Feb-March 2019 3. The great antiquity of scripture

How many old texts do you know? And just how old?  May be you are familiar with Shakespeare’s plays or Pilgrim’s Progress, or possibly with Aristotle or Plato.  In your eyes does a recent writer have books that you would regard as old and dated: Carol Ann Duffy or Ian Hislop –do they stand the test of time?  What weight in all this would you put upon scripture? Does age invest it with knowledge and status in your view?  Calvin would argue that it does alongside its nature as the inspired Word of God, distilled through fallible human writers.  How can this view assist us in a world where the written word in a book is often disregarded in preference for tweets and anything electronic.  Are these not ephemeral pieces of social media? Can we use them to illustrate what a rich treasure we have in the corpus of scripture?

A New Year Book Review January 2019 Love Intimacy and Power

Love Intimacy and Power

Marriage and Patriarchy in Scotland 1650-1850

Katie Barclay Manchester University Press 2011

In a blog Post that focusses on the works of John Calvin (1509 – 1564) then why include a review of a book that details patterns of marriage in a different period and country from those where his life’s work predominated?  John Calvin influenced the Protestant Reformation in cities and countries far beyond Geneva, the city with which his name is most frequently associated.  This is true of Scotland where the Reformation beginning in 1560 and the influence of John Knox (1513- 1572) is extensive.

With the Scottish Reformation came more formal schooling and increased literacy among the population.  Her Calvin’s desire for human beings to be able to read and comprehend Scripture for themselves is worked out.  Calvin’s influence on the governance and authority of the local Church, the Kirk is also prevalent.  In this book Katie Barclay explores the approach to marriage over two centuries through correspondences between couples linked with data on the number of marriages, the age of the partners and developments in other countries affected by the Protestant Reformation such as England Wales and the Scandinavian countries.  Aspects of duty and obedience on the parts of husband and wife are considered at the beginning of the period under study followed by how these changed a the Enlightenment began with its greater emphasis on individual satisfaction rather than family commitments.

The text is derived from a PhD thesis and is adequately referenced for further study should the reader wish to undertake it.  As a stepping stone to considering the broader implications of John Calvin’s work in a country in which he did not reside it as is a worthy read.

Love, Intimacy and Power

Marriage and Patriarchy in Scotland 1650-1850

Katie Barclay Manchester University Press 2011

In a Blog Post that focusses on the works of John Calvin (1509 – 1564) then why include a review of a book that details patterns of marriage in a different period and country from those where his life’s work predominated?  John Calvin influenced the Protestant Reformation in cities and countries far beyond Geneva, the city with which his name is most frequently associated.  This is true of Scotland where the Reformation began in 1560 and the influence of John Knox (1513- 1572) is extensive.

With the Scottish Reformation came more formal schooling and increased literacy among the population.  Here Calvin’s desire for human beings to be able to read and comprehend Scripture for themselves is worked out.  Calvin’s influence on the governance and authority of the local Church, the Kirk is also prevalent.  In this book Katie Barclay explores the approach to marriage over two centuries through correspondences between couples linked with data on the number of marriages, the age of the partners and developments in other countries affected by the Protestant Reformation such as England Wales and the Scandinavian countries.  Aspects of duty and obedience on the parts of husband and wife are considered at the beginning of the period under study followed by how these changed as the Enlightenment began with its greater emphasis on individual satisfaction rather than family commitments.

The text is derived from a PhD thesis and is adequately referenced for further study should the reader wish to undertake it.  As a stepping stone to considering the broader implications of John Calvin’s work in a country in which he did not reside it as is a worthy read.

2. Not style but content is decisive

How would Calvin react in our world today? He would be bombarded with advertisements for clothing, gadgets (and the like ) -  each of them allegedly demonstrating the style of the product.

So a question about the style of the scriptures is germane today, in the same way as it was in the sixteenth century with the increased availability of printed material due to the invention of the moveable type printing press.  For Calvin the “Holy Spirit did not lack eloquence ” Although for him,  the writings by David and book of Isaiah are “sweet and pleasing” whilst Amos, Jeremiah and Zechariah have “savors of rusticity”.  Calvin’s conclusion is that scripture is “crammed with thoughts that could not be humanly conceived”.  For you which part of scripture would fit that description?

Chapter VIII So far as human reason goes, sufficiently firm proofs are at hand to establish the credibility of scripture (the unique majesty and impressiveness and the high antiquity of scripture 1-4) 1. Scripture superior to all human wisdom

1.       Scripture superior to all human wisdom

If you had to choose a favourite author then who might you choose: Shakespeare, Chaucer or a more contemporary writer: Ian Hislop, Chaim Potok or Carol Ann Duffy?  In this section of the Institutes Calvin argues that the effect of scripture on human beings is greater than anything else.  He says that “Of human writings however artfully polished, there is none capable of affecting us all comparably”.  Calvin’s examples of writings lesser than scripture include Demosthenes, Cicero, Plato and Aristotle.  Scripture will “penetrate your heart” and “fix in your very marrow”.  Would this be true for you?  Which Bible passages affect you in this manner?  In this section Calvin asserts that scripture “breathes something divine”.  Can you agree?

5. Scripture bears its own authentication

How do you decide if something you read is going to alter your course of action? Does reading scripture make any difference? For Calvin: scripture seriously affects us only when it is sealed upon our hearts through the Spirit.  For many in our world the scriptures have no greater power than any other text and possibly less than some.  What would be your pecking order? How central is the Bible to your day to day living?  Calvin suggests that God distinguishes His elect and they can comprehend the mysteries of God (Matthew 13:11).  Would this be your experience?  Can the guidance of the Holy Spirit deepen our faith?

4. The witness of the Holy Spirit is stronger than all proof

Calvin believes that seeking reason to verify and authenticate scripture is not the best approach.  He writes: the testimony of the Spirit is more excellent than all reason.  Sometimes our world speaks only of the power of reason yet how often do you believe something because you heard about it through social media or rumour rather than a carefully verified source?  Calvin believes that we can believe God’s word when we received the inward testimony of the Spirit.  Surely the Holy Spirit is more reliable than an unreferenced internet source.  The challenge for those who trust in the Holy Spirit is how to discern His will and speech.  It is the Spirit who is the seal and guarantee for our faith (2 Corinthians 1:2) but dare you trust the Holy Spirit?

The influence of John Calvin upon marriage and divorce

Roman Catholicism revered celibacy and placed a ban on divorce.  The protestant reformers whilst in favour of marriage did not easily embrace divorce. Calvin’s teachings shaped the divorce legislation in many Europeans countries and in North America. He loathed adultery and also believed that an unbeliever’s desertion of a protestant spouse was grounds for divorce but he denied that cruelty impotence, disease or loathing were sufficient grounds for divorce.  These views were expressed in the 1541 Institutes of Christian Religion and implemented in the city of Geneva.

The authorities would scrutinize the intimate details of married life, often hearing eye witness accounts from resident servants and incorporated torture in to their interrogations and forced warring spouses to reconcile. They punished adultery wit banishment and whipping , or in outlying villages nine days imprisonment on bread and water and payment of  a fine. Adulteresses were publicly drowned and adulterers decapitated.  In 1566 only two years after the death of Calvin  Geneva passed a law making adultery a capital offence.  Calvin’s own approach was that divorce was permitted but granted only as a last resort.  During Calvin’s ministry from 1541 until 1564 only twenty six divorces were granted in Geneva.