Hamalas
whippersnapper
Okay guys, I'm hoping this thread will generate more light than heat and that I can get a few specific questions answered. I've been reading over Overture 9 to the PCA GA for this summer and I think it is a shame that the proposal passed over the historical question. While the historical side of things is not determinative, it is informative as it helps us to understand what the Westminster Standards even means by speaking of recreation.
I think this is a critical question since the proposal has both an exegetical/theological and historical argument. They say on page 6 lines 21-26 that:
So my questions are these:
1) What did the Westminster Divines mean by "recreations"?
2) Are the authors of this overture simply misunderstanding the Divines on this issue or is there a disagreement of substance beyond the different exegesis of Isaiah 58?
I think this is a critical question since the proposal has both an exegetical/theological and historical argument. They say on page 6 lines 21-26 that:
If a given recreational activity distorts or detracts from the significance of the day which God in His goodness has given us, then that type of recreation should be stopped. But that is far different from prohibiting all recreation on the Sabbath. From our study of Scripture we humbly believe that the Westminster fathers got this wrong and we propose that all references to the forbidding of recreation on the Sabbath in the Standards be stricken.
So my questions are these:
1) What did the Westminster Divines mean by "recreations"?
2) Are the authors of this overture simply misunderstanding the Divines on this issue or is there a disagreement of substance beyond the different exegesis of Isaiah 58?