‘Uncategorized’ Category

From a few years ago, Keith with his thesis committee: Stephen Wellum, Keith Goad, Michael Haykin, and Greg Allison

By Dustin W. Benge

According to historian, David McCullough, in order to properly understand history one must be immersed in the time and setting of their subject(s). This blog primarily focuses on the life, times, surroundings, influences, and friends of Andrew Fuller. Therefore, before we can “walk in their shoes,” it is necessary to know what is going on in the historical context of which they are apart.

One such topic that greatly affected daily life in 18th and 19th century England was the practice and advance of medicine. The 18th century brought great advances in the knowledge of the human body. Until 1745 craftsmen called “barber-surgeons” performed operations. However, that year brought a separation of the two professions and barbers continued to cut hair while surgeons began to be university educated. John Hunter (1728–1793), sometimes called the “Father of Modern Surgery,” invented new procedure such as tracheotomy. Other advances included the discovery of fresh fruit or lemon juice as a preventative to scurvy. A major scourge of the 18th century was the dreaded smallpox. Even if it did not succeed in killing you, your body would be scarred with pox marks. In 1721, Lady Mary Wortley Montague introduced an inoculation whereby you cut the patient and then placed matter from a smallpox pustule into the wound. The patient would (hopefully!) develop a mild case of the disease and be immune in the future.

Andrew Fuller was personally affected by medical problems within himself and his family. In his biographical account of Fuller, John Ryland, Jr. writes, “Though Mr. Fuller appeared to be of a remarkably strong and athletic make, yet he had been, from his youth, liable to severe bilious attacks, and his lungs were, at different times, severely affected by clods. It was, therefore, a more remarkable favour, that he was spared to us so long. It was not till some time after his removal to Kettering, that he had the smallpox, for which he was, at last, inoculated. But, some time before he underwent that operation, he took a journey to London, where he seemed to have been much in danger of infection from that disorder…”

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Dustin Benge serves as the senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Jackson, Kentucky. He is also a PhD candidate at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a junior fellow at The Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies. Dustin and his wife, Molli, live in Jackson.

By Ian Hugh Clary

Andrew Holmes, Lecturer in Modern Irish History at Queen’s University Belfast, wrote an article on the causes and consequences of the Ulster Revival of 1859.[1] Near the end of the piece he draws an illuminating link between the role of religious experience and the acceptance of higher criticism within evangelicalism. He says that when “pietistic spirituality”—that emphasizes personal conversion, holiness, and experience—is placed at the centre of theological enquiry, the bible can be characterized as a “record of the developing spiritual experience” rather than a manual of doctrine. This opens the doors for critical views of Scripture to enter in. Theological liberals separated the text and its historicity from spiritual experience and value. For evangelicals who were caught up in the ecstatic experience of revival (especially in Ulster’s case), a pietistic spirituality could be maintained while aberrant views of the bible were shuffled in. Holmes says, “It is significant that those figures most closely associated with modern biblical criticism within the Irish Presbyterian Church were also supporters of modern revivalism.”[2]

Holmes goes on to say that theologians who espoused higher criticism in Scotland were happy to draw the link with revivalism—especially the visits of D. L. Moody—and sought further revivals and religious experience. For instance, J. E. Davey, an evangelical who embraced higher criticism, used revivalism and religious experience in his defence during his trial for heresy in 1926-1927.

This is helpful for historians as we consider the benefits and pitfalls of revival, especially in its more recent forms. It should also temper us as Christians in our labours for revival—we need to make sure that the methods we espouse do not lead us to elevate religious experience to the role of doctrinal credibility. Rather, we need to maintain fidelity to the truths of the gospel handed down to us from our forebears, including those who experienced revival yet remained faithful.

By Steve Weaver

This year marks the 450th anniversary of the Heidelberg Catechism. This Protestant document was written in Heidelberg in 1563 on behalf of Frederick III, Elector Palatine and spread over the world when it was approved by the Synod of Dort in 1619. A new volume has recently been released to commemorate this important event in church history—Power of Faith: 450 Years of the Heidelberg Catechism, edited by Karla Apperloo-Boersma and Herman J. Selderhuis. See flyer from the German academic publisher, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, here.

In this 454 page hardcover book, respected specialists in their fields present how the Heidelberg Catechism spread and influenced culture, education and ecclesiastical life. In addition to the text, over 700 pictures illustrate the contributions making an attractive volume for display. This work includes the following contribution from AFCBS Director Michael A. G. Haykin and AFCBS Junior Fellow Steve Weaver: “To ‘concenter with the most orthodox divines’: Hercules Collins and his An Orthodox Catechism—a slice of the reception history of the Heidelberg Catechism.”

Power of Faith is slated to be released in Dutch, English and German editions. You can order the English edition from Amazon.com (German edition) now.

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Steve Weaver serves as a research assistant to the director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies and a junior fellow of the Center. He also serves as senior pastor of Farmdale Baptist Church in Frankfort, KY. Steve and his wife Gretta have six children between the ages of 2 and 13.

