Featured Atrocities of John Calvin

The "protesting Catholics" such as were Luther and Calvin were raised by a church that justified torture and burning victims alive, While we can respect the Reformers for attempting to distance themselves from the many doctrinal errors of their former church - it is still sad to see that they were not able to make a clean break with all the horrific practices of the RCC in the dark ages.

Yet today the RCC declares her call to "Exterminate heretics" in Lateran IV to be "infallible" since it is part of an ecumenical council. Not so with the various mistakes among Protestants. They are not married to the idea of claiming that the atrocities of the past were "infallible"

in Christ,

Bob

 

Oh for goodness gracious! Why rehash this? I mean, who needs to review stuff that happened that long ago ....and by what standards do you wish to judge any of these people by? Let it go dude & move on up to the 21st century.

 

Usually in debates when you attack the character and not the arguments it means you don't have an argument. If you don't believe in Calvinism that's fine but attacking a man who is long dead and gone will not changes anyones mind about reformed theology, especially when he really was just a product of his time.

 

This has been posted on this board a hundred times over.

 

But history doesn't change. What many don't realize is the history of Calvinism and where it really started. Let's go right back to Constantine.

Constantine in the early part of the 4th century made a false profession of faith. He did it for political reasons. He saw that Christianity was spreading and had become popular among the masses. He issued forth an edict of toleration, which was very important at that time. It restored a measure of peace.
But uniting "Christianity" with the state, he formed a "church-state," and hence the beginnings of the "Catholic Church." Constantine wanted unity--peace and unity at all costs.

What Constantine didn't count on was certain "sects" (I use the term loosely) of Christianity who opposed the this state-church and all the corruption and false doctrine that had entered in. It was the Donatists who separated from this Church.
Constantine had his famous vision, a cross in the sky, and a voice that said: "In this thou shalt conquer." Constantine never renounced his loyalty to the sun-gods, nor the goddess Vesta, nor others. He certainly was not a true Christian.
It was not long after the edict of tolerance was issued that he encountered the division with the Donatists in north Africa. After 3 years of futile discussions Constantine resorted to force. In 317 he issued an edict at Milan, declaring the Donatists as heretics, and that they should be persecuted even to death. In fact, all those outside of the Catholic were to have their property confiscated and treated as heretics.

It was in this environment that Augustine was born, one of the fathers of the Catholic Church--a man who believed in baptismal regeneration, that salvation came through keeping the sacraments of the church, and that no one could be saved outside of the Catholic Church. His devotion to the Catholic Church was extreme. He also perpetuated the persecution of heretics.
Augustine wrote his famous book, "The City of God," describing the Kingdom of God on earth. Perhaps it could be established by exterminating heretics, weeding out the tares, leaving only the wheat.

1200 years later Calvin came and took the same belief system that Augustine had developed--total depravity, and many of the doctrines built upon it which established TULIP. To enforce it heretics had to be punished such as they were in Augustine's time. Many Anabaptists were tortured for their faith, even executed.
Calvin set up his own state church, such as Augustine had written about. He tried to cleanse Geneva of the tares. He tried to force salvation on those in Geneva. How could he impose "election" upon all in Geneva is a question that still remains unanswered.
Coming out of Cathoicism, and following Augustine, Calvin took much of the Catholic baggage with him. He practiced baptismal regeneration. He practiced persecution of the saints. If anyone disagreed with this "Protestant Pope," he would be punished. A "system" of "Christianity" was imposed upon the city of Geneva. The Bible, as Augustine did, was now interpreted in an allegorical way.
In March of 1537 all Anabaptists were banished from the city.
He imposed his brand of Christianity on the citizens of Geneva with floggings, imprisonments, banishings, and burning at the stake.
But this is not Christianity is it? Was it really anything different than Constantine did as a pagan ruler?

 

Was the OP a cut n copy? If so, that's plagerism, seeing he cited no link...

 

Yes he plagiarized this paper:


http://bible-truth.org/Election2.doc


Or he just forgot to include the link by accident.

