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| Home > Theology > Sacramental Instrumentality in John Calvin's Theology: Part 1 |
| Sacramental Instrumentality in John Calvin's Theology: Part 1 | | Date Created: Oct 25, 2005, 12:36 PM |
 John Calvin's robust sacramental theology has not always been appreciated by his theological grandchildren. In the mid-nineteenth century, for example, when John Williamson Nevin sought to reintroduce American Reformed theologians and pastors to Calvin's sacramental theology, a stormy controversy ensued. Sound familiar? Nevin and his companion Philip Schaff even faced heresy charges in their denomination. They were accused, among other things, of harboring and promoting "Romanizing" tendencies [James Hastings Nichols, Romanticism in American Theology: Nevin and Schaff at Mercersburg (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1966), 84ff; E. Brooks Holifield, "Mercersburg, Princeton, and the South: The Sacramental Controversy in the Nineteenth century," Journal of Presbyterian History 54 (1976): 238-257].
In the past few years conservative Presbyterian churches in America have experienced similar controversy, with charges of heresy and Romanizing freely made against men who have claimed to be Calvin's disciples. The question is: was Schaff and Nevin deviating from Reformed teaching on the sacraments or were the trying to restore something lost? Are those men today who promote a more robust view of sacramental instrumentality being faithful to their Calvinian heritage?
When Nevin's book, The Mystical Presence (1846), was reviewed by Charles Hodge, the popular Calvinist professor of theology at Princeton Seminary, he dismissed the results of Nevin's thorough historical scholarship by suggesting that what Nevin had uncovered was nothing but "an uncongenial foreign element" in Calvin's sacramental theology, probably derived from Calvin's overly familiar relations with the Lutherans [seen endnote †].
At least Hodge got part of it right. Calvin did have friendly relations with the early Lutherans. It is not difficult to demonstrate that Calvin looked up to and learned from Luther as the "pathfinder" of the Reformation [For Calvin's evaluation of Luther see B.A. Gerrish, "John Calvin on Luther," in Interpreters of Luther, Jaroslave Pelikan, ed. (Philadelphia, 1968), 67-96]. Nor is it difficult to show that Calvin accepted the Augsburg Confession, possibly even subscribing to it [see endnote ‡]. Even during his debates with Westphal and Heshusius, Calvin was deeply concerned about Lutheran-Reformed relations; he argued that his treatises against "fanatics" like Westphal were not intended to be attacks on Lutherans as such. Calvin was convinced that there was essential continuity between his theological program and that of Luther and Melanchthon. He believed this to be true, despite differences of emphasis, even in the area of sacramental theology. Unfortunately, after Calvin's death both Reformed and Lutheran baptismal theologies begin to develop in different directions.
Early Lutheran confessional theology and Calvin were essentially agreed on the instrumentality of the sacraments, especially of Baptism. Both stood opposed to Zwingli's matter/spirit dualism and his philosophy of signification. Early Lutherans and Calvin were also agreed on the instrumental necessity of faith for justification (against Rome): without faith there is no instrumental efficacy in the rite of Baptism. But these two "instruments" were not understood to be in competition but complementary. Calvin refused to play the "zero sum game" so popular after his death in Reformed theology - one that forced people to chose Baptism or faith, and in so doing failed to encourage Christians to believe God's promises made to them in their Baptism.
To be continued. . .
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† John W. Nevin, The Mystical Presence: A Vindication of the Reformed or Calvinistic Doctrine of the Holy Eucharist (Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott & Co., 1846); reprinted and supplemented in John W. Nevin, The Mystical Presence and Other Writings on the Eucharist, ed. Bard Thompson and George H. Bricker, vol. 4 of Lancaster Series on Mercersburg Theology (Philadelphia: United Church Press, 1966); for Hodge's review see his "Doctrine of the Reformed Church on the Lord's Supper," a review of The Mystical Presence: A Vindication of the Reformed or Calvinistic Doctrine of the Holy Eucharist, by John W. Nevin, Princeton Review 20 (1848): 251-52; and for an excellent analysis of this theological controversy on the sacraments see B.A. Gerrish, "The Flesh of the Son of Man: John W. Nevin on the Church and Eucharist," chap. in Tradition and the Modern World: Reformed Theology in the Nineteenth Century (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1978), 49-70.
‡ In August 1556, Calvin wrote to John Laski explaining his controversy with Westphal. In that letter he appealed to the Augsburg Confession: "The fact is, and it is useful to recognize this in the first place, that there is nothing in the Augsburg Confession which is not in agreement with our own teaching" (Ioannis Calvini opera quae supersunt omnia [59 vols. Corpus Reformatum. Brunswick: C. A. Schwetschke and Son [M. Bruhn], 1863-1900], 16:263; hereafter = CO; See also W. Nijenhuis, "Calvin and the Augsburg Confession," in Ecclesia Reformata: Studies on the Reformation [Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1972], 97-114). Not only did Calvin endorse the AC, he also appears to have signed it. In a letter to Schalling he says that he actually "signed" (subscripsi) the AC (Calvin to Martin Schalling, March 25, 1557, CO 16:430). Nijenhuis understands "signed" figuratively as "agreeing with" or "subscribing to," but Calvin himself, after his return from Strassburg, urged Jean Garneir, who took his place as pastor to the French congregation, to sign the AC: "I do not see why you hesitate to sign the Augsburg Confession" (Dec. 10, 1554); CO 15:336. Calvin certainly signed the Wittenberg Concord (which included an explicit declaration of loyalty to the 1530 edition of the AC [the invariata] and the Tetrapolitan Confession) when he assumed his pastoral duties in Strassburg. Calvin even attended the ecumenical colloquies at Hagenau, Worms, and Regensburg (1540-41) as a Lutheran Representative (at Worms his status was changed from the Strassburg to the Duke of Lüneburg delegation. Ernst Bizer notes that during Calvin's Strassburg pastorate (1538-41) Calvin was able among the Lutherans "to pass for one of themselves" (Ernst Bizer, Studien zur Geschichte des Abendmahlsstreits im 16. Jahrhundert [Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1962], 244-47). |
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