John Calvin was born in Geneva, Switzerland in 1509.  His beliefs concerning freedom of conscience mirrored Martin Luther’s in significant ways.  He believed man should be free to form his own religious beliefs, and the state could only regulate mankind’s behavior when it affected the well being of society.  He  called one the spiritual kingdom and the other the political kingdom. He described his religious philosophy in a huge book he wrote titled “The Institutes of the Christian Religion”.(1)

Calvin not only believed in the creator-redeemer distinction but also in what is termed “Calvin’s Resistance Theory.”   “The Institutes of the Christian Religion” explores this resistance theory.  Calvin refers to the account of Daniel in the Old Testament and how Daniel disobeyed the Persian king’s order.  Calvin wrote “If they (political authorities) command anything against him (God), let it go.  And here let us not be concerned about all the dignity which the magistrates possess.” (2)  In other words, if the king (or president) tells his subjects (or citizens) to do something that contradicts what is moral according the Bible, the subjects have a right to disobey the king’s edict.  In fact, they have a responsibility to God to do so.

Other European theologians would pick up on Calvin’s resistance theory.  John Knox, from Scotland, formed the Scottish Presbyterian Church.  He believed the Bible supported rebellion against an unrighteous ruler to the extent of overthrowing him or her and even executing the unrighteous ruler.(3)

Calvin’s theories spread to France, where the French Calvinists were called Huguenots. The Huguenots wrote a paper titled, “Vindiciae Contra Tyrannos”, (The Legal Claim Against Tyrants).  The paper justified rebellion against tyrannical kings.  It also introduced something called the “social contract theory,” which would become an important part of the foundation of America’s government.  The social contract theory in the Vindiciae states: “There is ever, and in all places, a mutual and reciprocal obligation between the people and the prince….If the prince fail in his promise, the people are exempt from obedience, the contract is made void, the rights of obligation of no force.” (4)

Two centuries later, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and other founding fathers would refer to Calvin’s resistance theory, the Vindiciae’s social contract, and other calvinist writers, such as John Locke when arguing for independence from England.

Interesting tidbits:

The Calvinists in Switzerland were called Presbyterians. The Calvinists in Scotland were called Scottish Presbyterians. The Calvinists in France were called Huguenots, and the Calvinists in England were called Puritans.

(1) Amos and Gardner, NEVER BEFORE IN AMERICAN HISTORY, pp. 11, 12, 13, Haughton, 1998.

(2) Ibid.

(3) Ibid.

(4). Ibid.