The Presbyterii fidelium representative of God’s-Human Covenant in missio Dei

Abstract

The Presbyterii fidelium (Priesthood of the faithful or the priesthood of all believers), is an important tenet of Protestant-Reformed Christianity and the foundation upon which all Reformed ecclesiology is built. Early Reformers formulated this doctrine on the basis of Sacred Scripture (Sola Scriptura) affirming salvation as the grace of God (Sola Gratia) through faith alone (Sola Fide), in the divine sending work of Christ (Solus Christus) and consequently giving all Glory to God alone (Soli Deo Gloria). Although the Missio Dei may have been fully explored, particularly from the resulting perspectives of the 1952 Willingen IMC Conference, its God-human covenant as underscoring the priesthood of all believers is rarely rationalized. Relying on available literature, this paper defines the priesthood of all believers as anchored in Sola scriptura, Sola fide, Solus Christus, and Sola gratia to understand human participation in the missio Dei. While these five solas are correctly expressed within the theological framework of the teachings of Calvinism, abbreviated TULIP, they are considered here from the broad perspective of their emergence in the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. Consequently, this contribution uses the broad perspective of both the Solae doctrines in conjunction with presbyterii fidelium with expressed intention of deepening the understanding of human participation in the context of the Missio Dei. By enriching the field of missiology with Reformed Knowledge, this article makes a contribution as it discusses the priesthood of all believers in the context of human participation in the Missio Dei.