Calvinism - pagina 82

CALVINISM AND RELIGION.

yS to

forms of

all

in the

consists

only

in

and

of climate

if

the churches

of confederation, then the differences

of nation,

mind come

disposition of

the church

if

the union of confessors, and are united

way

the

But

life.

congregation of believers^

by

are formed

ecclesiastical

of

historical

in to exercise

past,

and of

a widely varie-

gating influence, and multiformity in ecclesiastical matters

must be the

A

result.

reaching importance, character side

all

because

of every

by

therefore, of very far-

result, it

annihilates the absolute

Church,

visible

and places them

as differing in degrees of purity, but

side,

always remaining

in

some way or other a manifestation

of one holy and catholic church of Christ in Heaven.

do not say that Calvinistic theologians have pro-

I

claimed this

desire for ruling heart, it

The

consequence from the beginning.

full

power lurked

and even apart from

was right and

natural

also at the

this

for

door of their

dangerous disposition

them

theoretically

to

judge each church according to the standard of their

own

ideals.

But

this

does not

in the least detract

from

the great significance of the fact that by regarding their

church,

not

a hierarchy or institution, but as the

as

gathering of individual confessors, they started for the church, as well as for the

Hfe

of the

and

civil society,

but of liberty.

life

of the state,

from the principle not of compulsion,

For, of course

by

virtue of this starting-

point there was no other church-power superior to the local churches, save only

what the churches themselves

constituted,

by means of

followed

necessity that the natural and historic

of

ferences between

men

their confederation.

should

Hence

it

dif-

also, wedge-like, force their

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