Yesterday I referred to Anthony N. S. Lane's new primer, A Reader's Guide to Calvin's Institutes (Baker, 2009). I highly recommend this helpful small book.

It dawns on me that it might be helpful to comment on Calvin's aims in writing this famous theological treatise. The Institutes appeared in several different editions, over the course of several decades. Each edition included changes and additions by the author. Each edition tells something of Calvin's growing awareness of what he was writing for on the title page. In those days title pages were long and gave you the back thesis of the author. (How publishing has changed over the years!)

In the 1536 edition Calvin wrote:

Embracing almost the whole sum of piety and whatever is necessary to know in the doctrine of salvation: A work most worthy to be read by all persons zealous for piety.

Calvin is saying that what he wrote […]

I would guess that 9 in 10 people I meet have no real idea what the term "Calvinism" actually means. Most have never read John Calvin. Most have only met a few very conservative Calvinists who promote things like TULIP and various scholastic readings of the great reformer. (And quite a few of these are mean, separatistic and critical of almost every other expression of the Christian faith) While the TULIP does have clear historical connection with the post-Calvin developments at the Synod of Dort in Holland (and thus the conclusions of the Synod are preserved in Reformed churches down to the present time as one of the three forms of confessional unity) Dort is clearly not the whole story. When TULIP becomes the strong focus then Calvinism becomes a lot like looking at a lovely person by staring at one, not so complete and not so clear, "photo-shopped" picture. And this picture is neither accurate nor helpful.

The real Calvin is flawed. But […]