By Steve Weaver

(Click image to enlarge.)

On Wednesday, March 13th, the Andrew Fuller Center will host a mini-conference with Byron Wheaton on living in a spiritual world (details here). The conference, which will meet from 9 am – 12 noon in Heritage Hall on the campus of The Southern Baptist Seminary, will feature three lectures by visiting scholar Byron Wheaton on the conference theme.

Wheaton serves on staff at Bay Park Baptist Church in Kingston ON where he serves as Pastor of Discipleship. Prior to going to Bay Park, he taught Old Testament and Biblical Studies for fifteen years at various institutions in the US, Canada and South East Asia including (Bethel) Seminary of the East (Philadelphia/New York), Singapore Bible College (Singapore), Heritage Seminary (Cambridge) Emmanuel Bible College (Kitchener), Tyndale Seminary and Toronto Baptist Seminary (Toronto). For the past six months, Byron has been on a six month study leave as a visiting scholar at Southern Seminary.

The conference is free. Refreshments will be provided. The first 25 in attendance will receive a free copy of John Piper’s biographical booklet Andrew Fuller: I Will Go Down, If You Will Hold the Rope!

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Steve Weaver serves as a research assistant to the director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies and a junior fellow of the Center. He also serves as senior pastor of Farmdale Baptist Church in Frankfort, KY. Steve and his wife Gretta have six children between the ages of 2 and 13.

In light of our desire to provide more regular content to this site, we have asked several individuals affiliated with the Andrew Fuller Center to begin to regularly contribute to the blog. Of course, Dr. Haykin will continue to post often, but this blog will now also feature posts by others in order to keep fresh content posted on a more consistent basis. The new contributors will largely stay to the general theme of church history as indicated by the blog’s title: Historia ecclesiastica.

Contributors will include:

Dustin Benge serves as the senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Jackson, Kentucky. He is also a PhD candidate at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a junior fellow at The Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies for which he serves as a research assistant and managing editor of The Andrew Fuller Review. Dustin and his wife, Molli, live in Jackson.

Dustin Bruce lives in Louisville, KY where he is pursuing a ThM in Church History at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is a graduate of Auburn University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dustin and his wife, Whitney, originally hail from Alabama.

Ian Hugh Clary is finishing doctoral studies under Adriaan Neele at Universiteit van die Vrystaat (Blomfontein), where he is writing a dissertation on the evangelical historiography of Arnold Dallimore. He has co-authored two local church histories with Michael Haykin and contributed articles to numerous scholarly journals. Ian serves as a pastor of BridgeWay Covenant Church in Toronto where he lives with his wife and two children.

Nathan A. Finn is associate professor of historical theology and Baptist Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is also an elder at First Baptist Church of Durham, NC and a senior fellow of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies.

Michael A.G. Haykin is the director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies. He also serves as Professor of Church History and Biblical Spirituality at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Haykin and his wife Alison have two grown children, Victoria and Nigel.

Jeff Robinson (Ph.D., Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is Senior Pastor of Philadelphia Baptist Church. Jeff is the author of the forthcoming book, The Great Commission Vision of John Calvin.

Steve Weaver serves as a research assistant to the director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies and a junior fellow of the Center. He also serves as senior pastor of Farmdale Baptist Church in Frankfort, KY. Steve and his wife Gretta have six children between the ages of 2 and 13.

Be sure to bookmark this site and check back daily as new content will be added often. You can keep up with the latest on this website by subscribing to our RSS feed or by following us on Twitter (@AFCBS). For those not on Twitter, you can keep up with our latest Twitter postings on our right sidebar. Many times links to resources will be provided here that will not be mentioned in a blog post.

By Steve Weaver

Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin has been interviewed for the nationwide radio program Family Life Today to discuss love and romance among Christians throughout history.  The special two-part interview for Valentine’s Day is scheduled to air on Thursday (02/14/13) and Friday (02/15/13).  To find a time and station in your area click here.

The topic of this conversation flows from Dr. Haykin’s book The Christian Lover: The Sweetness of Love and Marriage in the Letters of Believers which provides an interesting glimpse at the love letters of believers through the centuries.

If you don’t have the opportunity to listen when the programs air, you can already access the programs online here.

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Steve Weaver serves as a research assistant to the director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies and is a junior fellow of the Center. He also serves as senior pastor of Farmdale Baptist Church in Frankfort, KY. Steve and his wife Gretta have six children between the ages of 2 and 13.

On a recent drive through the town of Orangeville, Ontario, I noticed the town’s motto on the town’s nameplate as you enter the environs of Orangeville: “Historic charm, dynamic future.” Due to its proximity to Toronto—Orangeville is located less than an hour’s drive northwest of the metropolis of Toronto—there is no doubt of the dynamism latent in the future of Orangeville: it is increasingly a place where families whose parents work in Toronto have chosen to make their homes. And even a casual saunter through the town reveals the historic charm of the older buildings.

