Princeton theologians
Encyclopedia
The Princeton theology is a tradition of conservative, Christian, Reformed
and Presbyterian theology at Princeton Theological Seminary
, in Princeton, New Jersey
, United States
. The appellation has special reference to certain theologians, from Archibald Alexander
to B.B. Warfield
, and their particular blend of teaching, which together with its Old School Presbyterian Calvinist
orthodoxy sought to express a warm Evangelicalism and a high standard of scholarship. W. Andrew Hoffecker argues that they strove to "maintain a balance between the intellectual and affective elements in the Christian faith."
By extension, the Princeton theologians include those predecessors of Princeton Theological Seminary
who prepared the groundwork of that theological tradition, and the successors who tried, and failed, to preserve the seminary against the inroads of a program to better conform that graduate school to "Broad Evangelicalism", which was imposed upon it through the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America
.
Mark Noll
sees the "grand motifs" of the Princeton theology as being
Of these, only Machen and Wilson represented the American Presbyterian tradition that was directly influenced by the Princeton theology. Vos and Van Til were Dutch Reformed. Murray was a Scot, but a student under Machen at Princeton who later followed him to Westminster Theological Seminary
. Murray and Van Til were both ministers in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church
.
Reformed churches
The Reformed churches are a group of Protestant denominations characterized by Calvinist doctrines. They are descended from the Swiss Reformation inaugurated by Huldrych Zwingli but developed more coherently by Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger and especially John Calvin...
and Presbyterian theology at Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
, in Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The appellation has special reference to certain theologians, from Archibald Alexander
Archibald Alexander
Archibald Alexander was an American Presbyterian theologian and professor at the Princeton Theological Seminary...
to B.B. Warfield
Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield
Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield was professor of theology at Princeton Seminary from 1887 to 1921. 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.-Early...
, and their particular blend of teaching, which together with its Old School Presbyterian Calvinist
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
orthodoxy sought to express a warm Evangelicalism and a high standard of scholarship. W. Andrew Hoffecker argues that they strove to "maintain a balance between the intellectual and affective elements in the Christian faith."
By extension, the Princeton theologians include those predecessors of Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
who prepared the groundwork of that theological tradition, and the successors who tried, and failed, to preserve the seminary against the inroads of a program to better conform that graduate school to "Broad Evangelicalism", which was imposed upon it through the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America
Presbyterian Church in the United States of America
The Presbyterian Church in the United States of America was a Presbyterian denomination in the United States. It was organized in 1789 under the leadership of John Witherspoon in the wake of the American Revolution and existed until 1958 when it merged with the United Presbyterian Church of North...
.
Predecessors
- William Tennent, Sr.William TennentWilliam Tennent was an early American religious leader and educator in British North America.-Early life:Tennent was born in Mid Calder, Linlithgowshire, Scotland, in 1673. He graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1695 and was ordained in the Church of Ireland in 1706...
(Log College) - Gilbert TennentGilbert TennentGilbert Tennent was a religious leader. Gilbert was one of the leaders of the Great Awakening of religious feeling in Colonial America, along with Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield...
(College of New Jersey) - William Tennent, Jr. (College of New Jersey)
- Jonathan Edwards (Princeton University)
Major figures
- Archibald AlexanderArchibald AlexanderArchibald Alexander was an American Presbyterian theologian and professor at the Princeton Theological Seminary...
- Charles HodgeCharles HodgeCharles Hodge was the principal of Princeton Theological Seminary between 1851 and 1878. A Presbyterian theologian, he was a leading exponent of historical Calvinism in America during the 19th century. He was deeply rooted in the Scottish philosophy of Common Sense Realism...
- A. A. Hodge
- B. B. Warfield
Contributors to Biblical Repertory and Princeton Review
- Albert Baldwin DodAlbert Baldwin DodAlbert Baldwin Dod was an American Presbyterian theologian and professor of mathematics. He was born in Mendham, New Jersey, and after a religious awakening while at college in Princeton, Dod became affiliated with the influential Princeton Theologians...
- Lyman Hotchkiss AtwaterLyman Hotchkiss AtwaterLyman Hotchkiss Atwater was an American Presbyterian philosopher.-Life:He was born in Cedar Hill, New Haven, Connecticut. He started going to Yale University at the age of 14 in 1827 and graduated in 1831...
- John BreckinridgeJohn BreckinridgeJohn Breckinridge or Breckenridge may refer to:*John Breckinridge , United States Senator and Attorney General...
Mark Noll
Mark Noll
Mark A. Noll is a historian specializing in the history of Christianity in the United States. He holds the position of Francis A. McAnaney Professor of History at the University of Notre Dame...
sees the "grand motifs" of the Princeton theology as being
Devotion to the Bible,concern for religious experience, sensitivity to the American experience, and full employment of Presbyterian confessionsWestminster Confession of FaithThe Westminster Confession of Faith is a Reformed confession of faith, in the Calvinist theological tradition. Although drawn up by the 1646 Westminster Assembly, largely of the Church of England, it became and remains the 'subordinate standard' of doctrine in the Church of Scotland, and has been...
, seventeenth-century Reformed systematicians, and the Scottish philosophy of Common Sense.
Successors
- Geerhardus VosGeerhardus VosGeerhardus Johannes Vos was an American Calvinist theologian and one of the most distinguished representatives of the Princeton Theology. He is sometimes called the father of Reformed Biblical Theology.-Biography:...
(Princeton) - J. Gresham MachenJohn Gresham MachenJohn Gresham Machen was an American Presbyterian theologian in the early 20th century. He was the Professor of New Testament at Princeton Seminary between 1915 and 1929, and led a conservative revolt against modernist theology at Princeton and formed Westminster Theological Seminary as a more...
(Princeton/Westminster) - Cornelius Van TilCornelius Van TilCornelius Van Til , born in Grootegast, the Netherlands, was a Christian philosopher, Reformed theologian, and presuppositional apologist.-Biography:...
(Princeton/Westminster) - Oswald T. AllisOswald T. Allis-Biography:He was born in 1880 and received his doctorate from the University of Berlin, and received an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Hampden Sydney College in 1927. He taught in the Department of Semitic Philology at Princeton Theological Seminary . In 1929 Allis, J. Gresham Machen,...
(Princeton/Westminster) - Robert Dick WilsonRobert Dick WilsonRobert Dick Wilson was an American linguist and Presbyterian scholar who devoted his life to prove the reliability of the Hebrew Bible...
(Princeton/Westminster) - John MurrayJohn Murray (theologian)John Murray was a Scottish-born Calvinist theologian who taught at Princeton Seminary and then left to help found Westminster Theological Seminary, where he taught for many years.-Life:...
(Westminster)
Of these, only Machen and Wilson represented the American Presbyterian tradition that was directly influenced by the Princeton theology. Vos and Van Til were Dutch Reformed. Murray was a Scot, but a student under Machen at Princeton who later followed him to Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian and Reformed Christian graduate educational institution located in Glenside, Pennsylvania, with a satellite location in London.-History:...
. Murray and Van Til were both ministers in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church
Orthodox Presbyterian Church
The Orthodox Presbyterian Church is a conservative Presbyterian denomination located primarily in the United States. It was founded by conservative members of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America who strongly objected to the pervasive Modernist theology during the 1930s . Led...
.