Luis de Molina: The Life and Theology of the Founder of Middle Knowledge is a unique work on the life of Luis de Molina. In fact, it is the first of its kind. Dr. Kirk MacGregor insightfully and interestingly combs through dozens of primary sources, many in Latin, to present the first critical biography/theology of Luis de Molina. There is much to commend in MacGregor’s book and I simply wish to briefly review the contents of this educational piece.

MacGregor’s discussion of Molina’s life can be neatly broken into three sections: Molina’s early life and conversion, the theology of the Concordia, and the Inquisition and end of Molina’s life. I will take these in turn. I have personally studied Molinism for some time now and was surprised to find how little I really knew about the life of Molina himself. He grew up in Spain, the son of a wealthy nobleman. Eventually, Molina was sent away to study law and continue to amass wealth for his family. However, Molina was a man with a deeply troubled conscience due to his intense love for money. This caused him to doubt his own spiritual standing. Eventually Molina came into contact with Jesuit literature and was converted. He then became a novice Jesuit. One of the many things which surprised me about Molina’s life was his conversion experience. As a Protestant believer in justification by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, I had serious doubts about the salvation of Molina given his Jesuit background. I was very glad to find that Molina’s concept of justification was very nearly that of Calvin and the Reformers. Due to his strong belief in justification by faith alone, Molina never doubted his salvation from the moment of his conversion. What a refreshing discovery!

After describing the early life of Molina, MacGregor turns to a discussion of the theology of the Concordia, Molina’s life work. The manner in which he approaches Molina’s theology allows Molina to speak for himself, a feat many theologians have not attempted with regard to Molinism. The discussion begins by elaborating on the revolutionary doctrine of Middle Knowledge. Dr. MacGregor’s elucidation of middle knowledge, as well as the various application of it, is so clear and helpful that it deserves a place as a standard introduction to the theology of Molinism. After this explication, Dr. MacGregor lays out the various doctrines to which Molina applied Middle Knowledge, specifically: the doctrines of providence and predestination. I personally thought that Dr. MacGregor’s choice to discuss providence prior to predestination was a brilliant didactic move. By explicating Molina’s doctrine of providence first, Dr. MacGregor provides a framework by which to understand Molina’s teachings on predestination. Dr. MacGregor has provided a thoughtful and interesting explanation of the key tenets of Molina’s thought.

Finally, the book ends by discussing the controversy and events surrounding the publishing of the Concordia. The reader is walked through the inquisitions investigation of Molina as well as presented with the Thomistic resistance to middle knowledge. This provides a nice interchange between the Molinist and Thomist views of providence. Further, the end of Molina’s life allowed him to produce a lesser known work on matters of justice and law. At this point, the book concludes with a discussion of Molina’s thoughts on social justice (which were far ahead of their time) and his death and legacy.

In sum, Dr. MacGregor has provided the theological community with a brilliant introduction to Molina and his thought. This remarkable man produced a legacy of thought which is sure to continue to bear fruit well into the future. Luis de Molina: the Life and Theology of the Founder of Middle Knowledge by Kirk MacGregor is a must read and belongs on everyone’s shelf.