Evening star., 1909-09-03
JOHN CALVIN THE LAWYER
GENEvAN IN YOUTH WOOED
THE JEALOUS MISTRESS.
Distinguished Himself in His
Studies at DEMONSTRATING
Influenced His Career.

The fact that large part of Christen-
dom is this year celebrating the four
hundredth university OF John Calvin's
birth is prima face proof that the inn
mortal Genevean's career had III it some
Of the true clements of enduring great
ness. No name today. ancient or modern.
can start more arguments or kinde tiercer
controversies than his. None elicits more
eNtravagant eulogies on the one hand or
more cruel calumnieS the other. Cal
vinsm is Calvin writ large, and Calvin
ism is TO one camp of thought the red
flag that irritates and angers. while to
another it is little less than the crystal
Iized essence of impershable truth. 1t is
easy to believe that an intelligent az
Guantance with the man and his teach
iugs is no more required for the task OF
eXecrating than of idealizing. and it Is
safe 20 say concerning those that carica-
t3Te and curse well as those that eNalt
and praise that genuine first-hand
knowledge of the personality Of the great
reformer, of the actual nature of his
m3ny-sided work. of the real principles
which he taught or of his posthumous in
fiuence upon history is by no means in
every case an indispensable requisite for
their work.
In most mems minds Calvin figures as
the great thinker of the sixteenth CEN
tury, who did more than any other to or
ganize the intellectual elements and to CO.
ordinate the social forces of the reforma-
tion He was nothing if not intellectual
and lie brought his mighty powers to bear
upon the mysterious and perennial prob
lens of religion; and so ii is that lie
stands. classed with such spirits Au-
Gustine and Thomas Aquinas. of
the few great theologans OF the past.
This is true, and yet how many forget, if
they ever knew, that Calvin never
ordained Roman Catholic priest as
Protestant preacher of the gospel. Judged
q
statesman as a churchman. Although
Sir William Hamilton says: Looking
merely TO his learning and ability, Calvin !
was superior to all modern, perhaps to all
ancient divines. yet this great divine was
only layman and a lawyer, and what !
ever of honor or of diShonor attaches to
his name must go to the learned and
liberal profession of the law. His father. |
al Noyon in France, himself &c
clesiastic. but he dissuaded his brilliant |
aud precocious son from taking orders
and prepared him for the more lucrative
vocation OF the law. He pursued his
legal studies under two very famous |
jursts. Petrus Stella and Andrea Alciati, |
rival leaders of their time. He received
the degree of bachelor of laws at Orleans |
February II, l,3l and on leaving the |
university offered the degree of doc |
tor of laws without the usual fees by the |
unanimous consent of the professors. 1t |
is recorded that he distinguished himself |
highly in these studies that on one oc !
casion, when the professor was absent for
few days the youthful Calvin was re-
qGested by him TO take his place. and he
did 50 with great dignity and success.
Sharpened His Judgment.
Without question Calvin's training for
the law greatly influenced his whole work.
DR. Philip Schaff says: The study of
jurisprudence sharpened his judgment,
enlarged his knowledge of human nature
and wa Of great practical benefit to him
in the o-sanzation and administration of
tire church in Geneva, but may have also
increased his legalism and overestimate
of logical demonstration.
Calvin's career was the legitimate pro-
duct of his principles. He was genius,
and genius possesses that mar
velous versatility of faculty which tran
scends the limitations of local conditions
and vocational training. Calvin the lawyer
was greater theologican than many
learned prelate or parSon. because he had
the rare gift of insight into the great
problems of the infinite. His study or law
could have been no mere coming OF
statutes of reciting of precepts and prec-
edents. but with his penchant for the
underlying philosophy of all human phe-
nomena he must always have been pom
dering the science of jurisprudence and
measuring the forces that make and sus-
tain the social fabric. He studied under
the regime of the old Justinian code, and
10 mind like his. with the best education
the universities of his time afforded. with
sweep of vision and with his penetrating
powers of observation and Of inference,
code could cramp his thought and no
book OF statutes could limit the range OF
his reflection.
And yet those early days at Orleans had
been fixing the molis of his maturer
thinking. His theology was to be cast in
the categories of Jurisprudence. The law
yer begins with the first datum of au-
thority. He. deals with rule of action
imposed by a superior which inferior
Is bound to obey. The sanctity of that
authority is the first condition of the
social order. and the maintenance of that
order is absolutely necessary to the law
Sers world.
Calvin the theologian is Calvin the |
lawyer transferring his thought from
the sphere of human jurisprudence to
that OF the divine Unlike that other |
great jurist-theologian, Hugo Grotious OF
Holland, his conception of God is that
Of judge rather than that of governor. |
Calvins theology. like every theology that
strikes its plummet straight TO the bot
tom. was also theodicy, and 1t is just
this theodcian valuation of il which pre-
sents both the seed-thought and the crux
of his whole system. His conception of
the universe is essentially theistic The
world is theogenetic-6iod-o originated: il
is thcocentric-Go -centcred; il is thco-
tratic-tiod gov verned il is theologic--it
has Its rationale in God. God is Creator
and Governor Of all; but above every
thing else. He is Judge of all; and this
is the juristic principium which he
builds his whole system.
Calvin's System Building.
In spea king of Calvin'S system -bNiIdny
IL must be observed that what differen-
tiates his theology from philosophy Is
the fact that the source from which he
drew his material Was not the mtultionS
ar excogitationS of his own consciousness,
but the teachings of what he deVoutiy ac
cepted as the inspired Word of God. IL
lie posted his authority by faith that
faith, he held was not without or against
reason: and in any case it gave him the
authority he must have. Professionalism,
II be sure. has all along been charged
with repudiating infailble pope ana
substituting for ii less TO be preferred
infallibie book: bur, il is replied. the