A Central European Synthesis of Radical and Magisterial Reform: The Sacramental Theology of Balthasar Hubmaier
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Description
Challenging the widespread classification of evangelical theologian Balthasar Hubmaier (1480-1528) as a Schleitheim-adhering Anabaptist, this book argues that Hubmaier should instead be understood as a bridge between the Radical and Magisterial branches of the Reformation. Paramount among this book's new discoveries is the overarching three-tiered structure of Hubmaier's theological system, consisting of a libertarian anthropology, sacramental theology, and ecclesiology. While recent studies have demonstrated the favorable reception of Bernard of Clairvaux by Luther and Calvin, this book reveals that Bernard also exerted a profound impact upon Hubmaier's anthropology. Consequently, Hubmaier crafted highly philosophically realist doctrines of believers' baptism and the Eucharist as grace-imparting sacraments instead of ordinances without salvific power. In Hubmaier's baptism, God not only regenerated neophytes, but also predestined them to final salvation. By partaking of the Eucharist, Hubmaier insisted that believers themselves (not the bread and wine) were literally consubstantiated with the physical body of Christ. Intertwining church discipline with sacramental reception, Hubmaier devised a strikingly progressive ecclesiology in which free churches were administered by local governments. This book provides for a deeper understanding of one of the 16th century's most creative and sophisticated thinkers. -- Provided by publisher
Keywords
Hubmaier, Balthasar, -1528; Anabaptists -- Doctrines -- Early works to 1800;
Document Type
Book
ISBN
9780761834618
Publication Date
2006
Publisher
University Press of America
City
Lanham, MD
Department
Department of Philosophy and World Religions
Object Description
vii, 301 p. ; 23 cm
Language
en
Recommended Citation
MacGregor, Kirk R., "A Central European Synthesis of Radical and Magisterial Reform: The Sacramental Theology of Balthasar Hubmaier" (2006). Faculty Book Gallery. 45.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/facbook/45
