John Henry Gerstner (November 22, 1914 – March 24, 1996) was an American

Reformed Reform is beneficial change. Reform, reformed or reforming may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine Places * Reform, Al ...

and

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 ...

theologian and professor of

Church History Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of t ...

Pittsburgh Theological Seminary Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (PTS) is a Presbyterian graduate seminary in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1794, it houses one of the largest theological libraries in the tri-state area. History Pittsburgh Theological Seminary was for ...

and Knox Theological Seminary. He was an expert on the life and

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

Jonathan Edwards Jonathan Edwards may refer to: Musicians *Jonathan and Darlene Edwards, pseudonym of bandleader Paul Weston and his wife, singer Jo Stafford *Jonathan Edwards (musician) (born 1946), American musician **Jonathan Edwards (album), ''Jonathan Edward ...

Career

Gerstner earned both a Master of Divinity degree and a Master of Theology degree from

Westminster Theological Seminary Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian theology, theological seminary in the Reformed theology, Reformed theological tradition in Glenside, Pennsylvania. It was founded by members of the faculty of Prince ...

. He earned his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Church History from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

in 1945. He was originally ordained in the

United Presbyterian Church of North America The United Presbyterian Church of North America (UPCNA) was an American Presbyterian denomination that existed for one hundred years. It was formed on May 26, 1858, by the union of the Northern branch of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church ...

, then (due to church unions) with the

United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America The United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (UPCUSA) was the largest branch of Presbyterianism in the United States from May 28, 1958, to 1983. It was formed by the union of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of Ameri ...

and the

Presbyterian Church (USA) The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PCUSA, is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination in the Religion in the United States, United States. It is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States too. Its th ...

. In 1990, he left the PCUSA for the

Presbyterian Church in America The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is the second-largest Presbyterian church body, behind the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the largest conservative Calvinist denomination in the United States. The PCA is Calvinist, Reformed in theolog ...

. Gerstner counted among his students noted author and preacher

R. C. Sproul Robert Charles Sproul ( ; February 13, 1939 – December 14, 2017) was an American Reformed theologian, Christian apologist, and ordained pastor in the Presbyterian Church in America. He was the founder and chairman of Ligonier Ministries, and ...

, founder of

Ligonier Ministries Ligonier Ministries (also known as simply Ligonier) is an international Christian discipleship organization headquartered in the greater Orlando, Florida area. Ligonier was founded in 1971 by R. C. Sproul in the Ligonier Valley, Pennsylvania, o ...

; Dr. Arthur Lindsley, Senior Fellow at the C.S. Lewis Institute, Dr. Walter (Wynn) Kenyon, Professor of Biblical Studies and Philosophy, Chair of the Philosophy Department and Division of Ministry and Human Services at

Belhaven University Belhaven University (Belhaven or BU) is a private evangelical Christian university in Jackson, Mississippi. Founded in 1883, the university offers traditional majors, programs of general studies, and pre-professional programs in Christian Ministr ...

; Rev. Robert Ingram, founding board member and Headmaster of

The Geneva School The Geneva School is a private, classical, coeducational Christian day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children are given instruction during the day, after which the students retu ...

; and Dr. Mark Ross, the John R. de Witt Professor of Systematic Theology and Director of the Institute for Reformed Worship at Erskine Theological Seminary. In addition to his books, Gerstner recorded several lengthy audio courses giving a survey of theology, church history, and

Christian apologetics Christian apologetics (, "verbal defense, speech in defense") is a branch of Christian theology that defends Christianity. Christian apologetics have taken many forms over the centuries, starting with Paul the Apostle in the early church and Pa ...

, which are distributed through

. Gerstner was non-

dispensationalist Dispensationalism is a theological framework for interpreting the Bible which maintains that history is divided into multiple ages called "dispensations" in which God interacts with his chosen people in different ways. It is often distinguish ...

. In 1976, a ''

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

'' was published in Gerstner's honor. ''Soli Deo Gloria: Essays in Reformed Theology'' included contributions by

Cornelius Van Til Cornelius Van Til (May 3, 1895 – April 17, 1987) was a Dutch-American Reformed theologian, who is credited as being the originator of modern presuppositional apologetics. A graduate of Calvin College, Van Til later received his PhD from Pr ...

, J. I. Packer, Philip Edgecumbe Hughes, John Murray, R. C. Sproul,

John Warwick Montgomery John Warwick Montgomery (October 18, 1931 – September 25, 2024) was an American-born lawyer, academic, Lutheran theologian, and author. From 2014 to 2017, he was Distinguished Research Professor of Philosophy at Concordia University, Wisconsin ...

, and

Roger Nicole Roger R. Nicole (December 10, 1915 – December 11, 2010Roger Nicole (1915-2010) http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2010/12/11/roger-nicole-1915-2010/) was a native Swiss Reformed Baptist theologian and proponent of Christian egalita ...

Works

Books

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Chapters

* *

Festschrift

References

External links

* * John Gerstner sermons/lectures at Aisquith Presbyterian Church https://aisquith.org/sermon-speaker/john-h-gerstner/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Gerstner, John H 1914 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 20th-century American Presbyterian ministers American Calvinist and Reformed theologians American male non-fiction writers American religious writers Calvinist and Reformed writers Harvard University alumni Knox Theological Seminary faculty People from Tampa, Florida Pittsburgh Theological Seminary faculty Presbyterian Church in America ministers Presbyterians from Florida Presbyterian writers Reformation historians Westminster Theological Seminary alumni