Cordoba, Spain.
The tightly-knit world of Calvin studies was thrown into turmoil last week with the discovery of a previously unkown letter from John Calvin to the Archbishop of Seville. Discovered here in an old attic, the correspondence has been verified by scholars at the Universities of Prague and Notre Dame as being genuine.
What is most astonishing, however, is the content of this letter. Calvin writes to the Archbishop to discern his interest in holding a joint mission to Muslims in the south of the country. "This is a fantastic opportunuty," says the French reformer, "and what unites us is far greater than what divides us." It appears that Calvin was willing for potential converts to be channelled into papist churches if he was allowed to preach the gospel according to his conscience. He also claims to be willing to "extend the right hand of fellowship" to his papist brethren. "There are so many unsaved Muslims in Spain," he writes, "it would be a shame to let them go to hell because of our bickering."
Hugh LaCroux, of the University of Notre Dame's Institute for Calvin Studies told reporters that this correspondence will revolutionise his field. "People generally think of Calvin as being cranky and arrogant," he said. "But this letter shows a more sensitive side to the reformer. He's actually very gracious."
The tightly-knit world of Calvin studies was thrown into turmoil last week with the discovery of a previously unkown letter from John Calvin to the Archbishop of Seville. Discovered here in an old attic, the correspondence has been verified by scholars at the Universities of Prague and Notre Dame as being genuine.
What is most astonishing, however, is the content of this letter. Calvin writes to the Archbishop to discern his interest in holding a joint mission to Muslims in the south of the country. "This is a fantastic opportunuty," says the French reformer, "and what unites us is far greater than what divides us." It appears that Calvin was willing for potential converts to be channelled into papist churches if he was allowed to preach the gospel according to his conscience. He also claims to be willing to "extend the right hand of fellowship" to his papist brethren. "There are so many unsaved Muslims in Spain," he writes, "it would be a shame to let them go to hell because of our bickering."
Hugh LaCroux, of the University of Notre Dame's Institute for Calvin Studies told reporters that this correspondence will revolutionise his field. "People generally think of Calvin as being cranky and arrogant," he said. "But this letter shows a more sensitive side to the reformer. He's actually very gracious."
Geez, they didn't even try to recreate 16th century language. 
