John Calvin had his master?s degree in theology by the time he was nineteen. In his day, people could not read the Bible in their own language because it was written only in Latin. Only the most educated people were taught Latin. Calvin was aware that church authorities were against translating the Scriptures, but he was part of a secret translating project anyway.

The more familiar Calvin became with Martin Luther?s reasons for reform, the more difficult it was to stay loyal to the church in its present condition. When he was twenty-five, Calvin announced publicly that he was breaking his ties with his diocese, and that he would be speaking in favor of the Protestant movement.

Calvin believed that the church was letting some of its traditions get in the way of its faith and spirituality. He wanted a much simpler expression of faith, so he did away with most of the ornamental decorations in churches.

Calvin also believed in predestination - the idea that God favors certain people, and only those people are destined to go to heaven. Because only certain people are marked to be the holy ones, it almost made sense for them to try to structure the rest of the world. After all, no one else would. In addition, Calvin maintained that the church should have influence over all governmental decisions. He favored civil laws against drinking, dancing, card games, certain styles of clothing, certain hairstyles, certain books - anything that might lead a person away from a holy life.

Calvin was not trying to begin a new religion; he was merely trying to challenge the church to reform. He spent most of his adult life in Geneva, Switzerland, administering reform movements. The religious followers who brought his faith to North America were called Puritans. Today, they are called Presbyterians.

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