The similar phrase 'Worldly Christianity' is one used by Bonhoeffer. It's J Gresham Machen that I want to line up most closely with. See his Christianity and culture here. Having done commentaries on Proverbs (Heavenly Wisdom) and Song of Songs (Heavenly Love), a matching title for Ecclesiastes would be Heavenly Worldliness. For my stance on worldliness, see 3 posts here.
Showing posts with label Thomas Manton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Thomas Manton. Show all posts

Westminster Conference 2025



So I have spent the last two days at the annual Westminster Conference and thoroughly enjoyed it. We are now well settled inSt Giles Christian Mission, strange as it seemd to be there away from centrl London the first time we did it. We tried something new this year. Normally most of the papers are followed by discussion time but this year on day one we had most of the diiscussion at the end of the day after the three papers had been given. This was only a partial success, among the problems being that speakers tended to produce over long papers, despite their best efforts. We kicked off with Mark Thomas on the Puritans and original sin - a solid and useful paper, quite demanding to listen to. Then Paul Levy took us through Machen's magisterial Virgin Birth of Christ. The third paper was from Donald J MacLean on the temptation of Christ from Thomas Manton but ending with Hodge and Shedd. Jeremy Walker led the discussion but it was hard to focus anywhere.
Day 2 was more traditional with Andy Young on the active obedience of Christ, covering pretty uncharted territory regarding Karh, Piscator et al. We then had a marathon from Sinclair Ferguson on Samuel Rutherford. We closed, in contrast, with a fresh, very lively and brief life of Athansius given by Gavin Kinnaird. Great numbers resnet. We meet again next year, God willing, around the same time.

Westminster Conference 2019 Now in print

Last year's papers have now been published


  1. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF WILLIAM PERKINS/JOSEPH PIPA 
  2. THE PRINCIPLES OF PURITAN WORSHIP/JEREMY WALKER
  3. THE PRACTICE OF PURITAN WORSHIP/ROBERT STRIVENS
  4. THE EMERGENCE OF INDEPENDENCY/MATTHEW BINGHAM
  5. THOMAS MANTON - NEGLECTED PURITAN/DOUGLAS MCCALLUM 
  6. THE PILGRIM FATHERS/PAUL SMITH

Westminster Conference Day 2


Last Wednesday seems ages ago. I have been busy, however, and need to catch up. This post is simply to say that the Westminster Conference 2019 went off very well all told. On day 2 I chaired the opening session (as is clear from the photo). American Matthew Bingham of Oak Hill spoke very helpfully on the difficult topic of the origins of independency and we had a good, well natured discussion to follow. In the afternoon Douglas MacCallum spoke on Thomas Manton. This was a good introduction and it was interesting to learn that Banner will be publishing all 22 volumes of his works next May. Douglas chose to focus on the sermons on Isaiah 53 but then raised but did not resolve the subject of Manton's understanding of Christ's righteousness. This rather sidetracked us. The final paper is always without discussion and this time it was Paul Smith from Broadstairs on The Pilgrim Fathers, a good theological treatment. We meet again next year, God willing, December 1, 2. I will be giving the closing paper. Lots of other good things too.

10 Biographies of Puritans

1. Henry Smith: England's Silver-tongued Preacher by Ronald B. Jenkins
2. Richard Sibbes by Mark E Dever
3. The life and times of Arthur Hildersham by Leslie A Rowe
4. A life of Gospel Peace: A Biography of Jeremiah Burroughs by Philip Simson
5. John Owen: Prince of Puritans by Andrew Thomson
6. Glimpses of glory: John Bunyan and English Dissent by Richard Greaves
7. Thomas Manton A Guided Tour of the Life and Thought of a Puritan Pastor by Derek Cooper
8. The life and times of the Rev Philip Henry by Matthew Henry
9. Life and death of the Rev Joseph Alleine by Alexander Duff
10. Samuel Rutherford by Andrew Thomson