Reading the decree : exegesis, election and Christology in Calvin and Barth

This thesis examines the exegesis of election in John Calvin and Karl Barth, and considers the relationship between the election and Christology in their thought. It argues that for both Calvin and Barth their doctrine of election and its exegetical moorings are christologically shaped, but in significantly different ways. The thesis explores a conceptual distinction between Calvin’s theology as Christocentric in a soteriological sense, and Barth’s as Christocentric in a principial sense. Calvin’s exegesis of election reveals a doctrine of election which may be described as christocentric (if by this we understand Christ to be central to salvation-history and the effecting of redemption within the economy). Allied to this, Calvin’s exegesis of election is explained by a hermeneutical approach to Scripture which is extensively Christocentric – his reading of the whole of the biblical narrative is shaped by his understanding of how Christology functions within that narrative. Conversely, Barth’s exegesis of election reveals a doctrine of election which, when carefully nuanced, may be described as Christocentric in a methodologically principial way. This exegesis is best understood in tandem with Barth’s theology of interpretation which is intensively Christological – his reading of the Bible privileges the name of Jesus Christ in ways which go significantly beyond Calvin’s understanding of how Christology functions in exegesis. To show this, Chapter 1 examines Calvin’s and Barth’s exegesis of different biblical texts to show understandings of Christ’s role in election that are soteriological (Calvin) and principial (Barth). Chapter 2 examines their exegesis of Romans 9-11 to show how their different forms of christocentrism continue to exert interpretive influence when they interpret the same biblical text. Chapter 3 offers an account of their wider theologies of interpretation and shows that here Christology structures different accounts of the hermeneutical enterprise in both interpreters.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo