The Calvinist Church in brief. Calvinism history of the beginning of the reformation and the emergence of Calvinism

Philosophy: Encyclopedic Dictionary. - M.: Gardariki. Edited by A.A. Ivina. 2004 .

CALVINISM

Protestant doctrine, the founder of which was Calvin, which arose in the 16th century. as a result of the Reformation. K. met the demands of the emerging bourgeoisie and became a religionist. expression of her interests. The basis of Calvin’s theology was the doctrine of “absolute predestination,” according to which, even before the “creation of the world,” he predestined some people to “salvation” and others to “destruction,” and this sentence of God is absolutely unchangeable. However, the doctrine of “absolute predestination” was not fatalistic. character. According to K., every profession is “God’s destiny,” and the pre-election of the department. a person to salvation is expressed in the successful fulfillment of this calling. In K., therefore, they received religion. bourgeois justification accumulation and bourgeois activity in general. K., as a bourgeoisie, was justified by the usurer. interest and believed that it was completely acceptable from a religious point of view. Calvin's teaching substantiated the principles of the so-called. worldly asceticism, which was expressed in simplicity of life and hoarding, in the destruction of numerous Catholic holidays, and “... the whole secret of which lies in bourgeois thrift” (Engels F., see. Marx K. and Engels F., Soch., 2nd ed., vol. 7, p. 378).

A religious man appeared to K. a shell for the performance of the bourgeoisie in two early bourgeoisie. revolutions - Dutch 16th century. and English 17th century. “In Calvinism the second major uprising of the bourgeoisie found a ready-made combat theory. This uprising took place in England” (F. Engels, Development of Socialism from Utopia to Science, 1953, p. 17).

K. was a weapon in the fight not only against the Catholics. the church that sanctified the feud. relationships, but also with people. movements. In contrast to popular "heretical" teachings that denied the "" church, K. preached that " " is possible exclusively through the church, but not the Catholic, but the Calvinist; all believers were charged with the strictest fulfillment of all its instructions. K. demanded the most severe extermination of “heretics”, in no way inferior to Catholicism in this. Both dogma and the church. K. were hostile to the people from the very beginning. to the masses. K. is widespread in modern times. England and USA. Ch. K.'s ideas are the basis of the dogma of many. Protestant sects in the USA.

Lit.: Engels F., Peasantism in Germany, Marx K. and Engels F., Works, 2nd ed., vol. 7; his, Ludwig Feuerbach and the end of classical German philosophy, ibid., vol. 21; Vipper R. Yu., The influence of Calvin and Calvinism on the political teachings and movements of the 16th century. Church in Geneva of the 16th century in the era of Calvinism, M., 1894; Kapelyush F.D., Religion of early capitalism, M., 1931.

Philosophical Encyclopedia. In 5 volumes - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Edited by F. V. Konstantinov. 1960-1970 .

CALVINISM

CALVINISM (Reformed Church) is one of the main directions of the Reformation, founded by J. Calvin. The doctrine of Calvinism consistently develops the principles of Protestantism: only the Bible is recognized as a sacred (God-inspired) book, the Catholic Church and its mediation in the matter of salvation are rejected; denied person; is recognized as an inevitable phenomenon; only the personal saves (sola fide); Of the seven sacraments, baptism and communion are preserved, but as symbolic rites (Christ is only imaginarily present in the Eucharist), monasticism, veneration of saints, icons, and pompous Catholicism are abolished. A distinctive feature of Calvinism is absolute predestination, according to which God, even before the creation of the world, by virtue of an incomprehensible decision, “chose” some people to salvation, others to eternal destruction, and no effort can save those who are doomed to destruction.

The basis of the Calvinist church is made up of autonomous communities (congregations), governed by consistories consisting of a pastor, deacon and elders chosen from among the laity. The congregation is completely independent in deciding spiritual matters. The greatest impact on not only Protestantism, but also Western society as a whole was made by Calvin's teaching on the relationship between secular power and the church. In contrast to Lutheranism, which sharply distinguished the sphere of the Gospel and worldly law, Calvinism affirmed the duty of the state not only to cooperate with the church in governing society, but also to follow its instructions, steadily seeking divine justice. Calvin put this policy into practice during his reign in Geneva, gradually concentrating all religious and secular power in the hands of a consistory obedient to him.

Bringing together the ecclesiastical and secular spheres of activity to the utmost, Calvinism represented not only the church, but also a monolithic religious and political movement that played a prominent role in the social battles of its era. According to Calvinism, God from time to time sends “heavenly avengers” to earth to crush the “bloody scepters of tyrants,” that is, opponents of the Reformation. This gave Calvinist leaders faith in their own providential calling, inexhaustible strength and energy in the fight against monarchs and Catholic hierarchs. An example is the activities of the “iron chancellor” O. Cromwell and the Scottish preacher J. Knox. A significant role in the formation of capitalism was played by the professional work activity developed by Calvin’s followers as the best form of serving God, and its success as an indirect evidence of “chosenness.” Since, according to the doctrine of Calvinism, there is no salvation outside the church, any dissidence is a crime against the law and must be eliminated. But the formation of the bourgeois system, the ideals of individualism and freedom of conscience more and more obviously came into contact with religious despotism. This was the case in England at the beginning of the 17th century, when, in the fight against Calvinism, which here received the name Presbyterianism, varieties of sectarianism began to emerge (Baptists, Quakers, Methodists, etc.), advocating religious tolerance and a complete separation of secular and ecclesiastical power. A key role in this regard was played by the relative free will of man. History repeated itself in North America: there the first Presbyterian colonialists tried to establish a theocratic regime in New England, which caused active resistance from other Protestant denominations. In the 20th century the influence of Calvinism on Protestant theology is noticeably increasing (neo-orthodoxy, evangelical Christianity, religious right). Now the most powerful Calvinist churches (Reformed, Presbyterian, Congregationalist) operate in the Netherlands, USA, Germany, France, Scotland, South Africa See lit. to Art. Calvin.

L. N. Mitrokhin

New Philosophical Encyclopedia: In 4 vols. M.: Thought. Edited by V. S. Stepin. 2001 .

