A flavour of Nevin on anti-sacramental rationalism

I’ve been reading Mathison’s account of Nevin’s attacks on what Nevin calls “the modern Puritan theory of the sacraments” (which he associates with Jonathan Edwards, Samuel Hopkins, Joseph Bellamy, Timothy Dwight), in contrast to the traditional Reformed Doctrine. Nevin links this new view to the rationalistic sacramental views of the Socinains, the Arminians and the German rationalists. I’m not quite sure what all this is on about, to be honest, but I thought it rang bells!

Nevin argues the rationalistic tendency has worked itself out in sectarianism and schism. There may be religious pretention, an emphasis on the personal and experimental, the spiritual, excitement and action. It may be fanatical and wild in opposing outward forms and the existing order of the church. Rationalism is subjective, opposed to the idea of the Church and the authority of history exalting independent private judgement. The objective is rejected in favour of the supposedly inward. Ritual and forms are despised for the sake of spirit. The sacraments are mere outward rites. Their necessity is not clear. The soul is abstracted from the body. There is a defection from the doctrine of the Reformation.

See Nevin, Mystical Presence, esp. ch 2, pp107 ish – 153 and Mathison, Given for You, pp143-145