Years ago I took a course in Reformation Theology for which this book was a required text. It was a good course, taught by a knowledgeable professor, who did not force us to read the entire book. After the course was over I determined to read the entire book, but abandoned it in frustration when I g ...more
Just finished Volume 1. The first time I read this I was still an Arminian, and I appreciated it then. Now I am simply amazed. What a treasure this is. ...more
Many wicked lies get mixed up with the tiny particles of truth in the writings of these philosophers.
I am here writing a review of John Calvin’s most famous book, but I can’t say I’ve actually read it. I have read an abridged version, one that preserves about 15% of the original. This is still a ...more
I read Book One of the Four volumes in this edition, and learned that all the caricatures of Calvin and Calvinism are as far off the mark as equating a Christian with a Muslim terrorist of 9/11.
What most people call "hypercalvinism" is more often than not simply "Calvinism," or "biblical." The doctr ...more
Last January I begin an adventure that I had no idea how arduous it would be. As I begun to dive into Calvin's magisterial Institutes of the Christian Religion, I set out before me an endeavour that would slowly but surely change the way that I think on manifold facets. Although I would love to expo ...more
John Calvin is likely one of the most vilified, misunderstood, and unread men still discussed today. His influence is remarkable, and his most famous work, Institutes, is his crowning achievement. This is an ambitious and towering work that attempts to set forth a systematic understanding of Scriptu ...more
Well, he's certainly...pedantic? I find that Calvin somehow manages to approach a religion grounded in love, mercy, compassion, purity and fidelity as though it were a cold, joyless intellectual exercise. He lacks the zeal of Luther, the passion of Augustine, the skill of Aquinas, and even the intel ...more
I have now read this book three times: Battles’ translation in 2009, Beveridge’s translation in 2011-2013, and White’s translation of the earlier 1541 edition in 2020-2021. It is a classic work of Christianity, and one that I enjoy reading. It not only teaches systematic theology, but also practical ...more