"Goddes Visitacion": Human Suffering and Divine Agency in Calvin and Herbert

In this article, I put John Calvin and George Herbert in conversation on the theological question of God's role in human suffering. For Calvin, God's providence implies that God actively wills all things that occur, including suffering, and that consolation comes from this acknowledgement....

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Ridderman, Erica (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Johns Hopkins University Press 2022
In: Christianity & literature
Year: 2022, Volume: 71, Issue: 3, Pages: 306-321
IxTheo Classification:KAG Church history 1500-1648; Reformation; humanism; Renaissance
KAH Church history 1648-1913; modern history
KDD Protestant Church
NBC Doctrine of God
Further subjects:B Agency
B John Calvin
B Love
B George Herbert
B Suffering
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Summary:In this article, I put John Calvin and George Herbert in conversation on the theological question of God's role in human suffering. For Calvin, God's providence implies that God actively wills all things that occur, including suffering, and that consolation comes from this acknowledgement. Despite agreement with Calvin in some respects, I argue that Herbert amends Calvin at two crucial points: the permissive will of God and the inexplicability of suffering. By analyzing two sets of poems, I hope to show that Herbert's poetry offers a more nuanced, compelling, and pastorally sensitive account of God's role in suffering.
ISSN:2056-5666
Contains:Enthalten in: Christianity & literature
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1353/chy.2022.0039