This helpful volume is one of three comparative introductions to a theological theme, edited by Justin S. Holcomb. Working in this instance with David A. Johnson, he takes the model used for Christian theologies of Scripture: a comparative introduction (New York 2006) and applies it to the sacraments. The result is a clear and informative account that has something to offer almost every reader.
As the plural ‘theologies’ in the title makes clear, there is considerable diversity of theological opinion on the sacraments even within Christian denominations, let alone between them. This book does not aim to give a comprehensive account of the development of sacramental teaching, or to explain every nuance. Rather, it offers a series of snapshots, each written by a different expert. The main chapters take the writings of sixteen theologians (or schools), and set them in their wider context.
The book is divided into three historical periods: patristic and medieval, Reformation and Catholic Counter-Reformation, and the eighteenth to twenty-first centuries. Each part begins with a review chapter, which sets the scene for the more detailed accounts that follow. There is a concise and useful summary provided in the introduction, ‘Mapping theologies of sacraments’, but no further conclusion or editorial commentary.
The points of contention about the sacraments are manifold, and the editors provide a helpful (though not exhaustive) list. They include questions of definition, number, function, symbolism and authority. The answers that theologians have given are shaped by many other doctrinal commitments and assumptions (for example, their understanding of Scripture, or of the Church, or of the relationship between God and humanity in a fallen world). The many and different ways in which these questions have been answered may surprise some readers. Take one simple question: how many sacraments are there? Those familiar with the debates of the Reformation may assume that the choice is between two and seven – with most Protestants affirming baptism and the eucharist, while Roman Catholics continued to use ‘sacrament’ for confirmation, ordination, matrimony, confession and extreme unction as well. Yet, as the first three chapters of this book make clear, the Early Church had a much broader understanding of the ‘mysteries of faith’.
Thus Basil refers to the Gospel and eucharist as sacraments, but not baptism. Augustine's characterisation of sacraments as outward signs of inward grace has often been used to circumscribe the topic, but Augustine used ‘sacramentum’ to describe Old Testament events and Scripture. Indeed, he bequeathed a ‘language that could develop a “sacramentalist” view of the entire world, rather than merely function within the rites of the church’ (p. 18).
More recently, Catholic theologians like Henri de Lubac and Hans Urs von Balthasaar have sought to recover this broader understanding. By contrast, the famous Protestant theologian Karl Barth has sought to limit the concept further, first questioning the sacramental value of infant baptism, then denying that baptism is a sacrament, then denying any sacrament besides Christ himself.
Another key figure is Thomas Aquinas, who followed other medieval writers in enumerating seven sacraments. But here too there is far more at stake than the application of a definition, or the interpretation of particular scriptural passages. For Aquinas, grace perfects nature; so it is perfectly reasonable that the risen and ascended Christ should bestow spiritual gifts through bodily sacraments. For a radical reformer like Zwingli, by contrast ‘there was an absolute gulf between the divine and the human’, between the spirit and the flesh, and thus sacraments could be nothing more than ‘symbolic, outward manifestations of what God has already done in Christ’ (p. 155). One cannot reflect on the sacraments without also reflection on the doctrines of God and creation.
The enormous scope of this introductory book necessitates many omissions. The first theologian to be considered is Basil the Great (b. 329/330), so there is no direct discussion of the sacramental passages found in the New Testament (except insofar as later theologians have interpreted them). Basil and Augustine have to represent a millennium of Christian thought; there are chapters on ‘feminism and womanism’ and ‘liberation theology’ but other new branches of theology go unmentioned.
There is also little discussion of liturgy or practice. This is presumably because the editors wished to focus on theological accounts of the sacraments as opposed to their enactment. But is this really possible? Theological understanding of the sacraments undoubtedly shapes practice, but liturgy can also shape and inform theological understanding. Some of the contributing authors do recognise this; most notably, Bruce Gordon (in discussing Zwingli's account of the liturgies of the Church in Zurich) and Paul Chilcote (who draws extensively on the Wesleys’ hymns).
Many readers will wish to use this volume as a textbook, looking up two or three theologians who are of particular interest. They will invariably find this book helpful. Yet the editors express their hope that readers will explore thinkers outside their own tradition or area of research. At the end of the introduction, Holcomb and Johnson suggest that greater understanding of different theological perspectives ‘may foster a deeper sense of humility and respect’ (p. 11). This is a worthy aim, and this book provides an excellent starting point on that journey.
