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Anti-dispensationalists often claim that the origins of Dispensationalism have a double taint, and that therefore the doctrine cannot be truth. They claim that J. N. Darby, who is well known to have popularized the doctrine and is widely (but incorrectly) thought to be its originator, actually got his ideas from the highly discredited Edward Irving. And they claim that Irving in turn got these ideas from a Jesuit priest named Manuel Lacunza, who had written “The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty.” Lacunza had published this book under the pen name of Juan Josafat Ben-Ezra, claiming to be a converted Jew. And Irving had translated it into English and published it, adding a very long “preliminary discourse.”
But we get an entirely different picture from the famous church historian Andrew Miller, who is well know to have been a member of Darby’s close-knit group, the Plymouth brethren. He traced the beginnings of nineteenth century dispensational thinking in the following words:
“The study of prophetic truth was greatly revived in the early part of this century. In the year 1821 a short treatise, entitled ‘The Latter Rain,’ by the Rev. Lewis Way, made its appearance. The main object of the writer is to prove from scripture the restoration of Israel, and the consequent glory in the land. His poem entitled, ‘Palingenesia,’ or ‘The World to Come,’ appeared in 1824. Thoughts on the ‘Scriptural Expectations of the Church,’ by Basilicus, followed it in 1826. The author takes a wider range in this book than in the former, though the kingdom of Israel occupies a prominent place. In 1827 the Rev. Edward Irving endeavoured to arouse the professing church, but especially his brethren in the ministry, to a sense of their responsibility as to the truth of prophecy. He translated the work of Ben Ezra, a converted Jew, on ‘The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty,’ with a long preliminary discourse. This book was originally written in Spanish, and first published in Spain in the year 1812.” (http://www.stempublishing.com/history/MILLER56.html)
So Andrew Miller did not trace the origins of the nineteenth century dispensationalism to Irving, but to Lewis Way. He only mentioned that Edward Irving helped to stir up interest in the subject.
These anti-dispensationalists claim that J. N. Darby first became interested in prophecy through a series of conferences at Albury. And as Edward Irving made presentations at those conferences, they take this as proof that Darby got his ideas from Irving. But in saying this, they ignore the fact that the conferences at Albury were not only attended by, but in part organized by, Lewis Way. Way also made presentations at the Albury conferences, which began in 1826, the same year that he published the last of the three works mentioned by Andrew Miller.
It is also critical, in tracing the origins of these concepts, to know that in his “Preliminary Discourse,” Irving said concerning Lacunza that “I do not find him so strong perhaps in the analogies of scripture and Providence, as the author of Basilicus and Palingenesia,...” (“Preliminary Discourse,” by Edward Irving, in “The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty,” by Manuel Lacunza, 1827 ed., pg. 19.) So we see that Edward Irving valued the works of Lewis Way. And earlier, in this same work, he had said, “Now let this book be read as a voice from the Roman Catholic Church, and let the Palingenesia and Basilicus’ Letters of my friend be read as a voice from the Church of England, and let the substance of my discourses for the last year, as given above, be read as a voice from the Kirk of Scotland; and when the coincidence of sentiment and doctrine is perceived in the diversity of personal character and particular interpretations, let any one if he dare, reject the whole matter as the ravings and dreamings of fanciful men.” (“Preliminary Discourse,” by Edward Irving, in “The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty,” by Manuel Lacunza, 1827 ed., pg. 15.) This statement is important as to dating the time when Edward Irving began to teach these things. For in this 1827 article, he called his teaching on this subject “my discourses for the last year.” This sets the beginning of Irving’s teaching on this subject as about the time when Lewis Way wrote the last of his three papers on the subject. But it also shows that about the time of the first Albury conference is when Irving first began to teach on this subject, while Lewis Way had already been writing about it for at least five years.
So, even assuming that Darby did get his first dispensational ideas at the Albury conferences, which has been alleged but never proven, who is the more likely source of those ideas, the speaker who had been writing about them for the past five years, or a different speaker who had not written on this subject before about that time? This is what makes a study of the Dispensationalism taught by Lewis Way so important. Aside from this question, a study of Way’s Dispensationalism would only be an interesting historical detail. For Way’s thoughts on this subject are not particularly elevated. And his writing style was awkward, to say the least. But he did indeed present a fully developed Dispensationalism. And he presented it before (or in the case of his last book, at about the same time as) the first Albury conference.
