ABSTRACT
In this chapter I would like to explain Hutchinsonianism as followed by Hutchinson and those followers who showed no disagreement with or doubt about his system, and to make some comments about those who were less dogmatic in their reception of Hutchinson, particularly Duncan Forbes and Benjamin Holloway. Hutchinson’s system of thought was a deliberate attempt to divert certain Renaissance and Enlightenment strands of thought into channels that would reinforce Trinitarian Christianity instead of undermining it. Hutchinson’s overall aim was to liberate Christianity from all the contemporary trends in the Church he saw as corrupting the true Church, particularly anti-Trinitarianism of all kinds, and to reassert the authority of the Bible. He wished to use what were to him modern ideas for his own ends. By doing so, he not only provided a critique of the Enlightenment, but also suggested that a devout Christian could pursue Enlightenment arguments in the right direction.
