Overview

The extra Calvinisticum, the doctrine that the eternal Son maintains his existence beyond the flesh both during his earthly ministry and perpetually, divided the Lutheran and Reformed traditions during the Reformation. This book explores the emergence and development of the extra Calvinisticum in the Reformed tradition by tracing its first exposition from Ulrich Zwingli to early Reformed orthodoxy. Rather than being an ancillary issue, the questions surrounding the extra Calvinisticum were a determinative factor in the differentiation of Magisterial Protestantism into rival confessions. Reformed theologians maintained this doctrine in order to preserve the integrity of both Christ's divine and human natures as the mediator between God and humanity. This rationale remained consistent across this period with increasing elaboration and sophistication to meet the challenges leveled against the doctrine in Lutheran polemics. The study begins with Zwingli's early use of the extra Calvinisticum in the Eucharistic controversy with Martin Luther and especially as the alternative to Luther's doctrine of the ubiquity of Christ's human body. Over time, Reformed theologians, such as Peter Martyr Vermigli and Antione de Chandieu, articulated the extra Calvinisticum with increasing rigor by incorporating conciliar christology, the church fathers, and scholastic methodology to address the polemical needs of engagement with Lutheranism. The Flesh of the Word illustrates the development of christological doctrine by Reformed theologians offering a coherent historical narrative of Reformed christology from its emergence into the period of confessionalization. The extra Calvinisticum was interconnected to broader concerns affecting concepts of the union of Christ's natures, the communication of attributes, and the understanding of heaven.

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9780197567944

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Reviews

A range of recent works have shown the catholic roots of Reformed Christology, even of its supposedly most distinctive doctrine, the so-called extra Calvinisticum. K. J. Drake's The Flesh of the Word helps deepen our understanding of its growth in the long sixteenth century, looking before, alongside, and after the work of Calvin. * Michael Allen, Reformed Theological Seminary * The extra Calvinisticum might at first glance seem the most inaccessible and abstruse debates of the sixteenth century, but this meticulously researched and well-written book demonstrates that how Christ could be present in the world was at the heart of the Reformation. Drake's lucid exploration of the Christological debates offers a fresh way of understanding what we thought we knew. * Bruce Gordon, author of Calvin and John Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion: A Biography * The Flesh of the Word explores a complex and neglected aspect of Reformed Christology in the sixteenth century. Paying careful attention to the historical context, K.J. Drake traces the development of the extra Calvinisticum in polemical exchanges with Lutherans, highlighting the contribution of the Zurich reformers to a doctrine associated with Calvin. His lucid discussion challenges older preconceptions about the alleged rationalism of early Reformed Orthodoxy and reveals why the christological debate was so important for contemporaries. This illuminating study is a significant contribution to our understanding of early Reformed theology and its long-term consequences. * Amy Nelson Burnett, Paula and D.B. Varner University Professor, Department of History, University of Nebraska - Lincoln *

In the end, The Flesh of the Word stands as the most significant study of the early modern Reformed account and development of the extra Calvinisticum. * Andrew M. McGinnis, Modern Reformation * A range of recent works have shown the catholic roots of Reformed Christology, even of its supposedly most distinctive doctrine, the so-called extra Calvinisticum. K. J. Drake's The Flesh of the Word helps deepen our understanding of its growth in the long sixteenth century, looking before, alongside, and after the work of Calvin. * Michael Allen, Reformed Theological Seminary * The extra Calvinisticum might at first glance seem the most inaccessible and abstruse debates of the sixteenth century, but this meticulously researched and well-written book demonstrates that how Christ could be present in the world was at the heart of the Reformation. Drake's lucid exploration of the Christological debates offers a fresh way of understanding what we thought we knew. * Bruce Gordon, author of Calvin and John Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion: A Biography * The Flesh of the Word explores a complex and neglected aspect of Reformed Christology in the sixteenth century. Paying careful attention to the historical context, K.J. Drake traces the development of the extra Calvinisticum in polemical exchanges with Lutherans, highlighting the contribution of the Zurich reformers to a doctrine associated with Calvin. His lucid discussion challenges older preconceptions about the alleged rationalism of early Reformed Orthodoxy and reveals why the christological debate was so important for contemporaries. This illuminating study is a significant contribution to our understanding of early Reformed theology and its long-term consequences. * Amy Nelson Burnett, Paula and D.B. Varner University Professor, Department of History, University of Nebraska - Lincoln *

Author Information

K.J. Drake is Assistant Professor of History at Redeemer University in Ancaster, Ontario.

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