The Marrow Brethren, also called Marrowmen, were a group inside

Presbyterianism Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

. The name is derived from the book " Marrow of Modern Divinity", which caused a controversy in the Scottish Church, called 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 ...

. The leading figures of the Marrow Brethren included

Thomas Boston Thomas Boston (17 March 167620 May 1732) was a Scottish Presbyterian church leader, theologian and philosopher. Boston was successively schoolmaster at Glencairn, and minister of Simprin in Berwickshire, and Ettrick in Selkirkshire. In addition ...

, Robert Riccaltoun,

James Hog James Hog (1658?–14 May 1734) was a Scottish Presbyterian minister at Carnock, known for his role in the Marrow Controversy within the Church of Scotland. Life He was the son of Thomas Hog, minister of Larbert, Stirlingshire (d. 1680?). After ...

, John Williamson, James Bathgate, and

Ebenezer Erskine Ebenezer Erskine (22 June 1680 – 2 June 1754) was a Scottish minister whose actions led to the establishment of the Secession Church (formed by dissenters from the Church of Scotland). Early life Ebenezer's father, Henry Erskine, served as ...

along with the author of the Marrow, Edward Fisher. The General Assembly condemned the Marrow for being

antinomian Antinomianism ( [] 'against' and [] 'law') is any view which rejects laws or Legalism (theology), legalism and argues against moral, religious or social norms (), or is at least considered to do so. The term has both religious and secular meaning ...

. The teaching of the Marrow Brethren is called "Marrow theology", and they have influenced many Reformed thinkers even after their condemnation in Scotland.

Beliefs

The Marrow of Modern Divinity criticized legalism while criticizing antinomianism, the Marrow argued that antinomianism and legalism, though being opposite to each other both are opposed to grace. They had a very high emphasis on the doctrine of justification by faith alone, they highly opposed the doctrine of

Neonomianism Neonomianism in Christian theology is the doctrine that the Gospel is a new law, the requirements of which humanity fulfills by faith and repentance, often including a distinction between initial and final justification, the latter being merited t ...

which saw acts of obedience as meritorious. A common claim of the Marrowmen was that Neonomianism made the

New Covenant The New Covenant () is a biblical interpretation which was originally derived from a Book of Jeremiah#Sections of the Book, phrase which is contained in the Book of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 31:31–34), in the Hebrew Bible (or the Old Testament of the ...

into a

Covenant of Works Covenant theology (also known as covenantalism, federal theology, or federalism) is a biblical theology, a conceptual overview and interpretive framework for understanding the overall structure of the Bible. It is often distinguished from dis ...

. The Marrow Brethren, though rejecting

universal atonement Unlimited atonement (sometimes called general atonement or universal atonement) is a doctrine in Protestant Christianity that states Jesus died as a propitiation for the benefit of all humans without exception. It is normally associated with Amyr ...

, held to a strong view of common grace and that in some way God desires the salvation of all. They sought to clear the gospel out of any other conditions other than faith. The Marrow Brethren denied that actions such as

repentance Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past or present wrongdoings, 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 ...

, with either inward or outward reformation are necessary to receive salvation but saw them as naturally flowing from receiving Christ. They saw high Calvinism as "misguided" and sought to defend the free offer of the gospel against the Assembly. The Marrow Brethren taught the

republication of the covenant of works Republication is form of Christian covenant theology where the works principle of the covenant of works was republished in some way in the Mosaic covenant. The view is popular among academics of the Westminster Seminary California and was populari ...

, meaning that they saw the Mosaic covenant as having a works principle republished from the original Covenant of Works. They saw the distinction of

Law and Gospel Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

as vital to the Gospel itself. While the critics of the Marrow argued that being in the Covenant of Grace did not make the duties of the Covenant of Works unnecessary. The Marrow had a high emphasis on the possibility of assurance, seeing the work of Christ as the foundation of the believer's assurance, while the general Assembly emphasized the human element in having assurance.

Influence

Marrow beliefs formed the basis of the

Secession church The First Secession was an exodus of ministers and members from the Church of Scotland in 1733. Those who took part formed the Associate Presbytery and later the United Secession Church. They were often referred to as Seceders. The underlying ...

es, which still continue as Associate Reformed Presbyterian churches. The Marrow along with the writings of the Marrow Brethren were translated into Dutch, which caused their views to influence many Reformed churches and theologians in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. The Marrow also had influence on some later Presbyterian writers such as John Colquhoun. R. Scott Clark, a professor in

Westminster Seminary California Westminster Seminary California is a Reformed and Presbyterian Christian seminary in Escondido, California. It was initially a branch campus of Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia until 1982 when it became fully independent. It has 1 ...

has defended the Marrow Brethren, saying: "The ''Marrow of Modern Divinity'' was regarded by the orthodox Reformed, in the 17th century, as a good summary of the orthodox view of law and gospel, justification, sanctification, and the third (normative) use of the law in the life of the Christian."

References

Works cited

* * {{cite journal , last1=Macleod , first1=Donald , title=Reformed theology in Scotland , journal=Theology in Scotland , date=2010 , volume=17 , issue=2 , page
11
��14 , url=https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/10023/5694/Macleod_2010_TiS_Reformed.pdf , access-date=22 April 2019 1718 in Great Britain 18th century in Scotland 18th-century controversies History of Christianity in Scotland Protestantism-related controversies Church of Scotland

Beliefs

Influence

See also

References

Works cited