Naudaeus, Philip

Naudaeus, Philip a French Protestant theologian, was born at Metz in 1654. In 1687 he was obliged to flee to Berlin in consequence of religious persecutions. He became a member of the Academy of Berlin, and died in 1729. As a theologian he was chiefly distinguished for his ultra-Calvinistic views. He steadfastly upheld the doctrine of strictly supralapsarian predestination, and of purely imputative justification, and opposed all the concessions which the most distinguished theologians of the early part of the 18th century were disposed to make. We therefore find him involved in numberless controversies, not only with Bavle and the mystic Poiret, but also, on account of his defence of the old system, with Le Blanc, La Placette, Osterwald, and even with the theological faculty of Frankfort. In his principal work on this subject, La souveraine perfection de Dieu dans les divins attributs et la parfaite integrite de l'Ecriture prise au sens des anciens reforms, he says, "God is so absolutely perfect that he acts only for his own self and his own glory; so that he alone knows what agrees with his perfection and his glory, and we can form no judgment whatever of it." From this he proceeds to show that supralapsarianism is alone logical, and all other views inconsistent and unavailing, whether Arminian, Lutheran, or less strictly Calvinistic. He maintained, however, that the infralapsarian doctrine did but apparently contradict supralapsarianism. His efforts to counteract the tendencies of the times were unavailing, and his works did not exert much influence. See Hering, Beitrage z. Geschichte d. evang.- reform. Kirche in den Preuss.-Brandenb. Landern, 2:170; Chauffepie, Dictionnaire, s.v.; Schweizer, Gesch. d. Centraldogmen in d. reform. Kirche, 2:765-820; Gass, Dogmengesch. 3:295.