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Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (November 5, 1851 – February 16, 1921) was the principal of Princeton Seminary from 1887 to 1921. Events 1499 - Publication of the Catholicon in Treguier ( Brittany) 1851 ( MDCCCLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common year Events 1249 - Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khan of the Mongols Year 1921 ( MCMXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1921 calendar of the Gregorian calendar Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton Year 1887 ( MDCCCLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Some conservative Presbyterians consider him to be the last of the great Princeton theologians before the split in 1929 that formed Westminster Seminary and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Presbyterianism is a family of Christian denominations within the Reformed branch of Protestant Western Christianity The Princeton theology is a tradition of conservative Christian Reformed and Presbyterian theology at Princeton Theological Seminary, in Princeton Year 1929 ( MCMXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Westminster Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian and Reformed Christian graduate educational institution with campuses located in Glenside The Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC is a small conservative Presbyterian denomination located primarily in the United States.

Contents

Early life

Warfield was born near Lexington, Kentucky on November 5, 1851. Lexington (officially Lexington-Fayette Urban County is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 68th largest in the United States. His parents were William and Mary Cabell (Breckinridge) Warfield, originally from Virginia and quite wealthy. His maternal grandfather was the Presbyterian preacher Robert Jefferson Breckinridge (1800-1871), the son of John Breckinridge, a former United States Senator and Attorney General. Year -of the Julian calendar. The Gregorian calendar was 11 days ahead of the Julian calendar until Friday, but 12 days ahead since Saturday. Year 1871 ( MDCCCLXXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice (see) concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement Warfield's uncle was John C. Breckinridge, the fourteenth Vice President of the United States, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War. John Cabell Breckinridge (January 16 1821 &ndash May 17 1875 was a lawyer U The Vice President of the United States is the first person in the presidential line of succession, becoming the new President of the United States upon the death The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South

Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor, who married King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom (and was largely responsible for his abdication of the throne in 1936), was a distant relative. Wallis Duchess of Windsor (born Bessie Wallis Warfield, later Spencer, then Simpson; 19 June 1895 or 1896 &ndash 24 April 1986 was an American Year 1936 ( MCMXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Education

Like many children born into a wealthy family, Warfield's childhood education was private. Warfield entered Princeton University in 1868 and graduated in 1871 with high honors. Princeton University is a private Coeducational research university located in Princeton, New Jersey. Year 1868 ( MDCCCLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap Year 1871 ( MDCCCLXXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Although Warfield studied mathematics and science in college, while travelling in Europe he decided to study theology, surprising even many of his closest friends. Mathematics is the body of Knowledge and Academic discipline that studies such concepts as Quantity, Structure, Space and Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding He entered Princeton Seminary in 1873, in order to train for ministry as a Presbyterian minister. Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton Year 1873 ( MDCCCLXXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Presbyterianism is a family of Christian denominations within the Reformed branch of Protestant Western Christianity He graduated in 1876. Year 1876 ( MDCCCLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year

Ministry

For a short time in 1876 he preached in Presbyterian churches in Concord, Kentucky and Dayton, Ohio as a "supply pastor" — the latter church calling him to be their ordained minister (which he politely refused). Concord is the a city in Lewis County, Kentucky, United States. Dayton is a city in southwestern Ohio, United States. It is the County seat and largest city of Montgomery County. In late 1876 Warfield and his new wife moved to Germany where he studied under Ernst Luthardt and Franz Delitzsch. Year 1876 ( MDCCCLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Franz Delitzsch (1813 Delitzsch - March 4, 1890) was a German Lutheran theologian and Hebraist Warfield was the assistant pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, Maryland for a short time. Then he became an instructor at Western Theological Seminary, which is now called Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, founded in 1794, is a graduate theological institution associated with the Presbyterian Church USA. He was ordained on April 26, 1879. Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. Year 1879 ( MDCCCLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

In 1881 Warfield wrote a joint article with A. A. Hodge on the inspiration of the Bible. Year 1881 ( MDCCCLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Archibald Alexander Hodge (July 18 1823 &ndash November 12 1886 an American Presbyterian leader was the principal of Princeton Seminary between Biblical inspiration is the doctrine in Christian theology concerned with the divine origin of the Bible and what the Bible teaches about itself Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin It drew attention because of its scholarly and forceful defense of the inerrancy of the Bible. In many of his writings, Warfield attempted to demonstrate that the doctrine of Biblical inerrancy was simply orthodox Christian teaching, and not merely a concept invented in the nineteenth century. Biblical inerrancy is the conservative evangelical doctrinal position that in its original form the Bible is totally without error and free from all contradiction The word orthodox, from Greek orthodoxos "having the right opinion" from orthos ("right true straight" + doxa ("opinion A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Doctrine (Latin doctrina) is a codification of beliefs or "a body of teachings quot or "instructions" taught principles or positions as the The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar His passion was to refute the liberal element within Presbyterianism and within Christianity at large. Liberalism is a broad array of related ideas and theories of Government that consider individual Liberty to be the most important political goal

Throughout his life, he continued to write books and articles, which are still widely read today.

