John Calvin (jan 1, 1509 – jan 1, 1564)

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John Calvin was the founder of Calvinism, the denomination of Protestantism that involved belief in a sovereign God, the depravity of humanity, and predestination.

He believed that God selected him to reform the church. He worked in Geneva to establish a Christian society in which church and state acted together. The Institutes of the Christian Religion captured his ideals, including a sovereign and omnipotent God and the weakness of humanity. He argued humans were insignificant and without free will. He believed God had already decided who was to be saved and who damned (predestination).

Calvinists believed that hard work, thrift, and proper moral conduct could still show one was “elect”. Geneva became based on Calvin’s ideas. The Consistory (group of laymen and pastors charged with investigating and disciplining deviations from proper doctrine and conduct) was the most powerful organization. Some people were banished or executed for serious crimes and heresy.

The Calvin church was the model for the Presbyterian Church in Scotland, the Huguenot Church in France, and the Puritan churches in England and New England.

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