History of Princeton Theological Seminary: The Majestic Testimony (1868-1929), Vol. 2 (Calhoun)

Description

Here we encounter the great Hodge lineage; the broad scholarship of B. B. Warfield; the brilliance of Geerhardus Vos; the emergence of the young J. Gresham Machen. And through them we are introduced to the army of men they taught, loved, and sent through-out the world to serve Jesus Christ. It is a story which enables us to catch a glimpse of what, under God, scholarship, seminary life and Christian fellowship can be.

But faithfulness to Christ and Scripture may well lead to conflict, as the Princetonians often stressed. One such conflict would eventually divide the faculty itself and cause the loss of some of its brightest stars, as Dr. Calhoun records. He has given us a narrative of joy and sorrow, surprise and disappointment, triumph and sometimes tears. All this and more lies in the story of Princeton Seminary between 1869 and 1929.

This is indeed a ‘majestic testimony’ and it leaves upon us the same conviction that Archibald Alexander’s grandson expressed at the Seminary’s centenary in 1912; ‘If the sort of theology which is taught here should die, and its enemies should grant it a decent burial, like the Lord of Life Himself, it will have a triumphant resurrection. For the Gospel which it teaches is an unconquerable force.’

Contents

1. Faith and Learning
2. Jubilee!
3. The Hodges: Father and Sons
4. Thy Word is Truth
5. Evolution and Inspiration
6. A Sacred Trust
7. The Majestic Testimony
8. Cloud of Witnesses
9. The Seminary and the College
10. Princeton Contra Mundum
11. The Faculty of 1902
12. J Gresham Machen
13. Zealous for the Gospel
14. Incarnate Truth
15. The Centennial and the New President
16. The War Years
17. Warfield of Princeton
18. Christianity and Liberalism
19. A Mighty Battle
20. The Banner of Truth
21. The End of an Epoch
22. The Princeton Theology

Endorsements

"This splendid, thoroughly researched, two-volume history of Princeton Seminary reads like a novel. It tells the story of one of the key institutions that shaped the transformation of post-colonial, adolescent America into a world power, and that for the first time made the Christian faith global, carrying it literally to the uttermost ends of the earth. Calhoun has ‘the gift’ — he makes historical characters spring to life. His story is more than the story of a theological seminary; it captures the essence of a whole century and a quarter (1812-1929) of the coming of age of America."
— SAMUEL HUGH MOFFET

“Professor Calhoun’s two volumes about Princeton Theological Seminary are based on years of painstaking research into all kinds of records, some made public now for the first time. Written in a clear and engaging style, the narrative traces a succession of Christian scholars dedicated to the preparation of young students for the Christian ministry. Events, people, and thought are given their place, and readers will be both instructed and gratified with the author’s thorough and balanced account.”
— Bruce M. Metzger 

About the Author

David B. Calhoun is Emeritus Professor of Church History at Covenant Theological Seminary, St Louis, Missouri. He has taught at Covenant College and Columbia Bible College (now Columbia International University) and served as principal of Jamaica Bible College. Prior to his appointment to Covenant Seminary in 1978, he was the overseas director of Ministries in Action.A Presbyterian minister, he has preached widely in many churches and has conducted Bible and missions conferences.