Reformational philosophy of society is a neo-Calvinistic movement pioneered by

Herman Dooyeweerd Herman Dooyeweerd (7 October 1894, Amsterdam – 12 February 1977, Amsterdam) was a professor of law and jurisprudence at the Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam from 1926 to 1965. He was also a philosopher and principal founder of Reformational phil ...

and D. H. Th. Vollenhoven that seeks to develop philosophical thought in a

Reformed Christian Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Calv ...

direction. It is related to the idea of a political community and can be traced back to 16th-century

monarchomach The Monarchomachs (french: Monarchomaques) were originally French Huguenot theorists who opposed monarchy at the end of the 16th century, known in particular for having theoretically justified tyrannicide. The term was originally a pejorative wor ...

thinking. This school of thought had a particular influence in the Netherlands and contributed to the country being the first modern nation state. Freedom of Conscience and the fight against tyranny have
special place
in the Reformational philosophy of society.

Historical overview

In 1926 two

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

scholars were appointed to positions in the Free University (VU) in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, the Netherlands. Both had completed their education there and had been influenced by the thought of its founder

Abraham Kuyper Abraham Kuyper (; ; 29 October 1837 – 8 November 1920) was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands between 1901 and 1905, an influential neo-Calvinist theologian and a journalist. He established the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands, which upo ...

whose brand of

Neo-Calvinism Neo-Calvinism, a form of Dutch Calvinism, is a theological movement initiated by the theologian and former Dutch prime minister Abraham Kuyper. James Bratt has identified a number of different types of Dutch Calvinism: The Seceders, split into ...

had made a significant impact on the politics and culture of Dutch society. D. H. Th. Vollenhoven was appointed as the university’s first full-time professor of philosophy and his brother-in-law,

, was appointed to the law faculty. Both men had already been cooperating in the development of a uniquely

Christian philosophy Christian philosophy includes all philosophy carried out by Christians, or in relation to the religion of Christianity. Christian philosophy emerged with the aim of reconciling science and faith, starting from natural rational explanations wit ...

and their labours began to see considerable fruit over the next ten years. The mid-1930s saw a series of significant publications culminating in Dooyeweerd’s

magnum opus A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...

''De Wijsbegeerte der Wetsidee'' (The Philosophy of the Cosmonomic Idea) in three volumes. At this time Vollenhoven organised the ''Association for Calvinistic Philosophy'' which he served as president until his retirement in 1963, by then an international organisation with over 500 members. Dooyeweerd became the first editor of the Association's

academic journal An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as permanent and transparent forums for the presentation, scrutiny, and d ...

Philosophia Reformata ''Philosophia Reformata'' is a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal of the Association for Reformational Philosophy, which was founded in 1935. Formerly published by the Association, as of 2015 the journal is published by Brill Publishers. The e ...

''. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the Association for Calvinistic Philosophy took advantage of a legal provision which, by establishing a second organization for that purpose, allowed those interested in the further project to appoint professors in special chairs at state universities. Johan Mekkes was appointed in 1947 at

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

and

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,K. J. Popma at

Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

in 1948 and later

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

(1955), S. U. Zuidema at the Free University and Utrecht in 1948 and Hendrik Van Riessen at

Delft Delft () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam, to the southeast, ...

and Eindhoven in 1951. In the 1950s and 1960s, mainly through the influence of Vollenhoven’s American student

H. Evan Runner Howard Evan Runner (January 28, 1916 in Oxford, Pennsylvania – March 14, 2002) was professor of philosophy at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, from 1951 until his retirement in 1981. He was a graduate of Wheaton College in Wheaton, Il ...

, many North Americans with Dutch roots came to study under these Calvinistic philosophers increasing the influence of this new philosophy. Dooyeweerd also revised his earlier work for English publication under the title ''A New Critique of Theoretical Thought''. As a consequence Dooyeweerd has received greatest exposure outside of the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Although Calvinistic in roots reformational philosophy has always been ecumenical in outlook. Dooyeweerd later rejected the term “Calvinistic” wishing his philosophy to be seen as "Reformational-Ecumenical" Christian. On the 50th anniversary of the Association

Jacob Klapwijk Jacob Klapwijk (24 October 1933 – 19 March 2021) was a Dutch philosopher, and Emeritus Professor of Modern and Systematic Philosophy at the Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, known for his work on Ernst Troeltsch and historicism, Reformational think ...

summarized some of the central themes of reformational philosophy and looked forward to its continuing contributions. This important article was titled “Reformational Philosophy on the Boundary Between the Past and the Future.” In 1995 the ''Association for Calvinistic Philosophy'' became the ''

Association for Reformational Philosophy Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

,'' while its supporting foundation became the Foundation for Christian Philosophy (Stichting voor Christelijke Filosofie, with the new Dutch spelling).