Marriage

In August of 1876 Warfield married Annie Pierce Kinkead. Year 1876 ( MDCCCLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Soon afterward they visited Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. During their time there, Annie was struck by lightning and was permanently paralyzed. Benjamin continued to care for her until her death in 1915, managing to fit his work as a theologian with his role as caregiver. Year 1915 ( MCMXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year They had no children.

The actual events that led to Annie's paralysis are still unclear. Some believe that she may have suffered some form of mental or psychological disability.

Princeton

In 1887 Warfield was appointed to the Charles Hodge Chair at Princeton Theological Seminary, where he succeeded Hodge's son A. A. Hodge. Charles Hodge (1797 – 1878 was the principal of Princeton Theological Seminary between 1851 and 1878 Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton Archibald Alexander Hodge (July 18 1823 &ndash November 12 1886 an American Presbyterian leader was the principal of Princeton Seminary between Warfield remained there until his death. As the last conservative successor to Hodge to live prior to the re-organization of Princeton Seminary, Warfield is often regarded as the last of the Princeton theologians. The Princeton theology is a tradition of conservative Christian Reformed and Presbyterian theology at Princeton Theological Seminary, in Princeton

Bible

During his tenure, his primary thrust (and that of the seminary) was an authoritative view of the Bible. This view was held in contrast to the emotionalism of the revival movements, the rationalism of higher criticism, and the heterodox teachings of various New religious movements that were emerging. Religious ecstasy is an Altered state of consciousness characterized by greatly reduced external awareness and expanded interior mental and spiritual awareness which is frequently A revival meeting is a series of Christian religious services held in order to inspire active members of a religious body and to gain new converts In Epistemology and in its broadest sense rationalism is "any view appealing to Reason as a source of knowledge or justification" (Lacey 286 Historical criticism or higher criticism is a branch of literary analysis that investigates the origins of a text as applied in Biblical studies it naturally A new religious movement or NRM is a term used to refer to a religious faith or an ethical spiritual or philosophical movement of recent origin that is not part The seminary held fast to the Reformed confessional tradition — that is, it faithfully followed the Westminster Confession of Faith. The Reformed churches are a group of Christian Protestant Denominations formally characterized by a similar Calvinist system of doctrine historically The Westminster Confession of Faith is a Reformed Confession of faith, in the Calvinist theological tradition

Warfield believed that modernist theology was problematic, since it relied upon the thoughts of the Biblical interpreter rather than upon the divine author of Scripture. For liberal political views within Christianity see Christian left. He therefore preached and believed the doctrine of sola scriptura — that the Bible is God's inspired word and is sufficient for the Christian to live his or her faith. Sola scriptura ( Latin ablative, "by scripture alone" is the assertion that the Bible as God's written word is self-authenticating

Much of Warfield's work centered upon the Bible's "inspiration" by God — that while the authors of the Bible were men, the ultimate author was God himself. Biblical inspiration is the doctrine in Christian theology concerned with the divine origin of the Bible and what the Bible teaches about itself The Authors of the Bible have authored or co-authored literature that has appeared in the canons of Judaism and of Christianity The growing influence of modernist theology denied that the Bible was inspired, and alternative theories of the origin of the Christian faith were being explored.

After comparing grammatical and linguistic styles found within the Bible itself, modernist scholars suggested that because the human authors had clearly contributed to the writing of the biblical text, the Bible was written by people alone, not God. Grammar is the field of Linguistics that covers the Rules governing the use of any given natural language. Linguistics is the scientific study of Language, encompassing a number of sub-fields Warfield was a central figure in responding to this line of thinking by arguing that the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit did not lead to a form of "mechanical" inspiration (whereby the human authors merely wrote down what God dictated to them) but one in which the human author's intellect was fully able to express itself linguistically, while at the same time being supervised by the Holy Spirit to ensure its inspiration. In mainstream Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is one of the three entities of the Holy Trinity which make up the single substance This approach is essential to understanding the view of inspiration held by many Reformed and Evangelical Christians today. Evangelicalism is a theological movement tradition and system of beliefs most closely associated with Protestant Christianity, which identifies with the Gospel

