John D. Woodbridge (born 1941) is an American church historian, professor, editor, and composer. He is Research Professor of Church History and Christian Thought at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois.
In 1982, he played a critical role in refuting a thesis advanced by Jack Rogers and Donald McKim which argued that the doctrine of biblical inerrancy was a recent development, developed by the Old Princetonians and particularly B. B. Warfield. According to Clark Pinnock, the Rogers-McKim proposal argued, "that the historic doctrine of inspiration was the affirmation of the infallibility of the Bible in matters of faith and practice with the possibility of errors appearing in the nonessential marginal material."[5] Scriptural inerrantists perceived the Rogers-McKim proposal as an attack on the doctrine of biblical inerrancy and a debate continued for several years following the 1979 publication of Rogers' and McKim's book The Authority and Inspiration of the Bible.[6] Professor Woodbridge replied with the publication of a book in 1982 titled Biblical Authority : A Critique of the Rogers/McKim Proposal.[7]John C. Whitcomb summarized it thus, "The superficial scholarship displayed in this work has been carefully exposed by such theologians as John D. Woodbridge."[8]John M. Frame declared, "In this lecture I will not be discussing this issue, however, because I believe that the thesis that inerrancy is recent was thoroughly demolished by John D. Woodbridge in his book Biblical Authority: A Critique of the Rogers/McKim Proposal."[9] Other less theologically conservative scholars were mixed. Clark Pinnock, for example, described Woodbridge's work as an "erudite refutation," and that it "dealt a deadly blow". But while acknowledging that Woodbridge was historically correct in asserting the long tradition of inerrancy down to the ancient church, he expressed skepticism, concluding, "There is no proof here that [Woodbridge] understands the Bible better or better prepares us to face the modern issues."[10]
Music
Among his other interests are music, especially piano, for which he has composed music. His best known work is the song "Sans Vous (Without You)" composed in 1965.[11][12] It was the basis for a lawsuit in 1983 when it was allegedly plagiarized and used as the theme song for the made-for-television film adaptation of Herman Wouk's The Winds of War (miniseries).[13] The case was heard in federal district court by Judge David Vreeland Kenyon and initially resulted in a jury verdict in favor of Dr. Woodbridge in June 1991,[14] although Judge Kenyon later reversed the decision on a technicality. The case was settled out of court in May 1992.[15]
——— (1995). Revolt in Prerevolutionary France : The Prince de Conti’s Conspiracy Against Louis XV, 1755-1757. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN9780801849459. OCLC30593892.
———; Wells, David F., eds. (1977). The Evangelicals: What They Believe, Who They Are, Where They Are Changing. Grand Rapids, MI.: Baker Book House. ISBN9780801095436. OCLC03293820.
———; McComiskey, Thomas Edward, eds. (1991). Doing Theology in Today’s World : Essays in Honor of Kenneth S. Kantzer. Grand Rapids, MI.: Zondervan. ISBN9780310447306. OCLC23766034.
———; Carson, D. A., eds. (1992). Scripture and Truth. Grand Rapids, MI.: Baker Book House. ISBN9781441206312. OCLC818883302.
———, ed. (2019). Sketches of Faith: An Introduction to Characters from Christian History. Leyland, England: 10Publishing. ISBN9781912373796. OCLC1236365510.
Articles and chapters
——— (1973). "An 'Unnatural Alliance' for Religious Toleration: The Philosophes and the Outlawed Pastors of the 'Church of the Desert'". Church History. 42 (4): 505–523. doi:10.2307/3164970.
——— (1980). "Biblical Authority: Towards an Evaluation of the Rogers and McKim Proposal". Trinity Journal. 1 (2): 165–236.
——— (1985). "Recent interpretations of biblical authority, pt. 1: A neoorthodox historiography under siege". Bibliotheca Sacra. 142 (565): 3–15.
——— (2002). "The Role of "Tradition" in the Life and Thought of Twentieth-Century Evangelicals". In Colson, Charles W.; Neuhaus, Richard John (eds.). Your Word Is Truth: A Project of Evangelicals and Catholics Together. Grand Rapids: W. B. Eerdmans. pp. 103–146. ISBN0802805086. OCLC50123459.
——— (2011). "Evangelical Self-Identity and the Doctrine of Biblical Inerrancy". In Köstenberger, Andreas J.; Yarbrough, Dennis R. (eds.). Understanding the Times : New Testament Studies in the 21st Century: Essays in Honor of D.A. Carson on the Occasion of His 65th Birthday. Wheaton, Il: Crossway. pp. 104–138. ISBN9781433507199. OCLC725346253.
——— (2012). "Foreword". In Hoffmeier, James K.; Magary, Dennis R. (eds.). Do Historical Matters Matter to Faith?: A Critical Appraisal of Modern and Postmodern Approaches to Scripture. Wheaton, Il: Crossway. pp. 63–70. ISBN9781433525711. OCLC730405288.
——— (2017). "The Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy". In Buursma, Dirk R.; Covrett, Katya (eds.). Evangelical Scholarship, Retrospects and Prospects : Essays in Honor of Stanley N. Gundry. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. ISBN9780310087014. OCLC1013741216.
——— (2018). "Timothy George and Evangelicals and Catholics Together: An Evangelical Perspective". In Dockery, David S.; Massey, James; Smith, Jr., Robert (eds.). Worship, Tradition, and Engagement: Essays in Honor of Timothy George. London: Wipf and Stock Publishers. pp. 262–275. ISBN9781498248945.
^Pinnock, Clark (1983). "Biblical Authority, A Critique of the Rogers/McKim Proposal by John D. Woodbridge". TSF Bulletin. 7 (1): 30.
^Rogers, Jack; McKim, Donald. The Authority and Interpretation of the Bible: An Historical Approach. San Francisco: Harper and Row. ISBN9780060666965. OCLC05195556.
^Woodbridge, John D. (1982). Biblical Authority: A Critique of the Rogers/McKim Proposal. Grand Rapids: Zondervan. ISBN9780310447511. OCLC08495075.