 B. B. Warfield Benjamin Breckinridge (B.B.) Warfield (November 5, 1851 - February 16, 1921) was the principal of Princeton Seminary from 1887 to 1921. Some conservative Presbyterians consider him the last great Princeton theologian before the split in 1929 that formed Westminster Seminary and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Image File history File links Benjamin_Breckinridge_Warfield. ...
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This article or section should be merged with Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Seminary is located in Princeton, New Jersey and was originally a school of Princeton University. ...
1887 (MDCCCLXXXVII) is a common year starting on Saturday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. ...
1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...
Presbyterianism is a form of Protestant Christianity, primarily in the Reformed branch of Western Christendom, as well as a particular form of church government. ...
1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...
Westminster Theological Seminary is a Reformed Christian graduate educational institution with campuses located in Pennsylvania, and Texas and programs of study in New York City, London, and Seoul. ...
Along with Westminster Theological Seminary, the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) was founded by conservative Presbyterians who revolted against the modernist theology within the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA) during the 1930s. ...
Early life
Warfield was born near Lexington, Kentucky on November 5, 1851. 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. Warfield's uncle was John C. Breckinridge, the fourteenth Vice President of the United States, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War. Nickname: Athens of the West Horse Capital of the World Location in the Commonwealth of Kentucky Coordinates: Country United States State Kentucky Counties Fayette Mayor Jim Newberry (R)(Mayor-Elect) Area - City 285. ...
1800 (MDCCC) was an exceptional common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, but a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. ...
1871 (MDCCCLXXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...
John Breckinridge served many positions in government throughout his life. ...
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John C. Breckinridge This article is about the politician and Confederate General. ...
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A General is an officer of high military rank. ...
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Wallis Simpson, 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 and the Duke of Windsor on their wedding day Bessie Wallis Warfield, more widely known as Wallis Simpson and later The Duchess of Windsor (June 19, 1896–April 24, 1986) was the wife of Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor, the former King Edward VIII of the...
Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David Windsor; later The Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions beyond the Seas, King of Ireland, and Emperor of India from the death of his father, George...
1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to 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. After this he entered Princeton Seminary in 1873, in order to train for Presbyterian ministry. He graduated in 1876. Princeton University is a coeducational private university located in Princeton, New Jersey in the United States of America. ...
1868 (MDCCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ...
1871 (MDCCCLXXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...
This article or section should be merged with Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Seminary is located in Princeton, New Jersey and was originally a school of Princeton University. ...
1873 (MDCCCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...
Presbyterianism is part of the Reformed churches family of denominations of Christian Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin which traces its institutional roots to the Scottish Reformation, especially as led by John Knox. ...
1876 (MDCCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...
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). In late 1876 Warfield and his new wife moved to Germany where he studied under Ernst Luthardt and Franz Delitzsch. 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. He was ordained on April 26, 1879. 1876 (MDCCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...
Concord is a city located in Lewis County, Kentucky. ...
Nickname: Gem City Coordinates: Country United States State Ohio County Montgomery Founded April 1, 1796 Incorporated 1805 Mayor Rhine L. McLin Area - City 146. ...
1876 (MDCCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...
Franz Delitzsch (1813, Leipzig - 1890) was a German Lutheran theologian and Hebraist. ...
Nickname: Monument City, Charm City, Mob Town, B-more, Balmerr,Bodymore, Murderland Motto: The Greatest City in America (formerly The City That Reads; Get In On It is not the citys motto, but rather the advertising slogan of the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association; BELIEVE is not the...
Pittsburgh Theological Seminary is a graduate theological institution associated with the Presbyterian Church USA. It is located in the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh. ...
April 26 is the 116th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (117th in leap years). ...
1879 (MDCCCLXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...
In 1881 Warfield wrote a joint article with A. A. Hodge on the inspiration of the Bible. 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. His passion was to refute the liberal element within Presbyterianism and within Christianity at large. 1881 (MDCCCLXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...
Archibald Alexander Hodge (July 18 1823 _ November 12 1886) was the principal of Princeton Seminary between 1878 and 1887. ...
Biblical inspiration is the doctrine in Christian theology concerned with the divine origin of the Bible and what the Bible teaches about itself. ...
The word Bible refers to the canonical collections of sacred writings of Judaism and Christianity. ...
Biblical inerrancy is the doctrinal position [1] that in its original form, the Bible is without error; referring to the complete accuracy of Scripture, including the historical and scientific parts. ...
