I've just started to dip into Bruce Gordon's long awaited and acclaimed biography of Calvin (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2009). It is a bit early yet to give an evaluation, but here is a teaser from the preface:
The location of Calvin's grave is unknown, and that was the way he wanted it. Fully conscious of his fame and the spell he cast over his supporters, he feared being made an object of veneration. Nothing would have horrified him more than the monument to the Reformation in Geneva with its enormous image of the Frenchman. He deliberately wrote next to nothing about himself and his life. In the preface to his 1557 commentary on the psalms he provided a spiritual autobiography, but to the modern eye it is conspicuously short on facts. This is hardly surprising as its purpose was to stress the omnipotence of God and Calvin's providential calling. (ix)
2 comments:
I've recently ordered Charles Partee, The Theology of John Calvin. I've heard some good reviews about this Calvin scholar and amongst the myriad of Calvin scholarship that is getting published recently have you come across this one?
I have the book and have dipped into it. It is a bit of a mixed bag - some very good observations and at points a bit of special pleading. Some reviews I have come across suggest he has pushed a little too hard in the search for a unique perspective on Calvin. Worth a read though. He wrote a very good book on Calvin and Philosophy prior to this. Enjoy.
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