‘Princeton and the Work of the Christian Ministry’ – A Review by Allan MacColl

Princeton and the Work of the Christian Ministry¹ is a two-volume set consisting of addresses and articles by some of the most luminous names in the great galaxy of American Presbyterians who were connected with, or supported, the work of Princeton Theological Seminary. These excellent articles were selected and are introduced by James M Garretson and form a companion set to his earlier volume, Princeton and Preaching,² also published by the Banner of Truth Trust. The articles date from the time of the Seminary’s founding in 1812 down to the early decades of the twentieth century, before Princeton moved away from its historic confessional orthodoxy.

The very names of Archibald Alexander, Samuel Miller, J W Alexander, the Hodges and B B Warfield, among other contributors, are alone sufficient to indicate the quality of the material collected here. There is a considerable amount of reading in these two volumes, but every piece is connected in some way or other with the work of the ministry. Whether with regard to what constitutes a true call to the work, or the Princetonian approach to training divinity students, or the more practical aspects of pastoral duty, the articles abound in highly edifying, stimulating and humbling material. Princeton was established to be a ‘nursery of vital piety as well as of sound theological learning’, and the emphasis on personal godliness that appears in these pages is salutary.

This work would make for an excellent refresher in practical theology for pastors, would be highly beneficial for divinity students or those whose minds are being drawn to the holy work of the ministry, and would be of interest to all who prayerfully seek the welfare of the church of Christ through the blessing of God upon the ministry of the gospel. These articles consistently present such a high and sanctified view of the work of the ministry and the preparation needed for it that one cannot but deprecate the general state of things in our own day.