Interpreting Luther's Christology Questions for Richard Cross’s Book Communicatio Idiomatum

Abstract

In a response to Richard Cross’ insightful and instructive book Communicatio Idiomatum. Reformation Christological Debates, I raise and discuss four issues: Luther’s view of philosophy, Luther's criticism of scholasticism and of dialectics/logic, his appreciation of grammatica or redekunst as opposed to logica, his recourse to the common use of language and to language figures in his explanations of Christology, and finally his novel understanding of Christology. The aim of the article is—with reference to selected Luther texts—to point to themes and problems in Luther's world of thought which have to some extent been left aside in Cross’ investigation. These themes belong fundamentally within a thorough treatment of Luther's Christology and addressing them more directly would therefore perhaps have shed a different light on some of the core issues that Cross raises. Also the conclusion, that Luther forms the beginning of a Lutheran scholasticism, is tentatively brought into question.