Isaac Watts’s Hymnody as a Guide for the Passions
Abstract
Isaac Watts (1674-1748) argued that the passions, understood synonymously with the affections, were an essential component of the Christian experience. Watts designed a system of hymnody which allowed the worshipper to excite, cultivate, and express their passions. This paper traces the history of the passions and affections in those who were to influence Watts’ thought, before considering the ways Watts’ hymns allowed the passions to be experienced and articulated.
Submitted: Oct. 30, 2018 | Accepted: Nov. 26, 2018 | Published Dec. 17, 2018 | Language: en
Keywords Hymns • Calvinism • Isaac Watts • Worship • Affections • Passions • Dissent • Singing
Copyright © 2018 Daniel Johnson. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/EL/2420-823X/2018/01/009