Hyde Full Interview from Puritan Reformed on Vimeo.

"If there is anything in the English language comparable to this, I haven’t seen it."

Wow! Thank you for the over-gracious words, G. I. You are a true father in the Lord.

A while back I completed a ThM course on Reformed Liturgics. For my paper I wrote on the history of the absolution in 16th–17th century Reformed liturgies. In his comments to me, my professor recommended that I read the relevant section in Abraham Kuyper's, Onze Eeredienst (1911). Recently this work has been published in the Calvin Institute of Christian Liturgies Studies Series by Eerdmans (2009). Here is the publisher's site.

Let me give you a couple of quotes from chapter 1, "Revival of Liturgical Awareness."

I found it fascinating that as Kuyper mentions the revival of Reformed orthodoxy and its historic liturgy in the 19th century "the return to the old ways was such that the full use of the form of baptism became the standard by which one could determine the true orthodoxy of the minister" (5). Long live our Baptism of Infants: Form 1! This has always been my favorite form (found in our "blue" Psalter Hymnal, 123–125). it's depth of teaching on the thing signified in baptism, the "Great Flood Prayer" of Luther, the vows, and concluding Prayer always move me to embrace my baptism anew.

In a section on historic liturgy he rejects the idea that the minister is a "free agent" with regards to the liturgy. He goes on to say, "Only in America and in some of our own small independent churches is there such a free-reigning spirit. It is quite common in America, especially in the larger cities, for a minister to start his own church, atract whoever will come, and maintain his church from the contributions that come in . . . It is nothing other than a circle gathering around a talented speaker" (6–7). Sounds like the so-called "New Calvinism" Time magazine recently discussed.

Tolle lege.

Here is a link to an article that is now in-print as well as available online. It is entitled, "Lutheran Puritanism? Adiaphora in Lutheran Orthodoxy and Possible Commonalities in Reformed Orthodoxy.” American Theological Inquiry 2:1 (January 2009): 61–83.

Thanks to Dr. Robert Kolb (Concordia Seminary, St. Louis) for his stimulating lectures in class back in Jan. 2008 and feedback that made this paper publishable.

God With Us: Knowing the Mystery of Who Jesus Is is on sale for only $5 (65% off retail) but only through this Friday, November 28th @5pm.

As of this post, there are about 100 copies left of this first printing edition.