The word orthodoxy, from the Greek ortho (right, correct) and doxa (thought, teaching, glorification), is typically used to refer to the correct theological or doctrinal observance of religion, as determined by some overseeing body. ...
It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Christianity. ...
Doctrine, from Latin doctrina, (compare doctor), means a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system. ...
Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Liberalism is an ideology, philosophical view, and political tradition which holds that liberty is the primary political value. ...
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. Soon afterward they visited Germany. 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. They had no children. 1876 (MDCCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...
1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...
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. 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. Charles Hodge Charles Hodge (1797-1878) was the principal of Princeton Theological Seminary between 1851 and 1878. ...
This article or section should be merged with Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Seminary is located in Princeton, New Jersey and was originally a school of Princeton University. ...
Archibald Alexander Hodge (July 18 1823 _ November 12 1886) was the principal of Princeton Seminary between 1878 and 1887. ...
The Princeton theology is a tradition of conservative, Christian, Reformed and Presbyterian theology at Princeton Seminary, in Princeton, New Jersey. ...
The 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. The seminary held fast to the Reformed confessional tradition — that is, it faithfully followed the Westminster Confession of Faith. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...
A revival meeting is a series of Christian religious services held with an eye to encourage active members of a religious body and to provoke those outside of it to become part of it. ...
The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ...
It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with The Historical-Critical Method. ...
A new religious movement or NRM is a religious, ethical, or spiritual grouping of fairly recent origin which is not part of an established religion and has not yet become recognised as a standard denomination, church, or religious body. ...
The Reformed churches are a group of Protestant denominations historically related by a similar Zwinglian or Calvinist system of doctrine but organizationally independent. ...
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. 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. Modernism, modernist Christianity, and liberalism are labels applied to proponents of a school of Christian thought which rose as a direct challenge to more conservative traditional Christian orthodoxy. ...
Sola scriptura (Latin By Scripture alone) is one of five important slogans of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. ...
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. 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. Biblical inspiration is the doctrine in Christian theology concerned with the divine origin of the Bible and what the Bible teaches about itself. ...
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. 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. This approach is essential to the understanding of inspiration held by many Reformed and Evangelical Christians today. Grammar is the study of rules governing the use of language. ...
Linguistics is the scientific study of language. ...
In various religions, most notably Trinitarian Christianity, the Holy Spirit (in Hebrew רוח הקודש Ruah haqodesh; also called the Holy Ghost) is the third consubstantial Person of the Holy Trinity. ...
The word evangelicalism usually refers to religious practices and traditions which are found in conservative, almost always Protestant, Christianity. ...
Studies in Religious Experience Warfield was a conservative critic of much religious revivalism that was popular in America at the time. 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. Such attacks did not go unnoticed, and even today Warfield is criticized by proponents of revivalism in the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. For example, Jack Deere wrote Surprised by the Power of the Spirit with the intention of refuting Counterfeit Miracles. 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". It has been suggested that Great Awakening be merged into this article or section. ...
In Christian theology, cessationism is the view that the charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit, such as tongues, prophecy and healing, ceased being practiced early on in Church history. ...
The Twelve Apostles (, apostolos, Liddell & Scott, Strongs G652, someone sent forth/sent out) were men that according to the Synoptic Gospels and Christian tradition, were chosen from among the disciples (students) of Jesus for a mission. ...
The Pentecostal movement within Protestant Christianity places special emphasis on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. ...
The charismatic movement began with the adoption of certain beliefs typical of those held by Pentecostal Christians —specifically what are known as the biblical charisms of Christianity: speaking in tongues, prophesying, etc. ...
Dr. Jack Deere is a charismatic pastor and theologian from the USA. He was an associate professor of Old Testament at Dallas Seminary, a bastion of cessationism, the doctrine that the charismatic gifts of the Spirit, such as tongues, prophecy and healing, ended at the close of the 1st century. ...
The Pentecostal movement within Evangelical Christianity places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as shown in the Biblical account of the Day of Pentecost. ...
His book Perfectionism is a detailed critique of what he saw as false theories of sanctification. 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. Sanctification or in its verb form, sanctify, literally means to set apart for special use or purpose, that is to make holy or sacred (compare Latin sanctus holy). Therefore sanctification refers to the state or process of being set apart, i. ...
The Higher Life movement was a movement devoted to Christian holiness in England and throughout the British Isles. ...
The Keswick Convention is an important gathering of evangelical Christians in Keswick, in the English county of Cumbria. ...
