American theologian and philosopher
Greg L. Bahnsen
(September 17, 1948 ? December 11, 1995) was an American
Reformed
philosopher
,
apologist
, and debater. He was a
minister
in the
Orthodox Presbyterian Church
and a full-time Scholar in Residence for the Southern California Center for Christian Studies (SCCCS). He is also considered a contributor to the field of Christian apologetics, as he popularized the
presuppositional
method of
Cornelius Van Til
.
[2]
He is the father of
David L. Bahnsen
, an American portfolio manager, author, and television commentator.
Early life and education
[
edit
]
He was the first born of two sons of Robert and Virginia Bahnsen in
Auburn, Washington
, and grew up in
Pico Rivera, California
. In youth he was beset by a number of medical difficulties, the most serious of which was a lifelong
platelet
problem that made it difficult for him to stop bleeding, a condition similar to
hæmophilia
. He also had heart trouble which came to light only during his first college admissions medical exam.
[
citation needed
]
Raised in the
Orthodox Presbyterian Church
, he actively participated in religious activities. He first began reading the apologetics of
Cornelius Van Til
when in high school. While attending
Westmont College
he began writing for the
Chalcedon Foundation
of
Rousas J. Rushdoony
and soon came to admire the latter's strong Calvinistic convictions.
[
citation needed
]
In 1970 Bahnsen graduated
magna cum laude
from Westmont College, receiving his
B.A.
in philosophy as well as the John Bunyan Smith Award for his overall
grade point average
. From there he went on to
Westminster Theological Seminary
in
Philadelphia
, where he studied under Cornelius Van Til. The two became close friends. When he graduated in May 1973, he simultaneously received two degrees,
Master of Divinity
and
Master of Theology
, as well as the William Benton Greene Prize in apologetics and a Richard Weaver Fellowship from the
Intercollegiate Studies Institute
. His next academic stop was the
University of Southern California
(USC), where he studied
philosophy
, specializing in the
theory of knowledge
. In 1975, after receiving ordination in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, he became an associate professor of Apologetics and Ethics at
Reformed Theological Seminary
(RTS) in
Jackson, Mississippi
. While there, he completed his studies at USC, receiving his
Ph.D.
in 1978. Bahnsen's four years at RTS were fraught with contention, centered around his particular version of theonomic postmillennialism.
[2]
Later life
[
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]
One of the original pillars of
Christian Reconstruction
, Bahnsen was a leading proponent of
theonomy
,
postmillennialism
, and
presuppositional apologetics
. He lectured to a broad range of
evangelical Christian
groups at many colleges and conferences, not only throughout the
United States
, but in
Scotland
and
Russia
.
[3]
He published over 1700 audio tapes, videos, articles, and books.
[
citation needed
]
Greg Bahnsen's vocal advocacy of Christian Reconstructionism and theonomy was highly controversial during his lifetime, and a public disputation pertaining to theonomy led to his dismissal from the
Reformed Theological Seminary
in Jackson, Mississippi.
[4]
In addition, he was known for his public debates on
apologetics
, theonomy,
religion
(such as
Roman Catholicism
,
Islam
, and
Judaism
), and a variety of socio-political issues (such as
abortion
,
gun control
, and
homosexuality
).
Bahnsen had a number of public debates with
atheists
including
George H. Smith
,
Gordon Stein
, and
Edward Tabash
. The debate with Stein marked one of the earliest uses of a
transcendental argument for the existence of God
(TAG).
[
citation needed
]
In 1994 a controversy emerged after atheist philosopher
Michael Martin
was informed three weeks before a scheduled debate with Bahnsen "that Bahnsen would not debate unless Martin gave written permission to SCCCS to tape the debate" for resale to support SCCCS. Martin refused because "he did not want SCCCS to profit from his participation", while SCCCS refused to let Bahnsen debate without the debate being taped. The debate was canceled.
[5]
Since that time Martin has responded to Bahnsen's use of TAG, doing so in his own debates with
Michael Butler
,
John Frame
, and Douglas Jones, and has published his "Transcendental Argument for the Non-Existence of God" in the journal of the
New Zealand Association of Rationalists and Humanists
, as well as in essays posted on the
Secular Web
.
[6]
[7]
Death
[
edit
]
Due to his lifelong medical problems, Bahnsen had to undergo a third
aortic valve
implant surgery on December 5, 1995. After the completion of the operation, serious complications developed within twenty-four hours. He then became comatose for several days and died on December 11, 1995, at the age of 47.
[8]
Works
[
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]
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
Further reading
[
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]
External links
[
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]
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