Reformed Christianity

Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a big group within Protestantism. It started during the 16th century during the Protestant Reformation. Today, you can find it in the Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, and Congregational traditions. Some Anglican churches (called “Episcopal” in some places), Baptist, and Waldensian churches also share these ideas.

Reformed theology focuses on the authority of the Bible and the sovereignty of God. It also looks at covenant theology, which is a way of understanding the Bible through God’s promises to people. Reformed churches keep their worship simple. They organize themselves in different ways, like presbyterian, congregational, and some episcopal styles.

The Reformed tradition grew over many years, especially in Switzerland, Scotland, and the Netherlands. It encouraged hard work, trade, and wealth accumulation in ethical ways. This helped shape modern capitalism, especially in Northern Europe and the United States. It also inspired early ideas about democracy, separation of powers, and protections for religious minorities. These ideas influenced colonies in North America and liberal political thought in England.

Definition and terminology

Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, began during the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century. It started in Switzerland and Germany and later spread to the Dutch Republic. The name Calvinism comes from John Calvin, a famous theologian from Geneva, Switzerland. Some people think using the term Calvinism can be confusing.

Reformed Christianity began with Huldrych Zwingli in Zürich, Switzerland. After disagreements with Martin Luther's followers, Zwingli's group became known as Reformed Christians. They believed in a spiritual presence of Christ during special church meals, unlike Lutherans who believed in a physical presence.

Over time, Reformed ideas spread to other groups, including some Anglicans in England. While these groups kept some old traditions, they also shared many beliefs with Reformed Christians. Some Baptists who agreed with Reformed ideas are also sometimes included, though not all agree on this.

History

Main article: History of Reformed Christianity

Reformed Christianity began in the 1500s during a big change in the Christian church called the Protestant Reformation. Important early leaders like Zwingli, Martin Bucer, and John Calvin believed the Bible was the most important guide for faith. They taught that God chooses who will be saved and that people are saved by God's kindness, not by their own actions.

John Calvin wrote an important book called Institutes of the Christian Religion, which helped shape Reformed beliefs. These ideas spread across Europe. Calvin’s teachings became popular in places like Scotland, the Netherlands, and parts of Germany. Over time, Reformed Christianity also grew in places like North America, South Africa, and Korea.

Calvin’s writings shared his ideas about how a church should be run correctly, reaching many parts of Europe. In Switzerland, some areas still follow Reformed traditions today. Calvinism became the main belief in Scotland, the Dutch Republic, and parts of Germany near the Netherlands. It also found a home in eastern Hungary and Transylvania.

Though Calvinism began in Geneva, it spread to many countries. In places like Poland and France, it grew but later faced challenges. Many people from Europe, including those from Britain and France, brought Calvinist ideas to the Thirteen Colonies in America and to South Africa. Today, Reformed Christianity continues to be strong, especially in countries like South Korea, where many people belong to Presbyterian churches.

Demography

A report from 2011 says that about 56 million people belonged to Presbyterian or Reformed churches.

In 2020, there were around 65 million Presbyterian and Reformed Christians and about 5 million Congregationalists. This group makes up less than 1% of the world's population. There were also about 78 million people in United Churches.

World Communions

The World Communion of Reformed Churches has 80 million members and is the fourth largest group of Christian churches. It includes some United Churches. There are also other groups of Reformed churches, such as the World Reformed Fellowship and the International Conference of Reformed Churches. These groups focus on traditional beliefs.

Theology

Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a big group within Protestantism that started in the 1500s. Today, you can find it in traditions like Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, and Congregational churches, and also in parts of the Anglican, Baptist, and Waldensian churches.

Reformed theology stresses the importance of the Bible and God's control over everything. It also focuses on covenant theology, which looks at God's promises and agreements with people in the Bible.

Reformed Christians believe that God made a promise with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. They also believe in the Trinity — that God is one but exists as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The theology talks about Jesus' life and teachings. It explains that because people are not perfect, they need God's help.

Finally, Reformed Christians see the church as a group of believers with special ways of worship, like baptism and the Lord's Supper.

Branches

The Reformed tradition is part of several church families, including Continental, Presbyterian, Reformed Anglican, Congregationalist, Calvinistic Methodist, and Reformed Baptist groups.

Reformed churches have different ways to organize, mainly presbyterian and congregational, but some use episcopal methods. The largest group is the World Communion of Reformed Churches, with over 100 million members in 211 groups. Smaller groups include the World Reformed Fellowship and the International Conference of Reformed Churches.

