This groundbreaking study offers a sweeping overview and reconsideration of John Calvin’s theology. In Calvin’s Ladder Julie Canlis recovers some of the common (and neglected) themes that Calvin shared with the Patristic Fathers. She shows that his works are shot through with a vibrant theology of “participation,” thus placing Calvin within the Christian mystical tradition — contrary to mainstream scholarship.

A work of both theology and spiritual formation, Calvin’s Ladder suggests an entirely distinctive way of conceiving the relation between God and humanity, challenging not only old caricatures of Calvin but also our own self-portraits.