Nathaniel Holmes or HomesAlso Nathanael. (1599–1678) was an English

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

theologian and preacher. He has been described as a “Puritan writer of great ability".

Life

He graduated with a B.A. from

Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth-oldest college of the un ...

in 1620; and with an M.A. from

Magdalen Hall, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main gate to the Bodleian Library. The colleg ...

in 1623. He later founded an Independent church, with

Henry Burton Henry Burton may refer to: * Henry Burton (Conservative politician) (1876–1947), British Conservative MP for Sudbury (1924–1945) * Henry Burton (physician) (1799–1849), English physician * Henry Burton (theologian) (1578–1648), English Puri ...

; he was rector of

St Mary Staining St. Mary Staining was a parish church in Oat Lane, northeast of St. Paul's Cathedral, in the City of London. First recorded in the 12th century, it was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not rebuilt. History The first reference to ...

, Oat Lane,

Aldersgate Aldersgate is a Ward of the City of London, named after one of the northern gates in the London Wall which once enclosed the City. The Ward of Aldersgate is traditionally divided into Aldersgate Within and Aldersgate Without, the suffix denot ...

, in London to 1662. In 1644 his ''Gospell-Musick'' defended and promoted psalm-singing, and reprinted the preface to the ''

Bay Psalm Book ''The Whole Booke of Psalmes Faithfully Translated into English Metre'', commonly called the Bay Psalm Book, is a metrical psalter first printed in 1640 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was the first book printed in British North America. The psa ...

''. A convinced

millenarian Millenarianism or millenarism (from Latin , "containing a thousand") is the belief by a religious, social, or political group or movement in a coming fundamental transformation of society, after which "all things will be changed". Millenariani ...

, he preached to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

in 1641, under the influence of

Thomas Brightman Thomas Brightman (1562–1607) was an English clergyman and biblical commentator. His exegesis of the Book of Revelation, published posthumously, proved influential. According to William M. Lamont, Brightman and Joseph Mede were the two most impor ...

. In 1650, in another sermon to the Commons after the battle of Dunbar, he cited the

Book of Daniel The Book of Daniel is a 2nd-century BC biblical apocalypse with a 6th century BC setting. Ostensibly "an account of the activities and visions of Daniel, a noble Jew exiled at Babylon", it combines a prophecy of history with an eschatology (a ...

and

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...

. He has been considered a follower of

Johann Heinrich Alsted Johann Heinrich Alsted (March 1588 – November 9, 1638), "the true parent of all the Encyclopædias", s:Budget of Paradoxes/O. was a German-born Transylvanian Saxon Calvinist minister and academic, known for his varied interests: in Ramism and ...

. He with

Henry Jessey Henry Jessey or Jacie (1603 in West Rowton, Yorkshire – 1663) was one of many English Dissenters. He was a founding member of the Puritan religious sect, the Jacobites. Jessey was considered a Hebrew and a rabbinical scholar. His active phi ...

corresponded with

Menasseh ben Israel Manoel Dias Soeiro (1604 – 20 November 1657), better known by his Hebrew name Menasseh ben Israel (), also known as Menasheh ben Yossef ben Yisrael, also known with the Hebrew acronym, MB"Y or MBI, was a Portuguese rabbi, kabbalist, writ ...

, about the official return of Jews to England, and the supposed Lost Tribes found in North America. This interest was prompted by

John Dury John Dury (1596 in Edinburgh – 1680 in Kassel) was a Scottish Calvinist minister and an intellectual of the English Civil War period. He made efforts to re-unite the Calvinist and Lutheran wings of Protestantism, hoping to succeed when he moved ...

’s interest, and was shared with others. His philo-Semitism has been noted, for example, by

Werner Sombart Werner Sombart (; ; 19 January 1863 – 18 May 1941) was a German economist and sociologist, the head of the "Youngest Historical School" and one of the leading Continental European social scientists during the first quarter of the 20th century. ...

Views

His 1640 work on

usury Usury () is the practice of making unethical or immoral monetary loans that unfairly enrich the lender. The term may be used in a moral sense—condemning taking advantage of others' misfortunes—or in a legal sense, where an interest rate is ch ...

was against the permissive line of

William Ames William Ames (; Latin: ''Guilielmus Amesius''; 157614 November 1633) was an English Puritan minister, philosopher, and controversialist. He spent much time in the Netherlands, and is noted for his involvement in the controversy between the Cal ...

. He was against political "levelling". He defended

infant baptism Infant baptism is the practice of baptising infants or young children. Infant baptism is also called christening by some faith traditions. Most Christians belong to denominations that practice infant baptism. Branches of Christianity that ...

, and attacked

John Goodwin John Goodwin may refer to: Politicians *John Goodwin (Parliamentarian) (1603–1674), Member of Parliament for Reigate * John B. Goodwin (1850–1921), Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia in the late 1880s *John Noble Goodwin (1824–1887), 1st Governor of ...

salvation by works In Christian theology, good works, or simply works, are a person's (exterior) actions or deeds, in contrast to inner qualities such as grace or faith. Views by denomination Anglican Churches The Anglican theological tradition, including The ...

. He wrote against

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

, proposing an influential three-fold scheme of possession, and

astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of Celestial o ...

, regretting its prevalence. (Citing ''Plain Dealing'', a sermon of 1652.)

Works

*''Usury is Injury'' (1640), *''Gospell Musick'' (1644) *''Daemonologie and Theologie'' (1650) *''The Resurrection Revealed, or The Dawning of the Day Star'' *''Some Glimpses of Israel's Call Approaching'' *''Revelation Revealed'' (1653) *''Commentary on Canticles''

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holmes, Nathaniel 1599 births 1678 deaths English theologians Alumni of Magdalen Hall, Oxford Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford