Andrew Watterson Blackwood (1882-1966) was a pastor, professor, and prolific author, in the service of Jesus Christ. He was once one of the leading figures in American homiletical theory, and has left a rich legacy for those who would serve the cause of Jesus Christ today.

An ordained Presbyterian, Blackwood spent what he called "seventeen happy years in the pastorate" before turning to full time seminary teaching. His teaching career began in 1926 when he accepted an appointment as Professor of English Bible at Louisville Seminary. The bulk of his teaching career, from 1930-1950, was spent at Princeton Theological Seminary, where he was chair of the Department of Practical Theology. In 1950, he moved to become Professor of Homiletics, Temple University, where he served until his retirement in 1958.

A frequent quoter of the famous line from James Denney, "No man can bear witness to Christ and himself at the same time," Blackwood would prefer that we devote little time here to studying his biography. He would call us to give greater attention to what he lived for, the nourishing of preachers who would in turn nourish parishioners with spiritual food from the Word of God to the glory of Jesus Christ. This leads us to the fruits of his labors.

I. A Legacy of Strong Books

Blackwood once remarked that when a preacher gets a new pen it should be dedicated to the service of God by way of a definite act of prayer. In the same context, he quoted the phrase Nulla dies sine linea (no day without a line).1 Often at his desk by five in the morning, Blackwood used his pen every day for the sake of the Lord.2 The result of that discipline is a legacy of strong books and significant articles. This bibliography covers virtually every aspect of a minister's work.

His first two books, The Prophets (1917) and Bible History (1928), grew out of his years in the pastorate and were intended for lay people. His twenty-one remaining books were intended primarily for ministers and their teachers.

The publication dates reveal that Blackwood remained active after his retirement. Though he was writing for younger ministers in particular, there is a sense that, in 1960, he was "The Growing Minister." He did not look upon retirement as a time for idleness. He used this season of life to keep growing both in learning and maturity.

The publication dates of his books also show that Blackwood did a considerable amount of his writing during and immediately after the Second World War. The aftermath of this war occupied his writing and thinking. In faith he looked ahead to the war's end and knew he was training ministers who would serve Christ's church in the days of rebuilding that would follow the peace. So, with a professor's mind and a pastor's heart he repeatedly referred to the post-war period and to what would then be needed from the church and its pulpit. This is what he meant by "Preaching in Time of Reconstruction."

Basic to Blackwood's books and articles, particularly those directly concerned with preaching, is what he called the case method or the study of sermons. He believed in learning the art of preaching through concentrated study of the sermons of master preachers past and present. For that reason, one does not read far in any Blackwood volume before encountering case after case from the history of preaching, often beginning with the prophets. These became the object lessons he called cases. He never spoke of preaching in the abstract, and he seemed to disparage homiletics as a science. He always wrote in reference to specific ministers and their sermons.