Thomas Coleman

For other people named Thomas Coleman, see Thomas Coleman (disambiguation).

Thomas Coleman (1598–1647) was an English clergyman, known for his scholarship in the Hebrew language, which earned him the nickname ‘Rabbi Coleman’, and for his Erastian view of church polity. In the Westminster Assembly he was the clerical leader of the Erastian party, alongside the lawyer John Selden. Selden praised him, with Thomas Erastus, in his De Synedriis.^[1]

Life

He was a native of Oxford, and entered Magdalen Hall, Oxford in 1615. He graduated B.A. in 1618, M.A. in 1621, and took holy orders. He held for a time the rectory of Blyton in Lincolnshire, which he exchanged in 1642 for that of St. Peter's, Cornhill. Anthony Wood says that he died early in 1647.^[2]

Works and views

He published sermons and tracts.

Lamont sees Coleman's preaching in 1644 as an important precursor of Thomas Hobbes, anticipating principles to be found in Leviathan.^[3] In 1645 Coleman was strongly opposed by George Gillespie. In A Brotherly Examination Re-examined (1645), Coleman summed up the position: Gillespie had conceded that the opposition to the Erastians, the Presbyterian and Independent groups in the Assembly, had in common their aversion to the Erastian approach. Matters were left to drift while the Presbyterians made hopeful comments about the possible good to come from orderliness within the churches. He could point to John Ley arguing just this way, to attack John Saltmarsh. But they made for strange bedfellows, with the Presbyterians now borrowing the positions of the Independents, considering that the actual contemporary situation was a breakdown of order, and all for the sake of denying the Erastian position of effective control through the state,^[4]

According to Lamont:

“

...Coleman, Prynne and their colleagues were Calvinists who believed that the reprobate majority must be disciplined into virtue (they were outraged by 'toleratorists'); they no longer believed, however, that the clerics were the men to administer that discipline.^[5]

”

Lamont sums up the Erastians in relation to theocracy in this way:

“

While Coleman and his fellow-Erastians were merely emphasising the failure of the Westminster Assembly and the dishonouring of the Covenant as signs of God's Displeasure, they were still talking the language of 'Godly Rule'. When they took the further step of generalising from this experience — of emphasising the inadequacy of any attempt to read God's Mind — they were moving beyond 'Godly Rule' and towards Hobbes.^[6]

”

Notes

↑ Graham Alan John Rogers, Tom Sorell (editors), Hobbes and History (2000), p. 171.
↑ Dictionary of National Biography;s:Coleman, Thomas (DNB00).
↑ Lamont, p. 126.
↑ Lamont, pp. 146-7.
↑ Lamont, p. 176.
↑ Lamont p. 129.

References

William M. Lamont (1969), Godly Rule: Politics and Religion 1603-60

Attribution

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Coleman, Thomas". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.

The Westminster Assembly

Documents	Westminster Confession of Faith Westminster Larger Catechism Westminster Shorter Catechism Directory for Public Worship Form of Presbyterial Church Government

People	John Arrowsmith Simeon Ashe Robert Baillie Thomas Baylie Robert Blair Samuel Bolton John Bond William Bridge Ralph Brownrigg Anthony Burges Cornelius Burges Jeremiah Burroughs Adoniram Byfield Richard Byfield Edmund Calamy Archibald Campbell John Campbell Richard Capel Joseph Caryl Thomas Case Daniel Cawdry William Cecil Francis Cheynell John Clotworthy Thomas Coleman John Conant Edward Conway John Cook Edward Corbet Robert Crosse Robert Devereux Robert Douglas Calybute Downing John Dury John Earle John Elphinstone Daniel Featley Basil Feilding Nathaniel Fiennes William Fiennes Thomas Ford Thomas Gataker George Gillespie John Glynne Thomas Goodwin William Gouge William Greenhill William Grey John Hacket Matthew Hale Henry Hammond Robert Harley John Harris Robert Harris Arthur Haselrig Alexander Henderson Philip Herbert Charles Herle Thomas Hill Richard Holdsworth Edward Howard Joshua Hoyle Archibald Johnston John Ley John Lightfoot Richard Love William Lyford John Maitland Stephen Marshall John Maynard William Mew Edward Montagu George Morley Matthew Newcomen William Nicholson Philip Nye Herbert Palmer Algernon Percy Andrew Perne William Pierrepont John Pym Edward Reynolds Robert Reynolds Henry Rich Francis Rous Benjamin Rudyerd Samuel Rutherford Robert Sanderson Henry Scudder Lazarus Seaman Obadiah Sedgwick John Selden Josias Shute Sidrach Simpson William Spurstowe Edmund Staunton Peter Sterry Oliver St John (1580–1646) Oliver St John (1598–1673) William Strode William Strong Zouch Tate Henry Tozer Anthony Tuckney William Twisse Henry Vane the Elder Henry Vane the Younger Richard Vines George Walker Samuel Ward Thomas Westfield Philip Wharton Jeremiah Whitaker John White Bulstrode Whitelocke John Wilde Henry Wilkinson Walter Yonge Thomas Young

Westminster Abbey Jerusalem Chamber

Authority control	VIAF: 39728304

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, August 15, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.