See what "CALVINISM" is in other dictionaries:

Calvin's teachings. Explanation of 25,000 foreign words that have come into use in the Russian language, with the meaning of their roots. Mikhelson A.D., 1865. CALVINISM Calvin's teachings. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910 ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Calvinism- a, m. calvinisme m. One of the Protestant faiths, founded in Switzerland in the 16th century. Calvin. BAS 1. Camisards. The rebellious inhabitants of Cevennes, who at the beginning of the last century took up arms against Roman Catholics to defend Calvinism and... ... Historical Dictionary of Gallicisms of the Russian Language

CALVINISM, a branch of Protestantism, founded by J. Calvin. From Geneva, Calvinism spread to France (Huguenots), the Netherlands, Scotland and England (Puritans). The Dutch (16th century) and English (17th century) periods were influenced by Calvinism... ... Modern encyclopedia

One of the main movements of Protestantism. Originated in the 1630s. in Geneva. At the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries. the closely related movement of Zwinglianism, founded by the Swiss reformer W. Zwingli, merged with it. The Bible in Calvinism is considered the only... ... Historical Dictionary

Protestantism, creed Dictionary of Russian synonyms. Calvinism noun, number of synonyms: 2 creed (9) ... Synonym dictionary

CALVINISM, one of the main movements of Protestantism. Originated in the 30s. XVI century in France . The name of the movement is associated with the name of its founder Jean Covin (Latinized form - Calvinus, Calvin), the son of a notary from the small town of Noyon, near Paris. Having received good training in the field of theology, law and literature in Paris, Orleans and Bourges, he, under the influence of Martin Luther and other Protestant religious leaders, became fully involved in the struggle for church reform. In 1534, his first work on the theological topic, Psychopannychia, was published, in which the doctrine of the sleep of the soul was criticized. Forced to leave France and move to the city of Basel in Switzerland, J. Calvin published in 1536 in Latin his main theological work, “Instruction in the Christian Faith,” which was reprinted many times with changes and additions made by the author (the last lifetime edition was published in 1560 in French ; if the first edition consisted of 6 chapters, then the last one - of 79). The work, conceived as a kind of introduction to the Bible, proclaimed the principles of the Reformation as understood by J. Calvin, and gave a clear and complete presentation of the most important dogmatic provisions of Calvinism.

At the end of the 16th - beginning of the 17th centuries. A movement very close to it merged with Calvinism - Zwinglianism (for more information about it, see the article Reformation), founded by the Swiss religious reformer Ulrich Zwingli.

The doctrines of Calvinism are recorded with slight variations in several confessions: Gallican (1559), Belgian (1561), Second Helvetic (1566), Westminster (1647), etc.

The Calvinist doctrine is based on the interpretation of the Bible proposed by J. Calvin. The Holy Scriptures are viewed as the word of God, written by people under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and representing the revelation of God to man. As in other movements of Protestantism, the Bible is considered in Calvinism to be the only infallible standard of faith and life.

Calvinists believe that the Fall of man radically changed his nature, turning it into a purely sinful one: all that a person can do is sin (even if outwardly his actions look like good deeds). As in Lutheranism, in Calvinism faith is an indicator that a person will be saved, however, according to the Calvinist doctrine of absolute predestination, God, even before the Fall of man and even before the creation of the world, predestined some of his creatures to salvation, and others to eternal torment in hell . However, this doctrine was later somewhat softened by moderate Calvinists. A believer, according to Calvinism, must do good deeds and lead a good life, but this, again, is not a means by which salvation can be achieved, but only a sign that God has predestined a person for salvation.

The sacraments are also interpreted in accordance with this point of view of salvation. Calvinists have two sacraments - baptism and the Lord's Supper (communion), and they do not have saving power, but are only signs of a person’s salvation. Baptism is considered a sign of a person's membership in the church with his liberation from sins, since faith in Christ gives such liberation.

Calvinists also understand communion in a unique way. Unlike M. Luther, J. Calvin believed that during the Eucharist the body and blood of Christ are present in the elements of the sacrament not physically, but spiritually. Currently, many Calvinists have accepted W. Zwingli’s interpretation, which is somewhat different from the point of view of J. Calvin, and view communion only as the perpetuation of the memory of the Lord’s Supper, the remembrance of the atoning sacrifice of Christ.

Cult practice in different Calvinist churches varies somewhat, but in general it is characterized by a significant simplification of worship not only in comparison with Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Anglicanism, but even in comparison with Lutheranism. Like the Lutherans, the Calvinists abandoned the veneration of saints, sacred relics and relics; they do not have statues or icons in their churches. But if the Lutherans, having abandoned icons, nevertheless agreed to allow wall paintings in churches, then the Calvinists rejected any images. Their church premises are unpretentious. Unlike Lutherans and Anglicans, Calvinists do not have any special vestments for the clergy, and candles are not lit during services. There is no altar in churches; the cross is not considered a mandatory church symbol. Church services, like those of Lutherans, are performed in the languages ​​of believers. Ecstatic solemn invocations are not permitted during services.

In contrast to M. Luther, who recognized the supremacy of the state over the church, J. Calvin actually stood for theocracy - the subordination of the state to the church. However, now Calvinist churches do not claim any special rights in the state. Where they were once state (the Netherlands, most of the Swiss cantons, the American states of Massachusetts and Connecticut, etc.), they in most cases lost their former status, and only the Church of Scotland retained its position as an “established” (state) church .

Calvinist churches are governed either by presbyteries formed by priests and elders from among the laity of several neighboring communities, or directly by meetings of congregations (communities). Lay elders are called to assist priests in maintaining discipline and governing the church. The priests are also assisted by deacons, who collect donations and oversee their use. Some Calvinist churches now have bishops, but for them a bishop is not a degree of priesthood, but only a position of church leader.

Currently, Calvinism is known in three forms: Reformed, Presbyterian and Congregational. The first two forms differ little from each other, however, if Reformation arose in continental Europe (France, Switzerland, Germany), then Presbyterianism has its roots in the British Isles. Congregationalism differs from Reformation and Presbyterianism in that there are no presbyteries and each congregation is completely independent.

In 1970, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (Presbyterians and Congregationalists) was created, uniting most of the world's Calvinists. The governing bodies of the alliance are located in Geneva.

Sometimes the term “Calvinist” is understood broadly, and it refers not only to the Calvinist movement of Protestantism, but also to all other churches that accept the Calvinist doctrine of absolute predestination (for example, most Baptist churches).

The total number of followers of Calvinism is 62 million people. In Europe, they are represented primarily in the Netherlands (3.7 million people, or 25% of the total population - part of the Dutch and Frisians), Switzerland (2.5 million, or 38% of the population, and the share of Calvinists is large both among the German-Swiss, and French-Swiss), Hungary (2 million, or 19% of the population), Germany (2 million, or more than 2% of the population), Great Britain (1.9 million, or over 3% of the population - mainly Scots and Scots-Irish - Ulstermen). There are Calvinists in such European countries as Romania (715 thousand - mainly Hungarians), France (392 thousand), Ukraine (200 thousand - overwhelmingly Hungarians), Sweden (154 thousand), Slovakia (150 thousand - mostly Hungarians), Yugoslavia (21 thousand - mainly Hungarians), Finland (18 thousand), Norway (16 thousand), Ireland (15 thousand), Austria (15 thousand), Spain (14 thousand .).

