Calvinism (Introduction to John Calvin's Reformed Theology)
Summary
TLDRThis script offers an insightful overview of John Calvin and Calvinism, emphasizing Calvin's radical approach to reforming Christianity. It outlines the key tenets of Calvinist theology, including the sovereignty of God, predestination, and the absence of free will. The video uses the acronym TULIP to explain the Five Points of Calvinism: Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints. It also touches on the iconoclastic practices of Calvinists, their plain dress, and the spread of Calvinism across Europe under various names.
Takeaways
- π John Calvin is considered the father of reformed Christianity, but he was not the one who started the Reformation; that was Martin Luther.
- ποΈ Calvin was a radical reformer who aimed to create a theology and church structure distinct from the Catholic Church, starting from scratch.
- π Calvin's 'Institutes of the Christian Religion' is a foundational work of systematic theology in the Reformation, outlining his theological system.
- π The core of Calvinist theology is the sovereignty of God, who has absolute control over everything, including the doctrine of predestination.
- π Predestination in Calvinism suggests that God has chosen certain individuals for salvation before they are even born, eliminating the concept of free will.
- π The acronym TULIP is used to remember the Five Points of Calvinism: Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints.
- π Calvinists are known for their iconoclasm, rejecting religious icons and ornamentation in churches, and favoring plain dress as a sign of humility.
- π¨ Iconic Calvinist art, such as Rembrandt's 'Anatomy Lesson,' often features plain, unadorned clothing and settings, reflecting their theological beliefs.
- π£οΈ Calvinists, known as Presbyterians in Scotland, Puritans or Separatists in England, and Huguenots in France, had significant impacts on the religious landscape of these regions.
- π Calvinism emphasizes a theology without free will, where God's election is unconditional, and His grace is irresistible, leading to a strict moral code among its followers.
Q & A
Who is John Calvin and why is he significant?
-John Calvin was a French theologian who settled in Geneva, Switzerland, and is considered the father of Reformed Christianity. He is significant because he was a radical reformer who sought to create a theology and church structure distinct from the Catholic Church, emphasizing a truly reformed approach rather than mere modifications to existing doctrines.
What is the main theme of John Calvin's 'Institutes of the Christian Religion'?
-The main theme of John Calvin's 'Institutes of the Christian Religion' is the systematic presentation of his theological beliefs, with a strong emphasis on the sovereignty of God, which underpins all aspects of Calvinist theology.
What is the doctrine of predestination as explained in the script?
-The doctrine of predestination, as explained in the script, is the belief that God has chosen certain individuals, known as the elect, to go to heaven before they are even born. This means that their salvation is not contingent on their actions or decisions but is solely based on God's sovereign will.
How does the concept of free will relate to Calvinist theology?
-In Calvinist theology, the concept of free will is largely rejected. It is believed that if God is truly sovereign, then the idea of free will would undermine God's omnipotence, making God subject to human decisions and actions.
What is the acronym TULIP and how does it relate to Calvinism?
-TULIP is an acronym representing the Five Points of Calvinism: Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints. It is a mnemonic device to help remember the core tenets of Calvinist theology.
What does 'Total Depravity' mean in the context of Calvinism?
-In Calvinism, 'Total Depravity' refers to the belief that human beings are inherently sinful and incapable of choosing God or accepting God's grace without divine intervention. It implies that humans are completely unable to contribute to their own salvation.
What is 'Unconditional Election' and why is it important in Calvinism?
-Unconditional Election is the belief that God's choice of the elect is not based on any foreseen actions or merits of the individual. It is purely an act of God's grace, and this concept is crucial in Calvinism as it underscores the idea that salvation is entirely God's decision, not influenced by human actions.
Can you explain 'Limited Atonement' in Calvinist theology?
-Limited Atonement in Calvinist theology means that Jesus Christ's sacrifice on the cross was intended only for the elect, those chosen by God for salvation. It is not a universal atonement where Christ's death could potentially save all people, but rather it is specific to those whom God has chosen.
