The Western Recorder, Infant Salvation, and The Sovereignty of God: Part I

The Western Recorder is and has been the denominational paper for Kentucky Southern Baptists since 1826. At the turn of the 19th century, T.T. Eaton was editor of the Kentucky paper, a position he had held much of his life. For 27 years, Eaton was pastor of the historic Walnut Street Baptist Church in downtown Louisville.

In or around January, 1892, The Magazine of Christian Literature had begun running a series of articles on The Sovereignty of God written by Dr. G.W. Northrup (1826-1900^?), President of the Chicago Divinity School. These articles had already been published in The Standard. Though not so known among Southern Baptists today, Northup remained an undeniable influence on Baptist theology during the last quarter of the 19th century and arguably well into the 20th. While serving as Professor of Ecclesiastical History at the Rochester Theological Seminary in 1866, Dr. Northrup was recruited as the first president and professor of systematic theology for the newly constituted University of Chicago Divinity School.¹

Additionally, according to William Cathcart's biographical entry, Northrup excelled both as a flaming pastoral evangelist and a keen, erudite theologian. During one recorded season of his professorial post at Rochester, Northrup established himself as a persuasive gospel preacher:

For one year and a half he supplied the pulpit of the First church in Rochester, 165 being in that time added to the church by baptism.²

To record 165 baptisms over a mere 18 month interim ministry remains extraordinary even today not to mention recording such a phenomenal number during the middle of the 19th century. Cathcart then goes on to describe Northrup's theological contributions:

[Dr. Northrup's] intellectual learning and capacity qualified him in an especial manner for a mastery of systematic theology; and his classes at Chicago enthusiastically testify to the grasp he has, and in their measure enables them to take, of the whole subject of Christian doctrine in its classification and in its verification. Although he has not as yet become known as an author, his lectures, alike in church history and in theology, have been made so complete and so full that, if they could be given to the world, they would rank with the most valued of the many books in these lines of theological study.

Hence, while we may not hold an appreciation either for Northrup's theological legacy or his pastoral achievements during the last quarter of the 19th century, he nonetheless earned the respect of his contemporary peers as Cathcart makes clear. And apparently, the series on The Sovereignty of God Northrup penned wherein he criticized "The Sovereignty of God in Predestination as Held by Many Representative Calvinistic Theologians" made a big splash amongst Baptists in the south.

Sometime after Northrup's series appeared in The Standard, T.T. Eaton ran in Kentucky's Western Recorder a series of critical replies to Northrup from the able Presbyterian pen of Dr. Robert Watts, past Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland and  then Professor of Systematic Theology at The General Assembly's College at Belfast.³ According to Eaton, a vocal call for permanent form of Dr. Watts' reply to Northrup came from readers of The Western Recorder series:

When the articles of Dr. Watts appeared in the Western Recorder, reviewing the articles of Dr. Northrup in the Standard, there was a wide call for their publication in permanent form. Hence it was decided to issue a volume containing these articles.⁴

At first, only Watts' replies to Northrup were considered for publication. However, after extended negotiations, The Standard agreed to release to Eaton the publishing rights for Northrup's original series to be published along with Watts' replies. The result was a book divided into three parts exceeding 300 pages entitled The Sovereignty of God (Baptist Book Concern, 1894).⁵ 

In Part II, I'll begin excerpts from Northrup's essays pertaining to infant salvation,  imputed guilt, and  the positions held by "Many Representative Calvinistic Theologians."⁶ 

Part II

Part III

Part IV

 

^?sometimes his birth is listed as 1825 

¹William Cathcart, The Baptist Encyclopedia, VOLUME 1:A-G, p.412

²William Cathcart, The Baptist Encyclopedia, VOLUME 2:H-Q, p.711

³the question begs to be asked--Where were Northrup's critics amongst Southern Baptists to be found? Could not T.T. Eaton find a single critic at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary to take Northrup on rather than turning to a Presbyterian in Ireland to rebut the Chicago president? With the seminary faculty a stone's throw from his Walnut Street office, why publish in a Baptist denominational paper criticisms from a Presbyterian Calvinist rather than a Baptist Calvinist? 

