Christian Worldview

by Herman Bavinck, Nathaniel Gray Sutanto (Contributor)

For the First Time in English, a Foundational Work of One of the Church's Most Important Theologians As some point in life, we all wonder:  Who am I? What is the world, and what is my place within it?  Only Christianity offers answers to these questions in a way that meets our truest needs and satisfies our deepest longings.  In this important book, translated into English for the first time, Herman Bavinck provides a framework for understanding why the Christian worldview is the only solution to the discord we feel between ourselves, the world, and God. 

Genres: Theology, Philosophy, Christian, Christianity, Cultural, Nonfiction, Church

144 pages, Hardcover

First published November 10, 2009

About the author

Herman Bavinck (1854-1921) succeeded Abraham Kuyper as professor of systematic theology at the Free University of Amsterdam in 1902.

His nephew was Johan Herman Bavinck.

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dense, but good. The Christian worldview is the only worldview able to make sense of the puzzles which philosophy has tried to solve.
Bonus: a non-pejorative use of the word "theonomy" on p. 128.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

There has been a nice bit of energy behind translating and publishing the works of Herman Bavinck that have heretofore only been available to Bavinck scholars fluent in Dutch. The translation energies by all of the scholars on this project—Eglinton, Sutanto, and Brock—are to be commended. As a fan of Herman Bavinck, I believe that the more of his work in English the better.

That being the case, this work—Christian Worldview—while very important for Bavinck scholars and specialists, may be misunderstood or unappreciated for what it is not. This book is not an introduction to the concept of worldview, or worldview thinking, but rather Bavinck's argument for the unity of all things in God. Bavinck here argues against forms of pantheism, empiricism, and pragmatism that were rampant within in the milieu of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

My fear is that readers may be looking at this book to be something that it's not, and my only desire would be for the translators to have approached with the more heavy-handed annotation approach that they took in Philosophy of Revelation—another title in Bavinck's oeuvre that requires some philosophical heavy-lifting. I also wish the translators would have included a conclusion summarizing the argument, and providing some applications for 21st c. readers. It's possible this would distract from the purpose of the project (simply providing a translation of an historical artifact), but I feel some words of closure would help give the project some coherence to modern readers.

Again, this rating is not a dig whatsoever on the important work of the translators—we are in their debt for the tireless task of bringing Bavinck to speak to an Anglophone audience. But based upon the merits of the book itself, and Bavinck's text, this is a work that will surely appeal to scholars and Bavinck specialists, but likely not to laypersons without a background in philosophy.

[Felipe Sabino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great. Highly recommended!

[Tim Sanduleac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal.

In this short work, Bavinck argues why Christianity is the only valid worldview once you start asking deeper questions about how the world works, who we are and what our purpose is.

What I really appreciate about this book is how many different views Bavinck interacts with. You can tell he has read an immense amount of literature that doesn’t conform to his own views, much of which will outright contradict his own thoughts completely. He gives the Christian Wordview, which we ought to have, only after he provides other options and, softly speaking, absolutely obliterates them.

One thing I found particularly fascinating is that, writing in 1904, his prediction of the German fanatical racism could not be more spot-on, knowing what was to happen 3 decades later. His arguments against materialism and socialism were also very compelling.

The author does assume a prior knowledge of basic Western Philosphy, which means that, if you’re not proficient in it (like me), you’re going to be looking up about 5-10 definitions per page. Online articles and lectures by the 3 translators are also an immense help, if you have the time for them.

Also, people tell you to not judge a book by its cover, but the cover of this book is gorgeous.

Overall, this is an incredibly dense work. Nevertheless, it is a rewarding read, if you are up for the challenge.

[Ethan Moehn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sheeeeeeeesh. Lots of brain work. Lots of benefit.

[Jared Mcnabb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some excellent points throughout, but Bavinck’s debate partners are passé, which makes a large portion of this book heavy slogging.

[Brother Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The truth is objective; it exists independently of us. It does not direct itself toward us; we have to direct ourselves toward it" — H. Bavinck

This book was hard intellectual reading which, for the most part, was written in philosophical dialectical prose. For his philosophical style, I fell in love with Bavinck and will most certainly pick up more of his work (after a good break!).

Apparently, we are in a Bavinck renaissance as this book (and some others) are just being translated into the English from the original Dutch. I am grateful for these translations which are clear and readable (though difficult!).

