Calvin on Sacramental Knowledge of God

From Randall C. Zachman:

“Dawn de Vries concurs with this description, stating that the Word itself is sacramental – that is, the means of grace – for Calvin, making the Word “the primary means of grace.” Jesus Christ in the Preaching of Calvin and Schleirmacher (Louisville, Westminster John Knox Press, 1996) p15 (p5)

“T. H. L. Parker has argued that “Calvin’s theology is, … throughout his life, a theology of the Sacraments. God will not encounter man directly but by means of that which is already a human term of reference, the human means of communication and visible symbols.” (p6) John Calvin: A Biography (Philadelphia, Westminster Press, 1975), p42

Parker says: “Revelation is indirect, as we have said; knowledge is always by way of the sacramental form of revelation. We know God in His Word and in His works, because they are the image of God, mirroring his effigies, His portrait.” Calvin’s Doctrine of the Knowledge of God, rev. ed. (Grand Rapids, Eerdmans, 1959) p116 (p6)

“… Calvin’s understanding of living icons and symbols… extends Augustine’s understanding of sacraments as “visible words” to all forms of divine self-manifestation, from the universe itself to the symbols and visions given the fathers under the Law to the symbols and visions of the Gospel.” (p14)

“Roman Catholic theologians, such as David Tracy and Hans Urs von Balthasar, have contrasted Catholic and Protestant forms of thought by saying that the former emphasizes manifestation and a sacramental way of thinking, whereas the latter emphasizes proclamation and a verbally oriented way of thinking. This study shows that Calvin thinks in terms of the essential interrelationship of manifestation and proclamation, which may provide interesting bridges between the Protestant and Catholic Churches, without ignoring the major differences between them. Calvin may (p21) not agree with Roman Catholic or Greek Orthodox theologians about how many “living images of God” there may be, but it is nonetheless significant that he urges his readers to contemplate the living images of God as an essential part of their piety. Calvin always claimed that his theology was both evangelical and orthodox, and it is my hope that by highlighting the sacramental character of the entirety of Calvin’s theology, Calvin may be able to claim his place as a member of the broarder catholic tradition.” (p22)

Zachman, Randall C., Image and Word in the Theology of John Calvin (Notre Dame, University of Notre Dame Press, 2007)