But we get an entirely different picture from the famous church historian Andrew Miller, who is well know to have been a member of Darby’s close-knit group, the Plymouth brethren. He traced the beginnings of nineteenth century dispensational thinking in the following words:
“The study of prophetic truth was greatly revived in the early part of this century. In the year 1821 a short treatise, entitled ‘The Latter Rain,’ by the Rev. Lewis Way, made its appearance. The main object of the writer is to prove from scripture the restoration of Israel, and the consequent glory in the land. His poem entitled, ‘Palingenesia,’ or ‘The World to Come,’ appeared in 1824. Thoughts on the ‘Scriptural Expectations of the Church,’ by Basilicus, followed it in 1826. The author takes a wider range in this book than in the former, though the kingdom of Israel occupies a prominent place. In 1827 the Rev. Edward Irving endeavoured to arouse the professing church, but especially his brethren in the ministry, to a sense of their responsibility as to the truth of prophecy. He translated the work of Ben Ezra, a converted Jew, on ‘The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty,’ with a long preliminary discourse. This book was originally written in Spanish, and first published in Spain in the year 1812.” (http://www.stempublishing.com/history/MILLER56.html)
So Andrew Miller did not trace the origins of the nineteenth century dispensationalism to Irving, but to Lewis Way. He only mentioned that Edward Irving helped to stir up interest in the subject.
These anti-dispensationalists claim that J. N. Darby first became interested in prophecy through a series of conferences at Albury. And as Edward Irving made presentations at those conferences, they take this as proof that Darby got his ideas from Irving. But in saying this, they ignore the fact that the conferences at Albury were not only attended by, but in part organized by, Lewis Way. Way also made presentations at the Albury conferences, which began in 1826, the same year that he published the last of the three works mentioned by Andrew Miller.
It is also critical, in tracing the origins of these concepts, to know that in his “Preliminary Discourse,” Irving said concerning Lacunza that “I do not find him so strong perhaps in the analogies of scripture and Providence, as the author of Basilicus and Palingenesia,...” (“Preliminary Discourse,” by Edward Irving, in “The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty,” by Manuel Lacunza, 1827 ed., pg. 19.) So we see that Edward Irving valued the works of Lewis Way. And earlier, in this same work, he had said, “Now let this book be read as a voice from the Roman Catholic Church, and let the Palingenesia and Basilicus’ Letters of my friend be read as a voice from the Church of England, and let the substance of my discourses for the last year, as given above, be read as a voice from the Kirk of Scotland; and when the coincidence of sentiment and doctrine is perceived in the diversity of personal character and particular interpretations, let any one if he dare, reject the whole matter as the ravings and dreamings of fanciful men.” (“Preliminary Discourse,” by Edward Irving, in “The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty,” by Manuel Lacunza, 1827 ed., pg. 15.) This statement is important as to dating the time when Edward Irving began to teach these things. For in this 1827 article, he called his teaching on this subject “my discourses for the last year.” This sets the beginning of Irving’s teaching on this subject as about the time when Lewis Way wrote the last of his three papers on the subject. But it also shows that about the time of the first Albury conference is when Irving first began to teach on this subject, while Lewis Way had already been writing about it for at least five years.
So, even assuming that Darby did get his first dispensational ideas at the Albury conferences, which has been alleged but never proven, who is the more likely source of those ideas, the speaker who had been writing about them for the past five years, or a different speaker who had not written on this subject before about that time? This is what makes a study of the Dispensationalism taught by Lewis Way so important. Aside from this question, a study of Way’s Dispensationalism would only be an interesting historical detail. For Way’s thoughts on this subject are not particularly elevated. And his writing style was awkward, to say the least. But he did indeed present a fully developed Dispensationalism. And he presented it before (or in the case of his last book, at about the same time as) the first Albury conference.
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