Transubstantiation: Theology, History, and Christian Unity
Digital Verbum Edition
Overview
This thoroughgoing study examines the doctrine of transubstantiation from historical, theological, and ecumenical vantage points. Brett Salkeld explores eucharistic presence in the theologies of Aquinas, Luther, and Calvin, showing that Christians might have more in common on this topic than they have typically been led to believe. As Salkeld corrects false understandings of the theology of transubstantiation, he shows that Luther and Calvin were much closer to the medieval Catholic tradition than is often acknowledged.
- Explores eucharistic presence in the theologies of Aquinas, Luther, and Calvin
- Corrects false understandings of the theology of transubstantiation
- Examines the doctrine of transubstantiation from historical, theological, and ecumenical vantage points
- Introduction: Transubstantiation in Dispute and Dialogue
- Transubstantiation in the Catholic Tradition
- Martin Luther
- John Calvin
Top Highlights
“Christ’s sacramental presence operates on the logic of symbol, not on the level of chemistry or physics. When the symbol has ceased, so has the presence.” (Page 125)
“I rather casually mentioned Christ’s ‘physical presence.’ My professor stopped me and said, ‘But, Brett, that’s a heresy!’ Seeing the surprise on my face, she continued, ‘It’s called capharnaism, named for the Jews at Capernaum who had misunderstood Jesus’s claims in John 6.’” (Pages 30–31)
“according to it, the substance of the bread and wine would exist with (con) the substance of Christ’s body and blood” (Page 93)
“It is at this point that Thomas’s break with Aristotle becomes crystal clear” (Page 96)
“To moderns, ‘symbol’ is typically seen as opposed to ‘reality.’3” (Page 58)
I learned so much from this book. Salkeld boldly touches the third rail of ecumenism: the doctrine of transubstantiation, the very mention of which is bound to raise the hackles of both Protestants and (increasingly since Vatican II) Catholics. He defends the startling suggestion that Lutherans, Reformed, and Catholics can find in a proper understanding of ‘transubstantiation’ the position on real presence that each yearns to uphold. As he shows, the meaning of the term had become obscured by the sixteenth century, just as it largely has today. Salkeld writes with love and admiration for his fellow Christians. May this wonderful book enrich Christian unity as we approach the mysteries of the Lord’s table.
—Matthew Levering, James N. and Mary D. Perry Jr. Chair of Theology, Mundelein Seminary
In December chill the laborer hastens home at dusk to the hearth. So Brett Salkeld’s work in this time of ‘ecumenical winter’ warms the reader with the glow of ecumenically intentional dogmatics. If Protestants still wish to douse the fire with a bucket of cold water to the effect that Rome has never heard the witness of the Reformation, Salkeld’s careful and sympathetic reading of sixteenth-century eucharistic theology, like Elijah’s fire on Mount Carmel, vaporizes the objection.
—Paul R. Hinlicky, Tise Professor of Lutheran Studies, Roanoke College; Docent, Evanjelická Bohoslovecká Fakulta, Univerzita Komenského, Bratislava, Slova
It is a great scandal that the Eucharist, the sacrament of Christian unity, has been the occasion for fracture and division in the body of Christ. At the heart of many of the controversies has been the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation. Brett Salkeld’s book is the best ecumenical study of this topic to appear in years. He asks Catholics to consider what the Church actually teaches on the subject, and invites Protestants to wonder if their own eucharistic doctrines aren't in fact closer to transubstantiation than they've been led to believe. Agree with Salkeld or not, his book is a model of charitable and intelligent ecumenical theology.
—Joseph Mangina, Wycliffe College, Toronto School of Theology
Brett Salkeld (PhD, Regis College, University of Toronto) is archdiocesan theologian for the Archdiocese of Regina, Saskatchewan, and has served for many years on the national Canadian Roman Catholic-Evangelical Dialogue. He is the book review editor for the journal Pro Ecclesia and has written or edited several books, including Can Catholics and Evangelicals Agree about Purgatory and the Last Judgment?
Reviews
1 rating
Jonathan A.
6/25/2025
This book is phenomenal. I am a Christian in the Anglican tradition, and while I found much of the Catholic theology of the Eucharist compelling, I couldn't really agree to transubstantiation as I understood it. This book helped me understand transubstantiation, helped me understand why earlier I couldnt understand it, and made an interesting case that understanding the actual substance of transubstantiation, as articulated by Aquinas (against 15th and 16th century articulations of it) would be helpful for ecumencial progress not only between Catholics and Protestants but even between Protestants. I was not expecting to be convinced, but I am now. Reading this book was as gripping for me as a good detective story, even though it is at a semi-academic register. I would recommend this along side Brant Pitre's Jewish Roots of the Lords Supper (which has a very different subject matter, tone and register than this book). Also, while it was more expensive on Logos than some other ebook formats, I found the resource linking VERY rewarding for diving deeper (provided one has Calvins Insitutes and Aquina's Summa Theologica. I was glad to have spent a little more money for the convenience and value that the hyperlinked references and footnotes provided.