There are significant groups of supporters of Calvinism in America: the USA (6.5 million people - people of Dutch, Scots-Irish, Scottish, Swiss and other origins), Brazil (502 thousand), Mexico (441 thousand), Canada (323 thousand - predominantly people of Scottish and Scots-Irish origin), Peru (254 thousand), Guatemala (51 thousand), Trinidad and Tobago (40 thousand), Argentina (31 thousand), Colombia (21 thousand), Guyana (19 thousand), Chile (12 thousand), Dominican Republic (11 thousand), Venezuela (11 thousand), Puerto Rico (10 thousand).

In Asia, there are Calvinists in South Korea (over 5 million), Indonesia (about 5 million - mainly in the eastern regions of the country), India (0.6 million - mainly in the northeast: Khasis, Mizo, etc.) ,

Leader of the Reformation in Switzerland in the middle of the 16th century. became the Frenchman Jean (John) Calvin. In doctrine and in the doctrine of morality, in the doctrine of the Church and church rituals, Calvin went much further than Luther. The main feature of his teaching is the doctrine of unconditional predestination, according to which God from eternity has predestined some people to salvation and others to destruction. This teaching formed the basis of the second branch of Protestantism after Lutheranism - Calvinism.

Calvinists call themselves Reformed, and their society the Reformed or Evangelical Reformed Church.

However, the followers of Calvin's teaching, which spread to many European countries, have historically been assigned other names characteristic of the national confessions of this teaching (see the section "The spread and development of Calvinism. Huguenots. Puritans").

John Calvin

John Calvin (1509–1564) was born in northern France into the family of a tax official who was also an official under the bishop.
The father prepared his son for a spiritual career. The young man received tonsure, that is, he was counted among the clergy of the Roman Catholic Church, but whether he had the rank of Catholic presbyter is unknown. As a young man, Calvin studied law, Roman Catholic theology, and philosophy. In addition to Latin, he knew Greek well and a little Hebrew.
In the 30s XVI century, imbued with sympathy for Protestantism, Calvin broke with the Roman Catholic Church and was forced to flee France, where the new teaching was cruelly persecuted. Calvin settled in the canton of Geneva, which had recently embarked on the path of the Reformation, and led the reform movement in Switzerland.

In 1536, he published his main work, “Instruction in the Christian Faith” (“Institutio religionis christianae”) in Latin and French, where he outlined the foundations of the new theology. The doctrine of man's passivity in the matter of salvation and of unconditional predestination, set forth in the “Instructions,” became a distinctive feature of his theology. In his teaching, Calvin showed himself to be an even greater rationalist than Luther and Zwingli. In the same year he published the so-called “First Catechism” and in addition to it, the “Confession of Faith”. The Confession, written in French, set forth the Reformed creed, which Calvin prescribed to the “citizens and inhabitants of Geneva” as mandatory. Those who did not want to accept him had to leave Geneva.

Geneva accepted Calvin as its spiritual leader. In this capacity, he proved himself to be an extremely demanding, strict and severe person to the point of cruelty. It is characteristic that, having declared himself an irreconcilable enemy of the Roman Catholic Church, Calvin not only did not condemn the medieval inquisitorial methods of combating dissenters, but he himself was the first in Protestantism to use torture and punishment by death for heresy in his theocratic community. Calvin was a supporter of the merger of Church and state and put this idea into practice in the Canton of Geneva, of which he became the absolute ruler. The religious and moral life of the Genevans was placed under the supervision of a special tribunal - the “consistory”. Dancing, singing, entertainment, and bright clothing were prohibited. All pomp of ritual and furnishings was removed from the temples, along with painting and other forms of art.

Calvin's personality is sharply different from most reformers: he is a scientist, a theorist - and at the same time an organizer, a politician who skillfully directed the masses. Possessing poor health, he nevertheless spent his whole life extremely active in forming the dogmatic foundations of a new creed, defending his teaching and disseminating it in European powers - England, Scotland, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland. He defended his teachings in the fight against German Lutherans and French Protestants, marking the beginning of an era of bloody clashes for faith. Calvin is a recognized authority on matters of theology and an active participant in all matters related to the pan-European Reformation. Under Calvin, Geneva became a center for the training of educated Protestant clergy and preachers for the Roman lands, a publisher and distributor of the Bible in France, and acquired the reputation of a “holy city.”

Calvinist creed. Symbolic books of Calvinists

There are a lot of doctrinal books in Calvinism. Not only different branches of Calvinism have their own symbolic books, but even separate local interpretations of the same confession.

The main symbolic books of Calvinists are the following:
Calvin's First Catechism (1536) is a revision of Calvin's major theological work, Institutes of the Christian Faith; also forms the basis of the above-mentioned “Confession of Faith.”
The purpose of writing the “Instructions” was to systematize the presentation of the already defined ideas of Protestantism and to put an end to the disorder of teaching and system among like-minded people. In this, Calvin far surpassed the attempts of his predecessors in clarity, conciseness, and power of presentation. In his teaching, Protestantism takes on a dry, rationalistic character with clear logical reasoning and references to the text of Scripture.
The “Instruction” was revised and expanded several times by the author, and in the most famous last edition of 1559 it was the sum of all the dogmatic and ecclesiastical teachings of Calvinism.

Calvin's "Geneva Catechism" (1545) differs from the "First Catechism" in its question-and-answer form of presentation.

The "Geneva Agreement" (1551), compiled by Calvin, contains a particularly sharpened version of the doctrine of predestination. Adopted by the Cantonal Council of Geneva.

The Gallican Confession, otherwise the Confession of Faith of the French Churches (1559), was adopted by the Calvinists of France. At its core, it is also the work of Calvin himself.

The listed definitions of religion were published in French and Latin.

The Heidelberg Catechism (1563), compiled by Calvinists in Germany in German, is also highly respected by the Reformed.

Calvinism's doctrine of the Church and the sacraments

Calvinism, like Lutheranism, is the fruit of the reformation movements of the 16th century. Just like Lutherans, Calvinists are a religious society deprived of continuous apostolic succession in the historical and sacramental sense, therefore, in the teaching of Calvinists about the Church, there also cannot be a firm belief in the continuous presence of the Church on earth and in the continuous standing of the historical Church in truth.

According to the teachings of Calvin, every community of people in which the word of Genesis is preached and the sacraments (Baptism and Communion) are performed is the Church.

Despite the irreconcilable hostility with Catholicism, Calvin's teaching on the Church approaches the medieval one and contains many elements of theocracy.

At the same time, Calvin accepted the basic tenets of Lutheran ecclesiology. But the picture of anarchy into which Luther's teaching on the universal shepherd plunged Protestantism forced Calvin to think about the need to raise the authority and importance of pastors and church organization. Calvin even sought to draw the state into the orbit of the Church (Luther was rather ready to allow the opposite: to subordinate the Church to the state).

The “Gallican Confession” is trying in every possible way to raise the authority of the newly formed Church and strengthen church discipline.
Thus, in answering the question of what the Church is, Calvin does not rise above Luther. “Following the word of God, we say that it is a company of believers who have agreed to follow this word” (v. 27).
The Calvinists teach about the sacraments, like the Lutherans, in vague terms, as “signs,” “seals,” and “testimonies.”

In the doctrine of the Eucharist, Calvin occupies a middle, vacillating position between Luther, who recognized the bodily presence of Christ in the Eucharist, and Zwingli, who rejected such a presence. Calvin taught that bread and wine are only signs of our spiritual communion with the Body and Blood of Christ, but that in reality only the chosen one, blessed by true faith, partakes of them.
Repentance does not have a sacramental meaning in Calvinism. Disregarding, along with the Lutherans, the teaching role of the Church, Calvin considered the biblical books to be the only rule of faith. “Neither edicts, nor decrees, nor visions, nor miracles should be opposed to this Holy Scripture” (Gallican Confession, art. 5)

However, Calvinists attach some importance to church tradition: the ancient creeds (in particular, the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed). Councils and Fathers of the Church. “We acknowledge what was determined by the ancient Councils and turn away from all sects and heresies rejected by holy teachers, such as St. Hilary, St. Athanasius, St. Ambrose, St. Cyril” (ibid., v. 6).

Calvin's doctrine of salvation and unconditional predestination

The basis of Calvin's teaching about predestination (predestination) is the idea of ​​the unconditional dominance of the will of God, which chooses people only as its instruments. This completely excludes the idea of ​​human merit, even the very idea of ​​the possibility of freedom of choice in people's decisions. This idea itself is not new and was developed by St. Augustine at the beginning of the 5th - end of the 4th century. and was basically shared by all the reformers of the 16th century, but in the teachings of Calvin it received its clearest and deepest expression. According to his teaching, those destined for eternal salvation constitute a small group, chosen by God by virtue of an incomprehensible decision, apart from all their merit. On the other hand, no amount of effort can save those who are condemned to eternal destruction.

Here it is not without interest to trace the course of reasoning that led Calvin to his doctrine of unconditional predestination.

In matters of soteriology, Calvin agrees with Luther that the nature of fallen man is completely distorted by sin. All human deeds, even the best, are internally evil. "Everything that comes from him is quite rightly condemned (by God) and imputed to sin ("Instruction"). Man has lost his free will. After the fall, he does evil not freely, but out of necessity.

Consistently developing these positions in this way, Calvin reached the doctrine of the unconditional predestination by God - some people to eternal salvation, others to eternal destruction - the main position of his soteriology. The doctrine of predestination bears the stamp of the special spiritual make-up of Calvin himself, his stern and cruel character, cold and rationalistic approach to theological issues.

The soteriological teaching of the Orthodox Church is fundamentally different from the views of Calvin and Luther. It comes from the Divine predestination set forth in the Holy Scriptures, flowing from Divine foreknowledge (them you foreknew, those you also ordained. - Rom. 8:29).

Calvin teaches about unconditional predestination, which takes place regardless of the spiritual state of a person and his way of life, and speaks about it in the most decisive terms. Having rejected human freedom, he goes so far as to assert that evil is committed by the will of God, and in his statements on this topic he sometimes gives the impression of being possessed.

“When we do not understand how God wants something to happen that He forbids, let us remember our powerlessness and insignificance, and also that the light in which God lives is not in vain called impregnable, for it is surrounded by darkness.” ("Instruction", book I). And further: “No matter what people and even the devil do, God always holds the steering wheel in his hands.”

The law of God prescribes to a weak-willed person “what is beyond his strength, in order to convince a person of his own powerlessness” (“Instruction”).

Calvin regrets that the holy fathers (excluding Augustine) do not teach about the loss of free will by man. Calvin is dissatisfied, in particular, with the fact that John Chrysostom “exalts the powers of men.”

By nature, man is capable only of evil. Good is a matter of grace. It is not up to our discretion, according to Calvin, to obey or resist the operation of grace.

Just like Luther, Calvin rejects human participation in the work of his salvation (synergy). Just like Luther, he teaches that a person is justified by faith in his salvation.

The Instruction says the following about good deeds:
“Although God, in working out our salvation, regenerates us to do good, we confess that the good works we do under the guidance of the Holy Spirit play no part in our justification.”

A believer, according to the teachings of Calvin, must be unconditionally confident in his salvation, for salvation is accomplished by God regardless of human deeds.
Calvin objects to the holy fathers who “kept people in fear and uncertainty” because they made salvation dependent on works.
“God once, in His eternal and unchangeable counsel, decided whom He would lead to salvation and whom He would consign to destruction.” “When they ask why God does this, one must answer: because it pleases Him so.”
This is how far Calvin goes in developing Luther's idea that man is a pillar of salt. Calvin seems to completely forget that, according to the Holy Scriptures, God wants all man to be saved (1 Tim. 2:4), and does not seem to notice the sharp contradiction in which his entire teaching is with the spirit of the Gospel.

To briefly summarize the Orthodox assessment of the Calvinist doctrine of unconditional predestination, we can say the following: Holy Scripture clearly testifies to the conditionality of God's predestination. This is evidenced, for example, by the representations of the future Last Judgment in the Gospel (Matthew 25, 34–36, 41–43). About grace as the power of God, saving for all people, and not just for some, we read from the same Apostle Paul, to whom Calvin referred: The grace of God, saving for all people, appeared... (Tim. 2: 11-12).

It is impossible to bypass the text of Holy Scripture while maintaining the persuasiveness of the judgment, which is why Calvinists interpret certain passages of Holy Scripture allegorically: that the moment of grace-filled care is considered as care for the world as a whole, which the Savior gave for all people in the sense that it is salvific for humanity. But it is salutary and beneficial for the human race that some perish and others are saved. Therefore, through this kind of interpretative exegesis, one can accept such a place.

Another famous passage from First Timothy (2:4): God wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Thus, God's predestination has in mind only those who are saved. Nowhere in Holy Scripture does it speak of a predestination to destruction. Predestination to salvation should be understood as an expression of God’s inexorable will to do everything necessary for the salvation of those who make good use of their free will: “...work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil. 2:12); “Whoever seeks grace and freely submits to it” (District Letter of the Eastern Patriarchs, 1848). Another quote from the “Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith” by St. John of Damascus: “The predestination of God is foreseeing, but not forced.” And at the end of this section - a quote from a 20th century theologian. Nikolai Nikanorovich Glubokovsky. In his famous work on the Epistles of the Apostle Paul, he wrote:
“Predestination says only that there is sinful humanity in the world, which has not completely perished and is therefore worthy of Divine mercy.”

As for Calvin's teaching on unconditional predestination, it was condemned by the Jerusalem Council of Eastern Patriarchs (1672) and its preachers were anathematized. And no one has canceled it yet. However, one cannot help but take into account the fact that current Calvinists and Reformed people do not place much emphasis on the doctrine of predestination, that is, it is not put forward today as the main point of doctrine. But no authoritative rejection of it has been declared by any of the branches of current Calvinism. Therefore, although in practice there is, of course, no emphasis (in Calvin’s downright reveling in this cruelty of God) on the division into those who are being saved and those who are being destroyed, there was, of course, no condemnation or rejection of this doctrine either.

