The Institutes of the Christian Religion is one of the great systematic theologies in church history. It begins with the assumption of the absolute sovereignty of God and carefully derives other doctrines from that. Calvin did not want to deal with predestination, but he felt compelled to because logic and Scripture demanded it. Some of his ideas are presented below
As Scripture, then, clearly shows, we say that God once established by His eternal and unchangeable plan those whom He long before determined once for all to receive into salvation, and those whom . . . He would devote to destruction. We assert that, with respect to the elect, this plan was founded upon His freely given mercy, without regard to human worth, but by His just and irrep- rehensible but incomprehensible judgment He has barred the door of life to those whom He has given over to damnation. Now among the elect we regard the call as a testimony of election.
Then we hold justification another sign of its manifestation, until they come into the glory in which the fulfillment of that election lies. But as the Lord seals His elect by call and justification, so, by shutting off the reprobate from knowledge of His name or from the sanctification of His Spirit, He, as it were, reveals by these marks what sort of judgment awaits them.
preaching a type of double predestination, which means some were chosen to be saved while others were chosen to be damned. According to Calvin, God's choices can not be understood because the ways of God are a great mystery that can not be grasped by humans. A mighty gulf separates God and humans. People's actions could not affect their fate A person could live like a saint, attend church, forsake pleasure, help the needy, and engage in prayer, sacraments, and worship In the end, God might arbitrarily choose to damn that person. Another person could live like the devil, pursue pleasure, greed, and lust, and hate the church. At death, God might choose to save that person.
Calvin regarded those chosen by God as the elect. The elect are those redeemed by Christ. Calvin believed the benefits of Christ are made available to the elect through the inner, secret operations of the Holy Spirit in their hearts. The main activity of the Holy Spirit is to produce faith in Christ This faith is firm and sure. It is the deep awareness of the love of God toward the
Some . . . falsely and wickedly accuse God of biased justice because in His predestination He does not maintain the same attitude toward all. If, they say, He finds all guilty, let Him punish all equally,- if innocent, let Him withhold the rigor of His judgment from all. But they so act toward Him as if either mercy were to be forbidden to Him or as if when He wills to show mercy He is compelled to renounce His judgment completely.
Augustine's statements most aptly accord with this: "Since in the first man the whole mass of the race fell under condemnation . . . those vessels of it which are made unto honor are vessels not of their own righteousness . . . but Gods mercy, but that other vessels are made unto dishonor [cf. Rom. 9: 2 1 ] is to be laid not to inquiry but to judgment." Because God metes out merited penalty to those whom He condemns but distributes unmerited grace to those whom He calls, He is freed to all accusation . . . "The Lord can therefore also give grace ... to whom He will . . . because He is merciful, and not give to all because He is a just judge. For by giving to some what they do not deserve, . . . He can show His free grace ... By not giving to all, He can manifest what all deserve."
Source: From Hans J. Hillerbrand, ed., The Protestant Reformation (New York:
Harper and Row, 1968), 189, 211-212. Copyright 1968 Hans Hillerbrand. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers.
saved. It is revealed to the mind and sealed on the heart by the Holy Spirit. In part, faith is what one believes in the mind, in part, it is the inner assurance of one's salvation. Calvin also taught justification by faith Calvin believed Christ's justification is imputed to the sinner, but justification still results in a change in the character of the believer. Christ works in the heart of the believer to produce obedience to God The image of God in humans that was deformed by sin is slowly restored.
Calvin held that there is both a visible and an invisible church The visible church is the institution apparent to everyone in the world However, it contains both the elect and non-elect. The invisible church is the real church that contains only the elect. It is impossible to separate the elect from the nonelect. That will only be revealed at the end of time Preaching and administering the sacraments are signs of the invisible church Personal holiness is not a sign of the real church as the Anabaptists taught. Christians still remain sinners
THE REFORMATION
despite their efforts to submit to God's rule The church must do away with trappings such as images and organ music. It must return to the primitive Christianity of the Scriptures
Calvin held there were two sacraments—baptism and the Lord's Supper. He took a middle ground on the sacraments They were not merely symbolic as in Zwingli's teaching. Neither did they "bring down" grace as Luther and the Catholics taught. Their main purpose was to feed the faith of the believer who took them They did that by "lifting up" the faithful to participate in union with Christ and God's grace. Baptism washes away sin and also sustains the elect throughout their lives. Infant baptism was acceptable. People could be baptized by immersion in water or by sprinkling water on them. The Lord's Supper provides invisible food for the soul through partaking of the body and blood of Christ. However, the elements do not literally become the flesh and blood of Christ. The faithful are "elevated" to heaven to partake of the heavenly body of Christ . 6
CONCLUSIONS
Abuses in the Catholic church spurred widespread recognition of the need to reform. The fifteenth-century conciliar movement was largely ineffective at producing the needed changes. Luther's opposition to common abuses of his day generated excitement throughout the Continent. Dissatisfied Christians rallied to his cause. Some of the German princes identified with his religious convictions and used his popularity to offset the power of the emperor.
