3. The Calvinist’s, Zwinglian's and Lutherans’s Teaching (by Alain R. Haudenschild)

3.1 Different Systems of Reformed Theology in the 16th Century

Both systems of Reformed theology the one from Zwingli and from Calvin parted ways with

Lutheranism.  By the end of the sixteenth century, Calvinism differed from Lutheranism in the following areas:

• Approach to the Lord’s Supper . Lutherans maintained the doctrine of consubstantiation, which holds that Christ is physically present in, with, and under the elements in the Lord’s Supper. They resisted any attempt to explain Jesus’ statement “this is my body” as a metaphor, saying that such efforts opened the door to allegorizing away the gospel itself. Furthermore, they said, if all that is offered in Communion is a spiritual Christ, the sacrament presents a truncated gospel that offers no comfort to believers whose bodies eventually will die. Lutherans would be satisfied only with a concrete, historical Christ. The Reformed leaders said that the incarnate, historical Christ is now risen and ascended, and therefore is not present in the Supper in the way He was prior to His ascension. Furthermore, the concept of Christ’s spiritual presence does not mean something less than complete; rather, it refers to His ongoing work through His Spirit. The Reformed believed they were affirming all that the Lutherans wanted to protect, but in a clearer, more biblical manner.

• The primary function of the law . Luther generally regarded the law as something negative and closely allied with sin, death, or the Devil. He believed that the dominant function of the law is to abase the sinner by convicting him of sin and driving him to Christ for deliverance. Calvin regarded the law more as a guide for the believer, a tool to encourage him to cling to God and to obey Him more fervently. The believer must try to follow God’s law not as an act of compulsory duty, but as a response of grateful obedience. With the help of the Spirit, the law provides a way for a believer to express his gratitude.

• Approach to salvation. Both Lutherans and Calvinists answered the question “What must I do to be saved?” by saying that Spirit-worked repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His substitutionary work of atonement are necessary. But Lutherans had a tendency to remain focused on the doctrine of justification, whereas Calvinists, without minimizing justification, pressed more than Lutherans toward sanctification, which asks, “Having been justified by God’s grace, how shall I live to the glory of God?” Calvinism thus became more comprehensive than Lutheranism in explaining how salvation works itself out in the life of a believer.

• Understanding of predestination . In the late sixteenth century, most Lutherans moved away from Luther and the Calvinists, who asserted the predestination of both the elect and the reprobate rather than the predestination of the elect only. Reformed theologians believed this shift in thinking was at odds with the content of Romans 9 and similar passages, as well as with the comprehensive sovereignty of God. The Calvinists were convinced that election is sovereign and gracious, and that reprobation is sovereign and just. No one who enters heaven deserves to be there; no one who enters hell deserves anything different. As Calvin said, “The praise of salvation is claimed for God, whereas the blame of perdition is thrown upon those who of their own accord bring it upon themselves.”

• Understanding of worship. Luther’s reform was more moderate than Calvin’s, retaining more medieval liturgy. Following their leaders, the Lutherans and Calvinists differed in their views of how Scripture regulates worship. The Lutherans taught that we may include in worship what is not forbidden in Scripture; the Calvinists maintained that we may not include in worship what the New Testament does not

command. Paul Tillich in his paper about the differences of the Swiss reformers with Luthers reflects some of the main points:

“I want to say that the interesting thing, in the first half of the Swiss Reformation, in Zurich where Zwingli was carrying it through, is that one could call it a synthesis of Reformation and humanism. When I say this, you remember that I spoke about Luther's relationship to Erasmus and the final break, but the continuation of humanistic elements in the further Reformation on Lutheran soil, represented especially by Melanchthon. These two men, Zwingli and Melanchthon ("Melanchthon" from the Greek, meaning "black earth,") Luther worked together with Melanchthon almost from the beginning of the Reformation in Wittenberg … This man was deeply influenced by Erasmus, and never broke with him. “

3.2 Calvinstic/Helvetic versus Lutheran Reform Theology  

Like Luther, Zwingli and Calvin too accepted elements coming from the master and leader of all humanism, Erasmus. This was the difference between Luther and the Swiss reformers. When we come to Calvin, we have to keep in mind that he is largely dependent on Zwingli, as well as on Luther, that he turns back to a certain extent to Zwingli and to Luther, but in spite of all this he also was humanistically educated and his writings shows the classical erudition in style and content.

This is the general character of the Swiss Reformation, in contrast to the Lutheran. Paul Tillich thinks since Zwingli whenever liberal theology arises, as it did from the 17th to the 19th centuries, theologians in all denominations tend to develop theologically closer to Zwingli than to Calvin. Zwingli believed that the Spirit is directly working in the human soul and that therefore God's ordinary working goes through the Word, the Biblical message, but that God, extraordinarily, can also work on people who never had contact with the Christian message with people whom we speak of as living in foreign religions, or the humanists. Although the bible itself gives enough room to proof this teaching Paul Tillich thinks because of Zwingli’s humanistic studies he was probably influenced by humanist Greek philosophers, such as Socrates, and others, rather than by the scripture itself.

But there is still one deeper element of difference between Luther and Zwingli. It is the doctrine of the sacraments. The fight between Luther and Zwingli in 1529 in Marburg was a fight between two types of religious experience one, of a mystical interpretation of the sacrament; the other, of an intellectual interpretation. 

Zwingli said: The sacrament is a sure sign or seal reminding us as symbols, and expressing our will to belong to the Church. This: Divine Spirit sets beside them, not through them. Baptism is a kind of an obliging sign, like a. badge. It is a commanded symbol, but it has nothing to do with subjective faith and salvation, which are dependent on predestination.

