In the book, For Faith & Freedom, there is a chapter titled: The Double Legacy Of Michael Servetus - It starts on Page 41. It is an excellent account from history that discusses the outrage from both Christians & non-Christians on the murder of Michael Servetus. Listed below are excerpts from this chapter.
"The Scriptures are full of enigmas and inscrutable questions which have been in dispute for over a thousand years without agreement, nor can they be resolved without love which appeases all controversies. Yet on account of these enigmas, the earth is filled with innocent blood...On controversial points we would do better to defer judgement, even as God, who knows us to be guilty, yet postpones judgement and waits for us to amend our lives. To kill a man is not to defend doctrine. It is to kill a man". - Sebastian Castellio (page 41).
"Seldom if ever in religious history has posthumous insult been more violent or odius, or more self-righteously used in the service of God" Earl Morse Wilbur (Page 42)
"We are all heretics in the eyes of those who do not share our views...let us be tolerant towards one another, and let no man condemn an other's belief" - Sebastian Castellio (page 42) A rebuttal to John Calvin's justification of executing Servetus.
"Who would wish to be a Christian when he saw that those who confessed the name of Christ were destroyed by Christians themselves with fire, water, and the sword without mercy and more cruelly treated than brigands and murderers? Who would not think Christ as a Moloch, or some such god, if he wished that men should be immolated to him or burned alive. Who would wish to serve Christ on condition that a difference of opinion on a controversial point with those in authority should be punished by burning alive at the command of Christ himself more cruelly than in the bull of Phalaris, even though in the midst of the flames, he should call with a loud voice upon Christ, and shall cry out that he believed in Him. Imagine Christ the judge of all, present. Imagine Him pronouncing the sentence and applying the torch. Who would not hold Christ for Satan? What more can Satan do than burn those who call upon the name of Christ?" - Sebastian Castellio (page 42-43).
"The author's aim (John Calvin) is to justify himself, to attack Servetus, and to prove that Servetus was rightly punished by death. I propose to subject this book to a critical examination. In accordance with his usual controversial manner, Calvin will probably describe me as one of Servetus's disciples, but I hope that no one will thereby be misled. I am not defending the thesis of Servetus, but I am attacking the false thesis of Calvin...I do not even possess a copy of Servetus's books,since Calvin has burned all the copies he could lay his hands on, and I therefor do not know what ideas Servetus put forward...I hope to make clear to everyone what sort of man this (John Calvin) is whom the lust for blood has driven crazy". Sebastian Castellio (page 45).
Other notes about Castellio: (Copied)
"It is unchristian to use arms against those who have been expelled from the Church, and to deny them rights common to all mankind." Castellio ventured into a passionate discourse revolving around the question "What is a heretic?" He repeatedly argued against one man (Calvin)'s inerrant interpretation of Christian Scripture and concluded that a heretic is anyone who disagrees with another regarding the meaning of Scripture, thus being a relative term and a relative charge.
Castellio also can be credited with a huge advance in the promotion of the concept of limited government He passionately argued for a separation of state and Church and against the idea of theocracy. Arguing that no one is entitled to direct and control an other's thought, he stated that authorities should have "no concern with matters of opinion" and concluded: "We can live together peacefully only when we control our intolerance. Even though there will always be differences of opinion from time to time, we can at any rate come to general understandings, can love one another, and can enter the bonds of peace, pending the day when we shall attain unity of faith."
Castellio died in Basel in 1563, and was buried in the tomb of a noble family. His enemies unearthed the body, burned it, and scattered the ashes. Some of his students erected a monument to his memory, which was later destroyed by accident; only the inscription is preserved.
Students For Christ wrote: ReplyDTF - Thank you!
ReplyDelete"The past is always a rebuke to the present"
SFC
I don't have time to answer this right now; however, I would like to say that Calvinism DOES rise and fall on John Calvin...you can not seperate Calvinism from John Calvin anymore than you can seperate Mormonism from Joseph Smith. No matter how hard SB tries to distract you from the truth. John Calvin was a murderer and his philosophy is dangerous.
ReplyDeleteThe information that was cited in this blog is excellent material.I make mention at the begining of this blog, that both Christians and Non-Christians were outraged at the sensless murder of Servetus. As mentioned, I have quoted from Calvinist sources, does this make me a Calvinist? Of course not. I don't need to waste more time on this. SB's record speaks for itself on this issue.Don't get distracted, research the life of John Calvin. Use your own resources, It doesn't matter...
I have so much to say on this topic, but I just don't have the time right now; however, I can assure you that I will respond as soon as I can, In the meantime, please do your own research on John Calvin, and you will find as I have, that John Calvin was a cruel man that murdered and tortured people and his "actions" speak louder than his empty "words".
I am trying order the book/tract written by John Calvin titled: Defense of Orthodox Faith against the Prodigious Errors of the Spaniard Michael Servetus. The tract, is John Calvin's justification of killing Michael Servetus. So far, I have been unable to find the tract on the internet. I intend to use this tract and otherCalvinist resources to prove that Calvin condoned the killing of people who disagreed with him, If anyone knows where I can order this book/tract, please let me know,
ReplyDeletePlease remember: The truth of God is absolute. SB will have you believe that murder was acceptable during the time of the reformation since it is what people did back then. SB is making a relative truth argument. I will adress this later when I am able to find the time.