What does 'Irresistible Grace' signify in the context of Calvinism?
-Irresistible Grace signifies that once God has chosen someone for salvation, that person cannot resist the divine grace. It implies that the elect will inevitably be saved because God's grace is so powerful that it cannot be overcome by human will or actions to the contrary.
What is the 'Perseverance of the Saints' and why is it a key doctrine in Calvinism?
-The 'Perseverance of the Saints' is the belief that those who are elected by God will certainly persevere and ultimately be saved. It is a key doctrine in Calvinism because it asserts that once God has chosen someone, they are secure in their salvation and cannot fall away or lose their election.
How did Calvinism influence the design of churches and the attire of its followers?
-Calvinism influenced the design of churches by advocating for simplicity and the removal of religious icons, leading to plain, unadorned interiors. As for attire, Calvinists, including Puritans, favored plain and modest clothing, rejecting ornamentation and bright colors as signs of vanity, reflecting their belief in the primacy of spiritual over material concerns.
Outlines
π Introduction to John Calvin and Calvinism
The speaker begins by emphasizing the importance of not selling drugs to children, then transitions into an introduction to John Calvin, the founder of Reformed Christianity. Calvin, a Frenchman who settled in Geneva, Switzerland, is distinguished from Martin Luther by his radical approach to reforming the church and theology. Unlike Luther, who sought to modify existing Catholic doctrines, Calvin aimed to create a theology and church structure entirely distinct from the Catholic Church. His seminal work, 'Institutes of the Christian Religion,' outlines a systematic theological framework grounded in the sovereignty of God, which is foundational to Calvinist thought. The speaker also introduces the concept of predestination, suggesting that God's sovereignty extends to choosing who will be saved, even before birth.
π The Five Points of Calvinism (TULIP)
The speaker explains the core tenets of Calvinism using the acronym TULIP. 'Total depravity' refers to the Calvinist belief that humans are incapable of choosing God without divine intervention. 'Unconditional election' highlights that God's choice of the 'elect' is not based on human merit or actions. 'Limited atonement' asserts that Jesus' sacrifice was for the elect only, not for all humanity. 'Irresistible grace' conveys that once God has chosen someone, they cannot resist His grace. Finally, 'Perseverance of the Saints' means that those elected by God are assured of their salvation and cannot lose it. The speaker uses a hypothetical scenario involving a character named Stephen to illustrate the concept of predestination and the impact of God's sovereignty on human actions and fate.
ποΈ Calvinist Practices and Iconoclasm
The speaker discusses the practical expressions of Calvinism, particularly in terms of church aesthetics and personal conduct. Calvinists are known for their iconoclasm, the rejection of religious icons and decorations in churches, in favor of simplicity and unadorned spaces. This reflects their belief that God should not be represented through physical art or ornamentation. The speaker also touches on the plain dress and modest lifestyle of Calvinists, contrasting with the ornate clothing and vanity associated with other Christian traditions. The video concludes with a brief overview of the spread of Calvinism and its regional variations, such as Presbyterians in Scotland, Puritans or Separatists in England, and Huguenots in France, inviting viewers to explore these topics further.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘John Calvin
π‘Calvinism
π‘Reformation
π‘Institutes of the Christian Religion
π‘Sovereignty of God
π‘Predestination
π‘Free Will
π‘TULIP
π‘Iconoclasm
π‘Puritans
Highlights
Introduction to John Calvin and Calvinism, emphasizing Calvin's role as a radical reformer distinct from Martin Luther.
John Calvin's establishment in Geneva, Switzerland, and his foundational work, 'Institutes of the Christian Religion'.
Calvin's systematic theology built on logic and scripture, reflecting his background as a lawyer.
The core tenet of Calvinism: the sovereignty of God, implying absolute control over all things.
