# origin of "regulative principle of worship"?



## lumenite (Jan 30, 2013)

Hello,

Is there anyone who knows the origin of the expression, "regulative principle of worship" ?
Everybody speaks of it.
Bible is said to teach it, and Calvin talked about it, and Westminster Confession ... and so on.
But it is difficult to find who coined the exact expression.
Who is the first one that mentioned the phrase?

Blessings in Christ.


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## Wayne (Jan 30, 2013)

I think the best we've done is track it back to James Henley Thornwell. 

He also spoke of what he called the constitutive principle, but that distinction seems lost in history.

Meanwhile, please fix your signature. See the link under my name.


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## lumenite (Jan 30, 2013)

sorry, I am a novice who does not know how to make my signature.
Would you let me know about it? I am trying to find it at my profile, but I cannot see it yet.


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## Wayne (Jan 30, 2013)

At the very top of the page, on the right, click "settings"

Then fill in the form, much like if you were writing a post, and save.


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## NaphtaliPress (Jan 30, 2013)

The RPW moniker probably comes from a merger of Southern and Scottish Presbyterianism in John Murray's usage in the 1940s.
What is the Regulative Principle of Worship - Blogs - The PuritanBoard
_W_hile it may have been used earlier, the term Regulative Principle of Worship apparently was coined from or at least popularized by usage in the _ 1946_ report of the OPC, “Report of the Committee on Song in Worship Presented to the Thirteenth General Assembly, on the Teaching of Our Standards Respecting the Songs That May Be Sung in the Public Worship of God,” specifically section ‘A’ by John Murray (_ Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Minutes of the General Assembly_ [_ 1946_ ] _ 101_ -_ 107_ ). Research by Sherman Isbell supports Murray authorship. See Endnote A.


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## lumenite (Jan 30, 2013)

Thank you so much.


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## jwithnell (Jan 31, 2013)

Good question. I had not really thought about the origin of that phrase.


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