we address this topic here. But I thought that I could offer some more substantial evidence for my claims… Read More Trent’s Authority and Its Interpretation of Luther
by Matthew Gaetano As I hope to discuss in future posts, one of the clearest differences between Roman Catholic and Protestant soteriologies is how each confession thinks about original sin in the justified. Roman Catholics hold that it is taken away, while confessional Protestants believe that it remains (though, of course, it is not imputed).… Read More Regensburg (1541) on Original Sin
by Matthew T. Gaetano In my previous post, I wanted to challenge the perspective of some (unnamed) Catholics who are wrongly suspicious of Protestant views of learning. The great writers of ancient Greece and Rome (such as Aristotle and Cicero) were appropriated by Reformed and Lutheran writers, just as they had been by medieval and Renaissance… Read More Protestantism, Liberal Learning, and Scholasticism: Part 2
by Matthew T. Gaetano In certain circles, I think that ecumenical dialogue may be hampered by mutual mischaracterizations related to liberal learning. Some Reformed thinkers criticize Roman Catholics for being excessively optimistic about human reason. Catholic thinkers, it is said, fail to recognize the damage done to human reason by original sin–in other words, the noetic… Read More Protestantism, Liberal Learning, and Scholasticism: Part 1
by Matthew T. Gaetano In what follows here and in future posts, I hope to address specific ways in which Roman Catholic and Reformed theologians have historically mischaracterized one another for a variety of reasons. At the same time, I will seek to avoid the appearance of reducing serious confessional differences to mere misunderstandings. And I would like to… Read More Faith and Works in Cajetan