For Calvin, the truth of a symbol drives it beyond itself. "The best contemplation of the Divine Being is when the mind is transported beyond itself with admiration." The doctrine of God can never be theoretical-contemplative; it must always be existential, by participation. The famous phrase by Karl Barth, which is taken from a Biblical text "God is in Heaven, and you are on earth" --is often said and explained by Calvin. The Heavenly "above" is not a place to which God is bound, but it is an expression of His religious transcendence, not an expression of a physical transcendence.

All this leads to a central attitude and doctrine of Calvinism, namely the fear of idolatry. This is tremendously strong in him. Calvin fights the idols wherever he believes he sees them. He is not interested in the history of religion, which is practically condemned as a whole as being idolatrous. Religion cannot help having an idolatrous element. Religion is a factory of idols all the time. Therefore the Christian and the theologian must be on his guard and prevent idolatrous trends from overwhelming his relationship to God.

It seems to the author of this script the differences in the theologies of the reformers were not a real problem, they became the ideal base to start with a much broader project, the strategic reaching of the nations in a large scale, with a much deeper understanding about the burden of our LORD for the nations and the need to share the eternal truth.

2. Calvinism and its Church Government (edited by Alain R. Haudenschild)

2.1 Politically Endorsed Apostolic Authority

Calvinism is rooted in the sixteenth-century religious renewal in Europe that we refer to as the “Protestant Reformation.” 7 One of its major reasons for its success was the acceptance of Holy Scripture as the sole foundation of Christian faith by the local city and state governments, mainly the states of the Swiss-confederation who protected the reformation with their own soldiers and lives. Thus this authority was transferred to the church, which could soon govern itself and matters of life. In 1541, added by the city council, Calvin drew up the Ecclesiastical Ordinances.

He rejected the organization of the Medieval Church as contrary to the New Testament. He wanted a church modeled after the church of Apostolic times. He did not want bishops. All ministers were equal. They had to preach, administer the sacraments and look after the spiritual welfare of the people. Moral discipline was also hold up high by the ministers – and their elders supported that. The elders were civilian (laymen) who lived within the congregation and were elected by the city council.Calvin was not keen on this but it provided a link between the Church and state. The elders and deacons (also laymen who looked after the poor were subject to popular appointment and in that respect introduced an important element of spiritual leadership in the church and local society. All officers in the church belonged to the consistory and if there was a power struggle between the ministers and the laymen the outcome of that power struggle determined whether the church became Erastian (i.e. followed the way Erasmus wished a church to go) or the state would become theocratic i.e. the church controlled all aspects of life. Eventually Geneva became theocratic. Calvin was a strong believer in behaving as God wished. Immorality was severely condemned but to begin with the consistory was not an effective body. It only started to be so when the number of appointed ministers was greater than the elders. Also in 1555, the city council gave the consistory the right to excommunicate offenders. Only after this date a strict moral code was imposed and every sin and was made a crime. There was no work or pleasure on a Sunday, no extravagance in dress. If you were excommunicated you were banished from the city. Blasphemy could be punished by death, lewd singing could be punished by your tongue being pierced.

2.2 A New Moral as Link between State and Consistory

Calvin believed that the church and state should be separate, and yet the consistory had to deal with moral and religious offenders. Two members of the consistory, accompanied by a minister, visited every parish to see that all was well and that people could see that they were being checked on. The state had to obey the teachings of the church, according to Calvin. Magistrates felt confident to shut down the city’s taverns - and replaced them with "evangelical refreshment places" where you could drink alcohol but accompanied by Bible readings. Even public meals were preceded by prayers. Not surprisingly this was not popular and even Calvin recognized that matters had gone too far and the taverns were re-opened quickly! It must be remembered that he was introducing a high discipline code to the city and that this code effectively controlled people’s lives. There were those who opposed Calvin and he was never totally secure until he had the support of Geneva’s most important families. These 1,500 men had a right to elect the city council, which governed the city’s 13,000 people. Some citizens felt angered that their privacy was being trespassed on and though a moral code to maintain standards was accepted, Calvin saw it going all the way so that everybody in the city was affected - a view not shared by everyone. This changed in favor for Calvin when a Spanish scholar called Michael Servetus came to Geneva in 1553. This well known theologian, physician, cartographer and humanist from Aragon questioned the validity of the Trinity, which is central to all Christianity. The Libertines sided with Servetus to ‘get’ at Calvin and but his trial and burning as a heretic gave Calvin the opportunity to target the Libertines who fled Geneva. In May 1555, the Libertines attempted a take-over of Geneva, which was a disaster. The ringleaders were caught and executed, this success further strengthened Calvin’s hand.

2.3 Political and Religious Support from the Swiss-Confederation

Calvins’s reformation was not an isolated phenomenon. It was prepared by forerunners and happened in the context of the reorganizing of political powers. Since 1291 the Swiss Confederation was the only democratic governed place in Europe and did not condered itself as part of the “Holy German Empire of Rom” anylonger. – No wonder the first German Bible translation published in Strassburg (after from 1454) near Basel had its strong Swiss imprint and its content was no longer unknown to the public in the Alemannic German speaking world with its numerous dialects stretching from Alsace, South - West Germany, the Central and East of Swiss confederation to West-Austria.  Alemannic German (Alemannisch ) is a group of dialects of the Upper German branch of the Germanic language family. It is spoken by approximately by ten million people in seven countries, including southern Germany, Switzerland, France, Austria, Liechtenstein, Venezuela, and Italy. The name derives from the ancient Germanic alliance of tribes known as the Alamanni (from which also comes French "Allemagne", Spanish "Alemania", Portuguese "Alemanha" and Arabic and Turkish "Almanya".

