RamistThomist
Puritanboard Clerk
McKim, Donald and West, Jim. Martin Bucer: An Introduction to his Life and Theology. Wipf & Stock Publishers.
There are those who are looked on with suspicion because they are divisive, no doubt thinking they are “bold for truth.” They are rightly looked upon as cantankerous and divisive. Others are viewed with suspicion because they are so irenic, always seeing the good in others and promoting Christ’s vision of unity. Martin Bucer was one such man. It is unfortunate that Bucer is not as known today as Calvin, especially, in my opinion, because he was far more interesting. With theological retrieval in full steam for all traditions, this is being remedied.
Donald McKim and Jim West do a decent, if only cursory, job at introducing the lay reader to Martin Bucer. Whatever limitations to this volume, if it helps young puppy Calvinists, also known as Conference Calvinists (think 'seashells'), find a deeper expression of the Reformed, especially focusing on the ministry of Word and Sacrament and churchly piety, then this volume will be a success.
My main issue with the book is its only surface-level depth of Bucer’s theology. For example, if you are already Reformed and have not read Bucer, little of this will be new to you. That is probably a good thing as it shows a deep unity among the Reformers. On the other hand, if Bucer is known as being an irenic theologian, then what was it about his theology in specific places that made other Reformers, particularly Luther and Bullinger, suspicious of him. We get a few hints but nothing really worthwhile.
Bucer’s life is quite interesting, and while the authors do not make this connection, in Bucer we see both theocrat and exile, ending his life ministering to his Majesty, King Edward VI, blessed of God.
God
Bucer sees God as the gift-giver. No doubt other Reformers would agree, but for Bucer this takes on a particularly joyful character. The chief source for this claim is his 1537 Catechism. “God is the God who gives rather than takes.” This is a marked contrast with the theology of late medieval Catholicism, whose vision of God had him receiving indulgence payments.
The Holy Spirit
Because the Holy Spirit establishes faith, his work is the outworking of God’s eternal predestination. The Holy Spirit works through the church, though not mechanically, and in his work, “the church makes visible, through Word and Spirit, the active presence of Christ in the world.”
In line with his theology of the Spirit, Bucer makes the following suggestions for prayer:
Sin and Salvation
Bucer, being a good Thomist, defines free will as “the faculty of choosing or rejecting the things that come our way, in accordance with our decided judgment.” Bucer, being a good Protestant, qualified it to note we cannot will our own salvation.
Bucer, like almost all of the early Protestants, did not view predestination with existential angst. We are not to fret whether we are predestined, but rather ask ourselves, “Do I believe in Jesus Christ and that by his death on the cross, I can be saved?” ‘Election is focused on the work of Christ,’ not on my own mental agony.
Conclusion and Evaluation
It probably is not fair to criticize the authors for not covering my favorite parts of Bucer. Nonetheless, I do wish they would have examined his liturgy in more detail and his interesting comments on the sign of the cross. Their comments on church and state, while accurate enough in noting Bucer as a theocrat, do not add anything to the discussion, being consigned to a few paragraphs. Notwithstanding those comments, if one can find it for a good price (or for free on a library app), one should get it.
There are those who are looked on with suspicion because they are divisive, no doubt thinking they are “bold for truth.” They are rightly looked upon as cantankerous and divisive. Others are viewed with suspicion because they are so irenic, always seeing the good in others and promoting Christ’s vision of unity. Martin Bucer was one such man. It is unfortunate that Bucer is not as known today as Calvin, especially, in my opinion, because he was far more interesting. With theological retrieval in full steam for all traditions, this is being remedied.
Donald McKim and Jim West do a decent, if only cursory, job at introducing the lay reader to Martin Bucer. Whatever limitations to this volume, if it helps young puppy Calvinists, also known as Conference Calvinists (think 'seashells'), find a deeper expression of the Reformed, especially focusing on the ministry of Word and Sacrament and churchly piety, then this volume will be a success.
My main issue with the book is its only surface-level depth of Bucer’s theology. For example, if you are already Reformed and have not read Bucer, little of this will be new to you. That is probably a good thing as it shows a deep unity among the Reformers. On the other hand, if Bucer is known as being an irenic theologian, then what was it about his theology in specific places that made other Reformers, particularly Luther and Bullinger, suspicious of him. We get a few hints but nothing really worthwhile.
Bucer’s life is quite interesting, and while the authors do not make this connection, in Bucer we see both theocrat and exile, ending his life ministering to his Majesty, King Edward VI, blessed of God.
God
Bucer sees God as the gift-giver. No doubt other Reformers would agree, but for Bucer this takes on a particularly joyful character. The chief source for this claim is his 1537 Catechism. “God is the God who gives rather than takes.” This is a marked contrast with the theology of late medieval Catholicism, whose vision of God had him receiving indulgence payments.
The Holy Spirit
Because the Holy Spirit establishes faith, his work is the outworking of God’s eternal predestination. The Holy Spirit works through the church, though not mechanically, and in his work, “the church makes visible, through Word and Spirit, the active presence of Christ in the world.”
In line with his theology of the Spirit, Bucer makes the following suggestions for prayer:
- Pray by the Spirit.
- Through the Spirit, “be certain that what one prays for is to the glory of God.”
- Believe that God will answer your prayers.
- Pray with humility.
Sin and Salvation
Bucer, being a good Thomist, defines free will as “the faculty of choosing or rejecting the things that come our way, in accordance with our decided judgment.” Bucer, being a good Protestant, qualified it to note we cannot will our own salvation.
Bucer, like almost all of the early Protestants, did not view predestination with existential angst. We are not to fret whether we are predestined, but rather ask ourselves, “Do I believe in Jesus Christ and that by his death on the cross, I can be saved?” ‘Election is focused on the work of Christ,’ not on my own mental agony.
Conclusion and Evaluation
It probably is not fair to criticize the authors for not covering my favorite parts of Bucer. Nonetheless, I do wish they would have examined his liturgy in more detail and his interesting comments on the sign of the cross. Their comments on church and state, while accurate enough in noting Bucer as a theocrat, do not add anything to the discussion, being consigned to a few paragraphs. Notwithstanding those comments, if one can find it for a good price (or for free on a library app), one should get it.
