Defenders 3:Doctrine of the Church (Part 11): Consubstantiation and Other Views - Defenders Podcast

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Episode Overview

Podcast: Defenders Podcast
Host: Dr. William Lane Craig
Episode: Doctrine of the Church (Part 11): Consubstantiation and Other Views
Date: March 10, 2021

In this episode, Dr. William Lane Craig continues his series on the doctrine of the church by examining various Christian interpretations of the Lord’s Supper. After previously discussing the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, this lesson explores the Lutheran view of consubstantiation, the Reformed perspective, and the Memorial/Ordinance view, highlighting their theological nuances and historical background.

Key Discussion Points

1. Recap: Transubstantiation (00:16)

Dr. Craig briefly reminds listeners of the Roman Catholic doctrine, where the bread and wine are considered to be transformed into the actual body and blood of Christ during the Eucharist.

2. The Lutheran Doctrine: Consubstantiation (00:36)

The Formula of Concord (1577) is the standard Lutheran statement, which:
- Rejects transubstantiation: Does not believe the bread and wine are transformed.
- Rejects a "mere spiritual presence": Considers this view too weak.
Consubstantiation Explained:
- Both the bread and wine and the body and blood of Christ are present together.
- The communicant chews and eats the flesh of Christ and drinks His blood alongside the bread and wine.
- Listeners may question, “Well, I don’t see them. I don’t taste them. Why would you think that the body and blood of Christ are really there...?”
Luther’s "Communicatio Idiomatum" Doctrine:
- Attributes of Christ’s divine nature are communicated to His human nature after exaltation.
- Illustration Used:
  - “One of the favorite illustrations of the Lutheran theologians was that of a red-hot poker which has been lying in the fire...it has taken on properties belonging properly to the fire.” (Dr. Craig, 02:10)
- Christ’s human nature becomes ubiquitous (omnipresent) and invisible, enabling His flesh and blood to be present with the elements everywhere.
- “So on the Lutheran view, I think you can see that there is a kind of middle way between transubstantiation and a mere spiritual presence...” (Dr. Craig, 05:02)

3. The Reformed (Calvinist) View: Spiritual Presence and Communion (05:37)

A "weaker" interpretation than consubstantiation.
John Calvin's view:
- No transformation of elements.
- No consubstantiation.
- “Rather, in the Lord's Supper, the sacrament confirms spiritually what has already happened physically at the cross.” (Dr. Craig, 06:13)
- Spiritual communion takes place; it is a means of grace, but not a physical reception of Christ’s body and blood.
- The Lord’s Supper is uniquely a means for spiritual communion rather than physical participation.

4. The Memorial/Ordinance View (Zwingli, Baptists) (07:22)

Ulrich Zwingli’s stance:
- The Lord’s Supper is an ordinance, not a sacrament or a means of grace.
- No spiritual or physical presence; instead, the ceremony is purely memorial.
- “Rather, the Lord’s Supper is simply a memorial meal that the communicant takes in remembrance of Christ.” (Dr. Craig, 07:45)
Modern Expression:
- This is characteristic of many Baptist churches.
- Serves as a regular practice for remembering the Lord's sacrifice, self-examination, and reflection, but not a means of grace.
- “...to remember the Lord’s sacrifice, to examine ourselves, and to reflect on what he has done on our behalf.” (Dr. Craig, 08:23)

5. Summary Comparison of All Four Views (09:05)

Strongest View:
- Transubstantiation (Roman Catholic/Eastern Orthodox)
Middle Way:
- Consubstantiation (Lutheran)
Spiritual Communion:
- Reformed/Calvinist
Memorial Only:
- Ordinance (Zwingli/Baptist)
“So now we have four contrasting views of the Lord's Supper, from a very strong view held by Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, right down to the Baptistic view...” (Dr. Craig, 09:19)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Dr. Craig on the Lutheran doctrine:
“The body and blood of Christ are said to be in, under, and through the elements that you take. So again, you do take the blood and the body of Christ in the Lord's Supper.” (05:30)
On Luther’s analogy:
“The poker is normally cold and dark, but when it has been in the fire long enough, it becomes glowing and red and hot. It has taken on properties belonging properly to the fire.” (02:10)
Vocabulary Moment:
“By the way, that's a great word to add to your vocabulary if you yet know it, ubiquitous. It means everywhere. So, for example, you could say at the time of this recording that COVID-19 is ubiquitous.” (03:00)
Emphasizing the diversity of doctrine:
“So now we have four contrasting views of the Lord's Supper, from a very strong view held by Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, right down to the Baptistic view...transubstantiation, consubstantiation, spiritual presence and communion with the Lord, or simply an ordinance and memorial supper.” (09:19)

Timestamps of Important Segments

00:16 – Overview of transubstantiation and introduction to consubstantiation
01:00 – Lutheran rejection of transubstantiation and spiritual presence only
02:10 – Luther's doctrine of "communication of attributes," with poker analogy
03:00 – Meaning of "ubiquity" (omnipresence) as applied to Christ
05:02 – Consubstantiation as a middle view
05:37 – Introduction to the Reformed view (Calvin)
07:22 – Introduction to the Ordinance/Memorial view (Zwingli and Baptists)
09:05 – Summarizing the four views
09:19 – Comparative restatement of all four main positions

Episode Conclusion

Dr. Craig succinctly presents the four principal Christian interpretations of the Lord’s Supper, guiding listeners through the historical and theological reasoning behind each. This broad survey prepares the class for the next lesson, where he promises a detailed assessment of these competing views. The discussion is accessible, illustrative, and attentive to both historical context and doctrinal nuance.

