Feeding and forming the People of God: the Lord, his Supper and the Church in Calvin and 1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Abstract

In this chapter I seek to identify the specific value of the Lord's Supper in distinction from hearing the Word, by reading Calvin’s commentary on 1 Corinthians 11:17-34, and by seeking to supplement his account through fresh theological engagement with the biblical text. Reading Scripture leads Calvin to identify the Supper, in answer to Cocksworth’s question, as an intensified moment of covenant with God in soul-nourishing union with Christ and one another, intensified because of the instrumental role of physical signs. Yet he pays relatively little attention to the importance of the life of the visible church community in the meaning of the Supper in Paul’s argument. By exploring this ecclesial dimension further, I argue, we see the practical, ethical and missional implications of the Supper’s meaning for the church.