Discussion on predestination, where God's sovereignty leads to the conclusion of an elect chosen before birth.
The hypothetical scenario of Stephen Wright to illustrate the concept of predestination and its implications.
Critique of the Catholic and humanist views on free will as incompatible with Calvin's emphasis on God's sovereignty.
Explanation of the acronym TULIP to represent the Five Points of Calvinism.
Total depravity: the inability of humans to choose God without divine intervention.
Unconditional election: God's choice of the elect not based on human merit or actions.
Limited atonement: Jesus Christ's sacrifice for the elect only, not for everyone.
Irresistible grace: the notion that once God has chosen someone, they cannot resist His will.
Perseverance of the Saints: the assurance that the elect cannot lose their salvation.
Iconoclasm in Calvinist churches, reflecting a rejection of religious icons and ornamentation.
Description of Calvinist attire, emphasizing simplicity and a rejection of vanity.
Spread of Calvinism and its regional denominations: Presbyterians in Scotland, Puritans/Separatists in England, and Huguenots in France.
The practical implications of Calvinism on daily life, including dress and behavior.
Closing thoughts on Calvinism as a theology without free will, where election is unconditional and irresistible.
Transcripts
all right so before I start talking
about John Calvin I want to make one
thing absolutely clear you should never
sell drugs to
Children hey there students I'm going to
talk to you a little bit about John
Calvin and Calvinism for those of you
who are studying the reformation and
just trying to wrap your brain around
Calvin and his doctrines uh you know in
case you get some questions about that
and that sort of thing so I'm going to
give you a brief introduction to
Calvinism well let's start off with the
founder John Calvin John Calvin uh was
in Geneva Switzerland he was uh French
ethnically but he settled in Switzerland
and he is the father of reformed
Christianity now what I mean by this is
not that he started the Reformation
that's more Martin Luther but there's
really this distinguishing
characteristic of Calvin that makes a
calvinist truly reformed where Martin
Luther wanted to just tweet some things
about the Catholic Church you know there
are Catholic doctrines he disagrees with
he gets rid of those he modifies
whatever John Calvin wants to start from
scratch really uh a truly reformed
theology and a Theology and a church
that really looks nothing like the
Catholic church of his day so just keep
in mind that he is a radical reformer
taking things in an entirely different
direction and not just coming up with
things that he disagrees with and
modifying them and John Calvin wrote
what is perhaps the first work of
systematic theology in the Reformation
his Institutes of the Christian religion
it's very important that you know this
book uh because this is where he writes
about all of his doctrines and comes up
with this system not just these are some
things about my theology but here is an
entire theological system kind of like
building a house or something like that
he's going to start uh you know start
from the bottom I guess kind of the
Drake of the Reformation or something
like that and and it's really founded
upon logic okay now Calvin there are
some things about Calvin's theology that
are not very palatable but you can't
really argue with his logic John Calvin
had been a lawyer so what he really does
is he takes scripture and he takes cold
hard logic and really puts them together
so you can reject Calvin's framework
outright but it's really hard to find
holes in it uh if you uh agree with it
from the foundation and the foundation
of calvinist theology is the sovereignty
of God that God has absolute control
over everything and without this there's
no calvinist Theology and everything
that you'll see from Calvinism comes
from this that God who is omnipotent
omniscient omnipresent that he is truly
Sovereign and he has
control and big part of this Doctrine is
the doctrine of predestination because
the thing is if God is Sovereign
then how does it make sense if he wants
people to go to heaven and they don't uh
joining me here is uh Steven Wright who
made a five on like all kinds of AP
exams so I figured I'd bring him in for
some uh some inspiration uh you know rub
his head a little bit for some good luck
on your behalf now Stephen could be
predestined all right when we're
thinking about predestination what this
is is that certain people are
predestined to go to heaven and others
are not even before they are born um
that God has picked out an elect all
right so let's say that God wants
Stephen to go to heaven and God sends me
to come and talk to Stephen and I say
