Samuel Miller, a contemporary of Princeton theologian Charles Hodge, offers here an excellent treatise on the scriptural basis of infant baptism, and skillfully responds to the many objections that have been raised against its practice. This work also takes an historical look at the doctrines of modern Baptist theology and traces their roots back to the Anabaptists of the Sixteenth Century.
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The fourth son of Rev. John and Margaret Miller, Samuel Miller was born near Dover, Delaware on October 31, 1769. He completed studies at the University of Pennsylvania in 1789 and began studying theology under his father's tutelage. Following Rev. John Miller's death in 1791, Samuel moved to Carlisle, Pennsylvania to complete his theological studies with Charles Nisbet, president of Dickinson College. Samuel was ordained to the Presbyterian ministry on June 5, 1793 and was called to the Presbyterian churches of New York City, serving alongside Rev. Dr. John Rodgers and Rev. Dr. John McKnight. In 1806, he was named moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly, and for several years also served as its official historian.
While in New York, Miller was active not only in the church, but also as an author. His best-known work, the two-volume Brief Retrospect of the Eighteenth Century, printed in 1803, earned him serious attention and acclaim. He published his Letters on the Constitution and Order of the Christian Ministry in 1807 and wrote a memoir of Dr. John Rodgers in 1813. Also while in New York, Miller served as chaplain for the first regiment of the New York State artillery.
Miller continued his service in New York until 1813, when he was appointed professor of church history and government at the newly established Princeton Theological Seminary. While teaching and preaching, he continued to write and publish. He wrote a memoir of his mentor, Charles Nisbet, in 1840, penned a life of Jonathan Edwards for Jared Sparks' American Biography series, and published numerous speeches and sermons on various topics.
Among his other activities, Miller served as a trustee of both Columbia College and the College of New Jersey, as a founder and president of the New York Bible Society, as a founder of the New York Historical Society, and as a corresponding member of the Massachusetts Historical Society.
On October 24, 1801, Samuel Miller married Sarah Sergeant, the daughter of Jonathan Dickinson Sergeant, attorney general of Pennsylvania. The couple had ten children, including sons Samuel, Elihu, and John. Rev. Samuel Miller continued in his teaching position at the Princeton Theological Seminary until his death on January 7, 1850.
A short, but solid introduction to a classic reformed view of infant baptism. The more I read Miller, the more I like him. He lays out his arguments in a clear fashion that increasing understanding. Good stuff.
As always, Miller is a blast to read. In the main two parts of the book, he defends infant/household/covenant baptism and sprinkling/pouring, respectively. Adapted from lectures delivered in a church, these defenses of historic Presbyterian/Reformed baptism are directed toward church members who are increasingly confronted by what Miller designates “anti-paedobaptist brethren.� There are a series of notes in the appendix, and these are short treatments of problems with Anglican/Episcopal practices, for the most part.
This book is based on two sermons preached by Miller in the 1830's. He expanded the material into 4 sermons for publication. The first two sermons deal with the Scriptural basis for infant baptism: the first sermon is a defense of it biblically; the second is a response to objections. This is a very good piece because Miller takes up nearly a dozen objections. Usually only 4 or 5 objections are raised. The second 2 sermons deal with the mode of baptism, and again, are outstanding.
Excellent introduction to infant baptism from a Presbyterian perspective. Pretty straightforward introduction of the topic that excludes the argument from covenant theology.