Calvin’s legacy: asking forgiveness from the Anabaptists
Over the last few days I have been thinking much about Calvin’s legacy: so much theological brilliance and so much to thank God for…but we who embrace his soteriological legacy also must ask forgiveness from our Anabaptist brothers.
And why? Simply because of his advocacy of the sword as a curb on heresy, esp. his support of the repression of Anabaptism in both its heretical and orthodox forms. Reading Eamon Duffy’s recent revisionist history of the reign of Bloody Mary (Fires of Faith)—which I bought in Cork, S. Ireland when there a few weeks ago—has convinced me that some of my Protestant and Calvinist forebears erred greatly when they were willing to use the sword to repress error. Like our 18th c. forebears who were slave owners, they are flawed models. In so far as they followed Christ soteriologically they are safe guides. But with regard to the use of the state to repress error, we need to understand their views of church & state as an outcropping of the medieval Constantinian model.
The bottom line is still this: I am sorry that some of my Calvinist forebears ever used the sword against their—and my—Anabaptist brothers.
This entry was posted on Thursday, July 2nd, 2009 at 10:47 pm and is filed under Baptist Life & Thought, Reformation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
July 3rd, 2009 at 12:17 am
Amen. I’m a Reformed Christian, but I’ve often thought a good Sunday School series for our churches would be entitled something like “Four things Calvin and the Puritans got wrong and Four things the Anabaptists got right”. There is no one I’d rather read or have read more of than Calvin, but as John Robinson said, there was more light to break out of God’s holy Word than what these men had. The use of the sword to impose religion, sacralism, the vestiges of Rome in infant sprinkling, etc. are best left behind. While the believer’s church, living a life of discipleship, etc. are praiseworthy. When we ignore the “radical reformation” in our church history approach, we not only leave an imbalanced impression in our hearers minds, but we spiritually impoverish ourselves.
July 3rd, 2009 at 7:28 am
Amen, brother.
July 3rd, 2009 at 8:29 am
I commend you for this post! I do not think this issue receives enough attention.
Thank you!
July 9th, 2009 at 10:04 pm
Thank you for this post! During a seminary discussion with a group of other Reformed Christians, I defended the Anabaptists and criticized Calvin and other Reformers for using the sword against them. One of my brothers did not share my thoughts on the subject and disagreed with me in class, saying in essence that Calvin and the others had no other choice but to use force against them.
July 9th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Travis:
As you can see I would agree with you. I think Calvin did have a choice and made the wrong choice.
Thanks for commenting.
Michael.