Calvin cites a number of thinkers in this vein:
Diagoras who mocked the religious through atheistic impiety
Dionysius who mocked heavenly judgment and Cicero who thinks
religion can only gain strength with passing generations.
But Calvin mentions the approach taken by Plato that when
the soul has grasped the knowledge of God it is transformed into his
likeness. Gryllus (in the writings of
Plutarch) reasons that if religion is absent then men are no different from brute
beasts.
“Worship of God renders men higher than the brutes” .This is
true today or is it?
So many people say that worship of God causes violence,
division and hatred. Consider the evil
of Islamic state violence or the divisions in South Africa or the Eastern bloc
countries. Many of these have
ideological or theological convictions at their roots. These are a diversion away from true religion
to serve the desire of fallen human beings.
As Calvin says the world “tries as a far as it is able to
cast away all knowledge of God and by every means corrupts the worship of
him”. Whether this happens in the life
of an individual or a nation the only certain thing would appear that it does
happen. Calvin again shows us that his
words and considerations are timeless.
Can we heed his message?
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