Europe in the Age of the Reformation

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John Calvin is at least on a par with Martin Luther as the creator of the Reformation. Luther's followers created a formal church, but Calvin's followers created many churches; among them, the French Huguenots, the English Puritans, the Scottish Presbyterians, and the Dutch Reformed Church. Calvin had great influence in German lands, and Luther had great influence in Western Europe, but you will not go too far wrong to see Calvin's hand in the churches west of the Rhine River, and Luther's hand in the churches east of the Rhine.

Calvin's theology was similar to Luther's in many respects, but there were enough fundamental differences to result in a separate church. Probably the best known aspect of Calvinist theology regards predestination, which Calvin interpreted strictly; while there's some debate over the differences on this point between Luther and Calvin, there's no doubt that it became a distinguishing point among the followers of each. More significant were the differences in the relationship between church and state, with Calvin placing much more authority with the clergy and Luther placing the greater emphasis for church regulation with the prince.

By the time Calvin was influential, the Protestants had already failed to reconcile doctrinal differences at Marburg in 1529 (between Luther and Zwingli), so the formation of Calvinist churches was just one more wrinkle in the Protestant revolution. At the same time, though, because Calvinism came about a generation behind Lutheranism, it was definitely the upstart church, and especially in Germany it was some time before Calvinist churches were tolerated by public authority. Elsewhere, though, particularly in France, and the Low Countries, Calvinism was the dominant form of Protestantism.

Early Career

John Calvin was born at Noyon, France, on 10 July 1509, the son of a notary. He went to the University of Paris in 1523 (it was not unusual to attend university at so young an age), where he learned Latin from the humanist Mathurin Cordier. He developed a strong love of languages and earned his Master of Arts in 1528 in theology.

He then went to the University of Orléans where he studied for the law. All this was quite normal, the son of a notary following in his father's footsteps. He took his law degree in 1531, concentrating on sacred languages, after which he returned to Paris. At Orléans he studied Greek with Melchior Wolmar, a Lutheran, so we know that he had at least some exposure to reformist ideas.

Then, in 1532, Calvin experienced a spiritual conversion. It was typical of Calvin that he gives us virtually no details of this crucial moment in his life. In contrast with Luther, who is extensively autobiographical, Calvin wrote merely that he had experienced a "sudden conversion," and we must be satisfied with that.

Calvin in Flight

In Paris he now began to associate with the more radical religious elements. As the government began to bring some pressure to bear, he found it expedient to flee France in 1534, much to his father's distress.

Calvin made for Italy, but along the way he stopped at Basle where he delivered a manuscript for printing. It was entitled Institutes of the Christian Religion, a dry and careful book, the work of a law-trained scholar. It made little impression at the time, but Calvin re-worked the book for years, and the Institutes became the definitive statement of Calvinism.

He went on to Italy, returned to Paris briefly, then headed back to Italy again. On his way, he passed through Geneva and became embroiled in the local political and religious scene there (1536). He never made it to Italy.

Geneva

The city council of Geneva was interested in reform, but wanted to maintain control of it (a pattern followed in a number of cities). It called a general council of the city in May to approve "the new reformation of the faith." Calvin was in the city to witness these heady events, but was still determined to go on to Italy. But in August, one of the chief reformers, Guillaume Farel, persuaded Calvin to stay. While initially retained to serve as a writer and theologian, Calvin quickly proved that he had skills as a preacher as well. This brought him increasingly into the public eye. By November he was appointed as a pastor.

It was Calvin who drew up a draft of principles by which Christians in Geneva ought to live. He spent all of 1537 in the city, writing, fulfilling his pastoral duties, and trying to get the City Council to adopt his "Articles on the Government of the Church."

The more conservative faction had allies in the nearby city of Bern. In 1538, this faction was able to force Calvin and Farel to leave Geneva, and Calvin went to Strassbourg.

Strassbourg

At Strassbourg, that universal home of dissidents and refugees, Calvin became pastor of the French congregation there and enjoyed much success as a preacher.