Spread and development of Calvinism. Huguenots. Puritans

Calvin's activities took place in the middle of the 16th century, when the Catholic Church began to revive again and organized a strong reaction. Under these conditions, the main task of Protestantism was to adopt clear ecclesiastical forms and organize for decisive resistance, rising above the disparate efforts of reform in individual countries.

The successors of Calvin's work acted in a different historical situation, where the spirit of church reaction reigned and the Church sought rapprochement with popular, anti-monarchist forces. Calvinists derive a theory of resistance to wicked and tyrannical power, the doctrine of a contract sealed by God between the people and the king; Republican forms of church structure are transferred to church life.

Apart from a small corner of Romanesque Switzerland, where Calvin's teaching originated, it spread to Germany, mainly in the west, under the name of the Reformed Church, in the Netherlands, in France, where they were known as Huguenots, in Scotland and England - under the general name of Puritans and in Poland .

In Germany, Calvinism did not play a leading role until the middle of the 16th century. the conditions of tolerance did not apply to him.

In the Netherlands (Belgium and Holland) it became widespread mainly among the lower classes, especially in the cities, and was of a revolutionary nature. Dutch Calvinists played a significant political role in the struggle against Spanish domination in the second half of the 16th century. Further divisions on religious and political grounds significantly weakened Calvinism in the Netherlands.

The French Calvinists (Huguenots) stood closest to the founder of the movement in their doctrine of the structure of the Church. In the middle of the 16th century. in France there were up to two thousand Calvinist communities, and in 1559 the first church synod of the Huguenots met. The nobility especially readily accepted Calvinism, among whom purely religious aspirations were intertwined with political and social ones, and the Calvinist ideal of democracy turned out to be a convenient pretext for returning political rights to the nobility. Therefore, having begun their activities as a church organization, the Huguenots soon turned into a political party, headed by the Bourbons. Enmity with the Catholic Party of Guise and the political intrigues of secular monarchs led to a series of religious wars, which brought some benefits to the Huguenots. Nevertheless, the second half of the 16th century. characterized by the most fierce clash between the Huguenots and the government and the Catholic majority after the so-called St. Bartholomew's Night, when on the night of August 24, 1572, Catherine de Medici, regent for her young son, King Charles IX, organized a mass massacre of the Huguenots. At the end of the 16th century. The Huguenots received official recognition as a political organization operating under the control of the French king. With the development of a tolerant and free-thinking trend among the Huguenots, they gradually lost strength as a political organization and in 1629 completely lost political rights.

In Scotland, Calvinism began to spread in the middle of the 16th century. and had close connections with the political opposition against the Stuart dynasty. Its leader was John Knox, a student of Calvin, who combined the traits of his stern character with the qualities of a political agitator and tribune of the people. He managed to raise a religious uprising, achieved the overthrow of the dynasty of “wicked sovereigns” and the introduction of Calvinism in Scotland, called the Presbyterian Church. This Church had a synodal organization and granted significant rights to priests elected by church councils.

Calvinism in Scotland had to endure another struggle during the reign of Mary Stuart, who wanted to restore Catholic worship. After her deposition, Presbyterianism achieved complete triumph in Scotland.
In England, Calvinism developed after the introduction of the Reformation by state power and, as a result, in opposition not to Catholicism, but to the official Protestant Church - Anglicanism.

Even under Elizabeth and even earlier, under Archbishop Cranmer, a radical trend emerged in English Protestantism, whose representatives were dissatisfied with the preservation of episcopacy and the Roman Catholic rite in the Anglican Church. They sought the complete “cleansing” of the Church from papist traditions and its complete Calvinization.

All who considered it necessary to further purify the Church received the name “Puritans” (from the Latin word purus - pure). From the point of view of the official Church, they were “nonconformists,” that is, they rejected the uniformity of doctrine and cult (they were also called dissenters - dissenting). The Puritans formed a strong opposition to royal power.

The Puritan movement was not homogeneous. Having separated from the dominant Episcopal Church (1567), some of the Puritans established a church organization governed by elected elders, which is why they began to be called Presbyterians, others went even further. Considering Presbyterianism insufficiently radical, representatives of extreme Puritanism - Congregationalists, or Independents, rejected the Presbyterian structure and proclaimed the complete independence of individual communities (congregations) not only in matters of governance, but also in matters of faith. Outside the community there should be no authority, no power for the believer.

Until the 17th century, under Elizabeth Tudor, the opposition to the Puritans was purely religious in nature. The situation changed in the 17th century. under the Stuarts, when religious opposition united with political. The Puritans became fighters for political freedom. Their church ideas were transferred to political soil and turned into constitutional and republican theories; not allowing royal supremacy in church affairs, they fought against absolutism in the state.

Difficult trials at the beginning of this struggle forced many Puritans to move to the newly founded colonies in North America, here English Calvinism, having broken up into many sects, subsides and loses its influence and internal strength.

In Poland, Calvinism played a transitional role. Before him, Lutheranism and the teachings of the Czech brothers were spread here. Calvinism, with its republican-aristocratic organization, was especially close to the aspirations of the gentry, who, in the struggle for political reform, were at great odds with the clergy. The Calvinist church called the Helvetic Confession was organized in Poland by Jan Laski in 1556–1560. But it did not last long, and under the pressure of a strong Catholic reaction, the influence of Calvinism was completely destroyed.

And he had to wage a particularly intense struggle on his own soil, more complicated than that which befell the early reformers. The Calvinist reform was as national at the beginning as Luther's reform: purely French. But, thanks to the complete loss of hope for support for the reform from the royal authorities and the forced transfer of the center of activity from France to Geneva, it turned into more and more cosmopolitan. Geneva became a center of propaganda, a place where everyone who joined Calvinism came, where they received the proper education and from where they transferred the ideas of Calvinism and its organization not only to France, but also to the Netherlands, Scotland, England, even, albeit in the weakest degrees, to Germany, as well as to Hungary and Poland. Here, almost everywhere, Calvinism had to meet with the purely political struggle that arose then, with the struggle of the feudal elements of society, who sought to defend their positions and return to the old medieval political order, with the emerging absolutism: Spanish in the person of Philip II, English and Scottish represented by James I and Charles I, with the French represented Houses of Valois and Catherine de' Medici. Lutheranism won a victory in Germany, following the path of agreement with the secular authorities and various German princes. For Calvinism, the path of this kind was completely closed, and it had to almost immediately, from the mid-1530s, enter into a struggle with secular power and, involuntarily, seek support and soil for its triumph in the ranks of opposition forces of a feudal nature, in alliance with them, an alliance that threatened to create friction and internal struggle between representatives of the doctrine and representatives of local interests.