Stephen I'd like to tell you a little
bit about Jesus Christ do you have a
minute uh for me to present the gospel
to you actually there are some children
over there and I think I'm going to go
sell some drugs to them so bye wow what
a waste of a five on all kinds of AP
exams right um you know what kind of
person sells drugs to Children a very
bad person all right and what you don't
know is that after Steven rolled off he
goes and he you know sells these drugs
these children but he doesn't realize
that people were on to him and those
people are the police and the police
were there there was a SWAT team but
then Steven who just happened to be
armed with all kinds of illegal weapons
grenades all that kind of stuff you know
shoots back D boom boom boom all that
kind of stuff and then uh you know kills
a few of the police and then he gets in
the car and he's driving off and he's
going real fast and he runs over an old
woman and the boy scout who's helping
her across the street and then Stephen
runs into a telephone pole and Bam he's
dead all right and the last thing that
he did was run over an old woman and a
Boy Scout after killing police officers
after selling drugs to Children I'm s
sorry you are going to hell do not pass
go do not collect salvation now the
thing is if God is Sovereign what if God
had chosen Stephen to go to heaven and
now God is faced with this well wait I
mean he didn't even want to hear the
gospel message he wanted to sell drunks
to kids and now I've got to send him to
hell even though I wanted him to go to
heaven and now I'm so
lonely what kind of God is that right
that's that's really uh that's not a
sovereign God okay a God who is really
at the mercy of what some person decides
to do um so this idea of
predestination is that God has picked
certain people out to join him and those
people do not have free will because the
idea of Free Will so championed by the
Catholic church and by humanist in the
Renaissance this idea of free will to
Calvin it goes against the sovereignty
of God that it makes God powerless and
not truly omnipotent omnipresent
omniscient uh which is why calvinist
theology pretty much does away with free
will entirely uh this is the most
radical of the Reformation theologies
that you'll see and the farthest away
from Catholic teaching on free will
[Music]
[Applause]
now on to calvinist theology calvinist
theology can be easily explained to
English speakers with the acronym tulip
so just think of a flower and I'm going
to go over the Five Points of Calvinism
and these Five Points first start off
with total depravity of human beings
that you as a human being are unable to
choose God you were unable to use free
will you were unable to really even
freely except God's grace there is
nothing that you are capable of doing
it's all God all right so total
depravity of human beings then
unconditional election that God did not
elect you you might ask well why is it
that some people get to go to heaven and
some don't why are some part of the
elect and some not well the thing is
here that the election is unconditional
it had nothing to do with you anything
about you really it's not you know like
people are burning in Hell God's like
nothing personal
uh it's kind of like a teacher who
before the first day of class looks at
the role and decides these are going to
be my favorite students this this this
and this and I've not even met these
people and these are going to be my
favorites no matter what they do so the
election is without condition you did
not do anything to earn it that only
God's mercy resulted in you being
elected limited atonement okay because
while the Catholic Church teaches that
theoretically Jesus died for every one
that God would like for everyone to
accept um you know his lordship and go
to heaven and receive his grace John
Calvin believed that the atonement of
Jesus Christ was only for the elect so
that they could be saved the rest of
everybody else um well sorry like I said
nothing
personal irresistible Grace resistance
is futile all right this is something
from uh Star Trek there were these
villain called the Borg uh yeah I'm
going to nerd out for a second but they
would go around and they would
assimilate different races so they show
up and they tell you uh you know they go
up there and they say lower your Shields
resistance is futile and uh you know
just basically you get assimilated you
will be assimilated all right so I just
had my nerd moment but I'm a teacher so
I can do that uh that basically God is
kind of like these Borg on Star Trek uh
that you cannot resist you will be
assimilated the grace is irresistible
that once God Taps you on the shoulder
it wouldn't matter if there are a
million kids out there that you would