He associated closely with the leading figures of Strassbourg. He learned a great deal from Martin Bucer.

He extensively re-worked the Institutes of the Christian Religion, his detailed statement of the principles of Christianity, expanding it and translating it into French. Its publication in 1541 was a landmark in the history of the French language, much as Luther's German Bible was for that language.

Geneva Redux

In 1541, too, Calvin was invited back to Geneva by the city council (the Bern faction had been voted out). His reputation had grown to such stature that the city regarded him as a prize. From the beginning of his return to Geneva, Calvin made it plain that he was going to have a strong voice in how the city was run. By November of that year, a series of ordinances were passed that created in Geneva that division of lay and spiritual powers that had long been the theoretical ideal in Europe. The City Council governed, but the Consistory (made up of preachers and elders) ruled on all matters of faith and could refer citizens to the City Council for disciplining.

This created the Geneva known to most people: the Geneva that forbade dancing and gambling, that constrained its citizens in every direction, and that executed heretics on its own authority. Later historians have called it a theocracy, pointing out that in nearly every case that mattered, the Consistory—with John Calvin as the driving force behind it—got its way and was not overruled by the City Council.

It is difficult to argue with this stereotype, though some historians have tried. Many of the regulations seem downright silly or even frightening to us, but many cities had sumptuary legislation that regulated what people could wear, how they could celebrate feasts, and even how fancy their weddings could be. These laws could be found in both Catholic and Protestant towns. What made Geneva different was how carefully and clearly formulated were the powers of the church authorities, and how equally detailed were its relations with the government. In most other towns this developed organically. In Geneva it was instituted in legislation.

The precise, legalistic mind of Calvin can be seen at every turn. In church governance, for example, which Luther never had worked out clearly, Calvin decreed four types of clergy: pastors, elders, deacons, and teachers. Pastors were to preach the Word of God. Teachers were to teach and interpret the Word to young people. Elders were to govern and correct. Deacons were to administer charity. This church structure, along with the theology, marks a Calvinist church as something quite different from a Lutheran church.

Conflict in Paradise

When John Knox arrived in Geneva as a refugee, he declared that the city was the most perfect Christian community he'd ever seen. Even so, tensions existed. While Calvin's old enemies had been forced out of power, they hadn't been forced out of town, and there were grumblings from them. Grumblings, too, came from ordinary citizens who resented the influx of foreigners, especially Frenchmen, who were now pouring into Geneva, making it rather a different town and bringing economic dislocation in their wake.

The grumblings boiled over from time to time. There was talk and sometimes placards appeared mysteriously in public. There were even occasional threats of violence. These were met vigorously by the city; in a few cases, arrests were made, resulting in at least one case in an execution. Calvin did not take public criticism well and took public mockery even worse.

The most notorious case, though, was really external to all this. In 1553 Michael Servetus was fleeing for his life, having been condemned as a heretic both by the Catholic Church and by the French crown. He was going to Italy, but stopped on the way in Geneva. Even though he and Calvin had engaged in a long, bitter correspondence, Servetus couldn't resist going to see Calvin preach on that Sunday. He was recognized and was immediately arrested.

Servetus was a difficult man. He was obstreperous and argumentative, and was utterly convinced he was right and everyone else was wrong, and never missed a chance to say so. The trouble was, his beliefs were so radical that pretty much all Christendom hated and feared him. He denied the Trinity. He claimed Christ was not a man, and many other heresies. He had held these for years, until he'd finally run out of friends to protect him.

Calvin was not a hesitant man. He had declared that if Servetus ever came to Geneva he would not leave. After some months in prison, Servetus was at last condemned by the City Council to be burned at the stake. Calvin's role in his condemnation (though not the sentence) was pivotal.

It's rather fashionable nowadays to portray Servetus as a hero of free thinking and a forerunner of Unitarianism. In the 1550s, however, Servetus had no friends. He was regarded as vicious and dangerous, a holder of ideas so pernicious that they had to be stamped out without mercy. Everyone wanted to execute him; Geneva merely got to him first.

