Dr_James_B_Jordan_and_Prof_Seung-Moo_Ha_(cropped)_-_James_B

James Burrell Jordan (born December 31, 1949) is an American

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and author. He is the director of Biblical Horizons ministries, an organisation in Niceville, Florida that publishes books, essays and other media dealing with Bible commentary,

Biblical theology Because scholars have tended to use the term in different ways, Biblical theology has been notoriously difficult to define. Description Although most speak of biblical theology as a particular method or emphasis within biblical studies, some scho ...

, and

liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...

. It adheres to biblical absolutism including Young Earth Creationism and is committed to the concept of biblical

theocracy Theocracy is a form of government in which one or more deity, deities are recognized as supreme ruling authorities, giving divine guidance to human intermediaries who manage the government's daily affairs. Etymology The word theocracy origina ...

Early life and education

Jordan was born in

Athens, Georgia Athens, officially Athens–Clarke County, is a consolidated city-county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia. Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta, and is a satellite city of the capital. The University of Georgia, the sta ...

. After public school, Jordan attended the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

, where he received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in comparative literature. While in college, he participated in the Campus Crusade for Christ and

Young Americans for Freedom Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) is a conservative youth activism organization that was founded in 1960 as a coalition between traditional conservatives and libertarians on American college campuses. It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization ...

. He served four years as a lieutenant in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

, first as an Administration Management Officer and then as a

military historian Military history is the study of armed conflict in the history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, cultures and economies thereof, as well as the resulting changes to local and international relationships. Professional historians norma ...

. He attended

Reformed Theological Seminary Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS) is a theological seminary in the Reformed theological tradition with campuses in multiple locations in the United States. Founded by conservatives in the Southern Presbyterian Church, the Presbyterian Church in ...

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...

, before ultimately earning an

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

and

Th.M. Master of Theology ( la, Theologiae Magister, abbreviated MTh, ThM, or MTheol) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a PhD program or as a stand ...

from Westminster Theological Seminary in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. His master's

thesis A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...

was on

slavery in the Bible The Bible contains many references to slavery, which was a Slavery in antiquity, common practice in antiquity. Biblical texts outline sources and the legal status of slaves, economic roles of slavery, types of slavery, and Debt bondage, debt s ...

. In 1993, Jordan received a

D. Litt. Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...

from the Central School of Religion for his dissertation on the

dietary laws Some people do not eat various specific foods and beverages in conformity with various religious, cultural, legal or other societal prohibitions. Many of these prohibitions constitute taboos. Many food taboos and other prohibitions forbid the mea ...

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

Career

After his 1982 ordination in the Association of Reformed Churches, Jordan served for five years alongside

Ray Sutton Raymond Ronny Sutton (born 1950) is an American Anglican bishop. He was bishop coadjutor in the Diocese of Mid-America of the Reformed Episcopal Church, since 1999, a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America, in 2009. He is the ...

as associate

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of Westminster Presbyterian Church, in

Tyler, Texas Tyler is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the largest city and county seat of Smith County, Texas, Smith County. It is also the largest city in Northeast Texas. With a 2020 census population of 105,995, Tyler was the List of cities in Texa ...

. He was also the director of Geneva Ministries and Geneva Divinity School. After the work in Tyler unravelled into discord and internal dissension, Jordan developed his own platform for writing, Biblical Horizons, a Niceville, Florida-based research and publishing ministry. Biblical Horizons emphasizes the

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

and

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

absolutism with a covenant-historical approach to interpretation and a focus on biblical theocracy, eschatology and worship. Jordan has also served since 2000 as head of the Department of Biblical Studies at the Biblical Theological Seminary, St. Petersburg, Russia, where he teaches Old Testament and Eschatology. In 2011, Wipf and Stock published a

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

in Jordan's honor. ''Glory of Kings: A Festschrift in Honor of James B. Jordan'' () was edited by Peter J. Leithart, and included contributions from

Rich Lusk Rich Lusk is an American author, minister, and theologian. His book ''Paedofaith: A Primer on the Mystery of Infant Salvation and a Handbook for Covenant Parents''Rich Lusk,Paedofaith: A Primer on the Mystery of Infant Salvation and a Handbook for ...

, Douglas Wilson and John Frame. In 2015, Jordan moved to Birmingham, AL to join Peter Leithart in the work of Theopolis Institute. Following a stroke in 2017, he announced in 2019 the closing down of Biblical Horizons and his endorsement of Theopolis Institute as continuing his work.

Thought

Bill DeJong characterizes Jordan's approach to biblical hermeneutics as "pastoral typology" - that is, seeing biblical typology as pointing not just to the work of Christ, but also to Christian worship.

Publications

Jordan has written many articles and books, including: * * * * * * * * * * * * A defense of Young Earth creationism against the

framework interpretation :''This article focuses on the views of certain Christian commentators and theologians. For a more general account of the topic of Genesis chapter 1, see Genesis creation narrative.'' The framework interpretation (also known as the literary fram ...

of Genesis 1. * * * * *

References

External links

Biblical Horizons
– official website
Articles
by Jordan
Audio of lectures and sermons
by Jordan {{DEFAULTSORT:Jordan, James B. 1949 births Living people Writers from Athens, Georgia American Presbyterian ministers American Calvinist and Reformed theologians Christian reconstructionism University of Georgia alumni Westminster Theological Seminary alumni United States Air Force officers 20th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 21st-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians American biblical scholars American Christian creationists Bible commentators