like to sell drugs to you are not going
to do that you are not going to be a
drug Pusher a cop killer or somebody who
runs over old ladies and boy scouts
because God has elected you and you are
going to be better than that not because
you are better than that but because God
has chosen you as one of his elect and
now you are going to act like it because
you're a great person no because God is
a great God and so you can't resist it
and the other thing is uh the
perseverance of the Saints which because
God elected you without condition there
was nothing that you did um because the
atonement was for the elect and because
the grace is irresistible uh there's
nothing you can do to lose it uh that
God elected you and God's not going to
decide that hey you know I'm Not So Into
You Anymore all right uh you know God's
not like some boyfriend or girlfriend or
something like that it's like hey you
know I used to feel this but don't
anymore it's not God okay God keeps his
promises makes his decisions and uh you
know you didn't do anything for it you
can't do anything to lose
it so that's basically it just think
about the elect and getting rid of Free
Will and letting God take care of the
whole thing I mean this is a real full
service God
here and that's really the premise there
is nothing you can do okay so if you're
thinking in terms of like hey I'd like
to go to heaven what can I do sorry
there's nothing you can do God's either
done it or or he
[Music]
hasn't let's talk about calvinist a
little bit as far as what a calvinist
would have looked like and what their
churches would have looked like one of
the things about Calvinism and what
makes Calvinists truly radical is their
iconic clasm uh this describes the
removal of statues and paintings and art
and all of that kind of stuff from
churches you walk into a c cathic Church
you may see a statue of the Virgin Mary
or a very nice stained glass and
pictures of the Saints and all of that
kind of stuff no when Calvinists took
over churches during the Reformation uh
you see here that uh churches in Li in
France are being looted uh where the
icons you see they're uh being taken you
see a fire going on there in the
background uh where they are
whitewashing the walls uh you see here
the destruction of religious icons and
Zurich that they're taking them out and
burning them and a calvinist church
would look more like this uh very
unadorned God is not about decoration if
you walk into a church where you see
nothing on the walls you know
whitewashed walls that sort of thing and
just a cross at the front uh that is in
the spirit of Calvinism and the reformed
tradition and as far as the way Puritans
dress they rejected ornamental clothing
uh if you look here at REM Brand's
Anatomy lesson he's portraying these
Dutchmen who are calvinist and they're
wearing very simple colors uh they're
not wearing a lot of bright colors Reds
greens all that kind of stuff you you
see them in very simple whites Browns
blacks and that sort of thing uh that
they did not believe in ornamentation
because fashion is a sign of vanity and
the Christian should not be vain uh
which kind of the irony of Calvinism is
that even though calvinism's not based
on Works uh they were some of the
strictest uh people during the time of
the Reformation when it came to how they
were supposed to act how they were
supposed to dress and all of that kind
of stuff and Calvinism spread outside of
Switzerland and it's very important for
you to know where the Calvinists are and
what they're called when you go to
Scotland uh the Calvinists are known as
Presbyterians and the Presbyterian
Church was founded by John Knox who was
a disciple of John Calvin in Scotland in
England Calvinists were known as either
Puritans or Separatists depending on
whether they wanted to purify the Church
of England or separate from it and then
in France they were known as hugenots uh
might want to check out my video on the
French Wars of religion if you haven't
already uh which goes into the struggles
between the hugenots and the Catholics
in France so that about wraps us up for
Calvinism just remember that it is a
theology without free will uh that God
has elected some people and if you're
elected you're in if not uh well sorry
nothing personal and there was nothing
you did to earn it and there is nothing
you could do to get rid of it plain
clothes plain
churches if you learned something you
like what you heard here want to learn
more go ahead and subscribe to my
channel I'd love that visit my website
follow me on Twitter Instagram Facebook
like dislike comment I would love to
hear from you and dialogue with you I'll
be back soon until next
[Applause]
[Music]
time so am I member of the elect
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