As I thought about the motto, though, it became increasingly apparent to me that both the adjectives and nouns chosen reflect North American cultural mores. Try reversing the adjectives like this: “Dynamic past, charming future” or “Dynamic history, futuristic charm.” The latter alternate mottos convey an entirely different message: a tremendous past, but a somewhat innocuous future, even somniferous! No: our culture is confident of having a dynamic future, one that is exciting and fast-paced and brimming with ever new discoveries to enhance our well-being. And the past: well, at its best, it is charming, like a cute teddy-bear or toy from yesteryear.

But as every historian worth his or her salt knows: the past is dynamic for it has shaped and ordered our present-day.

A slight emendation of Calixa Lavallée’s words familiar to all Canadians, “my home and native land”—from Canada’s national anthem—came to mind when I began to write this review.* Ontario has been my home since I was twelve, and it is now very much my “native land” by choice. Initially when I came to Ontario in December of 1965 I was none too thrilled: there was no rich history like my native England, few battles, fewer heroes, or so it appeared to a young boy raised on military heroes like Richard the Lionheart, Warwick the Kingmaker, Nelson and so on. But over the past forty-five years I have learned to love this land, which the dust-jacket of this book calls a “magical province.”

No doubt, the main draw of this book is its stunning photographs, many of them places very familiar to me, such as the aerial picture of Niagara Falls (p.99). It is essentially a coffee-table book, to be picked up for a few moments in which one can savor some of the photographs in its pages. Alongside the photographs, though, there is also a textual narrative that sketches the history of the province. It begins with the first peoples, the Algonquians and Iroquoians, their encounter in the seventeenth century with the first European settlers, the French and the British, and goes on to more recent political and economic developments. This text gives a fair overview of the province’s history, but I felt that there was one striking lacuna that I have encountered again and again in recent histories of either Ontario or Canada: there was nearly nothing about the formative role that religion has played in Ontario’s development. I say “nearly nothing,” for there is a photograph of St Sylvester’s Roman Catholic Church in Nipigon (p.114). Beyond that, though, the impression given is that historic Ontario was as secular as the modern landscape. But nothing could be farther from the truth.

The historic strength of the part of Canada that I call home and now native land has been the Christian faith. While that is no longer the case—a fact that cries out for an explanation—we do Ontario’s past a grave injustice if we fail to recall all of its inner and outer architecture.

* Claire Welch, Ontario (Edison, New Jersey: Chartwell Books, Inc., 2008).

(This review first appeared on The Official Blog of the Sola Scriptura Ministries International. See here. Used by permission).

Yesterday I was privileged to speak at the 125^th anniversary of Cannington Baptist Church in Cannington, Ontario, roughly two hours’ drive from where I live. The congregation had gathered to celebrate God’s goodness, a worship service beautifully planned by deacon Ian Archibald. A group called “The Reflections” helped us worship in heart as they sang a number of traditional and contemporary songs. They were really excellent. And I was enabled to speak from Hebrews 13:7–8, a great text for arguing for the importance of history, a text I had already used in S. Ireland at the Cork Summer Bible Week.

In preparing for the delivery of the Word today, I had looked over a history of the Church—prepared twenty-five years ago in 1987, the centennial of the church—in which the doctrines set forth in the Trust Deed were spelled out. It is a classic summary of Baptist convictions. Those who had a right to use the building for worship were to hold these beliefs:

The being and unity of God: the existence of three equal persons in the Godhead: the inspiration of the Old and New Testaments, the total depravity of man: election according to the foreknowledge of God: the Divinity of Christ and the all sufficiency of His atonement; justification by faith alone in the righteousness of Christ; the work of the Holy Spirit in regeneration; perseverance of the saints; the resurrection of the dead; the final judgement [sic]; the punishment of the wicked, and the blessedness of the righteous, both eternal; the immersion of believers in water in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit the only baptism; the Lord’s Supper, a privilege peculiar to baptised believers: A Church, a company of baptised believers, voluntarily associated and meeting in one place on the first day of the week for mutual edification and the maintenance and propagation of these doctrines, the Word of God a complete and infallible rule of faith and practise; the religious observance of the first day of the week; and the obligation of every intelligent creature to believe the record which God has given of His Son.

In this statement we see the influence of the fourth-century Trinitarian debates and the Niceno-Constantinopolitan creed of 381; the Augustinian emphasis on human depravity and the necessity of divine election; the Reformation watch-cry of solus Christus; the great Baptist distinctives of congregationalism, believer’s baptism and closed communion; Puritan sabbatarianism; the belief in the inspiration and infallibility of the Word of God—common to all ages of the Church—and lo and behold pure Fullerism in the final statement about “the obligation of every intelligent creature to believe the record which God has given of His Son.”

I did not expect to see Fuller’s signature in such a place, but there it was: good to see it! Fuller is such a good mentor, because he delighted in proclaiming the gospel to all and sundry.