"찰스 핫지의 종말론"

A Reconsideration of Charles Hodge's Eschatology

Charles Hodge(1797-1878) has been called, "the most prominent American Presbyterian theologian of the nineteenth century" and was clearly one of the most outstanding theologians that America has ever produced. As a professor of Princeton Theological Seminary, Hodge taught systematic theology for fifty-six years, trying to pass on Reformed faith as it had been defined in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. That Hodge's Systematic Theology was able to replace Francis Turretin's classic Institutio Theologiae Elenticae, speaks of its importance and substance. As a definitive statement of the Princeton Theology, it became the criterion of Reformed orthodoxy in America. In the presentation of Princeton's view of eschatology, as in all other areas of systematics, Charles Hodge gave the final word. It has been believed that postmillennialism had been accepted by the majority of the later English and American Puritans, including most importantly, Jonathan Edwards. Postmillennial eschatology continued dominant in colonial America into the nineteenth century. Even though it was "the dominant evangelical view," it must be noted that postmillennialism was not the exclusive view of the era. Postmillennial thought was held by the Princeton theologians of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, represented by Hodge, Benjamin B. Warfield and J. Gresham Machen. Besides the theological defense, postmillennialism also fit well with the optimistic view Americans generally had of themselves and their country. This optimism was so prevalent that even the Civil War was conceived as a true apocalyptic contest in which slavery was abolished, so that the work of worldwide conversion to Christianity, lead by the United States, could begin. It is to remember that the optimism of nineteenth century postmillennialism was based on the proclamation and effectiveness of the gospel. However, it was not simply a cultural matter with Hodge, he firmly believed that the postmillennial scheme was the one taught by the Scriptures. Departing from Turretin's eschatological pessimism, Hodge's optimism was built on his view that the gospel is "the power of God"(I Corinthians 1:18). He viewed the gospel as being ultimately successful in bringing about the conversion of the majority of mankind. The enormous zeal for evangelism and mission was a distinctive mark of Princeton Theology and especially their eschatology. Charles Hodge presents the classic postmillennial scheme of Princeton Theology. His understanding of the advance of the gospel, the millennium, the apostasy and return of Christ have served as the foundation of postmillennial eschatology in evangelical circles.