>Irenaeus, the Bishop of Lyon (ca. 130-200), in describing his view of the atonement, developed the theory of recapitulation. This view of the atonement teaches that Jesus Christ as the second Adam recapitulated human experience.

David Neff, the editor-in-chief of the Christianity Today Media Group has written a post, What’s the Fuss About Recapitulation Theology? in which he discusses the recapitulation theory and explains the reasons he likes this theory.

In his definition of recapitulation, Neff wrote:

One way that Jesus sums things up is by getting right what Adam got wrong. Adam was supposed to be the head of the human race, but he bungled it and sent the race off course. And so we need a new humanity headed by a new Adam.

What called my attention to David Neff’s post was his statement that my former colleague, Robert E. Webber, dedicated a whole chapter in one of his many books to recapitulation theology. I have to confess that I missed Bob’s discussion of recapitulation.

This means that I will be heading to the library soon to read Bob Webber’s view on the recapitulation theory. I know that I will learn some thing new from Bob.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Irenaeus, Recapitulation Theory