In October of 1912, Princeton
Theologian B.B. Warfield penned an important treatise he entitled
"Christless Christianity" in which Warfield essentially took to task two
groups he believed pose a legitimate threat to the true Christian faith. The first group, which Warfield characterizes
as “the dissidents from Christianity of the most incongruous types,” are
summarily rejected for their “philosophy of the unconsciousness.”[1] The second group, which emerge are the
primary target of Warfield’s essay, are the more liberal-minded Christians, who
Warfield claims “assert…that Christianity is separate from Jesus” and historical
criticism “seriously shatter[s] the very foundations of Christianity.”[2]
This ongoing tug-o-war of theology
vs. history; the mystical vs. the palpable; Christianity vs. science, is
nothing new. For centuries scholars and
theologians of all stripes have attempted to reconcile (or expose) what appear
to be incompatible discrepancies between the historical record and the
assertions of scripture. For Christians devoted to the inerrancy of the
Bible and a fundamentalist mindset determined to defend the faith against all enemies,
the arrows and sword wounds delivered by the hands of the non-believer are to
be expected. But when the arrows and
swords are in the hands of a professing Christian, whose faith and conviction are
built upon a desire to bridge the chasm dividing historical data and pious
discipleship, the fundamentalist believer might esteem his brother as his
foe.
Such is the case with B.B.
Warfield. In his extremely valiant
effort to defend Christian orthodoxy as he sees it, the great Princeton
theologian sacrifices those who ask sincere questions regarding legitimate
historical issues upon the altar of heresy.
He does so, knowing that the world around him is changing. As science, Darwinism, and other factors
threaten to tear down the walls that had sustained orthodox Christianity for
centuries, Warfield believed that doubling down on the Christian message would
be the correct prescription to help remedy what he believed was an infected Body
of Christ.
And though certainly noble in his
intentions, Warfield overstates the crisis at hand by applying European
examples of heresy to an American problem.
A quick glance over the footnotes of Warfield's essay reveals that the
overwhelming majority of the sources cited to expose liberal Christian theology
are German authors. Rarely does he provide any modern American source
material to support his argument. This does not mean that some liberal
American theologians were not thinking in the same light as their German
brethren. However, Warfield does ignore many of the specific and unique
differences between Christianity as manifested in Europe (particularly Germany)
and in the United States. Though some similarities existed, and are
certainly worthy of note, the differences are equally important to
mention. As historian Susanne Calhoun points out in her article,
"Christian Fundamentalism in America: A Cultural History:
Christian
Fundamentalism is a distinctly American innovation...The Great Awakenings were
perceived as the prelude to God’s millennial kingdom on earth, stirring
expectations of Christ’s imminent second coming New then explores how
liberal Christians threatened this worldview through the spread of biblical
criticism and the secularization of public education. Millennial thought was
defended and furthered by three conservative movements: Millerism (William
Miller, 1782-1849), Princeton theology (Charles Hodge, 1797-1878; A.A. Hodge,
1823-86; and B.B. Warfield, 1851-1921), and Dispensationalism (John Nelson
Darby, 1800-82). These movements encouraged a literal interpretation of
Scripture and fanned the flame of America’s fascination with the Bible’s
end-time prophecies.[3]
In addition to Calhoun’s accurate
assessment, American religious historian George Marsden offers a concurring
opinion on how Fundamentalist movement had unique American origins that made
the American religious experience different from other places on earth. He writes, “To understand fundamentalism we
must also see it as a distinct version of evangelical Christianity uniquely shaped
by circumstances of America.”[4]
To be certain, the changes to Christianity
taking place in Germany were, to some degree, present in the United States as
well. Warfield is to be commended for
his desire to protect Jesus the Christ from simply becoming Jesus the
historical man from Nazareth. Or as
Warfield himself put it, “It is greater nonsense…to pretend to retain Christ
when the historical Jesus has been set aside by science, and faith in Christ
has no further personal interest…abandoning the one and retaining the other is
nothing but a miserable product of opportunism.”[5] Yet this quest to safeguard traditional
orthodox Christianity cannot dismiss the fact that not all of America was
infected with the stain of liberal Christianity. Historian Sydney Ahlstrom points to this fact
when he writes, “The resultant Fundamentalist controversy occurred to a degree
in all churches, though it was minor where liberalism was weak or nonexistent…In
some denominations the intellectual life had been so neglected by conservatives
that the need for a new apologetic was very tardily recognized.” [6]
Keeping Ahlstrom’s comments in
mind, B.B. Warfield’s impassioned attack on liberal Christianity is also a
reflection of the fact that traditional orthodox Christianity was in desperate
need of better arguments to defend the faith, especially in the emerging 20th
century. Ultimately this is where the
divide between Warfield and his fellow conservative Christians differed from
their more liberal brethren, and this division has persisted (if not grown) all
the way to the current age.
[1] Warfield,
Benjamin B. "Christless Christianity." The Harvard
Theological Review 5, no. 4 (1912): 423-73. Accessed April 28, 2020. www.jstor.org/stable/1507229. Pp. 423
[2]
Ibid, 424, 431.
[3] Susanne Calhoun. “Christian Fundamentalism in America: A
Cultural History.” The Journal of
Ecclesiastical History, 65(3): Pp. 706-708.
[4]
George Marsden, Fundamentalism in American Culture (New York: Oxford
University Press: 2006). Pp. 3.
[5]
Warfield, “Christless Christianity,” Pp. 440.
[6]
Sydney Ahlstrom, A Religious History of the American People (London:
Yale University Press, 2004). Pp.
813.
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