Abstract

DREYER, Wim A.. Conversio ad docelitam: John Calvin on conversion and being a Christian. Herv. teol. stud. [online]. 2014, vol.70, n.3, pp.01-05. ISSN 2072-8050.  https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v70i3.2094.

This contribution describes John Calvin's understanding of what it means to be a Christian. When Calvin 'converted' to the Reformation in the early 1530s, the term 'Protestant' did not exist. There was no systematic body of doctrine or a confession you could put your signature under. So Calvin became a 'lover of Christ'. The unity with Christ was a central part of his theology but also his personal spirituality. Calvin also understood his own conversion as a 'conversio subita ad docelitam', a conversion to a 'teachable frame of mind'. Calvin's love for Christ, his love for the Word of God and a teachable frame of mind not only defined his theology, but also his piety and spirituality

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