The Vanity of Dogmatizing: The Three 'Versions' (review)

Abstract

BOOK REVIEWS 359 one, especially for a single scholar. It is clearly a labor of love for one of the most gifted and respected men in the field. Pelikan defines his topic narrowly. Thus in the opening chapter, "Some Definitions ," he defines his topic as being only doctrine and he defines doctrine as what is believed, taught, and confessed by the Church. That which is believed is that which is present in "the modalities of devotion, spirituality, and worship"; that which is taught is the product of exegesis of the divine word of Scripture further communicated through "proclamation, instruction, and churchly theology"; and that which is confessed is the testimony of the church against heresy and which is articulated in creed and dogma (p. 4). The topic is narrow but Pelikan discusses a wealth of material within his perspective. Many crucial doctrinal developments are described including those surrounding the concept of the Trinity, the meaning of salvation, the Incarnation, and the doctrine of grace. It is clear from Pelikan's discussion that the development of doctrine during these formative years was a difficult task. The Church was born in the midst of Judaism and paganism and while each of these forces assisted the development of doctrine, they each threatened it as well. This book is of interest primarily to historians of the Church. It should also be ,,, ,nL~r~ to historians of philosophy and historians of ideas in general. Of pa~icular interest to these latter groups will be the discussions of the several major heresies which challenged the Church and the role of pagan philosophy in the development of Church doctrine and philosophy. Pelikan offers excellent discussions of Marcionism (pp. 72-81), Gnosticism (pp. 81-97), Montanism (pp. 97-108), and Arianism (pp. 191-200). It is also of interest to note the role of pagan philosophies in the development of Augustine's arguments against the Pelagian position in regard to freedom and grace (pp. 295-300). The first five centuries of doctrinal development were exciting, hut the development has never stopped since that time. The subtitles of the future volumes in the series offer much more to come: The Spirit of Eastern Christendom (600-1700); The Growth of Medieval Theology (600-1300);Reformation of Church and Dogma (1300-1700); and Christian Doctrine and Modern Culture (since 1700). If these volumes are anywhere near as informative as the first one they will all become indispensable to future generations of students of the history of ideas. J. T. MOORE Phillips University The Vanity ot Dogmatizing: The Three 'Versions'. By Joseph Glanvill. With a critical Introduction by Stephen Medcalf. (Sussex: The Harvester Press, 1970) The Harvester Press has set a high standard for scholarly reprints. The first volume in their Renaissance Library is handsomely and firmly bound in hard covers, the text of Glanvill is photographically reproduced on clean white bond, the title page of The Vanity of Dogmatizing is even captured in its original two tones. The editor's Introduction takes advantage of this reprinting of the three versions of the same work by tracing some of the linguistic and stylistic changes from the 1661 Vanity through the 1665 Scepsis Scientifica to the "Against Confidence in Philosophy, and Matters of Speculation" of 1676. The editor sees the changes in style and language as linked with the growth of science (Glanvill was elected to the Royal Society in 1664) 360 HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY and to the new philosophy. There is an interesting discussion of some similarities between Locke and Glanvill, and of the intimate connection between philosophical theory and language. I would have some hesitation in agreeing with Mr. Medcalf that the way of ideas naturally gives rise to "the picture theory of language" (p. xxv), just because I think we need to examine Locke's theory of perception again before taking it as straightforwardly representational. But Medcalf has some very penetrating and useful remarks about the change in meaning of the words 'object' and 'objective' from Descartes to Locke, a change which has an important bearing on Locke's theory of perception, though perhaps not quite in the direction of representationalism (pp. xxixxli ). There are other interesting observations on the...