Church Matters: Retrieving the Great Tradition

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Chur ch Mat ter s : Ret r i ev i ng the Great Trad i t i on

in principle yet seeking to apply it within restructured clergy/laity structures.

b. Some more liturgical and sacramental Protestant traditions (i.e., Anglicans and some Lutherans) retained their ministerial structures allowing them to claim continuity with classic Catholic views.

c. This difficulty in discovering lay gifts and ministries was a major factor in the Radical Reformers’ frustration with the magisterial Reformation.

5. Rethinking the Sacraments . Protestantism generally reconsidered the seven sacraments of Catholicism, stressing those with Christological warrant: baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

a. All forms of the Reformation rejected the Catholic interpretation of the Eucharist as sacrifice, acknowl edged communion in Roman Catholic and Reformed settings, but debated its meaning.

b. The issue of presence: While Luther argued for the real corporeal presence “under the elements,” Calvin argued for a spiritual presence, while Zwingli emphasized the Lord’s Supper as a memorial of Christ’s death.

c. Many current Protestants tend to Zwingli’s view, yet in Anglicanism, Lutheranism and some sections of the Reformed traditions more classic views of the Supper are held.