An Update on B.B. Warfield

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B.B. Warfield was one of the most prolific American Presbyterian writers, if not the most prolific. Recently, at Log College Press, we reached a milestone — there are now over 400 works on his page.

Many newly-added articles pertain to the Didache, the Biblical doctrine of inspiration, textual criticism, and the Westminster Assembly. One noteworthy article, currently available to read at the Early Access page for members of the Dead Presbyterians Society, is one not found in John E. Meeter & Roger Nicole, A Bibliography of Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, 1851-1921 (1974) — Presbyterians and Their Creed (1901).

Some of the writings added in recent weeks include reviews by Warfield, from various periodicals, of writers such as Anselm, Augustine, Herman Bavinck, Louis F. Benson, Robert L. Dabney, Émile Doumergue, Charles E. Edwards, D. Hay Fleming, Henry C. Minton, A.F. Mitchell, George T. Purves, Edwin W. Rice, W.G.T. Shedd, Charles H. Spurgeon, Pierre Viret, Geerhardus Vos, and many others.

Although the internet is a big place and not every site pertaining to Warfield has been fully reviewed, it is believed that the Log College Press Warfield page currently constitutes the largest available resource of Warfield’s writings in one place on the internet, and the project of adding more of his writings is ongoing. Meanwile, take time to peruse the page, and enjoy!

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The 1847 Edwards Quilt

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Note: Today’s guest post is by Nancy Elliott Mehne, who is the great-granddaughter of American Presbyterian minister Jonathan Edwards.

In 1847 the newly-married minister Jonathan Edwards (1817-1891) and his bride, Eliza Rice Edwards (1827-1880), were presented with a beautiful Baltimore Album–Signature quilt. It was a labor of love given to the young couple as a gift from his congregation, Somerset Presbyterian Church, Somerset, Ohio. A total of 80 different squares were made by 56 women. Each square was signed by its maker with newly-popular permanent brown ink. The signatures represented 23 families.

Edwards had been called to pastor the two small congregations, Somerset and nearby Hopewell, just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio in 1844. He was very familiar with the area since he was born in Cincinnati in 1817. He had made profession of faith in 1828 under the ministry of Dr. Joshua Wilson at First Presbyterian Church, Cincinnati. According to the practice at that time he was expected to memorize Scripture verses. With his quick memory he readily learned 50-100 verses each week and eventually memorized the entire New Testament. As a young man, he was exposed to a lot of the theological issues of the day, was able to receive kind treatment from godly ministers and given the opportunity to further his education even though he was being raised by a widowed mother. In 1832, he became a student at Hanover College, Indiana. In 1835, he began teaching school in Walnut Hills which enabled him to become lifelong friends with the Kemper family and well acquainted with Dr. Lyman Beecher. The following years found him teaching and serving as the head of Bardstown Collegiate Institute while working under Dr. Nathan Lewis Rice. With the development of the Theological Department at Hanover College, Edwards was able to be licensed by the Presbytery of Salem in 1843, ordained by the Presbytery of Cincinnati, and installed pastor of the churches Hopewell and Somerset, Ohio on April 17, 1844.

Eliza Rice Edwards had strong Presbyterian roots. Like others traveling down the Valley of Virginia, both her Rice father’s and her Finley mother’s families became early settlers in the Danville, Kentucky area. She was related to David Rice who had been the original Presbyterian minister into Kentucky in 1784. Eliza’s father, Phineas G. Rice was a long time elder in the Danville Presbyterian Church and her pastor, John C. Young, was President of nearby Centre College. Eliza’s three uncles, Nathan Lewis Rice, John Jay Rice and William Garrett Rice were Presbyterian ministers.

When Eliza was only seven years old, her mother died in the 1833 cholera epidemic and was buried next to the Danville church. Both sides of the close-knit family then lovingly helped her father care for Eliza and her sister, Maria. As Eliza grew up “she was familiar with the fine types of Kentucky society” according to her son. There is a family story that “when Eliza would ‘go calling’ she would pick up the accent of the woman she had visited, so the family immediately knew where she had been.”

The photo of Eliza was taken about the time she married Jonathan. They had four children who lived to adulthood: Effie Edwards, who married Presbyterian Elder Dr. Samuel O. Loughridge; the Rev. Charles Eugene Edwards; the Rev. Chauncey Theodore Edwards; and Dr. Eleanor Edwards, who married the Rev. Walter Scott Elliott and served in China.

Jonathan and Eliza faithfully gave of themselves to the Presbyterian Church and its congregations, colleges, and seminaries. Every night they would sleep under the quilt lovingly made by their first congregation. Two following generations of their descendants also regularly enjoyed it’s warmth. In the early 1900's the quilt was exhibited in a Philadelphia quilt show and was praised as being one of the largest Baltimore Album quilts ever seen. It is still in good condition and safely in the possession of the family. The quilt photos were taken in 1999.

Much of the content of this post is derived from a biography of his father written by Charles.

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Happy birthday to John Calvin!

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If you are Reformed, you probably know something about John Calvin. He is widely recognized as the author of the Institutes of Christian Religion (1536, 1559), and as the leader of the Reformed wing of the Reformation (in contrast to Martin Luther’s Lutheran wing). He was born in Noyon, France on July 10, 1509. Today is his birthday, and thus, Log College Press is celebrating with select resources about the man and his theology. Consider these works for an in-depth study of the man and his legacy.