⁴The Sovereignty of God, Louisville, Kentucky: Baptist Book Concern, 1894; preface

⁵I first happened across this volume in a junk store in Alabama. I gave $5.00. What a tremendous find! I now have a digital copy

⁶it cannot be overlooked that G.W. Northrup himself seems to have self-identified as a convictional Calvinist. In his theological analysis, Northrup posits three types of Calvinists: hyper-Calvinists (supralapsarians), strict Calvinists (infralapsarians), and moderate Calvinists (pp. 62-63) even though he fails to directly identify with either of the three. Even so, he appears to embrace moderate Calvinism, at least in part, indicated by certain statements in his rebuttals to Watts  

 

Comments

[lydia]

"Sometime after Northrup's series appeared in The Standard, T.T. Eaton ran in Kentucky's Western Recorder a series of critical replies to Northrup from the able Presbyterian pen of Dr. Robert Watts, past Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland and then Professor of Systematic Theology at The General Assembly's College at Belfast."

Ok, this blows my mind. Seriously? A Presbyterian? Now we have come full circle. :o)

[peter lumpkins]

Lydia,

Check out Footnote #3 :^)

[lydia]

Yeah, I gotta remember to read the footnotes. :o)

"Could not T.T. Eaton find a single critic at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary to take Northrup on rather than turning to a Presbyterian in Ireland to rebut the Chicago president? With the seminary faculty a stone's throw from his Walnut Street office, why publsih in a Baptist denominational paper criticisms from a Presbyterian Calvinist rather than a Baptist Calvinist?"

Very good question especially in that day and time.

BTW: Walnut Street Baptist holds a special place in my heart from childhood.

[peter lumpkins]

Walnut Street was a very influential, thriving church when I first lived in Louisville beginning in 1979. I think W. DeHoney was then Senior Pastor.

[Ben Stratton]

Peter,

Interesting article. As you know Eaton was a strong landmark Baptist and the leader of the anti-Whitsitt forces during the Whitsitt controversy. He rejected alien immersion and the concept of the universal invisible church and believed strongly in Baptist perpetuity. So the fact that he used Watt's articles is not due to any covert love of Presbyterianism. As to why he used Watts and not Broadus or Kerfoot, I would put forth two guesses:

1. The relationship between Eaton and the Seminary was always tense, even before the Whitsitt controversy. Eaton was actually one of the more moderate Landmarkers in Kentucky. The more radical landmarkers regularly attacked the school. While Eaton was a trustee, he was also looked upon with suspicion at times due to his landmark theology. This is a possible factor.

2. However I would say the main reason was Eaton believed Watts was the best man to write on the subject. Since the issue was not realated to ecclesiology, Eaton didn't have a problem using a Pedobaptist author.

Anyway, that's just my two cents. I look forward to reading part two.

[peter lumpkins]

Ben,

Thanks for the insight into possible reasons Eaton didn't seek SBTS assistance. I was aware of his Landmark leanings but frankly didn't connect the dots with the Whitsitt controversy and tensions with SBTS rooted, in part at least, in ousting the president. Do you have any files from the Western Recorder during Eaton's tenure? If so, I'd love to pursue gaining access somehow, especially if you have digital files.

As for your suggestion that since the theme of Northrup's series and Watts' subsequent rebuttals were not ecclesial in nature, and consequently Eaton perhaps not having a problem using a Pedobaptist author I find harder to accept as a possible reason for Watts' presence in the Recorder. If, as you suggest, Eaton was a thorough-going Landmarker--albeit a "more moderate" Landmark advocate given Kentucky standards--who rejected alien immersion, the universal invisible church, and strongly embraced Baptist perpetuity, it seems to me surreal at best to imagine Eaton making a hard-line distinction between ecclesiology and soteriology so far as allowing a baby-baptizing member of what he considered to be a non-church institution the equivalent of a pulpit to authoritatively speak on God's Word. Of course, I'm also guessing along with you, brother. It would be an interesting pursuit--though perhaps trivial pursuit--to historically query whether Eaton (or even another strong Landmark adhering editor/author) made an exception with Watts or whether Watts sorta constituted a "rule" of thumb he practiced in dealing with other non-ecclesial issues per se.

Thanks again, brother.