So who was John Calvin?

Who was John Calvin and what are we to make of this 16th century theologian today? As the worldwide family of Reformed churches celebrates the 500th anniversary of his birth, a Geneva-based theologian examines our perception of a contradiction between the professed faith and the actions of this influential leader of the Reform movement. Though Calvin preached that God’s will is for the well-being of sinners, he is remembered for having allowed Michael Servetus to be put to death for heresy.

- -
	Statue of John Calvin in Mátészalka, Hungary

Theodore Gill, Senior Editor for the World Council of Churches, begins his exploration of John Calvin’s story with a caution that we cannot judge our “16th century ancestor in the faith” without first understanding the context in which he lived.

Gill describes the Paris of the late 1520’s and early 1530’s-- the time of Calvin’s “conversion” there to the Reformed movement--as a “hotbed of reformation debate”. Ignatius of Loyola, co-founder of the Jesuit order, and Michael Servetus, who later became a pioneer in Unitarian thought, both arrived in Paris at that time. Calls for reform of the church were in the air.

By the time Calvin was called for a second time to Geneva in 1541 to direct the city’s church and advise on civic matters, the city leaders were having trouble holding the state and church together. They needed Calvin’s combination of theological and legal abilities. His enforcement of what some see as draconian limits on social behaviour led to what Gill calls Calvin’s reputation as “a gloomily obsessive proto-Puritan”.

Yet, says Gill, “The heart of Calvin’s interest in civil order is found in his observation that ‘social disorder is first and foremost disdain for the poor and oppression of the weak.’”

“Calvin was a lawyer, a linguist and a logician, and this had a major impact on the way he expressed himself. He appealed to the mind of each listener. But he also emphasized the role of the heart in faith and in faithful action. His personal seal showed a heart held in an outstretched hand – his outstretched hand – a symbol demonstrating his desire to offer his heart in God’s service. Consider Calvin’s description of the good news that Christianity offers: The good news is that, sinners though we are, God’s will is for our well-being.”

Yet the controversy that has left the most serious stain on John Calvin’s memory surrounds the execution of Michael Servetus, a case that calls into question Calvin’s ability to live according to a belief in divine benevolence.

Michael Servetus, a physician and well-known supporter of Unitarianism, had been condemned to death for the heresy of denying the Trinity. Though some Genevans pleaded for mercy, Calvin believed Servetus was a threat to the faith and deserved to die. And so Servetus was burned at the stake, on a spot where the Reformed community in the 20th century would erect a monument of apology for this act of intolerance.

Gill concluds by saying, “And this is where I find myself frustrated. Is it possible to enter the strangeness of another age and fully understand its worldview? Perhaps not, but there is evidence enough for us to agree with Calvin’s final testament in which he described himself as a ‘wretched sinner’. Being caught in the preconceptions of one’s age is an aspect of human failing that John Calvin shared with us.”

Theodore Gill is an ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church USA who, while serving on the staff of the World Council of Churches in Geneva, attends services in the Auditoire de Calvin where Calvin and Knox lectured on theology.