Portrait of John Calvin

Teachings of Calvinism

In the heat of the struggle against Catholicism begun by the first reformers, in view of the still lingering hopes for a conciliatory way of resolving the relationship of the new teaching with Catholicism, if solutions to many issues of dogma and teaching were brought to the fore, then neither the entire system of dogmas, nor the entire teaching, as a direct counterbalance to Catholicism, were not developed: the figures in the first steps of the reform took up this much later. And what they did not do, now in view of the beginning of the Catholic reaction, in view of the passionate search for an all-saving dogma, was undertaken by Calvin, for the first time and in the broadest form, he realized Calvinism, trying to satisfy the fully matured demand and quest of the minds of the then society. A complete break with Catholicism became obvious already from the late 1530s and especially from the 1540s, and the opposition of the developed systematic teaching, as the only means of salvation in the hereafter, to the system of Catholicism, now openly recognized as “idolatry” and subject to complete abolition, was urgently necessary. Equally necessary was the creation of a church organization opposite to Catholicism, necessary, in addition, in view of the inevitable struggle with secular power, which deceived the expectations of Calvinism and did not support it.

Naturally, all these conditions could not but affect Calvinism.

The doctrine, dogma - the main thing that Calvinism sought to develop - was neither something new nor original. Its entire dogma was rooted in the past, it was borrowed from old Catholicism (the teachings of Augustine), despite its decisive denial, and from the first figures of the reform: Luther, Zwingli, etc. What Calvinism brought here was the systematization of all these teachings and , the main thing is in the merciless logical bringing of previous teachings to their extreme consequences and in corresponding attempts to create an organization of a one-saving church in relation to dogma and the conditions of the moment. According to the teachings of Calvinism, the only authority is the Holy Scriptures, especially Old Testament, who played the most important role among Calvinists, serving as the main source of their teaching, especially in the field of politics. Hence the negative attitude towards church traditions, towards the teachings of the church fathers, and even more, in accordance with the prevailing habits of thought, towards reason and the principle of doubt. Doubt is the work of Satan. “Better is the ignorance of a believer than the insolence of a wise man,” was proclaimed by Calvin and became one of the most important points of his teaching. By recognizing the Holy Scriptures as the only source and authority, Calvinism placed itself in complete opposition to Catholicism and sects and proclaimed itself the only means of saving souls. One can only be saved in the bosom of the Calvinist church, for it alone provides the true foundations of the doctrine.

A person cannot be saved by his own strength - this is where the root of all Calvinist teaching is. It is not external works, but only faith that saves, the early reformers taught. Calvinism goes further. Everything depends on God. There is no free will, and if there were, the decision would depend more on human will, and this, according to the teachings of Calvinism, would be a denial and contradiction of the omnipotence of God. God, says the teaching of Calvinism - and here the borrowing from Augustine is especially clear - predetermined in his omnipotence the destinies of the world and people. This is not an act of foresight, this is reality. Since original sin exists, people are predestined by God: some to eternal bliss, others, for the glorification of God’s justice, to eternal destruction. These are the chosen ones (electi), on the one hand, and the rejected and condemned (damnati), on the other; and these latter are already “condemned” and “condemned” before they have committed certain sinful or good deeds. There is no salvation for them, Calvinists believe, and once a given person is written in the book of the stomach, he has no hope of being erased from it and cannot be, no matter what he does. He is a vessel of the devil and fulfills the destiny of the deity with his deeds and is subject to eternal torment. But these destinies are the work of God alone: ​​man is not given to know what his inscrutable Providence has predetermined him for. Therefore, he should have no room for doubt. From this gloomy and rigoristic teaching, from this dogma, it logically followed the duty of a true believer to firmly believe in the correctness of the teachings of Calvinism, not sparing his life to defend and spread it, to fight everything that contradicts the teaching or seeks to suppress it. Hence the obligation to obey all the rules of true morality, arising from the foundations of Calvinist teaching, and to coordinate all actions with these rules; hence the teaching about the role of the church, this only instrument of salvation.

The Church, according to the teachings of Calvinists, is not something invisible, a simple collection of “elect” who know God. She is also the visible body, which is the collection of all believers, united through the sum of institutions established by God himself due to “the rudeness and laziness of our spirit, which needs external support.” Only it serves as a means of preserving the purity of teaching and opens the path of salvation, eternal life to believers. Only he will enter eternal life who is conceived in the womb of the church and nurtured and raised by it. Therefore, anyone who deviates from the church, from its teachings, thereby condemns himself to eternal destruction, for, the Calvinists interpreted in complete agreement and unanimity with Catholicism, which they hated, “outside the church there is no remission and forgiveness of sins, there is no salvation.” Steady, unconditional confession of the dogmas established by the church is the first duty. Therefore, there is no greater crime than heresy, and it must be eradicated, and those who create it must be executed, for “heretics kill souls, and they are punished for this physically.” And in Calvinist Geneva they executed or tried to execute dissenters.

But the creation of a strong organization of the church was not yet enough, according to the teachings of the Calvinists, for its complete unification. It is necessary that there be a steady fulfillment of moral duties, that is, the rules of discipline, this “essence of the church, its nerve,” without which no church can exist. The Church, the teachers of Calvinism believe, not only has the right, it is obliged to use all measures of severity in relation to its members, constantly supervise them both in their private home, as well as in public life and activity, and in case of resistance and disobedience, cut them off from communication with the rest of the members, to be expelled, for otherwise the church will become a refuge for the evil and bad, and “dishonor will fall on the name of the Lord.” This turned the Calvinist church into a militant church, and, as the only true one, it should dominate everywhere, be the only one in the world, and not allow the existence of any other. The principle of intolerance is raised here by the teachings of the Calvinists into a dogma, carried to its extreme consequences, embracing and embracing all of life, all its slightest manifestations. Everything in life that is petty, not directly related to the matter of salvation, that speaks to the senses, that satisfies aesthetic needs, that imparts comfort and splendor to life must be rejected. It was, as it were, the expulsion from life of everything worldly, everything that adorns life, giving it a cheerful flavor. The earth is a vale of weeping and temptation, there is no place for fun... Hence the regulation by Calvinists of all the most petty manifestations of life, in the form of developing an iron will, teaching the faithful to look with contempt at suffering in order to prepare leaders of the “cause” of the church. This was an attempt, in a slightly different way than the one taken in parallel by the figures of the Catholic reaction in the person of Loyola and his disciples, as ardent dogmatists as the Calvinists, to create indisputable instruments for the worldwide domination of “truth.”

