John Murray

VirginiaHuguenot · #1 (**permalink**) 09-03-2006, 09:05 PM

From The Life of John Murray by Iain H. Murray, p. 100:

Quote:

At dinner one night, a student who was himself to be a professor of Old Testament, once asked [John Murray] why he had not written more, earlier in his career. For several minutes Murray continued with his meal and then said quite abruptly, 'Because I did not want to have to withdraw what I wrote!'

[Edited on 9-4-2006 by VirginiaHuguenot]

PuritanBouncer · #2 (**permalink**) 09-03-2006, 09:08 PM

Ha!

Great answer

Pilgrim · #3 (**permalink**) 09-03-2006, 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by VirginiaHuguenot
From The Life of John Murray by Iain H. Murray, p. 100:

Quote:

At dinner one night, a student who was himself to be a professor of Old Testament, once asked [John Murray] why he had not written more, earlier in his career. For several minutes Murray continued with his meal and then said quite abruptly, 'Because I did not want to have to withdraw what I wrote!'

[Edited on 9-4-2006 by VirginiaHuguenot]

Great response!

Is The Life of John Murray currently in print? I have never seen it.

WrittenFromUtopia · #4 (**permalink**) 09-04-2006, 12:12 AM

A philosophy I wish more modern Reformed writers would share.

VirginiaHuguenot · #5 (**permalink**) 09-04-2006, 04:51 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Pilgrim

Quote:

Originally posted by VirginiaHuguenot
From The Life of John Murray by Iain H. Murray, p. 100:

Quote:

At dinner one night, a student who was himself to be a professor of Old Testament, once asked [John Murray] why he had not written more, earlier in his career. For several minutes Murray continued with his meal and then said quite abruptly, 'Because I did not want to have to withdraw what I wrote!'

[Edited on 9-4-2006 by VirginiaHuguenot]

Great response!

Is The Life of John Murray currently in print? I have never seen it.

It can be found in Volume 3 of The Collected Writings of John Murray or as an independent edition it is available at Amazon

Amazon for $8.50 (ISBN 085151426X). This is from a description of Vol. 3:

Quote:

If you already own this 4 volume set and have not yet read any part of it, or if you intend on purchasing this volume set, you would be wise to begin with volume 3. The biography of John Murray is very [insightful] and arresting. Here are some things you would never know about Murray unless you read the 158 page biography in this volume:

1. Was the youngest child in his family which resided in Scotland
2. Lost one eye to shrapnel while serving in the British Army in France during World War I and he had a glass eye inserted to replace it
3. Was deeply in love with the weather, climate, and land of Scotland and never lost his passionate love for Scotland
4. Was denied ordination into the Presbyterian Church of Scotland as a Pastor because he himself believed that using public transportation on Sunday to attend church services was NOT a sin
5. Was a student a Princeton Seminary in NJ when the great disruptive re-organization of Princeton Seminary occurred in the 1920s
6. Was a very, very close friend of J. Gresham Machen whose early death in 1936 hurt him deeply
7. Used tobacco (he smoked cigars)
8. Did not know how to type and never learned how to type and so he wrote out everything in hand
9. Would sit in an easy chair for many hours on Sundays silently praying and meditating on his Greek New Testament
10. Preferred to preach and minister in small numbered church congregations
11. Willing to travel anywhere to help out Presbyterian Churches since he was never married until later after his retirement from teaching
12. Never celebrated nor condoned the celebration of Christmas holidays

The advantage of reading this biographical section on Murray in Volume 3 is that you can see the historical trends and circumstances which influenced him to both write and minister the way he did. You get to see how the doctrinal decline in the Presbyterian Church in the USA was counter-acted by the establishment of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church by both Machen and Murray. You get to see how Westminster Seminary in Philadelphia began and how it all so slowly grew in size and prominence. So for this biography of Murray, the OPC, and WTS, I strongly recommend that one begin with volume 3 when trying to read through this 4 volume set.

His role in founding my denomination is not really discussed in the book regrettably but more on that can be found here.

[Edited on 9-4-2006 by VirginiaHuguenot]

Jeff_Bartel · #6 (**permalink**) 09-04-2006, 01:43 PM

Great quote. As a young man, I wish I could be that wise!

Pilgrim · #7 (**permalink**) 09-04-2006, 01:53 PM

Thanks, Andrew. I didn't realize the biography was included in the Collected Writings, and that would seem to explain why the separate volume is not more widely available.

VirginiaHuguenot · #8 (**permalink**) 10-09-2006, 04:32 PM

VirginiaHuguenot · #9 (**permalink**) 10-19-2006, 06:00 PM

John Murray, Scottish Reformed theologian and founder of the Presbyterian Reformed Church, was born on October 14, 1898 and died on May 8, 1975.

Davidius · #10 (**permalink**) 11-13-2006, 07:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VirginiaHuguenot

John Murray, Scottish Reformed theologian and founder of the Presbyterian Reformed Church, was born on October 14, 1898 and died on May 8, 1975.

I thought Murray was part of the OPC?

VirginiaHuguenot · #11 (**permalink**) 11-13-2006, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CarolinaCalvinist

I thought Murray was part of the OPC?

He was in the OPC but founded the PRC by organizing the creation of its presbytery in 1965 as described here.

VirginiaHuguenot · #12 (**permalink**) 04-29-2007, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pilgrim

Thanks, Andrew. I didn't realize the biography was included in the Collected Writings, and that would seem to explain why the separate volume is not more widely available.

The Life of John Murray by Iain Murray is now available at Reformation Heritage Books.