Strassburg was the place were Calvin 50 years later lived too. By that time this area was more touched by Zwingli’s reformation already, but could not reach the French-speaking world. The public support of Martin Luther’s (1483–1546) act of posting his Ninety-five Theses on the church doors of Wittenberg on Oct. 31, 1517, gave Zwingli a reason to go ahead and talk to Farel to seek for ways to “install” Calvin in Geneva as a reformer for the French world. Luthers 95 thesis were soon translated into numerous languages and distributed to the masses. On this spiritual ground Huldrych Zwingli as politican in Zurich prepared the political forces in Bern and elsewhere to have the major Swiss Confederation States’ support for Calvin’s and Farel reforms in Geneva and French speaking Europe.

2.4 United in Opposition to Medieval Roman Catholic Abuses.

This success was supported far beyond the local borders because of long time prework by forerunners and Dr. Martin Luther. Luther on the other hand was more influenced and supported by Bohemia’s Reformer Jan Hus and its emphasize on the need to translate bible into the local languages of the people as he witnessed it in Bohemian Christian churchlife. Probably the so-called “tower experience,” which probably predated his theses by a few years, became the crucial event for him. Through this experience, Luther came to grasp the definitive doctrine of the Reformation: justification by gracious faith alone. This brought more than renewal as it happened in earlier attempts through forerunners, the most notable of which were led by Peter Waldo (ca. 1140–ca. 1217) and his followers in the Alpine regions. – Among those frontrunners were: John Wycliffe (ca. 1324–1384), The Lollards in England,John Hus (ca. 1372–1415) and his followers in Bohemia.

Lesser-known reformers, are Thomas Bradwardine (ca. 1300–1349)14 and Gregory of Rimini (ca. 1300–1358).15 They came very close to what would become known as Protestant theology.  They all came even closer to what would become known as Protestant theology. All these men are properly called forerunners of the Reformation rather than Reformers because, although they anticipated many of the emphases of the Reformation, they lacked a complete understanding of the critical doctrine of justification by gracious faith alone. All forerunners of the Reformation were morally, doctrinally, and practically united in their opposition to medieval Roman Catholic abuses. This opposition is critical to note, since the Reformation began primarily as a reaction to the abuses of Roman Catholicism.17 Luther did not set out to destroy the Roman Catholic Church and to establish a new church. His initial intent was to purge the Roman Catholic Church of abuses. Reformed theology thus cannot be fully understood apart from its reaction to problems in the church, such as: Reformed theology thus cannot be fully understood apart from its reaction to problems in the church, such as:

• Papal abuses. The medieval papacy was rife with abuses in theology and practice. Immoral conduct was lived out and condoned even by the popes, and grace became a cheap, commercialized religion throughout the church via a complex system of vows, fasts, pilgrimages, masses, relics, recitations, rosaries, and other works. The papal imperative was “do penance” (as translated in the Vulgate) rather than “be penitent,” or “repent,” as Jesus commanded.

• Papal pretentiousness. Biblical and historical study by the Protestant forerunners led them to

question papal claims to apostolic authority as head of the church. For example, the Reformers concluded that the rock on which the church was built (Matt. 16:18) was the content of Peter’s faith rather than Peter himself, which meant that the bishop of Rome possessed no more than a position of honor. Though the Protestants initially were willing to accept a Reformed papacy that would honorably serve the church, the cruel opposition of the popes to reform eventually persuaded many of them to regard the pope of Rome as Antichrist (cf. Westminster Confession of Faith, 25.6).

• Captivity of the Word. Protestants taught that the Roman Catholic Church held Scripture captive, withholding it from the laypeople and thus keeping them in bondage to church councils, bishops, schoolmen, canonists, and allegorists for interpretation. The Protestants worked hard to deliver the Bible from this hierarchical captivity. As Malcolm Watts writes:The Church of Rome degraded the Holy Scriptures by alloying the purity of the Canon with her apocryphal additions, by supplementing the inspired records with an enormous mass of spurious traditions, by admitting only that interpretation which is according to “the unanimous consent of the Fathers” and “the Holy Mother Church,” and, particularly by diminishing the role of preaching as their “priests” busied themselves with miraculous stories about Mary, the saints and the images, and magnified the importance of the Mass, with its elaborate and multiplied ceremonies and rituals. It was thus that preaching deteriorated and, in fact, almost disappeared. The Reformers vigorously protested against this and contended with all their might for the recovery of God’s Holy Word.

• Elevation of monasticism. Protestants opposed the Roman Catholic concept of the superiority of the so-called religious life. They did not believe that monasticism was the only way to spirituality or even the best way. By stressing the priesthood of all believers, they worked hard to eliminate the Roman Catholic distinction between the “inferior” life of the Christian involved in a secular calling and the “higher” religious world of monks and nuns.

• Usurped mediation. Protestants also rejected the Roman Catholic ideas of mediation by Mary and the intercession of saints, as well as the automatic transfusion of grace in the sacraments. They opposed all forms of mediation with God except through Christ. They reduced the sacraments to two, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, thereby stripping priests and the church of mediating power and the sacramental dispensation of salvation.

• The role of good works. Protestants rejected the ideas of Semi-Pelagianism,19 which says that both grace and works are necessary for salvation. This theological difference was at the heart of Protestant opposition to Roman Catholicism, though it was largely through moral and practical corruption that the issue came to the fore.

The Protestant response to Roman Catholic abuses gradually settled into five Reformation watchwords or battle cries, centered on the Latin word solus, meaning “alone.” These battle cries, expounded in chapter 10, served to contrast Protestant teaching with Roman Catholic tenets as follows:

Protestant Teaching Scripture alone (sola Scriptura) Faith alone (sola fide) Grace alone (sola gratia) Christ alone (solus Christus) Glory to God alone (soli Deo gloria)

Roman Catholic  Teaching Scripture and tradition Faith and works Grace and merit Christ, Mary, and intercession of saints God, saints, and church hierarchy

The first of these battle cries deals with the fundamental issue of authority, the middle three deal with the basics of salvation, and the final one addresses worship. In early Protestantism, both Lutheran and Reformed believers embraced these five watchwords. Regrettably, Luther and Ulrich Zwingli (1484–1531), the early leader of the Swiss Reformation, parted ways in October 1529 during the infamous Marburg Colloquy, when they could not reach agreement on the nature of Christ’s presence in the Lord’s Supper. 20 From then on, Protestantism divided into two traditions, Lutheranism and Calvinism—the latter being the Reformed tradition as understood and expressed in the writings of John Calvin and his fellow Reformers.