"Instruction in the Christian Faith" by Calvin. Geneva edition 1559

Pastors in Calvinism

In a corresponding spirit, the teaching of Calvinism also resolves a question closely related to the organization of the church, the question of who was supposed to maintain its unity, in whose hands the power and right to punish and pardon were to be concentrated. Trying to recreate the church in its primitive form, in full accordance with the Holy Scriptures and outside the traditions of later times, Calvinism, like Catholicism, pursued the principle of a strict separation of spiritual and temporal power, but just like Catholicism, in essence, reduced this division only to purely external forms, but in reality sought to create something like a theocracy. It is not for nothing that the founder of Calvinism was called the “Pope of Geneva.” In fact, the Calvinists transferred all power into the hands of the clergy, whose authority they tried to raise to an unattainable height.

According to the teachings of Calvinists, pastors- tools that bind the church into one whole. Pastors are representatives of the deity, and in them and through them “God himself speaks.” Therefore, the sign of the priesthood should be a sign of much greater respect than the signs of royalty. He who does not respect the pastor, who despises him, is in the power of the devil. The very method of electing pastors, as it was developed by Calvin and adopted everywhere where Calvinist teaching has penetrated, clearly reveals the significance and role that pastors were and were to play in the Calvinist church. A purely democratic principle at first glance was used as the basis for election, supposedly in the spirit of the primitive church. Among the Calvinists, the pastor is elected by the people par acclamation (unanimous approval), but the presentation of this person for election is in the hands of other pastors who control the elections. Any other method of choice was equated with self-will. The founder of Calvinism taught that the people are frivolous and intemperate, and “terrible anarchy and disorder arise where everyone is given complete freedom.” A rein is needed, and it is represented by pastors. The clergy thus held in its hands the appointment of pastors and could always counteract popular aspirations aimed at the detriment of its power. How Calvin put barriers to appointment Castellion preacher, despite the wishes of the Genevans, does not provide the only characteristic of the policy of pastors in the Calvinist church. The people were given only a formal right, but on the other hand they were given a whole range of various responsibilities in relation to the pastors. Every believer was charged with the sacred duty of the teachings of Calvinism to show complete respect and obedience to the pastor, to unquestioningly obey all his orders. The doors of a believer’s home should always and at all times be open to the pastor, and all life and all actions should be under his control.

True, the right to impose punishments was not granted to each pastor personally, but he was a member of a narrow organization created in such a way that the full power was recognized in the church. A whole specific organization was created. Each local Calvinist church had its own consistory, consisting of a pastor and elders (anciens) elected by the people. All power, punishing and merciful, was concentrated in the hands of this consistory. Responsibility for decisions made existed, but only again before the spiritual authorities, for the next spiritual authority, standing above the consistory, is either the provincial synod, composed of delegates from the consistories, or an even higher authority - the national synod or (as in Scotland) congregations, or general meeting. It was the supreme church council of the Calvinists, consisting of delegates from local churches, pastors and elders, discussing and deciding matters affecting the entire church, approving all decisions of the consistory and issuing additional new measures of discipline, called for by circumstances.

Reformers of Geneva: Guillaume Farel, John Calvin, Theodore Beza, John Knox. "Wall of Reformers" in Geneva

Political theories of Calvinism

With such an organization, the Calvinist church received enormous power and could completely control the fate of a person. She subjected violations of her regulations and her discipline to the whole ladder of punishments, ranging from temporary excommunication to damnation and eruption from her womb, with consequences consistent with the spirit of intolerance that underlies the church. In its consistories and synods, it determined the quality of the offense. Execution of the sentence, punishment belonged to the state. This division of powers did not in any way diminish the influence and importance of pastors. The relationship in which the teaching of Calvinism sought to place church and state was to provide the former with all the strength and all the power, and from the latter to make a simple instrument that spiritual power should have at its disposal and which it could throw aside and change in case of need. And among the Calvinists, as well as among the Jesuits, the principle ad majorem Dei gloriam (“for the greater glory of the Lord”), due to the identity of the main starting point of both, stood in the foreground. The teachings of Calvinism did not deny the state. Moreover: it had a negative attitude and sharply attacked those who rejected the state and civil authority. “The state,” Calvin teaches, “is as necessary for man as food and drink, sun and air,” for “it was established by God himself,” and therefore “government officials are representatives of God on earth.” And the same is true in all Calvinist literature. Hence the obligation for members of the “true” church to obey the powers that be.

But this apparently enormous authority attached to the state's secular power was limited to one condition: if the state, in turn, obeys the instructions of the church. Only then, according to the teachings of Calvinism, should he be considered a true representative of the deity and be given full obedience to him. The state, therefore, is nothing more than a support to the church; it has meaning and significance as the guardian and guardian of the church. That predominance of the church, which Calvin expelled from the world as an evil when it came to Catholicism and the papacy, came forward entirely again, in other forms, but with even greater force, with greater certainty. Calvinism sought to create a theocracy and established, as an exception to obedience to the powers that be, the obligation to obey first of all God. And the will and commands of the Divine were explained only by the church, due to the character that Calvinist teaching gave it. Hence, as a possible conclusion, the theory of tyrannicide, which was only hinted at by Calvin, speaking of “God’s election of one of his servants as the executor of vengeance on the tyrant,” and which the followers of Calvinism in France and Scotland turned into a real political doctrine, brought to completion by the Jesuits. Here Calvinism entered into purely political territory.

But the political doctrine that Calvin and his followers created was far from being as clear, nor as logical and as definite as the doctrine of the church. Like all contemporary religious movements, Calvinism sought to adapt to these conditions. If Calvin recognized the superiority of the aristocracy over monarchy and democracy, it was not without hesitation: at first he stood for monarchy. The faithful followers of his doctrine of the church at first stood on the side of the monarchy, as in the early years of the reform in France, where the doctrine of tyrannicide applied only to influential persons ( Giza), and not to a representative of the monarchy. Then, after St. Bartholomew's Night, the Calvinists turned into adherents of the aristocracy (almost simultaneously in France and Scotland) and already developed the theory of tyrannicide in almost its full form. Even later, changes in the position of the fighting forces forced them either to seek support from the masses of the people, to be democrats, as almost exclusively in Scotland, or, having been abandoned by the French feudal lords in the 17th century, to again count on the power and mercy of the king and even openly reject the previous theory of tyrannicide. Moreover: at one of their national synods, the Calvinists had to recognize the theory of tyrannicide of the Jesuits and their works that promoted this theory as harmful and destructive.

