Reformation Letters

Reformation Letters is a detailed look at John Calvin's letters, which were mostly of a pastoral nature. These were letters that define the Reformation and demonstrate Calvin's concerns, his strengths, and his weaknesses, against the background of his own time and contemporaries. Here we find Calvin on his own calling and exile from Geneva; Calvin on marriage--his own and others'; Calvin's prefatory letter to Francis I of France; Calvin's letter to Sadoleto on the nature of the Reformation; Calvin on Servetus and the reasons for his trial and execution for heresy; and Calvin's letters to those facing death and persecution.

""I loved this book. I think its real strength is in revealing the humanity of Calvin against his official theology.""

--Mary Patton Baker, Guest Instructor, Biblical and Theological Studies at Wheaton College

""Michael Parsons is a careful and caring guide, who seems to understand the sentiments of a giant of the faith that others studiously miss. This is history at its finest--we know the reformer through these letters thanks to an expert avatar. A fantastic and interesting work!""

--David W. Hall, Senior Pastor, Midway Presbyterian Church, Powder Springs, Georgia

""Michael Parsons adeptly demonstrates how Calvin's letters and theological writing consistently reveal his pastoral heart.""

--Karin Spiecker Stetina, Associate Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies, Biola University

Michael Parsons is the Commissioning Editor at The Bible Reading Fellowship and an Associate Research Fellow at Spurgeon's College, UK.