Participants in the Sufferings of Christ (1 Pet 4:13): 16th-Century Spanish Protestant Ecclesiology by Steven Richard Griffin A Thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Faculty of Religious Studies McGill University Montreal, Quebec © Steven Richard Griffin, January 2011 CONTENTS ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………. iv RÉSUMÉ………………………………………………………………………. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………. vi LIST OF ACRONYMS………………………………………………………… vii INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………… 1 Chapter ONE: CONSTANTINO PONCE DE LA FUENTE (1502 – 1559) AND THE ORIGINS OF SPANISH PROTESTANTISM IN SEVILLE ……………………………………………………. 22 Erasmian Foundation…………………………………………….. 26 Valdés‘ Doctrine of Word and Spirit…………………………..... 32 Constantino Ponce de la Fuente and Reform in Seville…………. 39 Constantino Ponce de la Fuente as a Reformed Catholic………... 45 TWO: SPANISH PROTESTANT SOTERIOLOGY: ‗PARTICIPANTS IN THE SUFFERINGS OF CHRIST‘ …….... 64 The Person and Work of Christ………………………………….. 75 ii Participation in Christ……………………………………………. 80 THREE: THE MARKS AND AUTHORITY OF GOD‘S ‗LITTLE FLOCK‘……………………………………………..… 98 Church as Catholic ‗Little Flock‘………………………………... 99 Scripture and Tradition(s)……………………………………….. 109 The Marks of the True Church…………………………………... 123 FOUR: CEREMONIES ‗OUTSIDE THE CAMP‘……………………..... 136 Corro: Lively Images of Divine Mercy………………………….. 138 Reina: External Instruments of Justification……………………... 154 The Sacrament of the Word……………………………………… 171 FIVE: ‗BEARING THE DISGRACE HE BORE‘: THE CHURCH AND THE WORLD……………………………. 182 Mission Models…………………………………………………... 184 Mission Agents………………………………………………….... 199 The Problem of other Religions………………………………….. 213 The Problem of Authority………………………………………... 219 The Problem of Persecution………………………………………. 223 CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………… 232 BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………… 237 APPENDIX: Spanish-English Edition of Casiodoro de Reina‘s Declaración (1577)……………………………………….. 253 iii Abstract The present study aims to expound the distinctive character of 16th-century Spanish Protestant theology, with special reference to the works of two exiled former monks from Seville, Casiodoro de Reina (c. 1520–1594) and Antonio del Corro (1527– 1591), and thereby to shed light on a relatively neglected Reformation movement. A particular aim is to trace the ecclesiological significance of the Spaniards‘ distinctive image of the church as a persecuted people who share in Christ‘s sufferings in a very public way, with particular reference to standards of authority, formal ordinances, and mission in the world. In Chapter One we investigate the origins of Spanish Protestantism by considering the reforming impulse in the theology of the exiles‘ mentor, the Sevillian cathedral preacher Constantino Ponce de la Fuente (1502 – 1559). In Chapter Two we outline the orthodox (or ‗Chalcedonian‘) Christological assumptions which undergird the Spanish Protestant view of salvation as participation in Christ‘s work as Prophet, Priest and King. In Chapter Three we examine the way in which Reina‘s and Corro‘s doctrine of the church‘s authority in relation to Scripture and their view of the church‘s whereabouts with reference to its marks of obedience, both illustrate and reinforce a nomadic theme in their theology. In Chapter Four we relate their concerns for Christian unity and holiness to their mediating approaches to disputes about the Lord‘s Supper. Here we give special attention to Reina‘s ‗instrumental realism‘ in relation to religious signs, and to the centrality of the ministry of the Word in both reformers‘ sacramental theology. Finally, in Chapter Five we study the missiological aspect of Spanish Protestant ecclesiology, highlighting the way in which questions about human agency, personal holiness and religious tolerance shape a robust understanding of the church‘s witness in the world in general and to Muslims in particular. iv Résumé La présente étude vise à exposer le caractère distinctif de la théologie protestante espagnole du XVIe siècle, notamment à travers des travaux de deux anciens moines exilés de Séville, Casiodoro de Reina (c. 1520 à 1594) et Antonio del Corro (1527- 1591) et, partant, à faire la lumière sur un mouvement plutôt délaissé de la Réforme. Il s'agit en particulier de retracer l'importance ecclésiologique de l'image distinctive qu'entretiennent les Espagnols de l'Église en tant qu'un peuple persécuté qui partage les souffrances du Christ d'une façon très publique, avec l'accent sur les normes de l'autorité, les ordonnances officielles et leur mission dans le monde. Dans le premier chapitre, nous examinons les origines du protestantisme espagnol en tenant compte de l'élan réformateur