A Reformed Catholic

by William Perkins, Joseph A. Pipa Jr. (Introduction)

A Reformed Catholike: OR, A DECLARATION SHEWING HOW NEERE WE MAY COME TO THE PRESENT Church of Rome in sundrie points of Religion: and vvherein we must for euer depart from them: with an Advertisment to all fauou∣rers of the Romane religion, shewing that the said religion is against the Catholike principles and grounds of the Catechisme.

By a Reformed Catholike, I vnderstand any one that holds the same necessarie heades of religion vvith the Romane Church: yet so, as he pares off and reiects all errours in doctrine vvhereby the said religion is corrupted. Hovv this may be done, I haue begunne to make some little declaration in this small Treatise: the in∣tent whereof is to shevve howe neere we may come to the present Church of Rome in sun∣drie points of religion: and wherein we must for euer dissent.

My purpose in penning this small dis∣course is threefold. The first is, to confute all such Politikes as holde and maintaine, that our religion and that of the Romane Church differ not in substance, and consequently that they may be reconciled: yet my meaning is not here to condemne any Pacification that tends to perswade the Romane church to our religion. The second is, that the papists which thinke so basely of our religion, may be wonne to a better liking of it: when they shall see how neare we come vnto them in sundrie points. The third, that the common protestant might in some part see and conceiue the point of dif∣ference betvveene vs and the Church of Rome: an knovv in what manner and hovv far forth, vve condemne the opinions of the said Church.

I craue pardon for the order vvhich I vse, in handling the seuerall points. For I haue set them downe one by one, as they came to minde, not respecting the laws of methode. If any Papist shall say, that I haue not allead∣ged their opinions aright, I ansvver that their bookes be at hand, and I can iustifie what I haue said.

Thus crauing thine acceptation of this my paines, and wishing vnto thee the increase of knowledge and loue of pure and sound religi∣on, I take my leaue and make an ende.

Genres: Theology, Nonfiction, Christian

258 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 18, 2021

About the author

William Perkins (1558–1602) was an influential English cleric and Cambridge theologian, receiving both a B.A. and M.A. from the university in 1581 and 1584 respectively, and also one of the foremost leaders of the Puritan movement in the Church of England during the Elizabethan era. Although not entirely accepting of the Church of England's ecclesiastical practices, Perkins conformed to many of the policies and procedures imposed by the Elizabethan Settlement. He did remain, however, sympathetic to the non-conformist puritans and even faced disciplinary action for his support.

Perkins was a prolific author who penned over forty works, many of which were published posthumously. In addition to writing, he also served as a fellow at Christ's College and as a lecturer at St Andrew's Church in Cambridge. He was a firm proponent of Reformed theology, particularly the supralapsarian theology of Theodore Beza and John Calvin. In addition, he was a staunch defender of Protestant ideals, specifically the five solae with a particular emphasis on solus Christus and sola Scriptura.

Reviews

[Joseph Ficklen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perkins distinguishes the Reformed and the Romanist positions with scholastic precision, and demonstrates that the former is the Biblical and indeed truly catholic position. It is enlightening to see just how far our two positions agree, but as they say the devil is in the details. Also, this was a shorter and an easier read than I expected.

[Josh Kannard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book.

Perkins' work, though written in 1598, is still extremely relevant today. Each doctrine is introduced by where Protestants and Roman Catholics agree, followed by where they disagree. He then provides the consensus of the Church Fathers with Protestant belief, placing the recently-emerged Protestant faith within the historical church, and various objections from the Roman Catholic side. Having grown up as a Protestant on the missions field in Rome, these objections are still being used against the Protestant faith in this day and age. Perkins' writing is both scholarly, demonstrated by his vast knowledge of the patristics and historical church councils, and approachable, being clear, concise, and direct enough. Furthermore, while Perkins attacks the institution of the Roman Catholic church, he makes clear that we are not to hate our Roman Catholic neighbors, but to endeavor in every way to love them, praying for their salvation - he loves the captive soul while raging against its captor.

