Luther and Erasmus : Free Will and Salvation
by Rupp, E. Gordon; Watson, Philip S.Format: Paperback
Pub. Date: 1978-10-01
Publisher(s): Westminster John Knox Pr
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Summary
This volume includes the texts of Erasmus's 1524 diatribe against Luther,De Libero Arbitrio, and Luther's violent counterattack,De Servo Arbitrio. E. Gordon Rupp and Philip Watson offer commentary on these texts as well.Long recognized for the quality of its translations, introductions, explanatory notes, and indexes, the Library of Christian Classics provides scholars and students with modern English translations of some of the most significant Christian theological texts in history. Through these works--each written prior to the end of the sixteenth century--contemporary readers are able to engage the ideas that have shaped Christian theology and the church through the centuries.
Author Biography
E. Gordon Rupp is Dixie Professor of Ecclesiastical History at the University of Cambridge, England Philip S. Watson is Professor Emeritus of Systematic Theology, Garrett Theological Seminary, Evanston, Illinois
Table of Contents
| Abbreviations | p. xv |
| Introduction | |
| The Erasmian Enigma | p. 1 |
| The Lutheran Riposte | p. 12 |
| The Language of the Debate | p. 28 |
| Erasmus: On the Freedom of the Will | |
| Prefatory Observations | |
| Erasmus Acknowledges His Limitations and States His Point of View | p. 35 |
| His Dislike of Assertions | p. 37 |
| The Obscurity of Scripture | p. 38 |
| Some Truths Are Not for Common Ears | p. 40 |
| The Dangers Inherent in Luther's Teachings | p. 41 |
| Introduction to the Disputation | |
| Luther Is Opposed Not Only by Scripture but Also by Weighty Authority of the Church Fathers | p. 42 |
| How Can Inspiration and Authority Be Tested? | p. 44 |
| Scripture Passages That Support Free Choice | |
| Definition of Free Choice and Discussion of Ecclesiasticus 15:14-17 | p. 47 |
| Man Before and After the Fall: The Forgiveness of Sins Restores Freedom of Choice Through Grace | p. 48 |
| The Work of the Will, and the Threefold Law of Nature, Works, and Faith | p. 49 |
| Different Kinds of Grace, and Three Views of Its Relation to Free Choice | p. 51 |
| Further Old Testament Passages Implying Free Choice | p. 54 |
| New Testament Texts Examined. Matthew 23:37 and Other Words of Christ | p. 59 |
| St. Paul Also Is a Champion of Free Choice | p. 61 |
| Scripture Passages That Seem to Oppose Free Choice | |
| Exodus 9:12; Romans 9:17: The Hardening of Pharaoh's Heart | p. 64 |
| The Problem of the Will and Foreknowledge of God | p. 66 |
| Two Kinds of Necessity: The Case of Judas | p. 68 |
| Jacob and Esau | p. 69 |
| The Potter and the Clay | p. 70 |
| Examination of Luther's Arguments in His Assertio | |
| Genesis 6:3: The Meaning of "Flesh" and "Spirit" | p. 74 |
| The Will Is Not Powerless Though It Cannot Attain Its End Without Grace | p. 79 |
| Man's Cooperation with God | p. 81 |
| What Merit Is There Without Free Choice? | p. 84 |
| Epilogue | |
| A Reasonable Approach to the Problem | p. 85 |
| A Mediating View, and a Parable of Grace and Free Choice | p. 89 |
| The Extravagances of Those Who Totally Deny Free Choice | p. 91 |
| The Dire Results of Exaggerated Views | p. 95 |
| As to Which Side Is Right, Let the Reader Be Judge | p. 97 |
| Luther: on the Bondage of the Will | |
| Introduction | |
| Luther Explains His Delay in Replying and Admits Erasmus' Superior Talent | p. 101 |
| Review of Erasmus' Preface | |
| Christianity Involves Assertions; Christians Are No Skeptics | p. 105 |
| The Clarity of Scripture | p. 109 |
| It is Vital to Know the Truth About Free Choice | p. 113 |
| God's Foreknowledge; Contingence and Necessity | p. 117 |
| Should Divine Truth Be Kept from Common Ears? | p. 124 |
| Should the Truth of God's Necessitating Will Be Suppressed? | p. 134 |
| Divine Necessity and the Human Will | p. 139 |
| Comments on Erasmus' Introduction | |
| The Evidence of Tradition on Behalf of Free Choice | p. 144 |
| The True Church, Which Does Not Err, Is Hidden from Men's Sight | p. 154 |
| Scripture, with its "Internal" and "External" Clarity, as the Test of Truth | p. 158 |
| Refutation of Arguments in Support of Free Choice | |
| Erasmus' Definition of Free Choice | p. 169 |
| Three Views of Grace and Free Choice--or Three Statements of One View? | p. 177 |
| Ecclesiasticus 15:14-17. The Foolishness of Reason | p. 182 |
| Other Old Testament Passages, and the Imperative and Indicative Moods | p. 188 |
| Erasmus' Failure to Distinguish Between Law and Gospel | p. 194 |
| God Preached, God Hidden; God's Will Revealed, God's Will Secret | p. 200 |
| New Testament Passages: Matthew 23:37--Man Must Not Pry Into the Secret Will of God | p. 205 |
| Precepts and Rewards in the New Testament: The Question of Merit | p. 208 |
| Erasmus' Arguments Undermine His Own Case | p. 215 |
| Defense of Arguments Against Free Choice | |
| Erasmus' Use of Tropes in Interpreting Scripture | p. 220 |
| Exodus 4:21--The Hardening of Pharaoh's Heart | p. 223 |
| How God's Omnipotence Can Be Said to Work Evil | p. 232 |
| How God's Foreknowledge Imposes Necessity | p. 239 |
| Two Kinds of Necessity: The Case of Judas | p. 246 |
| Jacob and Esau | p. 249 |
| The Potter and the Clay | p. 255 |
| Erasmus' Way of Reasoning Does Not Let God Be God | p. 258 |
| Rebuttal of Erasmus' Critique of the Assertio | |
| Genesis 6:3 and the Biblical Meaning of "Flesh" | p. 263 |
| Other Old Testament Passages--The Universal Sinfulness and Impotence of Man Under the Law | p. 266 |
| The Whole Man--Body, Soul, and "Spirit"--Is "Flesh" | p. 271 |
| How Erasmus Persistently Evades the Issue | p. 278 |
| John 15:5, etc.: Free Choice Is "Nothing"--Coram Deo | p. 281 |
| Divine Grace and Human Cooperation | p. 288 |
| A Display of the Forces on Luther's Side | |
| St. Paul: Universal Sinfulness Nullifies Free Choice | p. 293 |
| Free Choice May Do the Works of the Law but Not Fulfill the Law | p. 302 |
| "Congruous" and "Condign" Merit | p. 309 |
| The Righteousness of Works and of Faith; and a Summary of St. Paul's Testimony Against Free Choice | p. 312 |
| St. John: Free Choice is of "the World," "the Flesh"; Grace is of Christ, by Faith. The Two Are Opposites | p. 319 |
| The Two Kingdoms, of Christ and of Satan. The Assurance of Faith | p. 327 |
| The Mercy and Justice of God in the Light of Nature, Grace, and Glory | p. 329 |
| Conclusion | |
| That the Case Against Free Choice is Unanswerable Let Erasmus Be Willing to Admit | p. 332 |
| On the Adagia of Erasmus | p. 335 |
| Indexes | p. 341 |
| Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved. |
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