Exerpt from The Life of John Calvin written by John Lord
ReplyDeleteRE: Calvin's Intolerance
I simply wish to present the subject historically,--to give Calvin's own views, and the effect of his deductions on the theology of his age; and in giving Calvin's views I must shelter myself under the wings of his best biographer, Doctor Henry of Berlin, and quote the substance of his exposition of the peculiar doctrines of the Swiss, or rather French, theologian
If a man not forbidden to take the Sacrament neglected to receive it, he was condemned to banishment for a year. One was condemned to do public penance if he omitted a Sunday service. The military garrison was summoned to prayers twice a day. The judges punished severely all profanity, as blasphemy. A mason was put in prison three days for simply saying, when falling from a building, that it must be the work of the Devil. A young girl who insulted her mother was publicly punished and kept on bread-and-water; and a peasant-boy who called his mother a devil was publicly whipped. A child who struck his mother was beheaded; adultery was punished with death; a woman was publicly scourged because she sang common songs to a psalm-tune; and another because she dressed herself, in a frolic, in man's attire. Brides were not allowed to wear wreaths in their bonnets; gamblers were set in the pillory, and card-playing and nine-pins were denounced as gambling. Heresy was punished with death; and in sixty years one hundred and fifty people were burned to death, in Geneva, for witchcraft. Legislation extended to dress and private habits; many innocent amusements were altogether suppressed; also holidays and theatrical exhibitions. Excommunication was as much dreaded as in the Mediaeval church.
According to Henry, Calvin maintained that God, in his sovereign will and for his own glory, elected one part of the human race to everlasting life, and abandoned the other part to everlasting death; that man, by the original transgression, lost the power of free-will, except to do evil; that it is only by Divine Grace that freedom to do good is recovered; but that this grace is bestowed only on the elect, and elect not in consequence of the foreknowledge of God, but by his absolute decree before the world was made.
Go to "Links" on this blog for the entire article. It is written from a historical perspective
Regarding the comment above, ask yourself the question, is this information true? or is this information false? The only way to know for sure is to do your own research. Verify the information for yourself. Don't just assume that everything you read is true (or false), until you have considered the validity of the printed material (or other media). Check the credentials of the author, consider the author's bias, or agenda. VERIFY! VERIFY! VERIFY!
ReplyDeleteI like to read history, and I came across a history book titled Beacon Lights of History, written by John Lord. In the book (one of eight volumes) was a chapter dedicated to the Life of John Calvin. The text portrays John Calvin as a theological genius who is to be admired for his learning, piety and influence on the protestant church. Lord also discusses the dark side of John Calvin and the results of his religious intolerance for those who disagreed with him. John Lord gives an objective and historical account of John Calvin's life and is a very good source for historical information.
About the author: John Lord (1810-1894) was an American writer, lecturer and historian. He graduated from Dartmouth (1833) and Andover Theological Seminary (1837). In 1864, he also received an LL.D degree from New York University. Lord lectured and taught at Dartmouth College, and even served as the President of Dartmouth for 36 years. John Lord was a historian first and foremost and is still considered as one of America's greatest historians. Besides several school and college history texts, Lords works include The Old Roman World (1867) The Grandeur and Failure of Civilization (1867); Ancient States and Empires (1869); Two German Giants: Frederick the Great and Bismarck (1885); and Beacon Lights of History (8 vols., 1884-1896). Beacon Lights of History is based upon Lord's reminiscences of fifty years in the lecture field and is considered to be Lord's chief contribution to historical literature (you can read this book online). Also: see The Life of John Lord (1896) by Rev. Alexander S. Twombley, D. D.
Often times, Calvinists will try and discredit the author, or any source of information that sheds a negative light on Calvinism, by making claims that the information is "anti-Calvin" and based on hate and lies, or simply has a false religious bias to it. The strategy is to get the attention off the subject of truth and to focus instead on lesser things. Thus, I reference John Lord's work because he gives an objective and historical account on the life of John Calvin. Lord's writings are credible and reliable and can be used to understand John Calvin from a historical perspective. I do not believe John Lord's books are above the Bible, nor am I a follower of John Lord, but he is a respected historian known for his attention to detail and historical accuracy, which is why I reference his work.
So, I challenge the reader of this blog to research the character and life of John Calvin, and ask yourself, if Calvin was truly a Christ follower? In your research, I would recommend starting with John Lord's book, or read the summary article attached to the links section of this blog, or find other historical accounts yourself. Remember, "there is only one true religion, and that is the religion based on truth!"
Happy Researching!
p.s. I really would like to spend more time to this blog, but my time is limited, I am trying to be a good father, help my wife with things around the house, and I have a huge work related project that I am working on; thus, when I find free time, I would like to add other research I have done on the topic of Calvinism and other faith related topics going forward.God Bless!