Henry Clay Vedder (February 26, 1853 – October 13, 1935)[1] was an American Baptist church historian, seminary professor, editor and theologian. Vedder authored numerous articles and twenty-seven books on church history and theology.
Early life and education
editVedder was born in De Ruyter, New York. He graduated from the University of Rochester with an A.B. in 1873, an A.M. in 1876 and a D.D. in 1897. He also graduated from the Rochester Theological Seminary in 1876.[2] In 1894, Vedder accepted ordination into the Baptist ministry.[3]
Career
editHe was an editor at the New York Baptist newspaper The Examiner from 1876 to 1894 and the Baptist Quarterly Review from 1929 to 1935.[4]
In 1894, he became professor of church history at Crozer Theological Seminary in Upland, Pennsylvania, and served in that capacity until 1926.[5] After his retirement from the Crozer Theological Seminary, Vedder joined the editorial staff of the Chester Times newspaper in Chester, Pennsylvania. In addition to numerous articles, Vedder authored twenty-seven books.[6]
Vedder shifted from orthodoxy to evangelical liberalism and became the subject of criticism by fundamentalists in the 1920s. Between 1908 and 1912 Vedder began to embrace socialism, evolution and pragmatism, a new interpretation of the atonement, and salvation as both individual and social.[7] Vedder joined "social gospel" efforts with theologian Walter Rauschenbusch.[8]
Vedder was a member of the American Society of Church History.[2]
Personal life
editVedder was married to Minnie Lingham Vedder and together they had a son Edward Bright Vedder who became a U.S. Army physician and noted researcher of beriberi.[9]
Vedder died in Chester Hospital[2] and is interred at the Chester Rural Cemetery in Chester, Pennsylvania.[10]
Four generations of Vedders have attended the University of Rochester including Henry Clay Vedder's son, Edward Bright Vedder who graduated in 1898, his grandson Henry Clay Vedder II attended the school before graduating from George Washington University and his great grandson, Henry Clay Vedder III graduated in 1998.[11]
Bibliography
edit- Baptists and Liberty of Conscience (Cincinnati, J.R. Baumes, 1883)
- A Short History of the Baptists (1891, revised edition 1897, new edition, 1907)
- The Higher Criticism (1892)
- The dawn of Christianity, or, Studies of the apostolic church, (Philadelphia, American Baptist Publication Society, 1894)
- American Writers of To-Day (1894, new edition, 1910)
- A History of the Baptists of the Middle States (1898)
- Historical Leaflets, Issues 1-9, (Chester, Pennsylvania, Crozer Theological Seminary, 1901)[12]
- The Story of the Churches - The Baptists, (The Baker & Taylor Co., 1902)
- Balthasar Hübmaier: the Leader of the Anabaptists (New York, London, G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1905)
- Our New Testament; how did we get it?, (New York, The Griffith & Rowland Press, 1908)
- Christian Epoch Makers (1908)
- Church History Handbooks, (The Griffith & Rowland Press, four volumes, 1909)
- Socialism and the Ethics of Jesus, (1912)
- The Gospel of Jesus and the Problems of Democracy (New York, The Macmillan company, 1914)
- The Reformation in Germany, Macmillan Company, (1914)[13]
- The fundamentals of Christianity; a study of the teachings of Jesus and Paul, (New York, The Macmillan company, 1922)
References
edit
- ^ "Subjects of Biographies". Dictionary of American Biography. Vol. Comprehensive Index. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. 1990.
- ^ a b c Harkness, R.E.E. (1935). "Henry Clay Vedder". Church History. 4 (4): 305–306. doi:10.1017/S0009640700130197. S2CID 161490512. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
- ^ Straub, Jeffrey Paul (2018). The Making of a Battle Royal: The Rise of Liberalism in Northern Baptist Life 1870-1920. Eugene, Oregon: Pickwick Publications. pp. 257–258. ISBN 978-1-5326-1666-2. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
- ^ Hughey, Sam (1999). "Henry C. Vedder". The Reformed Reader. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
- ^ Wills, George A. (2009). Southern Baptist Seminary 18559-2009. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-977412-8. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
- ^ "Henry Clay Vedder: His Life & Thought". www.thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
- ^ Garrett, James Leo (2009). Baptist Theology: A Four-century Study. Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press. pp. 313–314. ISBN 978-0-88146-129-9. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
- ^ Wilcox, Jeffrey A. (2013). Schleiermacher's Influences on American Thought and Religious Life, 1835-1920. Eugene, Oregon: Pickwick Publications. p. 139. ISBN 978-1-60608-005-4. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
- ^ "Papers of Edward Bright Vedder". www.urmc.rochester,edu. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
- ^ "OldChesterPa.com: Chester Rural Cemetery Interment Index". www.oldchesterpa.org. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
- ^ "Educational Tradition Passed Through Four Generations". www.rochester.edu. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
- ^ Seminary, Crozer Theological (1901). "Historical Leaflets - Crozer theological seminary, Chester, Pa - Google Books". Retrieved June 16, 2013.
- ^ The reformation in Germany - Henry Clay Vedder - Internet Archive. Internet Archive. 1914. Retrieved June 16, 2013.
Reformation in Germany vedder.