Anselm’s Cur Deus Homo and the Reformed Doctrine of the Atonement
Rev. Angus Stewart examines Anselm of Canterbury's influential medieval work Cur Deus Homo (Why God Became Man) and its significance for Reformed doctrine of the atonement. The article analyzes Anselm's theological framework, particularly his understanding of Christ's necessity as the only means of human salvation, demonstrating how medieval scholastic thought contributed to the development of Protestant atonement theology.
Rev. Angus Stewart I. Introduction Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109) is one of the most important medieval theologians. If Bede is the most historical and Wycliffe the most biblical, Anselm is the most philosophical of great English pre-Reformation thinkers.1 This is not necessarily or even, perhaps, ordinarily, a good thing but if to it is added a dash of originality and, in many areas, a high degree of theological acumen, we can understand why Anselm has always commanded interest and...