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Transcript2 lines

[00:01]
A
Welcome to Defenders, the teaching class of Dr. William Lane Craig. Today the Doctrine of the Church, Part 11. For more information and resources from Dr. Craig, go to reasonablefaith.org the last two
[00:17]
B
weeks that we've met, we've talked about the most radical interpretation of the Lord's Supper, namely the Roman Catholic view of transubstantiation. Today we want to move on from the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation to the Lutheran doctrine, which is called consubstantiation. Well, how is that different from transubstantiation? In the formula of Concord 1577, which is the standard Lutheran statement of doctrine, the the formula rejects the view of transubstantiation. It says that the bread and the wine are not transformed into the body and blood of Christ. Nevertheless, the formula also rejects the idea that there is a mere spiritual presence of Christ in the Lord's Supper. That's too weak a view for Lutheran theologians of the Lord's Supper. So they maintain that there has to be more than just a spiritual presence of Christ there. He needs to be present in his human nature. But it's not a transubstantiation either. So what is it? Well, it's something in between. It is consubstantiation. What this view holds is that the body and blood of Christ are present along with the bread and the wine. So when the communicant eats the bread and drinks the wine, he is drinking the blood of Christ and chewing and eating the flesh of Christ at the same time. They are both there together. Now again, you might say, well, I don't see them. I don't taste them. Why would you think that the body and blood of Christ are really there along with the bread and the wine? Well, this question recurs to a view of Martin Luther that we talked about when we looked at the doctrine of the two natures of Christ. You may remember that Luther held this peculiar doctrine called the communicatio idiomatum, that is to say, the communication of the attributes. That was the doctrine that in Christ's exaltation the attributes of the divine nature were transferred over or communicated to his human nature. So the human nature of Christ took on some of the attributes or the properties of his divine nature. One of the favorite illustrations of the Lutheran theologians was that of a red hot poker which has been lying in the fire. The poker is normally cold and dark, but when it has been in the fire long enough, it becomes glowing and rain red and hot. It has taken on properties belonging properly to the fire. Similarly, the human nature of Christ in his exalted state takes on some of the properties of the divine nature, like ubiquity, that is to say, omnipresence. And by the way, that's a great word to add to your vocabulary if you yet know it, ubiquitous. It means everywhere. So, for example, you could say at the time of this recording that COVID 19 is ubiquitous. So the human nature of Christ becomes ubiquitous. It's everywhere. It also takes on the property of invisibility, which is a proper property of the divine nature. So when the communicant eats the bread and drinks the wine, Luther emphasizes that he is chewing the body of Christ. He's actually eating it and drinking Christ's blood, because the human nature, having taken on the attributes of the divine nature, is now there. It is really present. It is ubiquitous, even though it is invisible and you don't sense it. So on the Lutheran view, I think you can see that there is a kind of middle way between transubstantiation and a mere spiritual presence of Christ in the Lord's Supper. On Lutheran doctrine, the body and blood of Christ are really there, along with the bread and the wine. The body and blood of Christ are said to be in, under, and through the elements that you take. So again, you do take the blood and the body of Christ in the Lord's Supper. We now come to a third view, which is yet weaker in its understanding of Christ's presence in the Lord's Supper, and that is the Reformed view. There are actually a number of different Reformed perspectives on the Lord's Supper. Calvin's own view was that in the Lord's Supper there is a spiritual presence of Christ to the believer. It's not a transformation of the elements. It's not even a consubstantiation. Rather, in the Lord's Supper, the sacrament confirms spiritually what has already happened physically at the cross. There is a kind of spiritual communion that takes place at the Lord's Supper that is experienced by the communicant. So the Lord's Supper is still a means of grace, but it is not a physical reception of the body and the blood of the Lord. Rather, it is a sort of spiritual communion with him. We finally come to the fourth view, which is that the Lord's Supper is an ordinance. A weaker version of the Reformed view is that in the Lord's Supper, we. We simply have an ordinance. It's not a sacrament, it's not a special means of grace. This was the view of the Swiss reformer Ulrich Zwingli. Zwingli actually met with Martin Luther to have a very famous colloquy over the nature of the Lord's Supper. For Zwingli, the Lord's Supper didn't even involve the spiritual presence of the body and blood of Christ. Rather, the Lord's Supper is simply a memorial meal that the communicant takes in remembrance of Christ. It's a way of remembering Christ and His sacrifice. Therefore, it is simply an ordinance, not a sacrament. This is the view that typically also characterizes Baptist churches. The Lord's Supper is not a means of grace, nor does the communicant participate in the body and blood of Christ. It's an ordinance that we participate in on a regular basis in order to remember the Lord's sacrifice, to examine ourselves, and to reflect on what he has done on our behalf. So now we have four contrasting views of the Lord's Supper, from a very strong view held by Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, right down to the Baptistic view, namely, transubstantiation, consubstantiation, spiritual presence and communion with the Lord, or simply an ordinance and memorial supper. Well, that's a good breaking point in our lesson. So we'll finish early today, and next time when we resume, we'll look at an assessment of these four competing views.