Christianity • Protestantism Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (November 5, 1851 – February 16, 1921) was an American professor of Reformed theology at Princeton Seminary from 1887 to 1921.

Warfield's uncle was John C. Breckinridge, the fourteenth Vice President of the United States, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War.

His fourth cousin twice removed was Wallis Warfield Simpson, whom Great Britain's King Edward VIII abdicated his throne in order to marry.

In many of his writings, Warfield attempted to demonstrate that the doctrine of Biblical inerrancy was simply orthodox Christian teaching, and not merely a concept invented in the nineteenth century.

Warfield believed that modernist theology was problematic, since it relied upon the thoughts of the Biblical interpreter rather than upon the divine author of Scripture.

He therefore preached and believed the doctrine of sola scriptura — that the Bible is God's inspired word and is sufficient for the Christian to live his or her faith.

The growing influence of modernist theology denied that the Bible was inspired, and alternative theories of the origin of the Christian faith were being explored.

Warfield was a central figure in responding to this line of thinking by arguing that the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit did not lead to a form of "mechanical" inspiration (whereby the human authors merely wrote down what God dictated to them), but one in which the human author's intellect was fully able to express itself linguistically, while at the same time being supervised by the Holy Spirit to ensure its inspiration.

Scholars David N. Livingstone and Mark A. Noll highlighted Warfield's statements on evolution to demonstrate his acceptance of the theory in their article A Biblical Inerrantist as Evolutionist.

[4] Theologian Fred G. Zaspel argues that these statements have led Livingstone and Noll to assume too much about Warfield's views on the subject.

Zaspel writes "That Warfield actually committed himself to a doctrine of evolution seems impossible to affirm simply because although there are some indications that he entertained the idea, he never admits to accepting it.

Warfield writes, "Thus the doctrine of evolution once heartily adopted by him (Darwin) gradually undermined his faith, until he cast off the whole Christianity as an unproven delusion.

"[9] In a separate reference: I do not think that there is any general statement in the Bible or any part of the account of creation, either as given in Genesis 1 and 2 or elsewhere alluded to, that need be opposed to evolution.” B.B.

Warfield[10]While he was certainly supportive of political moves within various churches to strengthen and push conservative theology, he was never interested in the actual process itself, preferring to use his work at Princeton to influence future generations of Presbyterian ministers.

[citation needed] Warfield came from a family of emancipationists and was himself an outspoken opponent of racial segregation and racism at Princeton Seminary.

[11] This led to Warfield, when he was principal of the seminary, to allow a black student to live in white university halls, an action which was met by opposition from fellow faculty members.

[12] Warfield termed segregation a "wicked caste system" and wrote a number of theological treaties and essays to undermine the segregationist position.

[13] Along with Abraham Kuyper and Herman Bavinck, Warfield is acknowledged as one of the major influences on the thought of Cornelius Van Til.