The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-11-20
In GENEVA As HERE
REV. C. Il. SOBER SAYS PUBLIC
MORALS WERE THERE AS
IN ST. PAUL
GAMBLING AND WINE ROOMS

blance In the Conditions of the
Calvin Wanted to and Tried to
Remove in Geneva.
Rev. George E. Soper, of Plymouth
church, spoke last evening upon the life
and works of John Calvin. He held the
character Of his sketch before the audi
ence, mot as a. model man, but as a re-
former. He said IN part:
'The extremist and fanatic is among
the necessary. evils of human life that
must be endured with as much patience
as possible. He is an excellent watch
dog of the faults and failfngs of others,
but is seldom aware. of his own. He some
times does an important work by growI-
ing and barking and biting back into the
pasture those WHO, have jumped over the
conventional fences. Not every extremist,
however, is reformer much as he would
like to bear that title. Yet almost every
reformer is more or less of an extremist,
and has been from John Baptist to John
Brown. 1t is necessary to have an ex-
aggerated view of almost any new or for
gotten truth to attract public attention
and bring 1t TO the front. John Calvin
was no small fanatic; he was a reformer
of great power.
Unlike Wycliffe and Huss, Calvin was
reared amidst circumstances of COMPARE
tive ease and comfort. He received the
best education that Paris could give He
early displayed habit of playing the
censor over the real or imaginary faults
Of his companions, which led them to
playfully call him The accusative case,'
This tendency he never fully outgrew.
While a law student he became acquaint-
ed with the Bible. Calvin grew naturally
into the ideas Of the new learning. He
was driven out of Paris by his radical
teachings. He wandered over France and
Germany and finally came to SWttzland,
where he began his great life work.
The morals Of Geneva were low The
politicians were trying to win the favor
OF the worst elements by pandering to
vice., Gambling houses and wine rooms
and worse places Haunted themselves in
the eyes of the men and women, and even
children, day and night, as with US in
st. Paul. Public sentiment grew in OPP
position to this open policy and waited a
leader to take some radical action. A
radical confession Of faith was drawn,
and openly read and adopted by the peo-
pie of Geneva. Rules regulating church
services and private and public morals,
ami with penalties for violation of these
regulations, were ratified. Great change
took place. Open lawlessness was dis
placed by an outward appearance of re-
spect for deeency. But the reform was
too sudden and radical to last. A hair
dresser was. arrested for arranging the
hai3 aof a bride in an aunseemly manner
The brides mot her and her two girl at
tenGants were also arrested and placed
f11s p -1c,x
card playing and gambling were punished
by the magistrates.
But open rebellion soon compelled Cal
vim to fly for his life The severity of the
law relaxed, disorder and riot began on
a vastly bigger scale than before. Scenes
Of lawlessness and riot became so COM
mon by day and by night that even the
lawlesS themselves became ashamed and
afraid. The city government was tern.
and rent into factions There was no
hand strong enough to hold the reins.
The frenzy of the people having spent it
self, magistrates and councillors and peo-
pie alike turned with one accord to the
banished preacher as the man to help
them. Calvin shuddered when the request
came for him to return. He was timid
and scholarly, and his Punishment had
proved itself a pleasant retreat To re-
turn meant publicity controversy strife
and MANY sQther things that he hated.
But Calvin was trained soldier. To
obey the cali Of duty was second nature,
let consequences take care of themselves.
.'The city was divided into districts. Over
each, were placed two officers, one a
preacher and the other a layman
At least once year every family Of
the city received call from these Off
GERS. Each family was given such com
fort and encouragement and admonition
as the case warranted. Rich and poor
SnhippfQd fO f11I
and inf1exible oversight.
But Calvin was greatest of all as a
theologian. Next to Augustine he has
had the greatest influence of any other
man over theology. Calvins great
est stress was laid upon the divine SOW
ereignty. To him God was alI-powerful
God was the one supreme intelligence and
will and conscience Of the universe. A
great and important truth but one which
exaggerated little, makes of every man
a mere creature of fate. Calvin did not
appreciate the fact that man, as a child
of God, is also a little sovereign; that q
little of the infinite intelligence and con-
science and will of the Almighty has
taken up its abode in every child of God
But Calvin's sense of the greatness and
power Of God, to whom he was linked
made this timid man of the cloister a
man of daring and tenacity and faith that
has hardly been matched in any age
II was HOI Wise LOT nln TO attempt
to extend the discipline of a Calvinistic
church over a great city like Geneva
People are not made right by rules and
regulations. Righteousness is a thing of
the inside and not of outward form or
ceremony or law.
calvin did not feel sure that the
church could go it alone without the
financial aid and official support of the
state. 1t was left for a later age to prove
to the world that the church can have
mightier influence Independent of the
state.
"Calvin's scheme of government was
meddlesome- The conscience of the
church, which was largely the conscience
of Calvin, became the arbiter of personal
conduct. The jurisdiction of the church
was exercised over the home, the ancient
castle of every Anglo-SaXon. 1t is diff
cult for the most ardent admirer of Cal
vim to find excuse for his concurrence in
| the murder of Sevetus because he held
views that were different from his own in
some important matters. He had not
learned the meaning and blessing of toll
erance."
A feature of this course of sermons has
been the large attendance of men.