Cultured or "Jes' Growed"

H. Henry Meeter, "Calvinism and Culture," in Calvinism: An Interpretation of Its Basic Ideas, pp. 80-81:

It is important to notice that culture always implies the thought of improvement, not just development. Topsy of Uncle Tom's Cabin "jes' growed"; she wasn't cultured. The great contents of culture, or rather its tools, are, therefore, never merely mechanical and chemical powers of nature, but science, art, technique, ethics, law, the state, always some product of the human mind. It is rather the activity of the human mind applied upon the forces of nature, and bringing creation by the use of these human powers to higher and nobler levels. Culture, in a word, is the fulfillment of the command given to man, the king of creation, by His Maker, in the Garden of Eden: "Keep the garden and dress it." "Have dominion over the earth and subdue it" (Cf. Genesis II). Man was made in the image of God. Just as God is King over the universe and has brought to pass many and noble things in the creation which He made, so He has given to man His image bearer control over nature as his dominion, and said to him: "Subdue creation, and bring out the many possibilities in it and in your own nature." Culture is the execution of this divinely appointed task. In his cultural task man is to take the raw materials of this universe and subdue them, make them serve his purpose and bring them to nobler and higher levels, thus bringing out the possibilities which are hidden in nature. When thus developed man is to lay his entire cultural product, the whole of creation, at the feet of Him Who is King of man and of nature, in Whose image and for Whom man and all things are created.

Calvinism and Culture

Leon Wencelius, "The Word of God and Culture," in The Word of God and the Reformed Faith: Addresses Delivered at the Second American Calvinistic Conference held at Calvin College and Seminary, Grand Rapids, Michigan, June 3, 4 and 5, 1942 (1943), pp. 160-161:

Culture is therefore the accomplishment of the creative will of God. It is the way in which man has been called to achieve his dominion on the earth and to replenish it. As man had to plough the ground in order to receive its fruits, man has to plough his mind in order to give birth to Art, Science, and Philosophy, which are the fruits of his culture.

The Word of God gives us further teaching on the nature of culture. It is said in the Psalms that the heavens, the whole creation, declare the glory of God. This is the first step toward real culture: to acknowledge the beauty of creation and to recognize in God the divine artist who has drawn it from nothing. Let us remember the way in which psalmists, prophets, and Christ praise the starry sky, the endless sea, the birds of the heavens, and the lilies of the fields. Knowledge of nature, as the work of art created by God, is the beginning of civilization. We discover here a fundamental truth: it is that culture was intended to be the natural revelation of God to mankind. When we read the Bible, when we try to understand the comments of Calvin, we are always struck by the same fact that creation as such was called upon to acquaint us with the Creator, that creation reveals to us His attributes and makes us better able to understand His nature. Divine glory always expresses itself in the form of beauty, and when we know how to see the universe as it has been made by God, we are the presence of the beautiful.

Therefore we are not surprised when we see that for Calvin the angels, the soul, the human body, the sky, the stars, the precious stones, and the most humble animals are the ornaments of the world, the works of art in the palace which is earth, "in order," he says, "that we may therein contemplate the majesty of God."

If we would be civilized, we must first try to see in the universe the divine light which radiates in it, the arrangement of its parts, the excellency of its order. Full of admiration and of joy, we shall be inspired to render supreme homage to the Creator.

We must secondly see in God what Calvin calls the miraculous workman, that is, in modern terms, the great artist whose masterpiece is the universe. God is according to the Reformer auctor et dator omnium artium; the author and bestower of the liberal as well as the technical arts. Thus culture appears to be not only a gift of God, as anything else in the world, but culture, because it is the art which permits civilization to go on, has also its origin in the creative activity of God Himself.

The word of God teaches us therefore to see in the trend of human thought and activity toward higher forms of civilization, the continuation of the creative impulse. As God has created earth and man from nothing, he has also wanted the highest in rank of his creatures to go on in the fulfilment of his divine will. As the artist uses a piece of marble to transform it into a symmetrical work of art, the statue, so God uses his creation through it to realize his higher purposes; and because man has been given intelligence, and with it a certain consciousness of the physical and the human world, God has, by his common grace, charged the most intelligent of men to realize certain forms of civilization.

With Heart and Mouth and Culture

There is a modern exposition of the Belgic Confession, a creed built upon the rock of God's Word, which those will love the historic Reformed Faith, and also desire to see it expressed and applied in our modern age, will appreciate. It is Danny Hyde's With Heart and Mouth: An Exposition of the Belgic Confession (2008). Reformation Heritage Books says it was one of their top-10 non-RHB bestsellers for 2008. It has been well reviewed previously by David VanDrunen and G.I. Williamson, and there is little I could add to their remarks. This exposition is steeped in Biblical and historic theology, and while I cannot give it a complete, unqualified endorsement as to every word, I am very grateful for it's valuable contribution to the modern understanding and application of a precious part of our Reformed heritage.

I will add this: One of its particular strengths is a willingness to engage popular culture. Readers of this blog may be surprised to know that I don't spend all my time reading only 17th century literature. Those who know me well know that I believe that it is important for Christians to interact with contemporary society, including its art, with appreciation for what is good (Phil. 4.8) and discernment concerning that which is evil (1 Thess. 5.21). In that spirit, I take note of the 20th and 21st century cultural references which one does not often see in the exposition of a 16th century creed. In the context of a book addressed to Christian laymen which contains a range of Biblical and historical citations, they add, I think, a dimension of cultural awareness that serves to enrich, rather than trivialize, the exposition. Read it for yourself and see. A handful of such references are given below.

A RECENT popular song [Dishwalla, Counting Blue Cars] had a refrain that went like this:

Tell me all your thoughts on God,
'cause I'd really like to meet her.
Ask her why we're who we are.

This song illustrates that humans are by nature incurably religious. Sadly, we are also incurably rebellious. We have many "thoughts on God," but where do they come from? As mentioned earlier, although 97 percent of Americans believe that God exists, many do not believe in the God of Scripture but rather in a god they have made in their own image. [p. 54]

"I'LL SHOW you all the beauty you possess, if you only let yourself believe: that we are born innocent..." I can hear my radio now, as Sarah McLachlan [Adia] catechizes American culture with her mantra that we are inherently beautiful and born innocent."
...
We still think of ourselves as existing at the height of the glory in which we were created. The harsh reality, though, is that Adam and the rest of humanity were plunged into depravity when he willfully sinned. "Houston, we have a problem" [Apollo 13] is an understatement. [p. 198]

BRITISH ROCK singer Sting's 1993 hit song, "If I Ever Lose My Faith in You," sums up our age's attitude toward the church: "You could say I lost my belief in the holy church." [p. 376]

And "[n]othing comes from nothing" (p. 7) is a phrase that, intentionally or not, evokes memories of a line from "Something Good," a song from the musical The Sound of Music.

Popular culture is something we do well to measure against the touchstone of the Scriptures, which teaches us to "[p]rove all things; hold fast that which is good." The Belgic Confession, like the Scriptures it is grounded in, is not a document whose usefulness is confined to a past age, but is timeless in its application and very much needed by contemporary society. Danny Hyde's exposition likewise, grounded in timeless truth, interacts ably with and offers an engaging, Scriptural and confessional touchstone to the modern 21st century reader.