George Dod Armstrong (September 15, 1813 – May 11, 1899) was a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

minister and author born in Mendham, New Jersey. He was one of ten children by Amzi Armstrong, a Presbyterian pastor, and Polly Dod. George Armstrong graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

in 1832 and then taught school until he entered

Union Theological Seminary Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York (shortened to UTS or Union) is a Private college, private ecumenical liberal Christian seminary in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, affiliated with Columbia University since 1928. Presently, Co ...

, Virginia. He became a professor of chemistry and mechanics in 1838 at Washington College in Lexington, Virginia now

Washington and Lee University Washington and Lee University (Washington and Lee or W&L) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. Established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, it is among ...

. He taught there with

Henry Ruffner Henry Ruffner (January 16, 1790 – December 17, 1861), was an educator and Presbyterian minister, who served as president of Washington College (now Washington and Lee University). Although a slaveholder (and whose family had long owned slaves ...

and George Dabney. He held this position for thirteen years when he left to become pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

. He remained here until his death in 1899. George Armstrong served as a

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

. In 1855 his family was nearly destroyed by Yellow Fever losing 3 children and his wife. In 1856 he authored a personal account of the epidemic: ''The Summer of the Pestilence.''

Support of slavery

Armstrong was one of many American ministers and prominent Christians who vocally supported the institution of slavery and rejected abolitionism in the years prior to the Civil War. In his publication ''The'' ''Christian Doctrine of Slavery'', Armstrong lays out his defense of the institution of slavery based on his reading of the Bible.

Works

*''Politics and the Pulpit'' 1856 *''The Christian Doctrine of Slavery'' 185
Full Text available at Internet Archive
*''Doctrine of Baptism'' 1857 *''The Theology of Christian Experience'' 1858 *''"The Good Hand of Our God Upon Us," a Thanksgiving Sermon Preached on the Occasion of the Victory of Manassas'' 1861 *''The Sacraments of the New Testament as Instituted by Christ'' 1880 *''The Two Books of Nature and Revelation Collated'' 1886

References

* Starr, Harris Elwood. "Armstrong, George Dod." ''Dictionary of American Biography.'' Vol. 1, Charles Scribner's Sons. 1928.
Worldcat.org

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, George Dod 1813 births 1899 deaths Princeton University alumni Union Presbyterian Seminary alumni 19th-century American writers Presbyterian Church in the United States of America ministers 19th-century American clergy People from Mendham Township, New Jersey