John Miley | |
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| Born | 25 December 1813  |
| Died | 13 December 1895 (aged 81) |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation | Theologian, university teacher,Minister |
| Employer | |
| Works | Systematic Theology |
John Miley (25 December 1813–13 December 1895) was an AmericanMethodist Episcopalminister andtheologian, who was one of the major Methodist theological voices of the 19th century.
Miley was born the 25 December 1813 on a farm nearHamilton,Butler County,Ohio.[1] Miley graduated fromAugusta College where he received A.B. in 1834 and an A.M. in 1837.[1] During his college life he was influenced by three professors Joseph Tomlinson, Joseph Trimble, andHenry Bascom.[1]
In 1838, Miley entered the church's ministry through the Ohio Conference.[2] From 1838 to 1852, he served different churches in Ohio.[2] In 1852 he transferred to theNew York East Conference.[2] In 1866 he transferred to the New York Conference.[3] In 1859, theOhio Wesleyan University conferred anhonoraryDoctor of Divinity degree on him.[3]
From 1852 to 1873, he served churches in New York andConnecticut.[2] As a Methodist pastor, he had held nineteen different pastoral appointments.[citation needed] In 1872, he joined a commission organized by the general conference to develop a code of ecclesiastical law for the Methodist Episcopal Church.[4]
Beginning in 1873, he served as chair ofsystematic theology atDrew University inMadison, NJ,[2] after his brother-in-law,Randolph Sinks Foster, left the seat to become a bishop.[3] Miley was one of "the Great Five" revered professors who led Drew for decades, along with Henry Anson Buttz, George Crooks,James Strong, andSamuel F. Upham.[5]
He was the author ofSystematic Theology (1892), a two-volume work which served as a key text for Methodist seminarians for nearly thirty years.[6] He also authoredThe Atonement in Christ (1879), in which he demonstrated what he believed were severe Biblical and theological problems with commonly held theories on thedoctrine of theatonement of Christ such as thepenal substitution and themoral example.[7]
Miley was a systematic theologian in theWesleyan tradition.[5] He hadArminiansoteriological views.[5][8][9] He developed a stronggovernmental theory of atonement based theology heavily reliant on the work ofHugo Grotius.[7][9] Thus, for him, the atonement of Christ is a satisfaction forsins bysubstitution, but not a satisfaction by penal substitution.[10] The atonement of Christ isuniversal, but the forgiveness of sins is conditional to the faith.[4] Moreover, the substitution of Christ is in suffering, not in penalty.[11]
Miley died the 13 December 1895.[1]
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