The different generations

Jan-Willem Dijkshoorn outlines four different generations of Dutch reformational philosophers. The first generation were Vollenhoven and Dooyeweerd; the second generation: Hendrik Van Riessen, K. J. Popma, S. U. Zuidema and Johan Mekkes; the third generation:

Egbert Schuurman Egbert Schuurman (born 23 July 1937) is a Dutch engineer, philosopher, politician for the Christian Union, and Emeritus Professor of Philosophy in the Netherlands. Biography Born in Borger, Schuurman attended the Protestant primary school i ...

, Henk Geertsema and

Sander Griffioen Sander Griffioen (born 31 May 1941) is a Dutch philosopher, and Emeritus Professor for intercultural philosophy at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. Biography Born in Loenen aan de Vecht, Griffioen studied at the Vrije Universiteit The V ...

; the fourth generation: Jan Hoogland. Others in the third Generation or the fourth or in between should include Dr Maarten Verkerk whose book in translation will be read widely in North America, Trust and Power on the Shop Floor: An Ethnographical, Ethical, and Philosophical Study on Responsible Behaviour in Industrial Organizations . Dijkshoorn's own cultural context leaves out of perception in the second generation

, who studied in the Netherlands but thereafter returned to the United States to teach at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Runner was a student of Vollenhoven who had also studied Dooyeweerd's work closely. Runner returned to the US to teach, and from there sent back to the VU students to work on their doctorates under Vollenhoven in philosophy, one to do so under Dooyeweerd in jurisprudence, and others in an array of additional disciplines – such was Runner's influence! Many of these were children of families which had emigrated from the Netherlands to Canada or the USA, studied under H. Evan Runner at Calvin College, returned to the VU already bilingual, completed their doctorates, some to stay in the Netherlands and the VU, some to return to North America. Another person of this generation who deserves mention is the biologist Johann H. Diemer, the first secretary to the editorial board of ''Philosophia Reformata'', whose work ''Nature and Miracle'' is still being read. He died early, at the age of 41, after having been a Nazi

concentration camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...

prisoner. In North America, the

Institute for Christian Studies The Institute for Christian Studies (ICS or ICS Toronto) is a private, graduate-level Reformed philosophical and theological school in Toronto, Ontario. At ICS, students and faculty take part in shared learning through participatory seminars, m ...

(ICS) was established in Toronto to offer graduate degrees. The ICS has had a long cooperative relationship with the VU, the University of Toronto's federation of Theological Schools, and more recently also the University's Faculty of Philosophy. Thus, in North America, there is an active second generation of reformational philosophers in

Calvin Seerveld Calvin George Seerveld (born 1930) received a BA from Calvin College in 1952 and an MA in English literature and classics from the University of Michigan in 1953. He then went on to study under D. H. Th. Vollenhoven at the Free Univer ...

; a third generation including Hendrik Hart, Bernard Zylstra (deceased), James Olthius, Arnold DeGraaff (afterward a practicing psychotherapist for 30 years and co-founder of Mono Therapy Center, Mono, Ontario), Thomas McIntire,

Albert M. Wolters Albert Marten "Al" Wolters (born 1942) is an emeritus professor of religion at Redeemer University College in Ancaster, Ontario (near Hamilton). He has been described as a "towering figure" in the Kuyperian neo-Calvinist pantheon. Early life and e ...

, William Rowe, George VanderVelde (a theologian who took his doctorate under G. C. Berkouwer); and fourth-generationers Paul Marshall and Robert Sweetman may be added – to name just those who have had active professorial roles at ICS. There is now a numerous body of doctoral graduates of ICS through its cooperative program with the VU. At ICS itself, these now include: *Lambert Zuidervaart (Senior Member of systematic philosophy at ICS) * Ronald A. Kuipers (Senior Member of Philosophy of Religion at ICS) *Doug Blomberg (who consulted with Dooyeweerd in regard to his dissertation in

philosophy of education The philosophy of education is the branch of applied philosophy that investigates the nature of education as well as its aims and problems. It includes the examination of educational theories, the presuppositions present in them, and the arguments ...

, written for an Australian university and is now Senior Member of Philosophy of Education at ICS) Further graduates include: * Adrienne Dengerink Chaplin (VU graduate, former ICS student, former Senior Member in Philosophical Aesthetics at ICS, now speaking and writing in England where her husband has taken a key post) * Jonathan Chaplin (ICS student, London School of Economics in political science, former professor ICS political theory, now Kirby Laing Institute for Christian Ethics at

Tyndale House Tyndale House is a Christian publisher in Carol Stream, Illinois. History Tyndale was founded in 1962 by Kenneth N. Taylor in order to publish his paraphrase of the Epistles, which he had composed while commuting to work at Moody Press in Ch ...