Ulrich Zwingli and John Calvin capitalized on the same discontent to start reform in Switzerland. Zwingli's and Calvin's theology was similar to Luther's but it disagreed significantly on some points. Efforts to reconcile the two branches of the emerging Reformation failed. Luther and Calvin came to be recognized as the leaders of two separate movements in Protestantism. The following chapter examines two other branches of the Reformation and assesses the impact of the Reformation on the church at large and on Western society
1. Ferdinand and Isabella were married before they became rulers in their regions Isabella ruled in Castile from 1474 to 1504 Ferdinand ruled in Aragon fro.m 1479 to 1516
2. This forbidding of usury during the Middle Ages gave Jews a unique status in Europe Jews could engage in lending because they were outside the church. Some Jews lent money to Christians at a profit Ordinary people, princes, and popes borrowed from them. Various Jewish families became the bankers of Europe and accumulated vast fortunes. This made the Jews, who were despised by many Christians, necessary to the functioning of medieval society Christians got into the banking business relatively late
A WATERSHED IN HISTORY (1500 - 1 600 c E )
3. For a discussion of the world of the Reformation, see John B Harrison, Richard E Sullivan, and Dennis Sherman, A Short History of Western Civilization , 6th ed (New York: Knopf, 1985), 331-372.
4 . Some historians believe that the only posting done that day was Luther mailing the theses to his bishop They feel the "church door" scene is just a dramatic legend
5. Luther's arguments were based in part on the Renaissance idea of studying manuscripts in the original texts The Vulgate as well as the Bible used in the Eastern church were based on the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible done in Alexandria for Jews living outside the Holy Land This version contained several books not found in earlier Hebrew canons. Interestingly, when Saint Jerome (ca. 342—420) was compiling a new Latin Bible that became the Vulgate, he insisted that translations be made directly from the Hebrew He completed part of this Bible However, the Vulgate, which probably was compiled in the sixth century, contained his new translations as well as older translations from the Greek. This mixing left a corrupted text that was a source of controversy well into the Reformation Luther was building on this age-old controversy, which had been heightened by the Renaissance Many who stayed in the Catholic church disputed the same books as Luther. The "conservatives" won out at the Council of Trent, which confirmed the Vulgate as the official Catholic Bible. The Eastern church accepts those books found in the Septuagint.
6. For a good discussion of the theology of Luther and Calvin, see Justo L. Gonzalez, A History of Christian Thought, vol. 3, From the Protestant Reformation to the Twentieth Century (New York: Abingdon, 1975). For Luther, see 25—62, for Calvin, see 120—161.
Bainton, Roland H. Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther. Nashville: Abingdon, 1950.
-. The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century. Boston: Beacon, 1952.
-—. Women of the Reformation in Germany and Italy. Minneapolis: Ausburg, 1971
--. Women of the Reformation in France and England. Minneapolis: Ausburg, 1973.
Calvin, John. Institutes of the Christian Religion. Translated by J. T McNeill. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1960.
Erikson, Erik. Young Man Luther. New York: Norton, 1962.
Grant, Arthur James. The Huguenots. Hamden, Conn.: Archon, 1969.
Hendrix, Scott H Luther and the Papacy: Stages in a Reformation Conflict. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1981
Luther, Martin. Luther's Works. Edited by J. Pelikan and H. Lehman. 55 volumes. St. Louis: Concordia, 1955.
Manschreck, Clyde L. Melanchthon: The Quiet Reformer. New York: Abingdon, 1958.
Neill, Stephen. Colonialism and Christian Missions. London: Lutterworth, 1966.
Ridley, Jasper. John Knox. New York: Oxford University Press, 1968.
Rilliet, Jean H. Zwingli.- Third Man of the Reformation. London: Lutterworth, 1964
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CHAPTER NINE