William "Bill" Edgar (born 1944 in

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, eighth-most populous city in the st ...

) is an American

apologist Apologetics (from Greek ) is the religious discipline of defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and discourse. Early Christian writers (c. 120–220) who defended their beliefs against critics and recommended their fa ...

and was professor of

apologetics Apologetics (from Greek ) is the religious discipline of defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and discourse. Early Christian writers (c. 120–220) who defended their beliefs against critics and recommended their f ...

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 has been called by

Charles Colson Charles Wendell Colson (October 16, 1931 – April 21, 2012), generally referred to as Chuck Colson, was an American attorney and political advisor who served as Special Counsel to President Richard Nixon from 1969 to 1970. Once known as ...

"one of evangelicalism's most valued scholars and apologists".

Biography

Edgar grew up in Paris, New York and Geneva. He studied at

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 ...

(Honors B.A. in Music 1966), Westminster Theological Seminary (M.Div. 1969), and the

University of Geneva The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public university, public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by French theologian John Calvin as a Theology, theological seminary. It rema ...

(Dr. Théol. 1993). He served as home missionary of the

Orthodox Presbyterian Church The Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) is a confessional Presbyterian denomination located primarily in the United States, with additional congregations in Canada, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico. It was founded by conservative members of the Presbyte ...

, Pennsylvania, 1969–1970. Between 1970 and 1978, he taught at the

Brunswick School Brunswick School is a private, college-preparatory school for boys in Greenwich, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1902 by George B. Carmichael. History Brunswick School was founded in 1902 by George B. Carmichael. The school is ...

in Greenwich, Connecticut, and 1979–89 at the Faculté Libre de Théologie Réformée, in

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence, or simply Aix, is a List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, city and Communes of France, commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. A former capital of Provence, it is the Subprefectures in France, s ...

, France, where he continues as Professeur Associé. Since 1989, he has been professor of apologetics at Westminster Theological Seminary. He is also coordinator of the Apologetics Department and director of the Gospel and Culture Project. He was chairman of the faculty until 2010. He is an ordained teaching elder in 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 ...

since 1978.William Edgar Professor of Apologetics
Westminster Theological Seminary, presentation of faculty. Edgar is married to Barbara Smyth Edgar. They have two children, William Keyes Hill-Edgar and Deborah Boatwright Edgar.

Learned societies, boards and ministries

Edgar is a member of

American Musicological Society The American Musicological Society (AMS) is a musicological organization which researches, promotes and produces publications on music. Founded in 1934, the AMS was begun by leading American musicologists of the time, and was crucial in legiti ...

, the

Evangelical Theological Society The Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) is a professional society of Biblical scholars, educators, pastors, and students "devoted to the inerrancy and inspiration of the Scriptures and the gospel of Jesus Christ" and "dedicated to the oral ex ...

, the Forum on Music and Christian Scholarship, the

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world, claiming over 10,000 members. Founded in 1884, AHA works to protect academic free ...

and the

Society for Ethnomusicology The Society for Ethnomusicology is, with the International Council for Traditional Music and thBritish Forum for Ethnomusicology one of three major international associations for ethnomusicology. Its mission is "to promote the research, study, an ...

. He is also a senior fellow at the

Trinity Forum The Trinity Forum (TTF) is an American faith-based non-profit Christian organization founded in 1991 by author and social critic Os Guinness and American businessman and philanthropist Alonzo L. McDonald. The current president of the Trinity ...

. He is president of the

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

Fellowship Director of the Gospel & Culture Project and serves on the Institutional Review Board and the Medical Ethics Committee of the Chestnut Hill Hospital. He is a fellow at the Wilberforce Forum and at Colson Center, honors trustee at the Greenwood School, and senior fellow at the

. He is on the editorial advisory committee of ''La Revue Réformée.'' He speaks regularly at the

Veritas Forum The Veritas Forum is a non-profit organization that works with Christian students on college campuses to host forums centered on the exploration of truth and its relevancy in human life, through the questions of philosophy, religion, science, and ...

programs. He frequently participates in the China Christian Scholars Association, and often travels to China. He has taught in French-speaking Africa in several countries.William Edgar
cardus.com.

Interests

Os Guinness and Bill Edgar at CICCU 2013

In his books and articles, Edgar has treated topics such as cultural apologetics, the music of

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, often set within studied ye ...

, the

Huguenots The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

, and African-American aesthetics. Edgar is a jazz pianist and regularly performs an evening concert combined with a lecture on the history of jazz. In 2007, it was recorded live on a double-CD, Heaven in a Nightclub, during a benefit concert for Chesterton House, a Center for Christian Studies at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. The concert and recording feature Edgar, vocalist Ruth Naomi Floyd, saxophonist Joe Salzano, and bassist

John Patitucci John Patitucci (born December 22, 1959) is an American jazz bassist and composer. Biography John James Patitucci was born in Brooklyn, New York. He began playing the electric bass at age 10, performing and composing at age 12, and at age 15, s ...

. His compositions include La Sainte Victoire, which premiered in

, June, 2007. He has also set the Psalms to music in an African mode. He manages a professional jazz band, Renewal.

Bibliography

* ''Taking Note of Music.'' London 1986, SPCK * ''Reasons of the Heart.'' 1996, Baker/Hourglass * ''La carte protestante.'' 1997, Labor et Fides * ''The Face of Truth: Lifting the Veil.'' 2001, P & R, 2001 * ''Truth in All Its Glory: Commending the Reformed Faith.'' 2004, P & R * ''Les dix commandements.'' 2007, Excelsis * ''Christian Apologetics Past and Present: A Primary Source Reader: Volume 1, To 1500.'' 2009, Crossway * ''Beyond the Frame.'' 2010, Trinity Forum, 2010 * ''Christian Apologetics Past and Present: A Primary Source Reader: Volume 2, From 1500.'' 2011, Crossway * ''Schaeffer on the Christian Life: Countercultural Spirituality.'' Forthcoming 2013, Crossway

References

External links

Heaven in a Nightclub: The Roots and Theology of Jazz
Combined concert and lecture. Justin Taylor – Between Two Worlds *William Edgar
The Deep Joy of Jazz
By Faith Issue Number 11, October 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Edgar, William 1944 births Living people 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American pianists 20th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 20th-century American Presbyterian ministers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American pianists 21st-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 21st-century American Protestant theologians 21st-century Presbyterian ministers American Calvinist and Reformed theologians American evangelicals American male jazz pianists American male non-fiction writers American religious writers Calvinist and Reformed philosophers Calvinist and Reformed writers Christian apologists Harvard College alumni Jazz musicians from North Carolina People from Wilmington, North Carolina Presbyterian Church in America ministers Presbyterian writers University of Geneva alumni Westminster Theological Seminary alumni Westminster Theological Seminary faculty