, Cambridge, UK.) * James K. A. Smith (M. Phil. F. at ICS, PhD at Villanova under John D. Caputo). Smith has found a place for himself at the interface of Reformational Philosophy,

Deconstruction The term deconstruction refers to approaches to understanding the relationship between text and meaning. It was introduced by the philosopher Jacques Derrida, who defined it as a turn away from Platonism's ideas of "true" forms and essences w ...

, and

Radical orthodoxy Radical orthodoxy is a Christian theological and philosophical school of thought which makes use of postmodern philosophy to reject the paradigm of modernity. The movement was founded by John Milbank and others and takes its name from the title ...

. Many other names among the generations could be included, for instance, among those who taught at ICS, Redeemer University College, and College of New Jersey (formerly Trenton State University, NJ), and . * Dr Albert Wolters, studied under Runner, then Vollenhoven, taught at ICS, taught at Redeemer University College (Ontario), now retired, presently Research Fellow at the new Paideia Centre for Public Theology (Ancaster, Ontario). * Dr

Roy A. Clouser Roy A. Clouser is professor emeritus of the College of New Jersey. He has served as professor of philosophy, religion, and logic at the college since 1968. He serves as the resident philosopher of Christian Leaders Institute. Clouser earned hi ...

, now retired, has done much to popularise Reformational philosophy with his ''The Myth of Religious Neutrality'' (1st edn 1991; revd edn 2005). * Recently Danie Strauss published an extensive investigation of the relationship between philosophy and the special sciences: Philosophy: Discipline of the Disciplines (715 pages), Grand Rapids: Paideia Press, 2009.

Main claims

There are two main claims that characterise reformational philosophy.

Religious roots of philosophical thought

Reformational philosophy rejects the view that

theoretical A theory is a rational type of abstract thinking about a phenomenon, or the results of such thinking. The process of contemplative and rational thinking is often associated with such processes as observational study or research. Theories may be ...

thought, including philosophical thought, is

autonomous In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ow ...

. The view that theoretical thinking is a purely rational activity; has a purely rational ground, or requires no pre-theoretical conditions or commitments for its possibility cannot be sustained. Any attempt to explain theoretical thought without acknowledging non-theoretical factors is destined to fall into irresolvable

antinomies Antinomy (Greek ἀντί, ''antí'', "against, in opposition to", and νόμος, ''nómos'', "law") refers to a real or apparent mutual incompatibility of two laws. It is a term used in logic and epistemology, particularly in the philosophy of I ...

. The conclusion of Dooyeweerd’s “ transcendental critique of theoretical thought” is that philosophy cannot function without religious-deep

presuppositions In the branch of linguistics known as pragmatics, a presupposition (or PSP) is an implicit assumption about the world or background belief relating to an utterance whose truth is taken for granted in discourse. Examples of presuppositions inclu ...

. His analysis of the influence of religious ground-motives in the

history of philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

– particularly that of nature-freedom in modern

humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

(see Dooyeweerd 1997 Vol.1) – is illustrative of this conclusion.

Modal theory

Reformational philosophy has always been concerned that philosophy be fruitful for the special sciences; the theory of

irreducible In philosophy, systems theory, science, and art, emergence occurs when an entity is observed to have properties its parts do not have on their own, properties or behaviors that emerge only when the parts interact in a wider whole. Emergence ...

modal aspects has had the greatest influence in this respect. Although accounts differ, it is customary to distinguish fifteen modal aspects which evince the ways or modes we experience reality. These are: numerical, spatial, kinematic, physical, organic, psychical, logical, historical, linguistic, social, economic, aesthetic, legal, moral and mystical. Each mode expresses itself in all the other modes through analogies within the mode that either "anticipate" later modes or “retrocipate” earlier modes. Any non-reductionist account of reality must acknowledge the particular ways each entity, action or process function within all of the modal aspects or else fall, once again, into antinomies (see Dooyeweerd 1997 Vol.2).

References

* Clouser, Roy ''The Myth of Religious Neutrality'' (University of Notre Dame Press, 1991) * Dooyeweerd, Herman ''A New Critique of Theoretical Thought'' (Edwin Mellen, 1997) * Kalsbeek. L ''Contours of a Christian Philosophy'' (Wedge Publishing, 1975) * Tol, Antony “In memoriam: Dirk Hendrik Theodoor Vollenhoven” ''Philosophia Reformata'' 43 (3–4) 1978 pp. 93–100 * Zylstra, Bernard “Introduction” in ''Contours of a Christian Philosophy'' (Wedge Publishing, 1975) pp. 14–33

Notes

External links

The Reformational Publishing Project

All Of Life Redeemed

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reformational Philosophy Christian philosophy Western philosophy Calvinism