Continental

Main article: Continental Reformed Protestantism

"Continental" Reformed churches began in continental Europe, a name used to tell them apart from churches from the British Isles. Many follow the Helvetic Confessions and Heidelberg Catechism. In the United States, people from these churches joined the Dutch Reformed Church and the Anglican Church.

Presbyterian

Main article: Presbyterianism

Presbyterian churches are led by groups of elders, called presbyters. They were shaped by John Knox, who brought Reformed beliefs to the Church of Scotland after learning from Calvin's work in Geneva. Presbyterians follow the Westminster Confession of Faith.

Congregational

Main article: Congregationalism

Congregationalism began with Puritanism, a movement to change the Church of England. Unlike Presbyterians, Congregationalists believe each church should be self-ruled by its own leaders. The Savoy Declaration is an important belief document for them. Congregationalist churches include the United Church of Christ, the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches, and the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference in the United States, and others around the world.

Anglican

Main article: Reformed theology in Anglicanism

While Anglicanism is often seen as its own branch of Protestantism, it has strong ties to the Reformed tradition. Anglican beliefs match the Reformed ideas from Swiss and South German reforms. The church’s important documents show this connection.

Reformed Methodist

Reformed Methodists, also called Calvinistic Methodists, are a smaller part of the Methodist tradition. Most Methodists follow Wesleyan Methodism, but Calvinistic Methodists follow Reformed beliefs. They are known for their special worship practices and focus on the New Birth and growth in grace. Important leaders include George Whitefield and Howell Harris.

Reformed Baptist

Main article: Reformed Baptists

Reformed Baptists practice believer's baptism and organize like Congregationalists. They follow the Second London Confession of Faith of 1689, along with other belief documents. Many accept Reformed ideas about salvation and covenantal theology.

Variants in Reformed theology

Amyraldism

Main article: Amyraldism

Amyraldism is a belief that God decided that Christ's atonement would help anyone who believes. Because people cannot believe alone, God chooses those he will help to believe in Christ. This still keeps the idea that God chooses people.

Hyper-Calvinism

Main article: Hyper-Calvinism

Hyper-Calvinism is a belief that God is so powerful in choosing who will be saved that it says people do not need to repent or believe the good news. This idea was known among some early English Particular Baptists in the 1700s. Some leaders like John Gill supported it, but others like Andrew Fuller and William Carey said everyone should still hear the good news.

Neo-Calvinism

Main article: Neo-Calvinism

Neo-Calvinism began in the 1880s in the Netherlands, started by Abraham Kuyper. He wanted to remind people that Christ is important in every part of life. He said that no part of life should be kept separate from Christ.

Christian Reconstructionism

Main article: Christian Reconstructionism

Christian Reconstructionism is a movement started by R. J. Rushdoony. It believes in following old rules very strictly and has influenced some groups in the United States. It became well known in the 1990s and still exists in small groups today.

New Calvinism

Main article: New Calvinism

New Calvinism is a modern way of following the old beliefs of Calvinism from the 1500s. It tries to fit these ideas into today’s world. In 2009, a magazine called Time said it was one of the important ideas changing the world. Some leaders in this movement include John Piper, Mark Driscoll, Al Mohler, Mark Dever, C. J. Mahaney, and Tim Keller.

Social and economic influences

See also: Protestant work ethic

In a letter from 1545, a religious leader talked about charging interest on loans. He thought some old rules didn’t apply anymore and that it was okay to charge a small amount of interest, like 5%, unless someone needed help.

Later, a writer named Max Weber said that the ideas from this religious group helped shape modern business and trade, especially in parts of Europe. These ideas encouraged people to work hard, start their own businesses, and build wealth for the future. Some people think the early history of the United States was influenced by these ideas.

Politics and society

After Calvin's death, his ideas started to change politics and society. In the Netherlands, after they became free from Spain in 1579, leaders let people with different beliefs live safely. This included groups like the French Huguenots, English Independents, and Jews from Spain and Portugal.

These ideas helped create modern democracy in places like England and North America. Leaders thought that government and religious groups should stay separate. They believed ordinary people should have rights and freedoms, and they made systems to stop any one group from having too much power.

In the United States, early leaders like the Pilgrims and others made colonies with democratic governments. They believed that allowing different religious views was important, even if they did not agree with everyone. These colonies became safe places for people who were treated unfairly in their home countries.

Later, churches inspired by Calvin's teachings helped improve society. They worked to end slavery, support women's rights, and help people in prison. They also started groups to help poor communities and founded hospitals and schools. Even today, many important universities and art movements were influenced by these ideas.