Geerhardus Vos

[TimeRedeemer]

I love Geerhardus Vos because he was hardcore, on-the-mark Reformed orthodox (which means he was hardcore, on-the-mark biblical), and he wrote like this:

"Jesus was not a person the center of whose thought lay in the natural relation of man to God, with a little fringe remaining upon him from the outworn garment of apocalyptic. He lived and moved and had his being in the world of the supernatural. The thought of the world to come was to him the life-breath of religion."

"True repentance strips sin of all that is accidental. It resembles an inner chamber where no one and nothing else is admitted except God and the sinner and his sin." - G. Vos

[Both quotes taken from A Geerhardus Vos Anthology, edited by Danny E. Olinger]

 

[WrittenFromUtopia]

Vos is great. He is my pastors' wife's great-grandfather. J.G. Vos is her grandfather!

 

[RamistThomist]

How is the anthology? I realize that it is a collation (right word?) of his good stuff. How smooth does it read? I read Biblical Theology and didn't find it as tortuous as people made it out to be. How does the antholgoy compare?

 

[VirginiaHuguenot]

Originally posted by WrittenFromUtopia
Vos is great.

He is my pastors' wife's great-grandfather. J.G. Vos is her grandfather!

Very cool!

 

[VanVos]

Vos rocks!! He's eschatological focus was revolutionary.

 

[TimeRedeemer]

Originally posted by Draught Horse
How is the anthology? I realize that it is a collation (right word?) of his good stuff. How smooth does it read? I read Biblical Theology and didn't find it as tortuous as people made it out to be. How does the antholgoy compare?

I described the Anthology recently to a couple of people (who are philosophical types who also listen to me regarding Reformed Theology) as kind of like one of Nietzsche's books of aphorisms. By that I mean each of Vos' individual insights are often so full in meaning they could be the basis of a book, in some cases.

As for smooth I think it's basic alphabetical (topics or subjects in alphabetical order) structure negates against that, yet the editor has provided a list of all the subjects at the beginning of the book, so it can be read going off that.

Personally, when I first received it I didn't quite know how to assess its worth, yet as I've had it for awhile I realize that it's just the insights alone that makes it worthwhile, whatever form they are in, and whatever may have been left out (I can't know).

One for instance: there are numerous quotes regarding the subject of eschatology that when you go through them all in a row you can see better what Vos' unique approach is with that subject than you maybe could by reading Vos in his books. That is a definite virtue of the Anthology.