I’ve come again, afresh, to the writings of Cornelius Van Til. Lord willing, my plan is to compose a monograph on Van Til’s critique of Karl Barth over the
Cornelius Van Til concludes his chapter on Scripture in his Introduction to Systematic Theology with a note of pastoral wisdom.
It is not sufficient … to instruct the church in certain
Today we speak with Dr. K. Scott Oliphint, Professor of Apologetics and Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania about Cornelius Van Til’s book Common Grace and the Gospel (P&R
Laurence O’Donnell, III, a Cornelius Van Til scholar and critic, has labeled Van Til’s trinitarian theology “idiosyncratic.” He made this remark with respect to Van Til’s conception of the trinity as
Daniel Schrock revisits Cornelius Van Til’s critique of Francis Schaeffer’s apologetic. Van Til has been criticized for his treatment of Schaeffer’s method, but Schrock reminds us that though it may be difficult to carry out polemics in a spirit of Christian love, we cannot assume it prohibits polemics.
In an essay celebrating the 100th anniversary of Cornelius Van Til’s birth, William Edgar compared Francis Schaeffer to Cornelius Van Til. Much has been made about their different approaches to
Cornelius Van Til was an early and significant critic of Karl Barth, yet many contemporary Barthians reject his criticism. Several contributions in the recent book Karl Barth and American
In this brief episode, Camden Bucey discusses the Van Tilian interpretive tradition. Cornelius Van Til was an influential figure in the development of a distinctively Reformed apologetic. Camden Bucey discusses
The Christ the Center panelists engage Dr. K. Scott Oliphint, professor of apologetics and systematic theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, in a wide-ranging discussion about Cornelius Van Til
Or roughly, “The Making of Van Til.” Camden Bucey builds a case that Machen is the principal historical reason for Cornelius Van Til becoming the influential reformed apologist he became.
It is often said that Barth believed in a god who was “wholly other.” It’s an oft repeated phrase, but rarely understood. Van Til would say “absolutely other.” By that
In chapter 3 of Christian Apologetics Van Til addresses the issue of the “point of contact” (Anknüpfungspunkt). That is to say, the point at which the believer may make contact
Both Van Til and Barth rejected all forms of bare theism. That is, they denied a generic view of God. Both believed this “god” was an idol. This is the
Van Til used the word “scholasticism” (or its other variations) as shorthand for Thomistic dualism (and with it the medieval synthesis of Christian and pagan thought). In short Thomistic
The triumph of the eternal decree of God over history is just as much a problem as the triumph of history over the eternal decree.
In an attempt
It is often assumed that Karl Barth’s thought is the antithesis of medieval scholasticism. It is true that Barth is exceedingly critical of Aquinas. But does Barth offer us
I am always edified when I read Van Til. I am also always challenged to conform my thinking to the Holy Scriptures and the Reformed faith. But I am
In his writings, Van Til used what has now become a defunct moniker to describe an early 20th century theological movement surrounding Karl Barth and
Going hand-in-hand with what we said in a previous post about rendering God not God, Van Til points up how unbelieving thought assumes a neutral view of reality, and
Van Til is a master at exegeting unbelief. This is helpful for apologetics. If we do not understand the unbeliever in a biblical way, inevitably our approach to defending the
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Miracle of Spring A strange thing has taken place
A labor overnight—
That by the thousands apace
New births brought forth to light.
Till now my yard was winter,
The wind turns south, I wing
Back
Summer1
By Geerhardus Vos Translated by Daniel Ragusa
Though thousands of signs do brim
That he the land has graced,
How shall I ever find him?
Where do his
Autumn1 By Geerhardus Vos Translated by Daniel Ragusa Still lingers golden autumn, still stand harvest colors,
Ripening in field, still roams through woods and gardens
A lovely postlude
I had the privilege of participating in a panel discussion on Danny Olinger’s excellent biography of Geerhardus Vos at the Presbyterian Scholars Conference, held at Harbor House, Wheaton College, on