5. Spread of Calvinism in Europe (by Alain R. Haudenschild)

5.1 The Calvinism’s Limited International Acceptance 

Map 1: The three leading Reformers in the 16th Century in Europe

Before 1555, Calvinism was growing but had not yet gained official status except in Geneva and the tiny Kingdom of Navarre, on the French side of the Pyrenees. It was not even

recognized as an option by the German princes in the Peace of Augsburg (1555). Among European governing elites, it was generally regarded with suspicion if not contempt. The most promising area or growth was France, Calvin's own homeland. His message attracted many members of the urban middle classes, who had begun to feel alienated from both church and state. Missionaries from Geneva carried Calvin's message to France where the church was organized in a national system of congregations and synods. French Calvinists, or Huguenots as they were called, made up an aggressive minority of discontented nobles and middle-class urban citizens. The new movement also enlisted a large proportion of women, drawn by opportunities for direct participation in the services. Many joined reading groups, where they discussed the Bible and theological issues. Early Calvinist women worked diligently for the cause, not only converting their husbands and families but also founding religious schools, nursing the sick, and aiding the poor. Strasbourg, in the 1530s, was a free center for Protestant reformers such as Matthew Zell and his wife, Katherine, who befriended many Calvinist preachers, including Martin Bucer, the missionary to England during the reign of Edward VI.51 In the same period, Calvinism was a belief that was dependent on the strength of the individual. Geneva became the most influential city in the Protestant movement. It represented the city where religion had been most truly reformed and changed for the better. John Knox, the Scottish Protestant leader, called Geneva "the most perfect school of Christ." Geneva’s impact on Europe was huge for two reasons.

Calvin did not want his belief to be restricted to just one area and he did not want Geneva to become a refuge place for fleeing Protestants.

The city was to be the heart that pumped Calvinism to all of Europe. This spread was to be based on a new educational system which was established in Geneva. Both primary and secondary schools were created and in 1559 the Academy was established which was to become the University of Geneva. Geneva was/is French speaking and Calvin spoke French.

It was expected that many French Huguenots (Calvinists in France were known as Huguenots) would head for the university to train as missionaries. This was the main task of the university. In 1559 it had 162 students. In 1564, it had over 1500 students. Most of these were foreign. Calvin had some luck with his teaching staff as there had been a dispute over the level of pay at Lausanne University and many of the teaching staff there simply transferred to Geneva as the pay was better and the financial structure of the university was on a stronger footing.

After their course at Geneva, the missionaries were given a French-speaking congregation in

Switzerland, where they could perfect their skills, before moving on to France itself. The ease with which ministers could get into France was a bonus for Calvin. However, the size of the country was to be both a help and a hindrance to Calvinists.

5.2 Calvinism in France

French aristocratic women also promoted the growth of Calvinism. As the Renaissance moved north, many young French women were educated in the new humanism and began to question the traditional Catholic dogma. Margaret of Angouleme, Queen of Navarre (1492-1549) and sister of the French king, often petitioned her brother on behalf of Protestants accused of heresy and kept reformers at her court, where Calvin was sheltered at one time. Her daughter, Jeanne d'Albret (1528-1572), who became queen in 1549, established Calvinism in Navarre, having converted her second husband, the French aristocrat, Antone de Bourbon. Because Calvinism had enlisted many French dissident nobles who intended to resist royal power, the Bourbon leader hoped to gain their support and use it later to further his family's claim to the French throne. Jeanne, however, was dedicated to Calvinist principles, raising money and enlisting recruits among her contempories. She was a powerful member of the aristocratic Huguenot clique, headed by Admiral de Coligny and the Bourbon Prince, Louis of Conde. The first Huguenot (Calvinist) ministers arrived in France in 1553. By 1563, there were nearly 90 Huguenots in France and the speed of its spread surprised even Calvin. Henry II of France was a strong catholic and he had established a body called the Chambre Ardente in 1547 to monitor and hunt out ‘heresy’ in France. It was not a success and was disbanded in 1550.

Whereas his father (Francis I) had used Protestantism to help advance his power against the

Parlament de Paris, Henry had no wish to have any association with Protestants whatsoever. In 1555 the first Huguenot congregation to have a permanent minister was established in Paris. By 1558, this congregation was worshipping in the open guarded by armed sympathisers. In 1559, the first synod (national council) was held in Paris. In total 72 local congregations were represented by the elders, from each congregation. In some regions of France traveling ministers had to be used but this was never a major problem as the organization of the church was so tight. Many Huguenot communities were near each other so communication was never really a problem.

Educated merchants were drawn to Calvinism. This occurred probably as a result of the impact of the Renaissance and as a reaction to the rigidity of the Catholic Church.

Map 2: Spread of Calvinism in Europe’s 16th  century

A number of noble families converted to Calvinism though there is not one common link to

explain their conversion. Each family had its own individual reason. Ironically one of these

reasons may have been patriotic. Catholicism was linked to Rome and since the Concordat of

Bologna, the French had always linked their religion to national causes. By associating yourself with Calvinism, you would be expressing your belief that France should have no links to Italy.

