We here at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando were privileged to have Dr. Herman Selderhuis, professor of church history at the Theologische Universiteit Apeldoorn, deliver the Kistemaker Lectures about a month ago on the topic of John Calvin. This year, 2009, marks the 500th anniversary of Calvin's birth and there are a large number of events and conferences going on to celebrate that. Dr. Selderhuis gave four lectures under the heading, "The Discovery of John Calvin." The lectures are available for download here (note: you'll need to have iTunes installed), and I encourage you to listen to them. There is a lot of valuable and interesting material there.

As I listened to them, I noted some of the more interesting things I heard, which I reproduce here (along with the approximate location where you can find it in the lecture).

1. Calvin did not want his theology to be known as Calvinism. As time went on, Calvin was aware of his increasing influence in the world of the Reformation, and was worried that people would begin to idolize him or his theology. As it were, Calvinism was actually a term given to Calvin's theology by Reformation-era Lutherans, and it was applied in a derogatory manner. So, Selderhuis suggests, call yourself Reformed instead.
   (Lecture 1, ±27:00-28:00)
2. It is often the case that people just equate Calvin with the Institutes. But in order to get an accurate portrayal of his whole system of thought and theology, we need to read all of his works together.
   (Lecture 2, ±3:00-4:00)
3. Calvin believed that the preaching of the Word should be accompanied by the showing and signing of the Word in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper each week. When you think you are being very Calvinistic by celebrating the Lord's Supper four or five times a year, you are actually being very loyal to the anti-Calvin leaders of the time in Geneva who opposed Calvin's desire to partake of the Supper each week.
   (Lecture 2, ±19:00-20:00)
4. We primarily use the Institutes as a theological work, but Calvin did not write it as a theological treatise, per se. It was meant, first and foremost, as a pastoral work that would lead people to a deeper understanding of the Christian life. For Calvin, doctrine and piety went hand in hand.
   (Lecture 2, ±46:00-47:00)
5. The Institutes, both originally and as we have them today, are published in large volumes, which one would likely not read in its entirety. In the mid-1500s, a Frenchman published a summary of the Institutes, a summary which gave heavy attention to the issues of the day, such as predestination. That is why Calvinism today has this caricature of being fatalistic or deterministic. If you read the Institutes in their entirety, however, you notice that the largest section of the whole work is devoted to prayer. The Frenchman who published the summary, however, thought that was not an issue. The point is, then, don't read just the summaries, but go ad fontes—back to the sources.
   (Lecture 2, ±50:00-52:00)
6. Martin Luther thought Calvin's short treatise on the Lord's Supper to be very helpful. This should not be all that surprising to us, because the understanding of the Lord's Supper in many Reformed churches actually tends toward a Zwinglian understanding instead of a Calvinistic one. Calvin combined the strengths of both Zwingli's and Luther's understanding of the Supper, and saw his view as quite in agreement with Luther.
   (Lecture 3, ±11:00, 17:00-18:00)
7. Finally, Calvin was convinced that if Luther had lived longer, he would not have sided with the Lutherans. The followers of Luther became quite militant after his death, and deviated considerably from Luther's theology.
   (Lecture 3, ±32:00-33:00)

I did not mention anything from the fourth lecture, but if you are of Dutch ancestry, you will find that one particularly humorous, as Selderhuis pokes a bit of fun at some of the perspectives of Dutch Reformed folk, especially on their understanding of the Sabbath.

All in all, it was a great blessing to have Selderhuis here. His perspectives on Calvin were enlightening and refreshing. Download the lectures, and enjoy what he has to say. He also has a new biography of Calvin that has just been released, which you can purchase here.