Studies in religious experience

Warfield was a conservative critic of much religious revivalism that was popular in America at the time. Revival in a Christian context generally refers to a specific period of spiritual renewal in the life of the Church He believed that the teachings and experience of this movement were too subjective and therefore too shallow for deep Christian faith. His book Counterfeit Miracles advocated cessationism over and against miracles after the time of the Apostles. In Christian Theology, cessationism is the view that the Charismatic Gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as tongues, Prophecy A miracle is an event believed to be caused by interposition of Divine intervention by a Supernatural being in the Universe by which the ordinary operation The Twelve Apostles (Greek apostolos, "someone sent out" e Such attacks did not go unnoticed, and even today Warfield is criticized by proponents of revivalism in the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. Pentecostalism is a renewalist religious movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the Baptism The term charismatic movement describes the adoption from the early twentieth century onwards of certain beliefs typical of those held by Pentecostal Christians — specifically For example, Jack Deere wrote Surprised by the Power of the Spirit with the intention of refuting Counterfeit Miracles. Dr Jack Deere is a charismatic pastor and theologian from the USA. Warfield's book was published before the worldwide spread of Pentecostalism and addressed the issue of false claims to the possession of miraculous gifts under the headings, "Patristic and Mediǣval Marvels", "Roman Catholic Miracles", "Irvingite Gifts", "Faith-Healing" and "Mind-Cure". Pentecostalism is a renewalist religious movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the Baptism The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, or Fathers of the Church are the early and influential theologians and writers in the Christian Church The term Catholic Apostolic Church belongs to the entire community of Christians (cf Catholic) quoting the last sentence of the Nicene Creed. Faith healing is the attempt to use Religious or spiritual means such as Prayer, mental practices spiritual insights or other techniques to prevent The New Thought Movement or New Thought is a New religious movement developed in the United States during the late 19th century which emphasizes metaphysical

His book Perfectionism is a detailed critique of what he saw as false theories of sanctification. The word sanctification (see -ification) refers to the act or Process It includes an analysis of the Higher Life movement and the Keswick movement, as well as a rebuttal of earlier schools of thought, such as that of Asa Mahan and Oberlin College, and in particular the theology of Charles G. Finney. The Higher Life movement was a movement devoted to Christian holiness in England. The Keswick Convention is an annual gathering of evangelical Christians in Keswick, in the English county of Cumbria. Asa Mahan ( November 9, 1799, Vernon, New York - 1889 was a U Oberlin College is a private Liberal arts college in Oberlin Ohio. See also Charles Grandison Finney, American evangelist Charles G

Calvinism

Underpinning much of Warfield's theology was his adherence to Calvinism as espoused by the Westminster Confession of Faith. Calvinism (sometimes called the Reformed tradition, the Reformed faith, or Reformed theology) is a theological system and an approach to the It is sometimes forgotten that, in his battles against Modernism on the one hand, and against revivalism on the other, he was simply expressing the Reformed faith when applied to certain situations.

It was Warfield's belief that the 16th century Reformers, as well as the 17th century Confessional writers, were merely summarizing the content and application of scripture. New revelations, whether from the minds of celebrated scholars or popular revivalists, were therefore inconsistent with these confessional statements (and therefore inconsistent with Scripture). Throughout his ministry, Warfield contended that modern world events and thinking could never render such confessions obsolete. Such an attitude still prevails today in many Reformed churches and Christians who embrace Calvinism. The Reformed churches are a group of Christian Protestant Denominations formally characterized by a similar Calvinist system of doctrine historically Calvinism (sometimes called the Reformed tradition, the Reformed faith, or Reformed theology) is a theological system and an approach to the

Calvinism is just religion in its purity. We have only, therefore, to conceive of religion in its purity, and that is Calvinism. (Selected Shorter Writings, I, p. 389)

Darwinism

“I do not think that there is any general statement in the Bible or any part of the account of creation, either as given in Genesis 1 and 2 or elsewhere alluded to, that need be opposed to evolution. ” B. B. Warfield[1]

Warfield's view of Darwinism may appear unusual for a conservative of his day. Darwinism is a term used for various different movements or concepts related to a greater or lesser extent to Charles Darwin 's work on Evolution. He was willing to accept that Darwin's theory might be true, but believed that God guided the process of evolution, and was as such a theistic evolutionist. Charles Robert Darwin (February 12 1809 &ndash April 19 1882 was an English naturalist, who realised and demonstrated that all Species of life Theistic evolution is the general opinion that classical religious teachings about God and creation are compatible with some or all of the modern scientific understanding His avid interest in amateur science was shared by many Victorian clerics and Warfield's views were not untypical. [1]

Church politics

Unlike his contemporaries at Princeton, and perhaps due to his invalid wife, Warfield never cared much for churchmanship. While he was certainly supportive of political moves within various churches to strengthen and push conservative theology, he was never interested in the actual process itself, preferring to use his work at Princeton to influence future generations of Presbyterian ministers.

Influence and legacy

Along with Abraham Kuyper and Herman Bavinck, Warfield is acknowledged as one of the major influences on the thought of Cornelius Van Til in the field of apologetics. Abraham Kuijper ( Maassluis, 29 October 1837 Den Haag, 8 November 1920 generally known as Abraham Kuyper, was a Dutch Politician Herman Bavinck ( 13 December 1854, Hoogeveen - 29 July 1921, Amsterdam) was a Dutch Reformed theologian Cornelius Van Til ( May 3, 1895 &ndash April 17, 1987) born in Grootegast, the Netherlands, was a Christian

References

  1. ^ a b Alexander, Denis (2002). Rebuilding the Matrix: Science and faith in the 21st Century, 177. ISBN 0 7459 5116 3.  

Writings

Books

These include:

Essays and sermons (external links)

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