The first impression I get from reading Article 8 is that none of the atonement models is given primacy of place. The Christ-as-Victor model describes the victory of Christ over the powers and forces of evil and death which have enslaved humanity. The Substitutionary model describes the debt owed by humanity now paid for by Christ’s sacrificial death on our behalf. The Moral-Influence model suggest the example of Jesus as inspiring humanity to receive and live out the love and grace of God in the new life opened for them. Each of these three types is given a positive role to play in describing the dimensions of Christ’s atonement for humanity. While each by itself is insufficient to describe the immensity of atonement, together they form a fully-orbed description of what Christ achieved on the cross. Thus the Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective (CFMP) attempts to steer a middle course between the Scylla of doctrinaire conservative fundamentalism and the Charybdis of sentimental liberalism, preserving the Anabaptist notion of the Atonement as having both objective and subjective aspects. This all-inclusive quality results in what Robert Friedman described as the effect of not just declaring us righteous but also, through the new birth, making us righteous. Not only is our salvation achieved by Christ’s “alien” work, it is made effective by the “creative” work of the Spirit transforming the inner person.
A second impression is that the Spirit’s work of transformation corresponds quite closely to the more traditional doctrine of sanctification which both Luther and Calvin articulated in their theological writings. For both Luther and Calvin though the difference was that the effects of atoning work of Christ could be separated into distinct aspects conceptually even if not existentially into justification and sanctification. For the Anabaptist/Mennonite tradition, however, the two aspects were inseparable from the outset. To be justified meant to be made righteous. In Anabaptist/Mennonite theology, to separate the two could lead to indifference in the life of the believer and, more seriously, to a reliance on the “objective” work of Christ on the cross to the neglect of discipline and discipleship in one’s response to follow the call of Jesus.
The third impression I have regarding this Article 8 is that the omission of the penal substitutionary model of the atonement is deliberate. There is no mention of the wrath of God which needs to be appeased or some quid pro quo arrangement of a perfect sacrifice to be made in exchange for humanity to escape the finality of death and everlasting punishment of hell. The biblical texts which have been used to describe this view are nowhere in sight. In fact, there is no mention of hell at all. The atonement frees humanity from sin, death and the powers of evil, but not from hell.
Interesting.
Kelvin, I wonder if you could expand on the phrase, 'sentimental liberalism'. I am probably so concerned about 'conservative fundamentalism' that I likely have a propensity toward being close to the former. Also, do Mennonites really not separate justification and sanctification? If not, why the separation of being justified 'saved' and being sanctified, 'baptism and church membership'? You comments would be appreciated. Don D
ReplyDeleteDon,
ReplyDeleteBoth "conservative fundamentalism" and "sentimental liberalism" are caricatures which in most cases are attributed to positions different from one's own. Perhaps I should have put them within quotation marks to show that they are in reality "straw men", waiting to be demolished. I think both sides have important emphases and need to listen in humility to one another in order to achieve balance.
Regarding the separation of justification and sanctification such as the other reformers asserted was necessary, they did so in order to prevent any hint of "works righteousness" or appearance of "law" over "gospel". The Anabaptists sought a different model which held the justification and sanctification together as being part and parcel of the same event. That is why, if you read Menno's writings, the categories do not separate neatly. The idea of justification being a forensic reality as opposed to an ontological one was an illegitimate separation in Menno's view. "The new birth" signified the beginning of "following Jesus." Not only was the Christian declared to be righteous, the Christian was also made righteous and transformed by the Spirit to be " a new creature." Baptism and church membership confirmed the desire publically to follow Jesus and are together parts of the same ordinance which publically witnesses to the inner reality of one's desire to follow Jesus in life. The Anabaptist contribution to Christian ecclesiology is that one can only truly be a disciple of Jesus within the context of the church and the discipling community.