Later Years

By the mid-1550s, Calvin and his supporters were unchallenged in Geneva. While his so-called theocratic rule of the city, via the Consistory, has attracted much attention (and criticism), his greatest achievements were at once beyond that city and within himself; namely, the creation of a school for preachers, and the completion of his great work The Institutes of the Christian Religion. Between the two, what Calvin was able to construct (with much help) at Geneva became a model for churches all across Europe. It was the Academy and the Institutes that shaped Reformed churches much more than did the Consistory.

The Academy

Education has always been a cornerstone of Calvinist churches, and this tradition stems from Calvin himself. He reformed Geneva's college and founded a separate Academy in 1559 specifically for religious education and the training of pastors. Theodore Béza was its first administrator. From its beginning, students came from all across Europe, were trained in Calvinist doctrine and practice, then returned to their homelands not only to minister but also to preach and evangelize. In this way, Geneva from about 1560 became an evangelical center, and Calvinism began to make its influence felt everywhere: for example, the Puritans in England, the Dutch Reformed movement, the so-called Second Reformation in Germany, and the Huguenots in France.

The Academy was strongly grounded in humanist methods, for both Calvin and Béza had received solid humanist education.

As graduates of the Academy returned to their homelands, they not only took with them Calvinist doctrine and practice, they took also their educational experiences of the Academy itself. In their turn, they formed schools of their own. Particularly those from England and Holland formed a model for academies in the American colonies (our university system was later heavily influenced, particularly in the seminar, by German universities of the 19th century). It's worth mentioning, however, that Calvin himself was imitating a religious school: the one in Strasbourg, founded by Johannes Sturm, which Calvin knew because he'd actually taught there while in that city.

The Genevan Academy, though, was infinitely more influential. In its first year it had 162 students. By 1565, six years later, it had about 1,600 students. The school was free, but all students had to swear to the Confession of Faith; only Calvinists would attend the Academy. Logic was taught, as were Latin, Greek and Hebrew. Within only a few years it became one of the most influential centers of Reformed learning in Europe, and remained so for generations.

The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Calvin wrote the first version of his great religious treatise early in his life, in the 1530s, but he continued to work on it throughout the years. The final revision, published in 1559, was much longer. It had not changed in its essence, but was far more detailed and more thoroughly argued than the initial version. This work became the standard reference work, after the Bible itself, for all of the Reformed churches of Europe, and in turn for American Puritans.

The work is notable for its clarity and rigor. It is not a passionate book; rather, it is precise and closely-argued, like a legal brief or a technical work of philosophy. This helped keep an element of consistency among Reformed churches, but it also invited popularizations and summaries, for the Institutes can be tough sledding for the average parishoner. It's here in the Institutes, though, that one can find clear answers as to what Calvin thought about original sin, God's grace, predestination, baptism, relations between ministers and magistrates, and so on.

By the time the final version was published, the printing industry was in full swing, and the book was soon translated into a variety of languages Calvin himself wrote it first in Latin and then wrote a version in French. The French version had a similar impact on written French that Luther's Bible did on written German.

Between the hundreds of trained Calvinist ministers and public officials coming out of the Academy, and the thousands of copies of the Institutes being printed across Europe, Calvin's ideas had a tremendous impact from the later 1550s onward.

His Death

John Calvin died at Geneva on 27 May 1564, spending his last few years preaching and writing numerous letters to correspondents across Europe. When he died, he left strict instructions that he was to have no memorial tomb and no special ceremonies. He was as strict with himself in death as he had been all of his life.

His influence survived his death precisely because of the Academy and the Institutes, as I have already indicated. He also wrote commentaries on most of the books of the Bible, and a number of other works besides, providing a wide-ranging corpus from which his followers could work. Any place you find reference to a "Reformed" church in Europe, that's a Calvinist church.