Kuyper wrote this article to clear up a misunderstanding that had arisen from his criticism of pantheism in the arts. In a footnote on pages 76–77 of 1906.10 about a purportedly pantheistic movement in Dutch letters (the Eighties Movement), Kuyper had contended that “adherents of theism can actually still be found who do their utmost to be annexed by this pantheistic school.” The editorial staff of the Christian literary periodical, Ons Tijdschrift, had taken this remark as a slur on its entire literary circle. After consulting with Kuyper, the editorial staff chose to publish Kuyper’s article rather than its planned defense.

One of the phrases from Kuyper’s article would resound for a long time to come: “One thing is necessary above all others: that the tablecloth between our younger school and the Eighties Movement be cut through once and for all.”