When Charles handed me this book to
review I wanted to give it back as I was just not interested in
reading how one man trained pastors 200 years ago. Instead, I
decided to at least read the introduction. That was all it took.
This was an enjoyable, interesting and a helpful read. It takes
us beyond the history of Princeton’s founding father and gives
us a glimpse into the thinking, methods and issues of the day,
especially with all the events that were taking place, like the
second Great Awakening, the beginnings of the major cults, and
the early years of liberalism.
The book is more than Princeton
Seminary and more than Alexander’s view of preaching--it is a
summary and cataloging of Alexander’s teaching on practical
theology. Garretson shows us Alexander’s heart as he pours his
life into the men he trained. We are given to see Alexander’s
background to understand why he said all that he did to his
students regarding their call, qualifications, passion, piety,
practices and gifts.
Garretson gives us five reasons
for this study: 1. to see God’s hand at work at this point in
history through this man 2. for us not to forget about, but to
learn from our spiritual ancestry 3. to deepen our appreciation
of our Presbyterian confessional identity 4. to show us God’s
gospel of grace in His use and development of a person’s
character rather than methods, as he says, is stressed today,
and 5. to demonstrate that the study of these times “will make
us more effective ministers in our own time.”
Dr. Garretson shows us who
Alexander was and why his influence is still important. Al
Martin says that he would have used this as a textbook
supplement in pastoral theology had it been available.
I believe that this work would be
all the more valuable if Dr. Garretson would now take all he has
gleaned from his study of Archibald Alexander’s published and
unpublished works and rewrite them for today’s audience, with
his own interjections.
Perhaps my only criticism is the
comment that Alexander was Post-millennial. I say this only
because the only justification for this came from a statement
that I also make. However, this was made in passing, and in no
wise distracts from the book.
This book was a great read and
one I recommend to not only historians, but to pastors and
pastors-in-training.
Back to Equip
|
July
2006 Book Review