The Huguenots were concentrated on the coast mainly in the west (La Rochelle) and in the

south-east. They develop their own cavalry force and openly worshipped in their own churches. The sheer size of France aided them in the respect that the royal government in Paris found it difficult enough to assert its authority generally. The strict organization of the Huguenots made any attempt by the authorities to crush them very difficult. Added to this was the simple fact that la Rochelle was a long way from Paris. By 1561, there were 2150 Huguenot churches in France and Calvinists were estimated to be about 10% of the population - about 1 million people. It has to be remembered that the first Calvinist ministers only got to France in 1553. Calvinism within France became a large minority religion.

5.3 Calvinism in Italy

Map 3: The Spread of Waldensians in the 15th Century

Calvinism made gains elsewhere but did not win political power. In Italy, the Duchess of Ferrara copied the Navarre church service for her private chapel and harbored Calvinist refugees; and Zofia Olesnicka, wife of a Polish noble, endowed a local Calvinist church. A comparing map of places with Waldensian churches and the places where Calvinism quickly took root shows an impressive relationship between the promotional work was done by this congregational oriented non-Presbyterian group which indeed was Calvin’s theological backbone in much of France and on continental Europe.

5.4 Calvinism in the Netherlands

The Netherlands: Calvin made important gains in this state.  Ministers first arrived here in the1550’s aided by Huguenot preachers who were fleeing from France. They made slow progress at first. By 1560, Calvinism had not spread far because the authorities were very active against it. In total, Protestantism accounted for 5% of the whole population in the Netherlands of which the Calvinists were just a small part. No noble men appeared to be interested as they were too concerned with their political power and economic well being. They knew that the Catholic Church was corrupt but they found the Calvinists far too authoritarian as the church told you what you could do and what you could not. Most Calvinists were from Antwerp, Ghent and regions near Germany.

5.5 Calvinism in Germany 

Map 4: Spread of Calvinism and Lutheranism in 16th Century

In West Germany Calvinism first entered from the Netherlands in the sixthies and was first visible in the cities Cleve, Jülich, in East Frisian and Bentheim the connection to the Calvinist Dutch regions was strong too. Lutheranism had already taken root as had Anabaptism so Calvinism was seen as another protest religion in a ever crowded field.61 There was also a lot of persecution in general against Protestants. In 1524, Charles V introduced his own Inquisition to the region and in 1529 and 1531 new edicts were introduced ordering the death penalty to anyone who was found guilty of being a Lutheran or who would shelter them or help spread Lutherans beliefs. In 1550 Charles V removed the authority of city councils to try heretics. It was his belief that city magistrates were too lenient and that the provincial courts which took over this duty would have far greater control than the city magistrates. These measures did check the spread of Protestantism but of all three Calvinism was the most successful and the best equipped to survive. Its system of non-religious governments by elders allowed it to operate regardless of the authorities. The Anabaptists were too reliant on the role of the individual as opposed to strength in numbers and organization while the Lutherans were poorly organized and more open to attack from the authorities. Calvinism developed into a popular movement in NW Rhineland and Westphalia - both neighbours of the Netherlands. These were the only areas to convert. In 1562, Frederick III modeled churches in his territory on the Calvinist model which was contrary to the 1555 Religious Settlement of Augsburg which stated that churches could only be Catholic or Lutheran. Heidelberg became a leading intellectual centre but the spread elsewhere was very limited due to Lutheranism and the input of Calvinism into Germany served to disunite the Protestant movement and help the Catholic Church in the Counter-Reformation. John Sigismund of Brandenburg was to convert at a later date and his state followed.

5.6 Calvinism in Poland

The western area of Poland was German speaking which had helped Luther. However, Poland had a history of nationalism and a desire to be independent and this did not help Luther who had not spent time organizing his church. Calvinism first reached Poland in 1550 and the nobles latched on to the idea of using the civilian population - and giving them some power in their religious rights - as a lever to expand their own power. Two leading nobles (Prince Radziwill the Black and John a Lasco) actively helped the spread of Calvinism as did two kings (Stephen II and Stephen Bathory). Regardless of this, Calvinism did not spread far. Why? Most of its population was Catholic, but Poland's rulers had long practiced religious toleration: When the Protestant Reformation began in the 16th century, a large portion of the upper classes of Poland got interested (esp. Calvinism) By 1550's, a majority of the Polish Parliament (the Seym) were Protestants. Even radical Protestants - like the Anabaptists and Mennonites were allowed into Poland. The Catholic bishops of Poland responded to this influx of Protestants with toleration. Some shared their churches with Lutherans. Some did not care about whatever religion some wanted as long as they paid their church taxes: The bishop of Krakow - "I don't care if you worship a goat, as long as you keep paying your tithes". In one famous case, a man (an Arian) was brought before the Polish Parliament for stamping on the Eucharist during a Catholic procession. The Parliament decided that if God was offended, God should be the one to punish him. In 1539 – the king declared freedom of the press at main university of Poland (Jagiellon) – at a time when only the Swiss Confederation alreadz had allowed freedom of the press. This kingdom in the 16th century allowed freedom of thought and religion, and even let a large portion of its population become Protestant. And yet, by the late 17th century, due to an organized effort by smart Jesuits, who by offering education for free gained control over the national education system most people of Poland were Catholic again.  Jesuits arrived in 1564. They began to publish books and founded schools and 40 colleges by 17^th century - They didn't charge tuition and allowed people of all faiths to enter them. By the 17th century, they were the main educators of the upper classes of Poland. The Jesuits also got the Polish farmers on their side, - preaching them they shouldn't be oppressed. By the mid 17th century, the Catholics were fully in charge of Poland - other religions were still tolerated - but Catholics were favored for getting governmental posts and serving in Parliament Others believe another problem was the language. Most Poles did not speak German and therefore language remained a major stumbling block as most Calvinist preachers did not speak Polish and could not communicate with the population. 