In my estimation, Bavinck puts up a good fight against Nietzsche's pervasive 'Uberman' ideology and Kant's influential moral argument and enthroning of human autonomy. In the likeness of Hegel (Bavinck actually corrects Hegel a bit), Bavinck shows convincingly that Christianity is the only religion that makes sense of a progressive history — that is a history that has a purposeful beginning that moves towards an intentional and glorious end. He appropriately connects this view (what he calls the 'organic-teleological worldview') to the Calvinistic soteriology: simply, that all of history is planned and organized by the Creator God, moves redemptively towards a new heavens and new earth because of the salvific work of Jesus Christ in the cross in history. Bavinck explicitly presents this worldview as a direct critique of his contemporaries' materialism which, in his view, could not possibly have a teleological progression. I think he's right.

In the three chapters of this book, Bavinck demonstrates how Christianity resolves the philosophical paradoxes of (1) thinking and being (the relationship between subjects and objects), (2) being and becoming (the relationship between what we are and who we become; particularly how they are guided to their telos) and (3) becoming and acting (do we have freedom to act in our becoming or are we passive entities in a progressive movement towards the eschaton). I think Bavinck succeeds.

I actually highly recommend this read, but it will be really hard work. I do not think the philosophical language should gatekeep us from learning and enjoying Bavinck!

[Kevin V. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bavinck’s Christian Worldview is not the Reformed Dogmatics. It is, rather, a tome pressed and compacted down to its barest parts. No word here is wasted. Each word, sentence, paragraph, and chapter serves the ultimate purpose of expounding the worldview of Scripture as the only worldview that makes sense of the whole of nature—what Bavinck argues includes both the material and spiritual created world. All questions find their answer and all longings their satisfaction in the gospel of God taking on human flesh, of the Creator working out his willed re-creation.

CW is a read that will humble and refresh you. As the saying goes, “it is no easy sledding.” Much of the language is that of the philosophers—being and becoming, the ideal, the forms, etc. And yet, hidden among such language are incredible gems and deep insights by a man who loved his God, loved this world, and knew the history of the arguments that often set these two at irreparable odds.

[Samuel Kassing · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was phenomenal! Great introduction to the Christian world-and-life view. Takes on three huge philosophical questions and shows how the Christian view offers more coherence and beauty.

There is some dense philosophical language. But it’s worth the time. This book could read like an apologetic tract for our time. And yet it was written over one hundred years ago.

[Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

In only just over a hundred pages, Bavinck lays out an organic Christian (especially Reformed) position on epistemology, ontology, and ethics. I anticipated blowing through this book in a couple of hours, but it took me the whole day. This is a dense little book that demands to be read more than once.

[Miles Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a worthwhile treatise. I came away thinking it rambled a bit but the material is important. My only question about Bavinck is Im not sure what you get from him that you dont get from the Princetonians.

[Zachary Wilke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great. At times, Bavinck sounds like a Van Tillian and at other times a classicist. Folks in both camps would do well to be more like Bavinck.

From the translator's introduction:

"Worldview is (at least) closely related to a 'comprehensive wisdom' or, in case of a particularly Christian worldview, to a 'Christian wisdom.' Nevertheless, for Bavinck, wisdom and worldview are not mere synonyms: 'Whoever rejects the word of the Lord cannot have wisdom.' (In that regard, this text provides an interesting counterpoint to the recent trend in Anglophone Reformed theology to pit worldview against wisdom, as though the former were a largely cerebral affair, in contrast to the wholesome embodied nature of the latter)."

"Worldview, for Bavinck, is neither apriorism nor a tenuous theory for separating public intellectuals into neat compartments. Rather, it is a controlling principle and posture that is first discovered when religion comes to bear on both science and wisdom (philosophy), discovering between them a unity--one which attempts to satisfy both head and heart."

"Bavinck argues that wisdom stems from and leads to a worldview, 'because it is indeed the science of the idea.'"

"It is only the Christian worldview that provides true harmony of self: true harmony between God and the world, God and the self, and the self and the world."

"Finally, when wisdom, in search of a comprehensive unity, meets and bows to the demands of religion, in both its ontological and ethical demands, there is a world-and-life view. From there, one's world-and-life view does not remain static. Rather, it rereads the cosmos, the sensations, and the metaphysical claims and makes ongoing adjustments, always seeking the satisfaction of head and heart. It strives for subjective and objective unity."

"Bavinck explains why only Christianity has solutions for the discordant self in the modern world, paying special attention to epistemology, change, and ethics. On the ground that God's grace restores and perfects nature, Bavinck argues that only Christianity can make sense of the deepest human needs while simultaneously 'justif[ying]' the 'presupposition[s]' from which we approach the objective world."

[Jeanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now by the nature of things, a worldview is always "unified. As long as we have not understood, however, all the realms and spheres of creation as parts of a whole, our worldview is not rounded out and complete. Of course, the question here is not whether we have already brought our worldview to that point or ever shall do so, but the concept implies harmonious unity. As such, there can be no essentially different worldview in religion and in philosophy, for the common people and for the learned, for the academy and for life. If religion contains a worldview in seed form, and philosophy in search for the final ground of all things, always seeks after God, then it follows naturally that they, in all their distinctions, have to conform inwardly to the essence of the matter and cannot compete with each other. Only the Christian worldview can fulfill this demand, because it makes known to us one God, the living and true God and cuts the root of all polytheism. There is not a different God for the child and the elderly person, for the simple and the learned, for the heart and the head.

The text covers why the Christian Worldview answers the questions that men seek. Not only the questions but the why. We dabble in different worldviews to fit our desires, however, our desires lead to sin and havoc. It is a text that takes those different world views and brings to light the Christian Worldview that will bring everlasting peace. Highly recommend.

A Special Thank you to Crossway Books and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

[Timothy Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh boy. Despite the 5 stars, this is an incredibly difficult book to review. To start, the 3rd/last chapter is worth the price of admission. But to get to the 3rd chapter requires the very hard work of the first two chapters. Herein lies the difficulty. Unless one is very familiar with Bavinck's interlocutors throughout (Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Darwin, to name a few), chapters one and two are arduous reading. Bavinck is simple in his prose but dense in meaning.

I had the blessing of reading this amongst a group of fellow masters students, with one of the translators of this book actually leading the discussion on it. As a result, I was able to understand the first two chapters in a way that would not have resulted from an isolated reading (this is my plug to read in community, folks).

The third chapter is a brilliant conclusion to Bavinck's argument for and unpacking of the world-and-life view that he articulates from the Introduction onward. If someone could find a way to distill and synthesize his argument for mass consumption, that would be ideal. But I would hesitate to recommend this book on it's own to someone with no background in philosophy and history. That being said, you should give it a shot.

[Evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

phenomenal. and noumenal. how does bavinck just know things, ding an sich?

it's basically a short philosophical primer, but also really dense, that treats three issues through a christian lens: thinking and being (epistemology), being and becoming (ontology), and becoming and acting (ethics). he does it very very very very well. He engages with Kant extensively, as well as Hegel, Schleiermacher, Marx, Schopenhauer, and Nietzsche. If you have philosophical doubts, i would highly recommend. If you want to get versed in some philosophy, you should read this (but you might need a friend to guide you along some of the concepts).

[Trent Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s nothing wrong with this book per se. However, this book is quite inaccessible to the popular reader, as Bavinck spends most of the book conversing with 19th century German philosophers. Would not recommend for a book club.

[David Haines · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this short book, Herman Bavinck lays out the Christian worldview under three essential headings (Thinking and Being, Being and becoming, and Becoming and Acting), and in each section, compares it with the predominant world views of our age: Materialism, Idealism, and the various forms of each. Bavinck interacts with a plethora of scientists, theologians, and philosophers. His most common sparring partners are Kant, Hegel, and Schleiermacher.
In part 1, Bavinck essentially defends the Medieval claim that human thought is based upon the sensible reality which, in turn, is based upon divine thought. It is true that reality is based upon thought, but not, as many post-modern thinkers have suggested, upon human thought; rather, reality is based upon the divine ideas, and, therefore, is knowable.
In part 2, Bavinck interacts with various theories concerning the very being and nature of our sensible cosmos, concentrating on key Materialistic theories which seek to reduce all of reality to indiscernible atoms or energies. He demonstrates that these theories end up destroying Nature itself, and that only the Christian understanding of creation ex nihilo can truly allow for what we observe in the natural sciences.
In part 3, Bavinck turns to action and free-will, history and morality, and demonstrates that not only is Christianity the only religion which makes sense of the possibility of free-will and morality, but it is the only system which makes history possible.
This is a short and dense book which takes the reader into a deep dive into Metaphysics, Epistemology, and Moral philosophy. Throughout this book Bavinck argues that Nominalism is not only the anti-thesis of Christianity and entails the destruction of thought, being, and history; but, that some form of Realism is just what the Bible teaches. There are, as is to be expected in this type of book, some sections which seem out of place, or show up suddenly, without clear explanation, only to be resolved into the text as one reads. It is a challenging read, and worth it's time.

