Yesterday, I went to Calvary OPC for their 2019 Theology Seminar, thanks to Pastor Tim of my new church: Grace OPC.
The conference speaker was no other than Danny Olinger, the author of Vos' biography.
It started at 9:3am with light breakfast, ended a little before 3pm, after 3 1-hour-long sessions of talk with an hour of lunch break (chicken nuggets finished the quickest), and ended with Q&A.
Here's my takeaway:
B. B. Warfield passed away in front of Vos' house.
Vos was not definitely not a social person. More of a nerd. Surpassed his own professors at Calvin Theological Seminary within a month and asked to be professor within a year. Good memory (like Vern Poythress), good linguistic skill.
Vos would not have left Grand Rapids, due to being a mama's boy. He moved to Princeton because of romance. Met and married Catherine Smith (Author of the famous Children/Child's Story Bible), who was a librarian there at Princeton. 2 Problems: She speaks no Dutch, Vos' mother speaks no English. She's also a Methodist. Hence Vos moved away from Grand Rapids.
I thought Vos would have some take on the though recent debate on Christocentric vs Christotelic-only views, due to his Biblical Theology (Basically the organic theology of the Bible by means of chronology, as apposed to systematic theology = the categorization of biblical doctrine from the Bible as a whole), but it may not be the case, according to the theologians we have today. And the Karl Barth vs Van Til debate, Vos is considered too far in the generation gap to be involved in. Though Olinger suggested that Vos would be backing his best student Van Til 100%.
Vos' focus was on Westminster's Standards, Chapter 7. Also, the reformed view: Should Adam and Eve passed their probation, they would have enjoyed the full presence of God instead of the coming and going of God.
Though Vos sided with OPC, he remained in Princeton when asked by Machen to join WTS. Thus, he's not well known among the reformed. Also, when he lost to the liberals when he tried to prevent Princeton from changing the Westminster Standards, he withdrew from public, possibly due to loneliness at the time because his best friends were gone (Warfield, etc.)
Possible reasons Vos didn't go to WTS:
- No $$$ (I would lose his Princeton pension)
- Wanted to keep Princeton on a straight path (according to Vos' daugther, Marianne)
Vos grew up with Herman Bavinck.
Anti-Fred Rogers community. Such is the reformed community. Perhaps a difference in emphasis on God's works vs. men's.
Last Presbyterian presidents of U.S.: Teddy Roosevelt -> Woodrow Wilson.
Vos saw right through Wilhelm Herrmann's theology, but Machen loved Herrmann at first in Germany.
Geerhardus Vos & J Greesham Machen were contemporary of each other. They were friends with Woodrow Wilson, professor/president of Princeton who later became the President of U.S. who's very Left, brought about the League of Nations (seen as the heretical social gospel movement).
One has to wonder, as a ruling elder of a Presbyterian church and a president of the United States, how would one go about the separation of Church and State?