Map 5: Calvinism, Lutheranism, Hussites and other
Pre-dominat Religious Convictions in Mid 16th Century Europe

Another problem was that numerous Protestant religions already existed in Poland (Bohemian Brethren, Anabaptists, Unitarians etc.) and those who might be won away from the Catholic Church had already been so. In 1573 in the Confederation of Warsaw, both Catholics and Protestants agreed to make religious toleration part of the constitution to be sworn by each succeeding king. But the division among the Protestants meant that the Catholic Church dominated the country and her nickname at this time was the "Spain of the north".

 5.7 Calvinism in Hongrie

By the middle of the 16th century there was a considerable Protestant movement in Hungary,

mainly in the eastern part of the country where it enjoyed the protection of the princes of Transylvania. The major part of the movement came under Calvinistic influence and the church became Presbyterian in its polity. In the 17th century the movement was oppressed through the combined efforts of the Habsburg dynasty and the Roman Catholic hierarchy. The work of the Counter-Reformation culminated in 1673. Catholicism was ruthlessly re-imposed all over the country. Pastors were forced to renounce their faith, many were expelled, and some sold as galley-slaves. It was only the Diet of 1790-91 which restored civil rights to Protestants. The agreement of 1867 set the pattern of church-state relations till the end of the second world war.

7.Calvin's Predestination in the Dordrecht and Westminster Paper

On December 4, 1646, the Confession of Faith, prepared by the “Assembly of Divines” meeting at Westminster, was completed. This is more than a century after the earlier editions of Calvin masterpiece, The Institutes of the Christian Religion and also of the first edition of what is one of his most notable commentaries, the Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans. This time was used for theological reflection and intense controversy. Within the Reformed Churches the most challenging issue was the Arminian Remonstrance of 1610, which actually was the main reason for the Synod of Dordrecht in 1618 and 1619. It would be theologically unprofessional to oversee the development of the formulation of Reformed doctrine that a century of reflections and controversy had produced.

This section is concerned with the subject of predestination. “The divines”, as John Murray calls them in his paper, met to first clarify several Calvinistic terms like:

1. “predestinate” and “predestination”

2. “appointed to everlasting life,”

3. “foreordained to everlasting death”

According to Sect III, those who for the manifestation of His glory are by God’s decree

“appointed to everlasting death” are men and angels. God’s powerful grace assures everlasting life in Christ so much that Reformed theology speaks of it as “predestinated to everlasting life; at the same time there is no escape for sinful, grace refusing people. Like disobedient angels they are considered as “foreordained to everlasting death.” 83 The doctrine of the Confession on predestination and foreordination is unequivocal. It is believed, that God knows the exact number of them already, and this number will not change (Sec. IV). It is noteworthy that this statement of the Confession includes both angels and men and is so framed that in respect of the doctrine is equal relevance to men and angels. This feature in the Westminster paper goes beyond what we find in the Canons of Dordrecht. The Canons of Dordrecht are concerned only with the election and “reprobation” of men and don’t include the future of angels. To include the subject of angels would have unnecessarily complicated the issue, but in respect of mankind Dordrecht states the same position. God himself is most wise, unchangeable, omniscient, and omnipotent, so the election made by him can neither be interrupted nor changed, recalled nor annulled; neither can the elect be cast away, nor their number diminished (Cap. I, Art. XI; cf. Art. VI).

In contrast with the Remonstrant teaching, predestination to life and salvation is in both

documents described as unconditional. This means it is in the sovereign decision God and not

influenced by any anything through men. The Confession writes this in these terms: According to His eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of His will mankind is predestinated to life. God decided this before the foundation of the world was laid and chose that this is happening in and through Christ, out of his mere free grace and love to his everlasting glory (Sect. V). The terms of the Canons are: “Election is the unchangeable purpose of God, whereby, before the foundation of the world, he hath, out of mere grace, according to the sovereign good pleasure of his own will, chosen, from the whole human race . . . a certain number of persons to redemption in Christ (Art. VII); The good pleasure of God is the sole cause of this gracious election?(Art. X; cf. also Arts. XV and XVIII). So there is not only an identity of doctrine but also to a large extent of language. The negative counterpart of the emphasis upon free grace of God only is, in contrast to the

teaching about the Remonstrant, that election is not determined by any foresight of faith or of perseverance. Without any foresight of faith, or good works, or perseverance in either of them, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions, or causes moving Him thereunto says the Confession (Sect. V). This election is not founded upon foreseen faith, and the obedience of faith, holiness, or any other good quality or disposition in man, as the prerequisite, cause, or condition on which it depended (Art. IX) the Canons write (also check “Rejection of Errors,” Art. V).

The redemption by Christ and all the grace necessary is part of the process of election and its purpose and never determined by its receivers. God has decreed to give the elect to Christ to be saved by him, and effectively call and draw him to his communion by his word and Spirit; to establish in him true faith, justification, and sanctification; and through powerful preservation of faith in the fellowship of his Son, finally demonstrating His mercy for the praise of the riches of his glorious grace (Canons, Art. VII; cf. Art. IX). It should be noted that in the formulation of Westminster the fruit of election and its results as a result of Gods decision are equally emphasized. Therefore, also elect are people fallen in Adam and only through the redemption by Christ and a life in the Spirit justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by His power, in faith, in salvation (Sect. VI).

This section deals with what has often is called the decree of reprobation. The Westminster

Confession in this account differs from Dordrecht by not using this term (cf. Arts VI, XV, and XVI). Although the Scripture uses the term reprobate in its meaning (Rom. 1:28; 1 Cor. 9:27; 2 Cor. 13:5, 6, 7; 2 Tim. 3:8; Tit. 1:16), its application in the Westminster papers implies that the decree of God is not part of it. Some assume that the “Westminster divines” did hesitate using it because they were convinced biblical terms should not be loosely applied.

Why are some ordained to dishonour and wrath when others equally deserving are not? The only explanation is the sovereign will of God. The ground of dishonour and wrath is sin alone. But the reason why the non-elect are ordained to this dishonour and wrath when others, the elect, are not, is sovereign differentiation on God part and there is no other answer to the question.