[The Reading Pilgrim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seeking to answer the questions of who am I, who is God, what is this world and what am I supposed to do within the world, Bavinck, in a helpful treatment of the Christian worldview answer those types of questions. I liked it but it felt like tough reading through out the whole book. It was hard to get through. This book is way different then his sys Theo, which is so easy to understand (most of it).

[Joshua Maier · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were some things I really liked, and other things I really didn't like.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

The term worldview was first introduced to the Christian world by Abraham Kuyper, who drew upon the insights of James Orr. Unfortunately, the term has become abused, overused and misused.

This book by Herman Bavinck (1854-1921), Kuyper’s successor as professor of theology at the Free University, is a welcome addition to the worldview literature, particularly as it was written well before the term had fallen into a theoretical trap. This then is not a summary of Christian thinking and theology as much Christian worldview material seems to be today - for some then the title may cloud the content. What it is is an apologetic for an organic Christian perspective rooted in a creator God, against the arid, one-dimensional worldviews around at the turn of the nineteenth century.

The editors’ introduction serves the volume well and places Bavinck’s work in its historical and philosophical milieu.

Likewise, in his introduction, Bavinck places his work in context. He writes at a time when science and technology were expected to make religion superfluous (p. 25), yet there was an increase in interest in new religions, in a ‘this -worldly’ ‘world religion’ (p. 26).
Bavinck identifies three key questions, which he goes on to examine in the subsequent chapters.

There are:
What is the relation between thinking and being;
between being and becoming;
and between becoming and acting.

It is only Christianity, Bavinck argues, that preserves the harmony between them and ‘reveals a wisdom that reconciles the human being with a God and, through this, with itself, with the world and with life’. (p. 29).

1. Thinking and being

In the first chapter Bavinck examines epistemological concerns and the relation between subject and object. Even though Bavinck was professor of theology he shows here his awareness of philosophy. Philosophers are discussed rather than theologians.
Here he discusses nominalism, idealism and voluntarism, and shows how they fail to articulate a coherent view. He emphasises that it is only Christianity that can adequately describe things as they are. He goes further:

‘No matter how we look at it, the concept of truth and science - if we think consistently and without prejudice - brings us to Christianity.’ (p. 45).

2. Being and becoming

In the second chapter, once again Bavinck places different philosophical and scientific perspectives alongside Christianity and shows them to be defective. In particular, here he focuses on the mechanical worldview. He makes the interesting observation that

‘Those who have abandoned the mechanical worldview as untenable continue to honour it secretly as the scientific ideal.’ (p. 69)

He sees Christianity as an organic worldview - something that a Kuyper also maintained. For which Kuyper was occasionally criticised as being reliant on idealism, however, the critics seem to miss that it is also a biblical metaphor (cf John 15 and the vine). For Bavinck:

‘According to the this organic worldview, the world is in no sense one-dimensional; rather it contains a fullness of being, a rich exchange of phenomena, a rich multiplicity of creations.’ (p. 71-72).

The mechanistic worldview, unlike the organic worldview, fails to explain development. The mechanistic worldview fails ultimately because it has no answers to the origin and development of life:

‘It is only provided by the Christian confession that God is the Creator and that his glory is the goal of all things. Everything is subservient to this. Everything is directed to it.’ (p. 83)

3. Becoming and acting

In the final chapter, the issues that Bavinck addresses is one of freedom and ethics. He points out that:

‘This objective reality of logical, ethical, and aesthetic norms points back to a world order that can have its origins and existence only in God almighty.’ (p. 106)

And goes on to maintain

‘If the logical, ethical, and aesthetic norms deserve absolute validity; if truth, goodness, and beauty are goods worth more than all the treasures of this world, then they cannot thank the human—for whom law was made—for their origins.’ (p. 108)

Christianity thus provides the only coherent and consistent framework for life. The other perspectives Bavinck ably shows are incoherent and cannot account for the diversity of creation, among other things. This is hardly surprising as they deny or ignore the Creator that created the creation.

This book is a very welcome addition to the rapidly expanding corpus of Bavinck in English.


My thanks to Crossway for the review copy in exchange for a fair review.