Oberlin College is a small, selective liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, in the United States. ...
See also Charles Grandison Finney, American evangelist. ...
Calvinism Underpinning much of Warfield's theology was his adherence to Calvinism as espoused by the Westminster Confession of Faith. 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. Calvinism is a system of Christian theology and an approach to Christian life and thought within the Protestant tradition articulated by John Calvin, a Protestant Reformer in the 16th century, and subsequently by successors, associates, followers and admirers of Calvin, his interpretation of Scripture, and perspective on Christian life and...
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 Protestant denominations historically related by a similar Zwinglian or Calvinist system of doctrine but organizationally independent. ...
Calvinism is a system of Christian theology and an approach to Christian life and thought within the Protestant tradition articulated by John Calvin, a Protestant Reformer in the 16th century, and subsequently by successors, associates, followers and admirers of Calvin, his interpretation of Scripture, and perspective on Christian life and...
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- 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 Warfield had an unusual view of Darwinism for a conservative in his day. Unlike most people who believed that the Bible's creation narrative was meant to be read literally, he was willing to accept that Darwin's theory was true, provided that one believe that God was the one who guided the process of natural selection in order to create the various species. This came from his avid interest in amateur science and led to him being both a convinced Calvinist and a convinced theistic evolutionist. He was thus one of the first theologians that tried to bridge the gap between Christian faith and emerging secular science. Charles Darwin Darwinism is a term for the underlying theory in those ideas of Charles Darwin concerning evolution and natural selection. ...
Charles Robert Darwin FRS (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist [1] who achieved lasting fame by producing considerable evidence that species originated through evolutionary change, at the same time proposing the scientific theory that natural selection is the mechanism by which such change occurs. ...
The Galápagos Islands hold 13 species of finches that are closely related and differ most markedly in the shape of their beaks. ...
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biodiversity. ...
Theistic evolution, less commonly known as evolutionary creationism, is not a theory in the scientific sense, but a particular view about how the science of evolution relates to some religious interpretations. ...
This article concerns secularity, that is, being secular, in various senses. ...
Part of a scientific laboratory at the University of Cologne. ...
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. Portrait of Abraham Kuyper by Jan Veth Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) was born in the town of Maassluis and was a Dutch Calvinist theologian, scholar, and statesman. ...
Herman Bavinck (1854-1921) was born in the town of Hoogeveen in the Netherlands. ...
Cornelius Van Til Cornelius Van Til (May 4, 1895 - April 17, 1987), born in Grootegast, the Netherlands, was a Christian philosopher, Reformed theologian, and presuppositional apologist. ...
This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...
References - Cousar, R. W., Benjamin Warfield: His Christology and Soteriology, PhD thesis, Edinburgh University, 1954.
- McClanahan, James S., Benjamin B. Warfield: Historian of Doctrine in Defense of Orthodoxy, 1881-1921, PhD thesis, Union Theological Seminary in Virginia, 1988.
- Warfield Commemoration Issue, 1921-1971, The Banner of Truth, no. 89 (Feb. 1971).
The Banner of Truth Trust is an evangelical and Reformed Christian publishing house founded in 1957 by Iain Murray and Jack Cullum. ...
Writings
Books These include: - The Lord of glory : a study of the designations of Our Lord in the New Testament with especial reference to His deity, (1907) London: Hodder and Stoughton
- Counterfeit miracles, (1918) New York : C. Scribner's — "The Thomas Smyth lectures for 1917-1918, delivered at the Columbia Theological Seminary, Columbia, South Carolina, October 4-10, 1917.", modern edition: Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, ISBN 0-85151-166-X
- Perfectionism - Articles reprinted from periodicals, etc. edited by Ethelbert D. Warfield, William Park Armstrong, and Caspar Wistar Hodge. (1931) New York : Oxford University Press.
- Calvin and Calvinism, (1931) New York ; London : Oxford University Press
- The inspiration and authority of the Bible / edited by Samuel G. Craig ; with an introduction by Cornelius Van Til. (1948) Philadelphia : Presbyterian and Reformed.
- Biblical and theological studies / edited by Samuel G. Craig, (1952) Philadelphia : Presbyterian and Reformed.
Cornelius Van Til Cornelius Van Til (May 4, 1895 - April 17, 1987), born in Grootegast, the Netherlands, was a Christian philosopher, Reformed theologian, and presuppositional apologist. ...
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