Author: Robert Atkin

Robert Atkin is a writer, website designer, theology student, father and husband. At present he runs a website design business and is researching for a couple of books. This website is a collection of essays and other writing projects.

Church History | Essays

What was medieval monasticism and what spiritual benefits did it offer to the medieval world?
ByRobert Atkin 21 February 201816 November 2017

Monasticism in Western Europe reached its zenith during the High Middle Ages of the late eleventh century and early twelfth century. Coming out of the ascetic tradition of the Desert Fathers at the end of the third century, monasticism grew to become a highly influential movement with centres of worship and learning throughout medieval Europe. In this paper I will describe the development of medieval monasticism and consider the spiritual benefits that it offered to men and women both inside and outside monastic communities. I will not provide a comprehensive analysis of the benefits. Instead I will look at examples from the spiritual disciplines of prayer, study and manual work. I will conclude with a reflection on what spiritual benefit monasticism might offer the life of the church today.

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Church History | Essays

What is the relationship between spirituality and learning in the Middle Ages?
ByRobert Atkin 7 February 201816 November 2017

There has been a link between spirituality and learning throughout the Middle Ages, from the first monastic schools, to the rise of the cathedral schools and finally with the development of universities. There are differences between monasticism and scholasticism but there are also movements where these two perspectives converge. In this paper I will provide an overview of monasticism and scholasticism during the medieval period, describing their differences and then going on to discuss two movements, the Dominicans and the Brethren of the Common Life, where spirituality and learning come together. Finally, I will conclude with reflecting on how spirituality might be fostered through learning today.

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Church History | Essays

‘An anti-Enlightenment movement’. Do you agree with this assessment of eighteenth-century evangelicalism?
ByRobert Atkin 24 January 201816 November 2017

The Evangelical Revival of the eighteenth century took place during a period of great cultural change in Europe. Enlightenment thinkers challenged the traditional sources of authority including the church. Traditionally, evangelicalism has been seen as opposed to the Enlightenment; even being regarded as a Counter-Enlightenment movement. In this paper I will provide an explanation for why this evaluation is not entirely valid by considering to what extent early Methodism was influenced by the Enlightenment era. After providing a brief description of the Enlightenment I will present the evidence for and against the assessment that eighteenth-century evangelicalism was an anti-Enlightenment movement.

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Essays | New Testament | Theology

Does the language of ‘Father’ and ‘Son’ imply that there is a hierarchy within the Trinity?
ByRobert Atkin 10 January 20181 November 2017

The doctrine of the Trinity attempts to describe how the one God is revealed as three distinct persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and yet is one substance. The language of Father and Son could be viewed as implying a hierarchy within the Trinity. In this paper I will outline the problems with this interpretation and the use of figurative language when describing the orthodox understanding of the Godhead. After briefly presenting the historical and theological background to the doctrine of the Trinity and describing three common heresies I will explain how the language used to describe God can be regarded are hierarchical, and briefly touch on the problems of using everyday human language to describe the transcendent Trinity.

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Essays | New Testament | Theology

Critically assess the implications of the claim that ‘The Word became flesh’ in the work of Athanasius.
ByRobert Atkin 13 December 201716 November 2017

‘And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us’ (John 1:14). Saint Athanasius of Alexandria (c.296–373) took this verse from the Gospel of John in order to unpack his Christology of the incarnation. In this essay I will examine the work of Athanasius in order to study the claim that ‘The Word became flesh.’ Athanasius argued that God ‘became man, and did not come into man.’ The implications of his conviction are firstly, only God could save humanity and secondly, the Word was fully divine. I will assess the implications of Athanasius’ arguments in his treatise ‘On the Incarnation’ with reference to some of his other works.

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Essays | Old Testament

Imperial Context
ByRobert Atkin 29 November 20171 November 2017

Isaiah described Assyria as the ‘rod of YHWH’s anger’ (Isa 10:5). The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the dominant power during the period of First Isaiah. After discussing the historical, canonical and geopolitical background I will explain the imprint of the Assyrian Empire on the book of Isaiah. I will use 10:5-19 as a case study to demonstrate the impact and adaptation of imperial themes within the book.

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