The fathers of Dordrecht actually managed to adequately distinguish Calvin’s teaching in more helpful theological terms. But those fathers were aware of the distinctions and diverse factors describing the decree of reprobation (decretum reprobationis).

On the distinction between the sovereign and judicial elements in foreordination to death Calvin draws the distinction in terms of the difference between the highest cause (suprema causa) and the proximate cause (propinqua causa, Romans 9:11,30). The highest cause is the secret predestination of God and the proximate cause is that they are all cursed in Adam.

6. Calvin and Zwingli's "Stepchildren" and the Schleitheim Confession Paper 1527

6.1 Historical Background of the Anabaptists

The Anabaptists consider themselves as member of the Protestant Reformation. They were dissatisfied with the pace and extent of Protestant reform and pushed for more radical reform measures, including adult baptism.

Zwingli taught if a teaching wasn’t in the Bible then it was not a law of God. It was the teachings of Zwingli that led to the idea of infant baptism being disallowed. When Zwingli suggested infant baptism was the substitute for the Jewish rite of circumcision, it caused a separation between Zwingli and his followers. This made infant baptism the first of many reasons for separation from the established churches. In addition the Anabaptists refused the teaching that infants were punishable for sin, because they had no awareness of good and evil and thus could not yet exercise free will, repent, and accept baptism.

The first adult baptisms took place outside Zürich in early 1525. Since in those days every child was baptized and they were denying the validity of infant baptism, they taught adult baptism by faith, giving them the name Anabaptists (from the Greek word for baptize, the Greek for “rebaptizers”). Most Anabaptists were pacifists and refused to swear civil oaths and became known as Christians of the Radical Reformation.

6.2 Birth of Anabaptist Churches outside of the Swiss Confederation

 The monogenist theory holds that the Anabaptist movement was growing out of the SwissBrethren movement lead by Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock and others. ThenAnabaptism of the Swiss Brethren was transmitted to southern Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, and northern Germany, where it developed into its various branches. Their direct descendants are the Amish, Hutterites, and Mennonites. There is no unity about the origin of the Baptists, who share most of the theological convictions of the Anabaptists.69 Scholars holding to the popular Anabaptist monogenist theory would reject counting the Münsterites into their group. In this view the time of origin is January 21, 1525, when Grebel baptized George Blaurock, and Blaurock baptized other followers.70 The so called polygenist theory suggests (Deppermann, Packull, to move the date for the beginning of the Anabaptist Movement to February 24, 1527, because then the Schleitheim Confession document was signed. – Anabaptist historians like Hillerbrand, Bender, Holl and Troeltsch support the thesis of a single dispersion of Anabaptism-…, which certainly ran through Zurich, 71 They believe the Schleitheim Confession should be understood as a document to represent other like-minded Anabaptist Groups too, like the "South German Anabaptism and the Melchiorites, even though they were not signing the confession paper at that day." They hold South German–Austrian Anabaptism "was a diluted form of Rhineland mysticism," Swiss Anabaptism "arose out of Reformed congregationalism", and Dutch Anabaptism was formed by "Social unrest and the apocalyptic visions of Melchior Hoffman".  For the development of the Anabaptism the day where it started was not the most crucial, neither who else somewhere would also be supportive. – Important was the unity and determination to complement reformation with the missing elements no matter how hostile the environment of the Protestant Reformation would be. – This resulted in various Anabaptist groups growing together and finding a channel to be heard with their convictions.  Once persecuted by the Roman Catholic Church both Reformers working under the protection of the Swiss Confederation, Calvin and Zwingli, reacted very harsh to the Anabaptists and called them heretics. Although their presence was one result of their reforms they did not like their ecclesiology and teaching about faith baptism, in fact they spent a lot of time to write against them. However, it was in vain. This very influential religious group united on the confession of Schleitheim although it was forced to either leave the Swiss Confederation or to live in hiding, had a mission and contributed to the change of many peoples mindset by a great example of faith. Many of them left for the Netherlands from where Menno Simons and some of his friends would take care of them. In this context to look at the earliest Anabaptist document of faith the Schleitheim Confession is helpful.

6.3 The Anabaptist’ Helvetic Schleitheim Confession 1527

The Schleitheim Confession was a declaration of Swiss Anabaptist belief, endorsed unanimously by a meeting of Swiss Anabaptists in 1527 in Schleitheim (Swiss Confederation and today’s Switzerland). The meeting was chaired by Michael Sattler. the Confession consisted of seven articles, written during a time of severe persecution:

• ·       Baptism: Baptism is administered to those who have consciously repented and believed that Christ has died for their sins. Infants, therefore, were not to be baptized.
• ·       The Ban (Excommunication): A Christian should live with discipline and walk in the way of righteousness. Slip-ups are acceptable, but continual offenses are to be remedied with warnings and a ban as a final recourse.
• ·       Breaking of Bread (Communion): Only those who have been baptized can take part in communion.
• ·       Separation from Evil: The community of Christians shall have no association with those who remain astray in disobedience and a spirit of rebellion against God.
• ·       Pastors in the Church: Pastors should be men of good repute. Some of the responsibilities they must faithfully carry out are teaching, disciplining, the ban, and the sacraments.
• ·       The Sword: Violence must not be used in any circumstance. The Way of nonviolence is patterned after the example of Christ who never defaulted to belligerence in the face of persecution or in punishing sin.
• ·       The Oath: No oaths should be taken because Jesus prohibited oath-swearing.