• John Bailey Adger, Calvin and Servetus; and Calvin’s Doctrine of the Lord’s Supper;

• Louis FitzGerald Benson, John Calvin and the Psalmody of the Reformed Churches;

• William Maxwell Blackburn, The College Days of Calvin; and Young Calvin in Paris;

• Charles Eugene Edwards, Calvin on Infant Salvation;

• William Morrison Engles, An Introduction to Calvin’s Institutes;

• Thomas Cary Johnson, John Calvin and the Genevan Reformation; and Calvin’s Contribution to Church Polity;

• Nathaniel Smyth McFetridge, Calvinism in History;

• Henry Collin Minton, John Calvin, Lawyer; and Calvin the Theologian;

• Samuel Leslie Morris, The Relation of Calvin and Calvinism to Missions;

• Presbyterian Church in the United States, Calvin Memorial Addresses;

• Richard Clark Reed, Calvin’s Contribution to the Reformation;

• David Schley Schaff, Martin Luther and John Calvin, Church Reformers;

• Philip Schaff, Calvin’s Life and Labors;

• Thomas Smyth, Calvin and His Enemies;

• John Weldon Stagg, Three Maligned Theologians: John Calvin, William Twisse and Jonathan Edwards; and Calvin’s Traducers, Who They Were and What They Thought;

• Geerhardus Vos, Calvin and Common Grace (translation of Herman Bavinck);

• Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, Calvin’s Knowledge of the Doctrine of God; Calvin’s Doctrine of the Creation; The Literary History of the Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin; John Calvin: The Man and His Work; Calvin’s Doctrine of the Trinity; Music in the Work of Calvin (translation of Émile Doumergue); Calvin’s Doctrine of God;

• Robert Alexander Webb, Calvin’s Doctrine of Infant Salvation; and

• Julia McNair Wright, John Calvin.

As Calvin would say,

I have always been exceedingly delighted with the words of Chrysostom, “The foundation of our philosophy is humility;” and still more with those of Augustine, “As the orator, when asked, What is the first precept in eloquence? answered, Delivery: What is the second? Delivery: What the third? Delivery: so, if you ask me in regard to the precepts of the Christian Religion, I will answer, first, second, and third, Humility (Institutes 2.2.11).

As Reformed Christians, we do not exalt Calvin beyond measure, but we are thankful for the grace of God that accomplished so much good in his life. He was a very humble man, and that is seen in the writings referenced above which explore his life and many contributions to the world, and to the kingdom of God. We remember a good man today who was born over 500 years ago.

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Introducing the Log College Annex

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At Log College Press, a lot has been happening. We have been growing so much lately that we have expanded beyond the main library of authors into a new Annex.

Log College Press now has an Annex to the Main Library.

Some of the new authors found on the Annex include:

• Charles Eugene Edwards (1860-1937) - He is the son of Jonathan Edwards (1817-1891), and the author of a devotional work, which has been republished in the 20th century as the Devotions and Prayers of John Calvin, its original title being Scripture Texts With Expositions and Sentence-Prayers From Calvin’s Commentaries on the Minor Prophets (1897);

• Maria Fearing (1838-1937) - She was an African-American Presbyterian missionary from Alabama who served in the Congo for twenty years as a teacher and translator;

• Amos Noë Freeman (1809-1893) - He was an African-American Presbyterian minister who co-authored (with Frederick Douglass and others) a famous 1853 address known as Claims of Our Common Cause;

• Benjamin Harrison (1833-1901) - He was the 23rd President of the United States, and a Presbyterian ruling elder, who had while in office an all-Presbyterian cabinet;

• Beverly Tucker Lacy (1819-1900) - He served as chaplain to Stonewall Jackson;

• Cyrus Hall McCormick (1809-1884) - He was an inventor and business who did much to support the Presbyterian Church, and who endowed what is known as McCormick Theological Seminary; and

• Poon Chew Ng (1866-1931) - He was the first Chinese-American Presbyterian to minister on the American West Coast.

Also, on the Main Library, new additions include:

• Over 20 additional works by Benjamin Morgan Palmer (1818-1902), along with several works by his uncle, Benjamin Morgan Palmer (1781-1847);

• Over 20 additional works by Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, bringing the total number of works by him available to read at LCP closer to 300;

• All volumes of The Presbyterian Quarterly to George Summey’s (1853-1954) page;

• A rare copy of Alexander MacWhorther’s Century Sermon (first delivered in 1801, first published in 1807, and republished in 1916);

• U.S. President Grover Cleveland’s 1888 Address Before the Northern and Southern Presbyterian Assemblies;

• John McDowell’s Fifty Years a Pastor, a semi-centenary discourse;

• Two rare works by John Thomas Chalmers (ARP) on Psalmody; and

• much, much more, including several works added to our Compilations page.

We invite you not only to browse and explore the Main Library and the Annex, but also to let us know if you have suggestions for further additions to Log College Press. As we continue to grow, build and expand, we hope that Log College Press, including the new Annex, will continue to be beneficial to our readers as a resource that taps into the deep well of wisdom that is to be found in early American Presbyterianism. We are also working to publish more volumes, and we will have more to say about this very soon, DV. Meanwhile, thanks to all our readers and those who have contributed in many ways to the work that we are doing. We are grateful to you. May the Lord bless His Church!

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