John Calvin: Pilgrim and Pastor

Love this book,very well written.

John Calvin was a man whose heart beat for God, a true disciple of Jesus Christ. That is the impression with which you should leave this book, regardless of your opinions of his theology. This short biographical work, which covers essential elements of Calvin's theology, is a great way to be introduced to the Reformer.Godfrey introduces Calvin the humble. This was not a man who sought the ministry--he wanted to be a scholar, living in peace and quiet! Yet, twice he was accosted by fellow Christians who saw in him the gift of preaching and called him to pastoral office. At his death, by his own desire, no great tomb or mausoleum was erected for him, no edifice to say, "This was a great man!"Godfrey also shows us Calvin the tireless worker. He wrote numerous letters--and not only to statesmen (such as the preface to his famous "Institutes of the Christian Religion", addressed to the king of France), but to common parishioners in Geneva and elsewhere, letters of encouragement and exhortation. He preached, on a weekly basis, many more sermons--and original, distinct ones at that--than the average pastor today, I suspect. He was involved in the religious life of his congregation (indeed, his congregations plural, as he rotated through the churches in the city) at every level--including the catechesis, or teaching, of the children. Calvin was a busy man.We see, in this book, Calvin the product of his age. The account of Servetus, burned at the stake for heresy, seems to be a perennial favorite for those who dislike Calvin and the doctrines he taught. Yet we see that Calvin's approval of Servetus' execution was hardly out of character for any society in that period of history--Servetus would likely have suffered the same fate in another Protestant locality, or in Catholic France. Of course, this does not excuse the act, and Calvinists today rightly ought to reject such views. The Reformation in which Calvin participated corrected many things, but had not yet reached the point of once again seeing the church as a "community-in-exile" within the larger world, vice the national or geopolitical instrument as which it existed in the medieval era and still often functioned in his day.Inevitably, we also see Calvin the theologian, perhaps the Calvin best known today--but Godfrey clearly paints a picture of Calvin the theologian as a natural outgrowth of Calvin the pastor. This was no ivory tower academician, but a man who was concerned at his core to rightly understand and teach doctrines that practically assisted believers in their life and worship.Ultimately, Calvin was concerned that God in Christ be glorified, that the gospel of Jesus be proclaimed. This book, in recounting the life of one of the saints, should help us to do just that, namely, to worship Jesus, as we rejoice over what He did through this man--as we should rejoice over God's work through all of His saints in Christ.

We oftetimes ask people "who are you" and we get pleasantries as answer,"OK, "Fine" etc. But this book takes under the surface of John Calvin and tell us the frustrations of a man just like us. It tells us his grief in the death of his wife and child. It describes the persecution from the people of Geneva and from the Popish Church. In a year when publishers went wild with books on John Calvin's 500th Birthday, I admit, I was leery of another book on John Calvin. But after hearing Godfrey describe his book and the track he took to describe this man (the interview aired on the 'the White Horse Inn') I was intrigued to see a book that would tell me the formation of Calvin's theology in the midst of the pilgrim life led by John Calvin. I was not disappointed.The new book takes you to the familiar history of Calvin's plan for one night in Geneva and it makes sure that even the newest reader would grasp the life of John Calvin. But then comes the struggles, the depression, the fights with the City Council, the exile, the writings and revisions of texts and of course the five-fold revision of the two volumes that changed the map of Christian history--the Institutes. The details are all there, but the details are not just facts, it is so beautifully interwoven with the truth of real life in 16th century Europe.In addition, Godfrey adds some new materials to the personal life of Calvin that are rarely added by other authors. Calvin is too frequently viewed in many volumes as a scholar, writer, and theologian. But now we see the pilgrim, the pastor, the father, the exile, the shepherd (who was prevented from visiting his flock by his own elders during the great plague in order to save his life so shepherd more people.) We see Calvin in written debate with the Roman Church and the desire to transform lives with the Kingdom of God. And yet, we see a man who rarely had a day go by without depression, feelings of worthlessness...a person we can identify with even if he penned the greatest systematic theology of all time.If I could recommend one book for this year to know the person, the pastor, and the pilgrim...this would be the volume to add to the library. In fact, buy a case and give it to the families of your church. Rarely will you ever read such a volume so tender and yet so strong.