Some of my favorite chapters were on Free Will, where Perkins delivers a clear and concise definition and defense of the Reformed understanding of Free Will (10 pgs. give or take), and on Vows, which turned out to have, what I believe to be, very wise thoughts on singleness, marriage, poverty, and life in community.

I would wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone trying to make sense of the difference between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism. My one criticism is that it is an atomistic approach as opposed to a systemic approach to understanding Roman Catholic theology and practice. For further reading that embraces a systemic approach, I would recommend Leonardo de Chirico's "Same Words, Different Worlds".

[Sean Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good little volume to walk you through the main differences between the Protestants and the Roman Church, at least as things stood in the sixteenth century. Each topic begins with Perkins' consent with Rome as far as he can, then sets out their various points of departure. In each case, he wheels out patristic luminaries that support him.

A few surprises: Perkins holds that unfilled Adam couldn't have merited glory under the legal covenant! (I happen to agree with this, but I was surprised to see it in an early Reformed source.) Another huge surprise was seeing Pope Gregory the Great quoted against the concept of a global papacy.

I think my favourite chapter was on implicit faith, which both showed God's great generosity towards those sinners whose understanding is ill-informed and weak, but still urged the necessity of growing in grace as much as God enables you to.

The book begins with a pretty questionable historicist reading of Revelation, proving that the harlot is the Roman Church. Not a great deal of weight is placed upon this, but it wasn't a good start to a decent book. There were also a few questionable readings of Scriptural texts, which to me illustrated the danger of doing your exegesis in a polemical setting (see especially the treatment on John 6).

[Chuck Ransford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was simply excellent. Perkins goes through great lengths to show that the Roman Catholic Church, not the Protestant church, is actually a deviation from the faith and doctrine of the early church. Perkins uses Scripture and church history to make his case, dealing with topics like purgatory, justification, transubstantiation, and more.

Each chapter generally follows the same pattern: 1) the doctrine is stated, with the points agreed upon by Rome and Protestants, 2) the differences between the two viewpoints, 3) the reasons in favor of the deviations, and 4) objections from papists (and Perkins’ answers).

While this is intended to be a response to Roman doctrine, it also serves as a great handbook on a Christian doctrine. While not as comprehensive as a systematic theology, I can easily see myself referencing this work in a pinch when I’m interested in a traditional reformed, Puritan view on a certain topic.

Highly recommended for all.

[Austin Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just excellent

“Whence I observe, that all those who will be saved, must depart and separate themselves from the faith and religion of this present Church of Rome. And whereas they are charged with schism that separate on this manner; the truth is, they are not schismatics that do so because they have the commandment of God for their warrant.”

“ I write not this despising or hating their persons for their religion, but wishing unfeignedly their conversion in this world, and their salvation in the world to come.”

[Inwoo · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite works from William Perkins next to his commentary on Galatians. This work was first written in Latin. The longest section in this work is his treatment on justification in which he states that as Protestants we are to hold to this Biblical doctrine of justification apart from works till the death against the Roman Catholics.

[Isaiah Hess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why are you a Protestant?

If you don’t know the answer to this question, you need to read Perkins’ book. This Puritan powerfully explains why Rome teaches falsehood and what biblical teaching is, while being careful to not misrepresent Rome’s teaching.

[Jake Litwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Other than the historicist interpretations of Revelation and the Antichrist, this is a really good treatment in dealing with Rome’s false doctrines in the 16th century. Wish more could be fleshed out on some of the sections but overall helpful.

[Jim Becker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the Canon Press edition. Very easy to read. Very helpful.

[Garrett Sculthorpe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating for Canon Press printing

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book in dealing with the early differences between Catholic theology and Reformed Theology.

[Josh J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perkins displays his excellent acumen in this disputation against the Roman religion and our reasons for separation thereof.

[Adam Heida · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exemplary treatise which balances catholicity with polemics