Arthur Frank Holmes (March 15, 1924 – October 8, 2011) was an English

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

who served as Professor of

Philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

at Wheaton College in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, US from 1951 to 1994. He built the philosophy department at Wheaton where he taught, wrote about the philosophy of Christian education, and participated in the creation of the

Society of Christian Philosophers The Society of Christian Philosophers (SCP) was founded in 1978. The society is open to anyone interested in philosophy who considers himself or herself a Christian. Membership is not restricted to any particular "school" of philosophy or to any ...

. Wheaton College President Philip Ryken said "It would be hard to think of anyone who has had a greater impact on Christian higher education than Arthur Holmes." Holmes died in Wheaton, Illinois, on October 8, 2011, at age 87.

Education and career at Wheaton College

A native of Dover, England, Holmes came to the United States in 1947 after serving in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

during World War II. He earned a bachelor's degree (1950) and a master's degree (1952) in Bible and theology from Wheaton College and a Ph.D. in philosophy from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in Chicago (1957). Holmes began teaching at his alma mater while still pursuing his graduate degrees and remained there for his entire 43-year career. He was involved in convincing the college to establish a philosophy department independent of the Bible and theology division, and he served as the chair of that department for more than two decades. He started the annual Wheaton Philosophy Conference in 1954, which eventually led to the creation of the Society of Christian Philosophers in 1978. He taught the year-long history of philosophy course for the philosophy major (made available online in 2015). Holmes retired in 1994 and was named Professor

Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

; he continued to teach occasionally.

Honors and awards

* Wheaton College Teacher of the Year, 1966 * Wheaton College Alumnus of the Year for Distinguished Service to Alma Mater, 1978 * Wheaton College Teacher of the Year, 1983 * Illinois Professor of the Year, 1987 (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) * Professor of the Year with highest honors, 1994 (All-Professor Team, ''

The Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'') *

Mark O. Hatfield Mark Odom Hatfield (July 12, 1922 – August 7, 2011) was an American politician and educator from the state of Oregon. A Republican, he served for 30 years as a United States senator from Oregon, and also as chairman of the Senate Appropr ...

Leadership Award, 1998 ( Coalition for Christian Colleges and Universities) In 1998, the Arthur F. Holmes Chair of Faith and Learning was established at Wheaton College, supporting the work of scholars in philosophy, history, or English who gave particular attention to the integration of faith and learning, which had been of particular interest to Holmes. Holmes also served as a guest lecturer at many colleges, universities, and conferences. He received two honorary doctoral degrees.

Notable students

Holmes' had the "grand vision" for the Wheaton College philosophy department that it would produce 100 graduates who would go on to earn Ph.D.s in philosophy. Several years after Holmes' death, former student Clifford Williams investigated whether that ambition had been achieved; he identified at least 116 of Holmes' former students who had earned doctorates in philosophy. Many of Holmes' former students also pursued advanced study in other fields, such as history, literature, and Biblical studies. Among his notable students are: *

William Lane Craig William Lane Craig (born August 23, 1949) is an American analytic philosopher, Christian apologist, author and Wesleyan theologian who upholds the view of Molinism and neo-Apollinarianism. He is Professor of Philosophy at Houston Baptist Univ ...

, Biola University *

C. Stephen Evans Charles Stephen Evans (born 1948) is an American philosopher. He is one of the United States' leading experts on Søren Kierkegaard and has also published extensively on subjects including philosophy of religion and the relationship of psychology ...

, Baylor University *

Jorge J. E. Gracia Jorge J. E. Gracia (July 18, 1942July 13, 2021) was a Cuban-born American philosopher who was the Samuel P. Capen Chair, SUNY Distinguished Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Department of Comparative Literature in the State University ...

, SUNY Buffalo * Douglas Jacobsen, Messiah University *

Mark A. Noll Mark Allan Noll (born 1946) is an American historian specializing in the history of Christianity in the United States. He holds the position of Research Professor of History at Regent College, having previously been Francis A. McAnaney Professor o ...

, University of Notre Dame *

Philip Graham Ryken Philip Graham Ryken (born 1966) is an American theologian, Presbyterian minister, and academic administrator. He is the eighth and current president of Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. Early life and education Ryken was born on September 2 ...

, eighth and current president of Wheaton College *

Jon M. Sweeney Jon M. Sweeney (born July 18, 1967) is an author of popular history, spirituality, biography, poetry, fiction for young readers, and memoir. His most frequent subjects are Catholic, particularly St. Francis of Assisi, about whom Sweeney has writte ...

, author and publisher * Marianne Meye Thompson, Fuller Seminary * Clifford Williams, Wheaton College

Published writings

Holmes wrote or edited 14 books and many articles on topics related to philosophy, including

ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns m ...

, philosophy applied to Christian

higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...

, and historical interactions between

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and philosophy. His publications include: *''Christianity and Philosophy'' (Inter-Varsity Press, 1963) ; republished as ''Philosophy: A Christian Perspective'' (Inter-Varsity Press, 1978) *''Christian Philosophy in the Twentieth Century: An Essay in Philosophical Methodology'' (Craig Press, 1969) *''Faith Seeks Understanding: A Christian Approach to Knowledge'' (Eerdmans, 1971) *''The Idea of a Christian College'' (Eerdmans, first edition 1975; revised edition 1987) ; *''All Truth is God's Truth'' (Eerdmans, 1977) *''Contours of a World View'' (Eerdmans, 1983) *''Ethics: Approaching Moral Decisions'' (InterVarsity Press, first edition 1989; second edition 2007) ; *''Shaping Character: Moral Education in the Christian College'' (Eerdmans, 1990) *''Fact, Value, and God'' (Eerdmans, 1997) *''Building the Christian Academy'' (Eerdmans, 2001) As Editor: * ''War and Christian Ethics: Classic and Contemporary Readings on the Morality of War'' (Baker, first edition 1975; second edition 2005) ; *''The Making of a Christian Mind : A Christian World View & the Academic Enterprise'' (InterVarsity, 1985)

Reference list

External links