 

The real history of a Protestant reformer who urged that someone who differed with him be burned alive is right up there with some stuff going on in Iraq. I argue that the only reason this seemed like a good thing to someone living in the dark ages - is that they had been so convinced in their childhood by stuff the RCC was doing.

It is a warning to all of us that the Reformers probably did not make a "clean break" with Catholicism even though they made noble strides in that direction.

in Christ,

Bob

 

No they did not make a clean break from the RCC. But if you looked at any of the Reformers they all have skeletons that we would rather not talk about. Calvin is not unique in that respect.

 

And my understanding is that those "Carry over" bad ideas about intolerance, persecution, demonizing of the opponent that the RCC practices, carried over at least "in part" with the first generation of Reformers, with the result being what it was.

In any case - while we are on the subject...

What do think of this former-Calvinist-turned-Catholic claiming that it was Calvin that opened his eyes to why it would be good to be Catholic

 

In Geneva? Supposedly under the authority of Calvin? That's a LIE.

Stupid LIE.

Two more idiotic LIES.

Foolish categorical LIE. Anyone who has the barest amount of integrity knows Calvin was against the allegorical method all the way. You are spouting stupid drivel and shame covers your LIES.

You are not uniformed. You are intentionally lying. Calvin did not have the authority you still wish to impose on him with your revisionist history. The City Council --not John Calvin imposed punishments of the kind you have itemized. And John Calvin was not a member of the City Council.

 

The only instance I'm readily aware of in which Anabaptists were tortured and killed was in the aftermath of the Münster Rebellion, in which several Anabaptists seized political control of the German town of Münster, instituting a theocracy and claiming the city to be the New Jerusalem. One of the leaders, John of Leiden, became so arrogant in his power that he proclaimed himself a successor to King David and instituted legalized polygamy, taking multiple wives himself. Once the rebellion was put down, three of the Anabaptist leaders (John of Leiden, Bernhard Krechting, and Bernhard Knipperdolling [who had been installed as mayor]) were executed. To quote Wikipedia (I know, not the most reliable source, but this isn't exactly an academic paper here):

The fallout from the rebellion was that the Anabaptists never again gained political advantage, though various sectarian groups held out. The Batenburgs, in particular, held on to the polygamy John of Leiden advocated, and also believed violence to be a reasonable answer to anyone who differed in belief from them.

 

You are intentionally blind. A very quick and cursory glance of the internet will show otherwise:

http://socrates58.blogspot.ca/2009/05/john-calvins-advocacy-of-capital.html

 

MUST though understand the nature of the times, and what was happening...

Did Calvin at times do things that were not Christian based? yes, but then so have ALL of us here, and we are to examine the teachings of His by the Bible itself, not by if he was perfect all his life!

I have no doubt that he was saved, and gifted by God to be a theologian, unlike those so called ones in catholicism and SDA!

 

Does culture change the Bible?
Under what circumstances does the Bible change?
Is it right to kill innocent people (though one may think they be heretics) ?
Can you go at random and kill J.W.'s, Mormons, etc. Can your president issue such a decree? When does it become right for a Christian to wage war and execute other Christians because they disagree with him.
He was a cruel monster.
This was the basic difference that Arminius had with Calvin, not doctrinal.
Arminius studied at Calvin's school.

 

NOT saying that what Calvin always did was right thing, but that we must understand in the light of the times why was more acceptable to do...

And his teachings were still much better than the catholic ones of the time...

 

The Anabaptists were persecuted by Catholics, Lutherans and Calvinists, all of which were pedobaptists. Only some took up arms, but that was not a general practice.

In the Munster Rebellion there were some that were called Anabaptists (a name given to anyone that rebaptized) that did take up arms). However that was an exception to the majority of the Anabaptist.

https://thoughtsofalivingchristian....tholic-lutheran-and-calvinist-perspectives-2/

 

That is the teaching of relativism. A choice between two evils.
The teaching of the Anabaptists was the correct teaching.

https://thoughtsofalivingchristian....tholic-lutheran-and-calvinist-perspectives-2/
Calvin, in many ways, came out of the Catholic Church, only to mimic it once again.