retrouvé dans la théologie du conseiller des deux exilés, Constantino Ponce de la Fuente (1502-1559), prédicateur de la cathédrale de Séville. Au deuxième chapitre, nous traçons les grandes lignes des suppositions christologiques orthodoxes (ou « chalcédoniennes ») qui sous-tendent le point de vue protestant espagnol du salut comme étant la participation à l'œuvre du Christ Prêtre, Prophète, Roi. Au troisième chapitre, nous examinons la manière dont la doctrine de l'autorité de l'Église concernant l'Écriture Sainte, ainsi que l'opinion de la position de l'Église relative à ses marques d'obéissance, à la fois illustrent et renforcent un thème nomade dans leur théologie. Dans le quatrième chapitre, nous rattachons leurs préoccupations concernant l'unité et la sainteté chrétiennes à leurs approches médiatrices visant les querelles au sujet de la Cène du Seigneur. Nous portons une attention particulière au « réalisme instrumental » de Reina quant aux signes religieux et à la centralité du ministère de la Parole dans la théologie sacramentelle desdits deux réformateurs. Enfin, au chapitre cinq, nous étudions l'aspect missiologique de l'ecclésiologie protestante espagnole, soulignant la manière dont les questions concernant l'action humaine, la sainteté personnelle et la tolérance religieuse façonnent une compréhension solide du témoignage de l'Église dans le monde en général et aux musulmans en particulier. v Acknowledgements I wish to thank my research supervisor, Dr. Torrance Kirby, for reading my work so carefully and thoughtfully, and for offering numerous insightful suggestions at every stage of the project. Staff members of the Rare Books and Humanities divisions of the British Library, and of Dr Williams‘s Library, in London, England, were consistently helpful in obtaining needed materials. I am grateful, too, to the Spanish congregation which meets at St James‘ Church, Muswell Hill, London, and to their pastor, Dr. Samuel Cueva, for allowing me to serve as lay preacher. My profound thanks go to my parents, Richard and Helen, for their Christian example as career missionaries in Mexico, and to my wife, Stella, as well as my children, Laura, Andrew and Sarah, for that special encouragement that comes not only from allowing me the ‗space‘ to study and write, but from joining me in the quest for the City that is to come (Heb 13:14). vi List of Acronyms Alfa. Juan de Valdés, Alfabeto Cristiano, Madrid, 1997 BTD Juan Pérez de Pineda, Breve Tratado de Doctrina, util para todo Cristiano, San Sebastian, 1852 Cate. Constantino Ponce de la Fuente, Catezismo cristiano, Madrid, 1863 Conf. Constantino Ponce de la Fuente, Confesión de un pecador, Sevilla, 2009 Cons. Juan de Valdés, Ziento i Diez Consideraziones, London, 1863 C1Cor. Juan de Valdés, Comentario o declarazión familiar i compendiosa sobre la primera epístola de san Pablo Apóstol a los Corintios, Madrid, 1856 CEJ Casiodoro de Reina, Comentario al Evangelio de Juan, Sevilla, 2009 CFII Antonio del Corro, Carta de Antonio del Corro, a Felipe II, Sevilla, 2006 Dec. Casiodoro de Reina, Declaración, o Confessión de Fe hecha por ciertos fieles españoles, que, huyendo los abusos de la iglesia Romana y la crueldad de la Inquisición d’España hizieron a la Iglesia de los fieles para ser en ella recebidos por hermanos en Christo, Frankfurt, 1577 EOD Antonio del Corro, Exposición de la Obra de Dios, Sevilla, 2006 EPL Antonio del Corro, Epístola y amable admonición de un ministro del Evangelio de nuestro Redentor Jesucristo, enviada a los Pastores de la Iglesia Flamenca de Amberes, Sevilla, 2006 Epis. Juan Pérez de Pineda, Epístola para consolar a los fieles de Jesu Christo, que padecen persecución por la confesión de su nombre, Geneva, 1560 Expo. Constantino Ponce de la Fuente, Exposición del primer Psalmo de David, Sevilla, 2009 CGMatt. Juan de Valdés, Commentary upon the Gospel of St. Matthew, London, 1882 Mat4 Casiodoro de Reina, Capítulo Cuarto del Evangelio de Mateo, Sevilla, 2009 CERom. Juan de Valdés, Comentario o declarazión breve i compendiosa sobre la epístola de san Pablo Apóstol a los Romanos, Madrid, 1856 vii CSalm. Juan de Valdés, Comentario a los Salmos, Madrid, 1885 TCC Cipriano de Valera, Tratado para confirmar los pobres cativos de Berueria en la católica y antigua fe, London, 1594 viii Introduction In his 1932 study of the spiritual history of the Spanish-speaking world, the eminent Presbyterian missionary to Latin America and ecumenist John Mackay made the provocative claim that the Christ who made it to the New World was not ‗Mary‘s Son and Lord‘, but ‗another religious figure with His name and some of His marks‘. That is, while an imposter sailed westward with the Spanish crusaders, the real Christ ‗went to prison in Spain‘, where the Inquisition was admitted as ‗a means