Neonomianism () in

Christian theology Christian theology is the theology of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theology, theologian ...

is the doctrine that the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

is a new law, the requirements of which humanity fulfills by

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

and

repentance Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past wrongs, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better. In modern times, it is generally seen as involving a co ...

, often including a distinction between initial and final justification, the latter being merited through good deeds. Neonomianism is most often associated with the theology of

Richard Baxter Richard Baxter (12 November 1615 – 8 December 1691) was an English Puritan church leader, poet, hymnodist, theologian, and controversialist. Dean Stanley called him "the chief of English Protestant Schoolmen". After some false starts, he ...

(1615–1691) and

James Hadow James Hadow (1667–1747) was a Scottish minister who served as Principal of St Mary's College, St Andrews from 1707 till 1747. Life He was born in Douglas, South Lanarkshire, Scotland on 13 August 1667. He died on 4 May 1747 at St An ...

(1667–1747). The theology of Richard Baxter has caused much controversy among Reformed theologians, because his teachings have been seen to have been seen as opposing justification by faith alone. Neonomianism was significant within the

Marrow Controversy The Marrow Controversy was a Scottish ecclesiastical dispute occasioned by the republication in 1718 of ''The Marrow of Modern Divinity'' (originally published in two parts in London in 1645 and 1649 by "E. F.", generally believed to be a pseud ...

. Richard Baxter defended this view when he wrote, William Styles defined Neonomianism as a doctrine associated with the theologian Daniel Williams, "which held that God has receded from the demands of the Moral Law, and given up its original obligations—and that the Gospel is a New Law, but of milder requirements, in which Faith, Repentance, and sincere though imperfect Obedience, are substituted in the room of the perfect and perpetual Obedience required by the original Law." (William Styles, A Manual of Faith and Practice)

Isaac Chauncy Isaac Chauncy (1632–1712) was an English dissenting minister. Life Chauncy was the eldest son of Charles Chauncy, and was born on 23 August and baptised at Ware, Hertfordshire, on 30 August 1632. He went as a child to New England with his fa ...

(1632–1712) was one of the leading opponents of neonomianism. He set forth his arguments against Williams in his book ''Neonomianism Unmask'd''. The Neonomian controversy with the Marrow Brethren has been compared to the

Lordship salvation controversy The lordship salvation controversy (also called lordship controversy) is a theological dispute regarding a soteriological question within Christianity on the relationship between faith and works. This debate has been notably present among some non ...

References

New Testament theology Christian terminology {{Christian-theology-stub

See also

References