John Baillie
Encyclopedia
John Baillie CH
(1886–1960) was a Scottish
theologian, a Church of Scotland
minister and brother of theologian Donald Macpherson Baillie
.
Raised in the Calvinist tradition
, Baillie studied at Edinburgh University, Jena
and Marburg, and then taught in Canada
and the United States
. He was professor
at Edinburgh University for twenty years. He was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
in 1943.
Baillie wrote A Diary of Private Prayer (1936), regarded as a devotional classic. But his most important contribution to theology was an exploration of the relationship between the knowledge of God to spiritual and moral experience.
Shortly after his death, the series of Gifford Lectures
he had prepared for the 1961-2 academic year was read by John McIntyre
and Thomas Torrance
and published by Oxford university Press.
Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion....
(1886–1960) was a Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
theologian, a Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
minister and brother of theologian Donald Macpherson Baillie
Donald Macpherson Baillie
Donald Macpherson Baillie was a Scottish theologian, ecumenist, and parish minister.Raised in the Calvinist tradition, Baillie studied at Edinburgh University and then in Marburg where he was influenced by the theologian Wilhelm Herrmann. After some time as a Church of Scotland parish minister, he...
.
Raised in the Calvinist tradition
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
, Baillie studied at Edinburgh University, Jena
Jena
Jena is a university city in central Germany on the river Saale. It has a population of approx. 103,000 and is the second largest city in the federal state of Thuringia, after Erfurt.-History:Jena was first mentioned in an 1182 document...
and Marburg, and then taught in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He was professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
at Edinburgh University for twenty years. He was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
The Moderator of the General Assembly of Church of Scotland is a Minister, Elder or Deacon of the Church of Scotland chosen to "moderate" the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week in Edinburgh every May....
in 1943.
Baillie wrote A Diary of Private Prayer (1936), regarded as a devotional classic. But his most important contribution to theology was an exploration of the relationship between the knowledge of God to spiritual and moral experience.
Shortly after his death, the series of Gifford Lectures
Gifford Lectures
The Gifford Lectures were established by the will of Adam Lord Gifford . They were established to "promote and diffuse the study of Natural Theology in the widest sense of the term — in other words, the knowledge of God." The term natural theology as used by Gifford means theology supported...
he had prepared for the 1961-2 academic year was read by John McIntyre
John McIntyre (theologian)
John McIntyre CVO was a Scottish minister and theologian.-Biography:McIntyre was born in Glasgow on 20 May 1916 into a working-class family; he was the son of a carpenter...
and Thomas Torrance
Thomas Torrance
Thomas Forsyth Torrance was a 20th century Protestant Christian theologian who served for 27 years as Professor of Christian Dogmatics at New College, Edinburgh in the University of Edinburgh, during which time he was a leader in Protestant Christian theology...
and published by Oxford university Press.
Sources and references
- Nigel M. de S. et al., Dictionary of Scottish Church History and Theology, pp. 693–698. T & T Clark, Edinburgh 1993. ISBN 0-567-09650-5
- John McIntyre, Foreword, in John Baillie, "The Sense of the Presence of God", Oxford University Press, 1962
External links
- Edinburgh University's Baillie project
- The Sense of the Presence of God, 1961-2 Gifford Lectures, Edinburgh.
- Member of list of theologians
- Online versions of some of his writings