As a purely religious, dogmatic teaching, Calvinism brought to the fore the interests of its teaching and the church that carried out and kept it pure; this determined his political behavior. That is why in only one country, in Scotland, he appeared - thanks to the complete dominance that he received in this country, complete and absolute dominance - as a bearer of brighter democratic tendencies, which he had to carry out by all means in the struggle with the local aristocracy, with whom he broke up already at Knox, and especially under Melville, and with secular power in the person of James I and Charles I, then the two English kings of the restoration. But in other countries where it was temporarily strengthened, especially in France, Calvinism was forced, by the conditions of the relations with which it had to deal, to contribute much more to the strengthening of the old feudal relations, the dominance of the nobility and aristocrats, and was unable to give as much -a strong push for democratic ideas and democracy. True, in France too, pastors tried to wage an essentially democratic struggle with the nobility and big bourgeoisie of the Huguenot cities over the issue of the supremacy of the church. But never once did the church manage to achieve the position here that it received in Geneva, which turned into a cosmopolitan center of Calvinism, literally into Calvinist papal Rome, with little more than its appearance different from Catholic. The teaching of Calvinism in France did not achieve that boundless influence on minds, that authority, the violation of which filled the minds of believers with horror, forcing them to obediently and unquestioningly carry out all the orders of pastors, submit to investigation and espionage, the tireless supervision of consistories, etc., which Calvinism was able to achieve. achieve in Scotland.

Calvinism and freedom of conscience

Along with the political conditions that prevented, in France, especially, but also in other countries, Calvinism from achieving complete and unlimited domination over the minds, a significant and increasingly powerful role was played by something new, which arose already in the 16th century, but intensified. by the 17th and especially by the 18th century, a skeptical mental movement that put on its banner the principle of doubt, denied by Calvinism and other reformers, as well as by Catholicism, as an obsession of the enemy of the human race. The development and strengthening of this trend not only contributed to the weakening of the passion that was brought into the struggle between Calvinism and teachings hostile and hateful to it, the weakening of religious zeal and the passionate search for an integral teaching, but most strongly influenced the change in habits of thought, which were increasingly eroding the fundamentals of Calvinism's doctrine of the church and its discipline. In France it was already by the middle of the 17th century. reduced the Calvinist flock to exclusively democratic elements, the small industrial class, tore away from it a significant part of the nobility and intelligentsia and gave the secular authorities a powerful weapon to suppress and severely persecute the Calvinists, depriving them of the guarantees that the Edict of Nantes gave them . Even in Scotland, from the 18th century, where a new current of thought penetrated, the position of the Calvinist church, its predominant role in the life of the country, was dealt a strong blow. At all points, from all positions, Calvinism had to retreat and lose more and more of the influence that it once had on minds. The attempt to recreate the old Catholic system on new grounds, in accordance with trends and habits of thought, was unsuccessful because it completely reproduced its old, outdated foundations. Only negatively, by demanding for itself that freedom of conscience that it denied to all others, did the teaching of Calvinism contribute, although almost constantly fighting against it, to the development of the principle of freedom of conscience. His political theories partly contributed to strengthening the principles of democracy and political freedom. By the 18th and 19th centuries. Calvinism has already ceased to play any prominent role in the political and even religious life of those countries in which it retained its followers, and, it must be added, to some extent, even there it began to submit to new trends of thought, which almost caused in France, for example, 1872, a schism among the Calvinist church between the still faithful followers of Calvin's confession of faith and the opponents of his teachings, who preached, in the person of Coquerel and his followers, an almost complete deism

Calvinism(on behalf of founder Jean Cauvin, in Latin - Calvin) - Protestant branch of Christianity, which arose in the first half 16th century in France.

Jean Covin, having received a good education in the field of theology, literature and law, falling under influence of Protestant ideas, mainly Martin Luther, took an active part in reformation of the Christian church. In his works written after forced relocation to Switzerland, he clearly outlined the main dogmas of Calvinism.

Calvin expelled from his church everything that could be excluded, without violating the instructions of the Bible. The result of this approach was one of the most rational and non-mystical directions of Christianity.

The main thing that distinguishes Calvinism from the Catholic Church is its attitude towards Bible how to the only one and an infallible standard of faith and life. According to the views of most Protestants, for example Lutherans, after the Fall of Adam man can only be saved through faith in God, wherein no matter what actions in life he undertakes - all of them by definition considered sinful. Calvinists went even further in their doctrine - according to their ideas, salvation or eternal torment in hell for each individual person predetermined God still before the creation of the world and change this situation impossible. According to the logic of Calvinism, if a person does good deeds, this is not a way to go to heaven after death, but sign that this person was originally predetermined God to salvation. Accordingly, in Calvinism there are two sacraments- baptism and communion, which are signs of salvation, but do not carry direct saving power, since everything is already predetermined from the beginning.

Cult practice Calvinism is extremely simple, For example, no veneration of saints and relics. In churches none Not only icons and statues, but also even wall-mounted painting, characteristic of other areas of Protestantism. Even the altar and the cross are not obligatory objects in churches. Respectively services in Calvinism are held very modestly- candles are not lit, music is not played, the clergy does not wear special clothes that would set them apart from the mass of the laity.

Control Calvinist churches are carried out by special bodies - presbyteries, which includes priests and representatives of lay communities.

It's interesting what Calvinism views nature as one of divine revelations, along with the immensely revered Bible. Thus, incomprehensible to man in a purely abstract form God's plan embodied in nature, patterns and manifestations of which a person must study to get closer to understanding divine harmony.

IN a short form of the main tenets Calvinism is expressed in the form of a “tulip” (from tulip):

• T (Total Depravity) — complete depravity(man became completely sinful after Adam’s rebellion);
• U (Unconditional Election) — unconditional election(salvation does not depend on man, but only on God);
• L (Limited Atonement) — limited atonement(Christ redeemed with his torment the salvation of only those who were originally predestined by God);
• I (Irresistible Grace) — overcoming grace(effective calling);
• P (Perseverance of the Saints) — persistence of the saints(impossibility of changing God's election).

Born in conditions tough fight between Catholicism and the Reformation, Calvinism was the closest associated with politics. Calvin himself was an ardent supporter theocratic model, with which the church subjugated the state. While fighting Catholicism, Calvin nevertheless adopted such medieval Christian principles How intolerance, unconditional subordination individual church personalities, almost ascetic code of morality. This was expressed in applications in Calvinist communities torture and execution for heresy and dissent.

Calvinism played a major role in confrontation between Protestants (Huguenots) and Catholics, which existed in France, and was clearly reflected in many works of art. The most dramatic page of this conflict was St. Bartholomew's Night 1572, when more than 6 thousand Calvinists died, and 200 thousand Huguenots were forced to leave France to escape persecution.

Nowadays there are three main forms of Calvinism:

• reformism,
• Presbyterianism,
• Congregationalism.

The first two forms are different from each other place of origin(Reformation - Continental Europe, Presbyterianism - British Isles), and Congregationalism has some specific management features.

According to various estimates today The number of Calvinists is about 60 million. people who live in different countries Europe, America, Asia and Africa. Highest percentage followers of Calvinism among the population are noted in Switzerland (38%), the Netherlands (25%), Hungary (19%).

Operating since 1970 World Alliance of Reformed Churches, which unites the bulk of Calvinist churches existing in the world. The alliance center is located in Geneva, Switzerland.

Today, Calvinism is one of the established Protestant churches, he has a serious political and religious influence in a number of countries.