John Calvin (1509-1564)

A character sketch of John Calvin

Calvin, John , was one of the chief leaders of the Protestant Reformation.

Calvin's brilliant mind, powerful preaching, many books and large correspondence, and capacity for organization and administration made him a dominant figure of the Reformation.

He was especially influential in Switzerland, England, Scotland, and colonial North America.

Calvin was born in Noyon, France, near Compiegne. His father was a lawyer for the Roman Catholic Church. Calvin was educated in Paris, Orleans, and Bourges.

After his father's death in 1531, he studied Greek and Latin at the University of Paris. Thus, Calvin's education reflected the influence of the liberal and humanistic Renaissance. Unlike several other Reformation leaders, Calvin was probably never ordained a priest.

By 1533, Calvin had declared himself a Protestant. In 1534, he settled in Basel, Switzerland. There, he published the first edition of his Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536).

This book achieved immediate recognition for Calvin, and he expanded it throughout his life. The book sets forth Calvin's basic ideas on religion and is a masterpiece of Reformation thought.

In 1536, Calvin was persuaded to become a leader of Geneva's first group of Protestant pastors.

In 1538, Geneva's leaders reacted against the strict doctrines of the Protestant pastors, and Calvin and several other clergymen were banished. Later that year, Calvin became pastor of a French refugee Protestant church in Strasbourg, Germany.

He was deeply influenced by the older German Protestant leaders of Strasbourg, especially Martin Bucer. Calvin adapted Bucer's ideas on church government and worship.

Geneva lacked able religious and political leadership. The Geneva city council begged Calvin to return, and he did so in 1541. From then until his death, Calvin was the dominant personality in Geneva.

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