Comments on: John Calvin and Servetus Controversy Explained

By: Puritan Lad

Puritan Lad — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:50:13 +0000

Good Post. I would add…

1.) Treason (another crime of Servetus) is still punishable by death.

2.) Even if Calvin was responsible for the death of Servetus, that has no bearing on the objective truth of Reformed Theology.

3.) Those who throw out these charges against Calvin would do well to actually study the issue as opposed to bearing false witness.

By: Reg Scofield

Reg Scofield — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 14:36:44 +0000

Thanks for the excellent point by point article. I have noticed those who despise Calvin will go to almost any extremes to through out straw man arguments instead of dealing with what the man exactly wrote and said. I have had the same debate with some in the past who cannot get beyond their prejudice against Calvin or Calvinism.

By: Joe

Joe — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 05:00:57 +0000

Yes, RH, do tell where this infamous quote came from- I Googled your quote and came up with several sites who hate Calvinists and list a few references but don’t attach those references to the so-called quotes and facts. And a blog troll. Here’s what I found:

http://online.worldmag.com/2009/07/03/video-what-calvin-teaches-us-about-writing/ – A blog commentor- is it you?

http://morechristlike.com/john-calvin-martin-luther/ – a strange heretic

Several websites apparently plagiarized this little gem from one another, here is one example:

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/False%20Doctrines/heresies_of_calvinism.htm

By: Jason Robertson

Jason Robertson — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 21:11:18 +0000

Three quick thoughts concerning your quote:
#1 – Please give us a reference for your quote so that the whole context can be studied.
#3 – Your usage of “innocent” before Calvin’s name is strange. Are you trying to be humorous or smart alec or what?
#2 – The quote that you have pulled out of its context does not, in and of itself, shed any light on the Servetus Controversy. As noted in my post, Calvin was called before the City Council and did his due diligence. Servetus was guilty and was legally executed by the government. Calvin warned Servetus that if he came to Geneva this would happen and it did.

Historical facts bear out that John Calvin was not a murderous zealot as the opponents of Calvinism would want you to believe. It is the age old “attack the messenger if you hate the message” strategy. But truth prevails. John Calvin was an honorable statesman who was called upon to participate in a terrible but legal matter. Would that none of us ever have to be called upon to stand as a witness against someone in a capital punishment case.