Font of Pardon and New Life: John Calvin and the Efficacy of Baptism (Oxford Studies in Historical Theology)

Font of Pardon and New Life is a study of the historical development and impact of John Calvin's doctrine of baptism, both adult (or believer) baptism and infant baptism. Did Calvin intend to teach a kind of baptismal forgiveness and regeneration, that is, did he believe that the external sign of baptism actually conveys the spiritual realities it signifies? If baptism does serve in some way as an instrument of divine grace for Calvin, what then are the roles of the Word, the Holy Spirit, divine election, and individual faith? Are spiritual blessings conferred only in adult (believer) baptism or also in the baptism of infants? Did Calvin's teaching on baptismal efficacy remain constant throughout his lifetime, or did it undergo significant change? What impact did it have on the Reformed confessional tradition that followed him? Lyle D. Bierma approaches these questions by examining Calvin's writings on baptism in their entirety, proceeding chronologically through Calvin's life and writings including his Institutes , commentaries on the Bible, catechisms, polemical treatises, and consensus documents. Bierma concludes that Calvin understood baptism as a means or instrument of both assurance and grace. His view underwent some change and development over the course of his life but not to the extent that some in the past have suggested. The overall trajectory of his baptismal theology was one of increasing clarity and refinement of basic themes already present in incipient form in the Institutes of 1536. Cover 1 Series 3 Font of Pardon and New Life 4 Copyright 5 Contents 6 Acknowledgments 8 Abbreviations 10 1. Introduction 12 Instrumentalist Interpretations 14 Parallelist Interpretations 17 Developmental Interpretations 20 Prospectus 23 2. The 1536 Institutes 32 The Sacraments in General 32 Baptism 39 Assessment 44 3. Works from Calvin’s First Period in Geneva and the Strasbourg Interlude (1536–​41) 52 Catechism of 1537/​1538 53 1539 Institutes 56 Commentary on Romans (1540) 61 Assessment 64 4. Works from Calvin’s Second Period in Geneva to the Consensus Tigurinus (1541–​48) 73 Catechism of the Church of Geneva (1542/​1545) 74 The Form of Prayers (1542) 79 1543 Institutes 80 Commentary on 1 Corinthians (1546) 83 Acts of the Council of Trent: With the Antidote (1547) 85 Commentary on Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians (1548) 87 Assessment 89 5. The Consensus Tigurinus (1549) 97 Articles 1–​2, 5–​19 98 Assessment 117 6. Works from after the Consensus Tigurinus to Calvin’s Death (1550–​64) 125 Commentaries on Titus, 1 Peter, Isaiah, and Acts (1550–​54) 126 Two Polemical Treatises against Westphal (1555, 1556) 132 1559 Institutes 137 Assessment 142 7. Calvin and the Efficacy of Infant Baptism 149 The 1536 Institutes 153 First Period in Geneva and the Strasbourg Interlude (1536–​41) 156 Second Period in Geneva to the Consensus Tigurinus (1541–​48) 162 The Consensus Tigurinus to Calvin’s Death (1549–​64) 164 The Consensus Tigurinus (1549) 164 Commentaries of the Early 1550s 165 Two Treatises against Westphal (1555, 1556) 169 1559 Institutes 172 Assessment 175 8. Baptismal Efficacy in the Reformed Confessions: Calvin’s Legacy 186 French (Gallican) Confession of Faith (1559) 188 Introduction 188 Text and Analysis 189 Scots Confession (1560) 193 Introduction 193 Text and Analysis 195 Belgic Confession (1561) 197 Introduction 197 Text and Analysis 199 Heidelberg Catechism (1563) 206 Introduction 206 Text and Analysis 209 Second Helvetic Confession (1566) 215 Introduction 215 Text and Analysis 217 Thirty-​Nine Articles (1571) 226 Introduction 226 Text and Analysis 227 Westminster Standards (1646–​47) 231 Introduction 231 Text and Analysis 232 Assessment 239 9. Baptismal Efficacy in Calvin’s Theology: Conclusion 252 Bibliography 260 Index 272 "This book is a study of the historical development and impact of John Calvin's doctrine of baptismal efficacy. The primary questions it addresses are (1) whether Calvin taught an "instrumental" doctrine of baptism, according to which the external sign of the sacrament serves as a means or instrument to convey the spiritual realities it signifies, and (2) whether Calvin's teaching on baptismal efficacy remained constant throughout his lifetime or underwent significant change. Secondarily, the work also examines whether such spiritual blessings, in Calvin's view, are conferred only in adult (believer) baptism or also in the baptism of infants, and what impact Calvin's doctrine of baptismal efficacy had on the Reformed confessional tradition that followed him. The book examines all of Calvin's writings on baptism-his Institutes, commentaries on Scripture, catechisms, polemical writings, and consensus documents-chronologically through five stages of his life and then analyzes the doctrine of baptismal efficacy in eight of the major Reformed confessions and catechisms from the age of confessional codification. It concludes that Calvin did indeed hold to an instrumental view of baptism; that this doctrine underwent change and development over the course of his life but not to the extent that some in the past have suggested; that his view of the efficacy of infant baptism was consistent with his doctrine of baptism in general; and that versions of Calvin's teaching can be found in many, though not all, of the major Reformed confessional documents of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries"-- Provided by publisher Font of Pardon and New Life is a study of the historical development and impact of John Calvin's doctrine of baptism, both adult (or believer) baptism and infant baptism. Did Calvin intend to teach a kind of baptismal forgiveness and regeneration, that is, did he believe that the external sign of baptism actually conveys the spiritual realities it signifies? If baptism does serve in some way as an instrument of divine grace for Calvin, what then are the roles of the Word, the Holy Spirit, divine election, and individual faith? Are spiritual blessings conferred only in adult (believer) baptism or also in the baptism of infants? Did Calvin's teaching on baptismal efficacy remain constant throughout his lifetime, or did it undergo significant change? What impact did it have on the Reformed confessional tradition that followed him?Lyle D. Bierma approaches these questions by examining Calvin's writings on baptism in their entirety, proceeding chronologically through Calvin's life and writings including his Institutes, commentaries on the Bible, catechisms, polemical treatises, and consensus documents. Bierma concludes that Calvin understood baptism as a means or instrument of both assurance and grace. His view underwent some change and development over the course of his life but not to the extent that some in the past have suggested. The overall trajectory of his baptismal theology was one of increasing clarity and refinement of basic themes already present in incipient form in the Institutes of 1536.