Author: Mark Irwin

PSA Last Chance PETERSON TIN TACKER ordering info at end of post Over the past few years it’s been my privilege to get to know Elijah Roberts CPG, a pipeman I quickly understood to embody that rare human quality, “the attitude of gratitude.”  When I eventually came to know he works really long hours and is the father of pre-schooler triplets (I can't even imagine), often getting the chance for his pipe only on Sunday afternoons, I had to wonder where the gratitude came from.  In working with him on the restoration of his Patent 12B, I found we’re both what theologian N. T. Wright calls “Messiah-people” and so of course I was interested in how he understood the relationship of belief and pipe smoking.  Referring to that opus classicum, Charles Spurgeon's "Smoking to the Glory of God," I asked if he’d share his story as well as his reflections on it.  Whatever your own existential-ontological matrix, I hope you’ll find Elijah’s Pete pilgrimage profitable.   Pipe Smoking to God's Glory in Jesus Christ by Elijah Roberts  I first began smoking a pipe in 2019. The year prior I had moved from Spokane Washington to Grand Rapids Michigan. There in Spokane I never had the slightest inclination to smoke anything, much less a pipe. Here in Grand Rapids, however, many of the friends I made were smokers, and one in particular smoked a pipe. Moreover, our commonly held highest esteemed Dutch Reformed theologian, Herman Hoeksema was an avid pipe smoker. Being one of the most gifted theologians the Reformed and Christian church has ever been pleased to profit from, I thought to myself, “Maybe there is a connection between great theology and pipe smoking. I should try it.” But more about that later. Herman Hoeksema (1886-1965) Not only did I have a friend that smoked pipes, but I had a soon to be father-in-law who at one point in his life (prior to major health problems) was also a big-time pipe smoker. Twenty years before I even knew him he sold all of his pipes, all except two. An XL90 Spigot Natural, c. 2010 My soon to be father-in-law kept two Peterson Spigot XL90s, hallmarked 1998. One of the pipes had a natural blonde stain to it, the other a more orangey brown stain color to it. He called them his ‘twin’ pipes - the most expensive and high-quality pipes he ever owned. I was bedazzled by the look of those two Petersons. On the brink of coveting, I beheld them in an altogether unique way in my eyes. The sterling silver was particularly attractive. He offered me the chance to smoke one, to which I gladly acquiesed. It was an unforgettable experience. Though I knew nothing of Peterson at the time, this was the best smoke I had known up to this point. Even though smoking my soon-to-be father in law’s Peterson was a noteworthy experience, I regarded the brand as far beyond my reach from a fiscal level and…