6.4 Central Elements of Anabaptist’ Theology

The leading elements of Anabaptist theology are:

• ·       Believer's Baptism: Baptism is to be administered to believers only.
• ·       Symbolism of Holy Communion: Communion is a memorial of the death of Christ, and transubstantiation does not occur.
• ·       Restricted Communion: The bread and wine should be broken with baptized believers only.
• ·       Religious Separation: Christians should be separated from the world.
• ·       Separation of church and state: Christians should not make an oath or hold the office of magistrate.
• ·       Pacifism: Christians should not exercise self-defense or go to war. Different types exist among the Anabaptists, although the categorizations tend to vary with the scholar's viewpoint on origins.

Estep claims that in order to understand Anabaptism, one must "distinguish between the Anabaptists, inspirationists, and rationalists." He classes the likes of Blaurock, Grebel, Balthasar Hubmaier, Manz, Marpeck, and Simons as Anabaptists. He groups Müntzer, Storch, as inspirationists, the anti-trinitarians such as Michael Servetus, Juan de Valdés, Sebastian Castellio, and Faustus Socinus are categorized as rationalists. Mark S. Ritchie follows this line of thought, saying, "The Anabaptists were one of several branches of 'Radical' reformers (i.e. reformers that went further than the mainstream Reformers) to arise out of the Renaissance and Reformation. Two other branches were Spirituals or Inspirationists, who believed that they had received direct revelation from the Spirit, and rationalists or anti-Trinitarians, who rebelled against traditional Christian doctrine, like Michael Servetus." Most of the Anti-Trinitarian Anabaptists were modalistic monarchians and baptized in the shorter formula of the name of Jesus Christ. They also spoke in ecstatic languages and prophecies known as "speaking in tongues." Holiness was a very important doctrine to them.

6.5 The Mission Zeal and Determination of the Anabaptists:

The Anabaptist movement spread from Switzerland to Germany’s Low Countries (Friesland), Normandy, (France), Flanders and the Netherlands, where Menno Simons organized them and where they were free of persecution. Some went with him to England others left to the Palatinate, to Poland, Moravia (where they stressed the community of goods modeled on the primitive church at Jerusalem) and to the Vistula delta region in Royal Prussia, seeking religious freedom and exemption from military service. They gradually replaced their Dutch and Frisian languages with the Plattdütsch dialect spoken in the area, blending into it elements of their native tongues.

Plattdütsch is the distinct Mennonite language, which developed over a period of 300 years in the Vistula delta region and south Russia. In 1772, most of the Mennonites' land in the Vistula area became part of Prussia in the first of the Partitions of Poland. Frederick William II of Prussia ascended the throne in 1786 and imposed heavy fees on the Mennonites in exchange for continued military exemption. Swiss Mennonites of Amish descent from Galicia settled near Dubno, Volhynia province in 1815. Other Galician Mennonites lived near Lemberg. By 1870 about 9000 individuals had immigrated to Russia, mostly to the Chortitza and Molotschna settlements which, with population increase, numbered about 45,000. Forty daughter colonies were established by 1914 occupying nearly 12,000 km! (4500 mi!) with a total population of 100,000.  Also Calvin had his experience with the Anabaptists. Four Anabaptists from the Netherlands managed to enter Geneva Switzerland in 1537 trusting God to find converts. They found seven people, but when John Calvin found out about it he banished all of them by the magistrate. And yet its spirituality draw many peoples attention.

Anabaptism gave new meaning to spiritual living. It was an intense experience. Opponent of the movement Sebastian Frank wrote in 1531: “They soon gained a large following, and baptized thousands, drawing to themselves many sincere souls who had a zeal for God ... They increased so rapidly that the world feared an uprising by them though I have learned that this fear had no justification whatsoever”. Heinrich Bullinger, successor to Zwingli's writes: “Anabaptism spread with such speed that there was reason to fear that the majority of the common people would unite with this sect”.  Zwingli himself became so alarmed at the strength of the movement and the heartfelt convictions of it’s adherents that he soon considered his own conflicts and theological skirmishes with Catholicism to be child's.

6.6 Anabaptism: Application of Calvin’s Theology in Congregational Churches

Map 1: World Distribution of Mennonite Churches 

Anabaptism introduced a new form of worship service that was distinctly emotional. Whereas liturgical services were historically generous in ritual and pageantry before quiet worshipers, these new services were frequently loud with participants shouting and dancing. Sermons were electrified with hopes of heaven and terrors of hell. It is not over-simplification to describe them as the 'holy rollers' of their day, because the emotional appeal was captivating to passive congregants entirely accustomed to inert solemnity. This was interactive, new - revolutionary. Preaching styles contained energy. Most groups expected Christ's immediate return. Anabaptists gave new interpretations to historic traditions of the church, and invented a few new traditions of their own. Their distrust of government was obvious, and they would not take oaths. A few practiced what can only be described as combative pacifism. In other words, they were willing to respond aggressively in the most vociferous manner without actually becoming physical. One such person was Jacob Hutter who is recognized as the founder of the Hutterites. This wing of reformers united all people with a strong desire for radical reforms and therefore they were also open for radical ideas in terms of law, behavior, spirituality, interpretation of Holy Scripture and its application, with a high potential to integrate new elements of teaching. Within the three types of churches (Episcopalian, Presbyterian and Congregationalist) the later growing out of the Anabaptist Movement contributed most to reach the unreached nations, among them especially the Baptists, the Presbyterian most to realize the dream of a global “human” law and development in the concept of the United Nations and the Espicopalian type governed Protestant churches (Lutheran, Anglican, Episcopalian, Methodist, Old Catholic) most for global justice and human rights. In Asia the first Anabaptists were Dutch Mennonites from the Netherlands who established a missionary presence on the Indonesia islands Java and Sumatra in 1851. The Anabaptist presence in Asia and the Pacific reflects the broader global trend of large growth in the Anabaptist church outside of the Europe and North America. In 1950 the Anabaptist population in Asia was less than 45,000, but by 2006 that number had risen to over 240,000.