[Mark Gring · Rating 5 out of 5]

Herman Bavinck continues to impress! For all the concerns about shallow books on Christian Worldview, Christian triumphalism, and whatever "woke"-concern-"du jour" exists, this book defies the usual categories. This is the work of a deeply thoughtful theologian who engages with the philosophical and metaphysical presuppositions of his day and presages the Nietzschean and late-modernity philosophical difficulties yet to come. The translators/editors deserve much credit for this well-crafted translation. I especially appreciated the use of footnotes to show the original Dutch, Greek, Latin, and/or German wording along with their translations. "Ahh, Bavinck, you continue to confound us all!"
Central to this text is not an emphasis on the usual epistemological, ontological, axiological, anthropological, and metaphysical categories (all fine in themselves) but chapters that cover all the aforementioned ideas under the chapter headings of:
1. Thinking and Being
2. Being and Becoming
3. Becoming and Acting

In a style similar to his Reformed Dogmatics layout, Bavinck gives an overview of the problems, issues, and concerns related to the main ideas and then waits until the end to give his reformed biblical understanding. He freely quotes and cites (the editors do a fantastic job for those of us who are ignorant of these thinkers) multiple late 19th and early 20th century continental thinkers who influenced the modernist thinking of his day. He quotes these thinkers, he commends them where they offer some insight but then shows how their thinking does not quite grasp the larger, all-encompassing, organic Christian thinking that Christians should have. There are occasional nods to the ideas and writings of Abraham Kuyper (and probably some presaging of the ideas to come from Dooyeweerd and Rookmaker) but, in my mind, Bavinck shows a greater philosophical and theological grasp of ideas than most of what I have read from Kuyper.

Bavinck does a great job of comparison-contrast in this text. He pits Thinking (knowing) versus Being in the first chapter. He shows the value and need of both but then also highlights how the modernist view tends to emphasize the thinking over the being--to its ultimate demise. Similar reasoning takes place in the next two chapters on Being and Becoming and Becoming and Acting. Bavinck is a master of showing how too much emphasis on one of these versus the other tends to cloud our vision about who God is, what God has created, and how we can begin to understand it. This is a mastery of the "both-and" thinking without watering down the truth of Scripture and God's revelation of himself through Jesus.

Some personal thoughts.... First, these chapters are not light reading for the faint of heart. These are densely packed sentences that carefully step through the ideas for each chapter. I tend to underline, highlight, or use post-it notes in my first reading of a text like this. I must admit I (sub-)created a chaotic mess. There is SO MUCH thoughtful stuff here. This text deserves multiple readings. I see Bavinck as the "scholar's scholar" because he has read, digested, and critiqued (from a solid Reformed perspective) more authors and scholarly writing than most of us will be credited for doing. He was willing to put himself in the position of knowing the writings of those whom Christians may have considered "dangerous to the faith" or "unfair challengers" and then critique them fairly--giving praise where deserved and strong critique where deserved.

Get the book. Read it. Do not expect you will understand it all after a first reading. This will grow your intellectual understanding and being.

[Kieran Grubb · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible book.

Bavinck is so eloquent and puts across his arguments so well. This was a joy to read.

It is helpful to know that some of the problems we faced today within the perspective of modernity (now, post-truth) were faced by some of the great Reformed theologians of the 19th century.

He covers a lot of ground in this small book.

The greatest thing about this version from Crossway is all the editors footnotes. Even when it's just explaining who a person is that Bavinck has referenced. The editor's intro is brilliant too.

[Joe Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not gonna lie, I wasn’t able to completely follow this one. Have forgotten too much of philosophy and history classes from seminary. But despite that, he shows clearly the Christian worldview is the only worldview that can make sense of the world and ourselves. It was almost worth getting lost as he engaged with philosophers deeply and pointed his readers to Christ again and again.

Not for the faint of heart…and my second reading will probably be after a refresher of some seminary notes!

[Taylor Franchuk · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Whoever shakes off the idols of the day and knows to rise above the prevailing prejudices in science and the academy, who faces up to things themselves, soberly and watchfully, and takes world and humanity, nature and religion as they truly are in themselves, presses on, evermore strengthening the conviction that Christianity is the only religion whose view of the world and life fits the world and life."

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended. Here is Bavinck grappling with the basic metaphysical, epistemological and ethic foundations for the Faith. Read it carefully, and perhaps with others, to get the most out of it.

[Colton Brewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this little boom for an upcoming class. It’s a bit technical philosophically, so don’t anticipate it being like the dogmatics if that’s your main exposure to Bavinck. Still a worthwhile little read.

[Erik Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, thick, but some profound poetic gems throughout.

[Chip · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need Dave Hinkley to explain it to me, but the 17% I otherwise understood was brilliant.

[PD · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s like he was telling us the plot of the script and we are living the movie. He wrote this book in 1913.

[Tyler Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me to Bavinck:

“You just wrinkled my brain, bro.”
- Troy Barnes