John Calvin:"It cannot be denied that God in choosing and destining Mary to be the Mother of his Son, granted her the highest honor."

Roman Catholic apologists point out John Calvin wrote about Mary: 

"It cannot be denied that God in choosing and destining Mary to be the Mother of his Son, granted her the highest honor." (John Calvin, Calvini Opera [Braunshweig-Berlin, 1863-1900], Volume 45, 348).

This quote is an example of cyber-propaganda: it's a copy-and-paste one of Rome's defenders found in a book somewhere and put out in cyberspace to prove Rome's version of Christianity. Here, they're commandeering John Calvin to prove their version of Mary. John Calvin is not on their side.

In context, John Calvin does say it was an honor to for Mary to be used by God. However, the context shows John Calvin believed there was a greater honor: much more important was that Mary given the honor of spiritual life by Jesus Christ.

Documentation

Thanks, my Roman Catholic friends for translating this quote from the original Latin text ("Calvini Opera") (read: sarcasm)! Wouldn't it have been much easier to simply look up the quote in the widely available free English renderings of John Calvin’s commentaries? These have been available for decades. 

The usual documentation given is: "John Calvin, Calvini Opera [Braunshweig-Berlin, 1863-1900], Volume 45, 348." Page 348 can be found here. The text in question states,

Luc. 27.  Beatus venter.  Hoc elogio extollerevoluit mulier Christi excellentiam: non enim Ma-riam respexit, quam forte nunquam viderat, sedhoc non parum amplificat Christi gloriam, quoduterum, in quo gestatus est, nobilitet ac beatumreddat. Nec vero absurde, sed ex scripturae morecelebratur haec Dei benedictio: scimus enim sobo-lem, praesertim eximiis virtutibus ornatam, tanquam Dei singulare donum aliis omnibus praeferri. Nequeetiam negari potest, quin Deus Mariam filio suomatrem eligens ac destinans summo eam honoredignatus sit. Christi tamen responsum adeo vocimulierculae non subscribit, ut potius contineat obli-quam reprehensionem. Imo, inquit, beati qui audiunt....

I doubt the person who found this John Calvin quote actually translated this text from Latin into English. The quote is found easily enough in Calvin’s Commentary on the Harmony of the Gospels. The context is as follows.

Context

Luke 11:27. Blessed is the womb. By this eulogium the woman intended to magnify the excellence of Christ; for she had no reference to Mary, whom, perhaps, she had never seen. And yet it tends in a high degree to illustrate the glory of Christ, that she pronounces the womb that bore him to be noble and blessed. Nor was the blessing inappropriate, but in strict accordance with the manner of Scripture; for we know that offspring, and particularly when endued with distinguished virtues, is declared to be a remarkable gift of God, preferable to all others. It cannot even be denied that God conferred the highest honor on Mary, by choosing and appointing her to be the mother of his Son. And yet Christ’s reply is so far from assenting to this female voice, that it contains an indirect reproof.

Original text: Original text: Luc. 27. Beatus venter. Hoc elogio extollere voluit mulier Christi excellentiam: non enim Mariam respexit, quam forte nunquam viderat, sed hoc non parum amplificat Christi gloriam, quod uterum, in quo gestatus est, nobilitet ac beatum reddat. Nec vero absurde, sed ex scripturae more celebratur haec Dei benedictio: scimus enim sobolem, praesertim eximiis virtutibus ornatam, tanquam Dei singulare donum aliis omnibus praeferri. Neque etiam negari potest, quin Deus Mariam filio suo matrem eligens ac destinans summo eam honore dignatus sit. Christi tamen responsum adeo voci mulierculae non subscribit, ut potius contineat obliquam reprehensionem (CR 45:348).

Conclusion
What Calvin says, no Protestant should deny. In God’s providence, Mary was chosen to be the mother of Jesus Christ. Indeed, that is a great honor! Calvin goes on though to the real honor. He says,

Nay, rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God. We see that Christ treats almost as a matter of indifference that point on which the woman had set a high value. And undoubtedly what she supposed to be Mary’s highest honor was far inferior to the other favors which she had received; for it was of vastly greater importance to be regenerated by the Spirit of God than to conceive Christ, according to the flesh, in her womb; to have Christ living spiritually within her than to suckle him with her breasts. In a word, the highest happiness and glory of the holy Virgin consisted in her being a member of his Son, so that the heavenly Father reckoned her in the number of new creatures (Calvin's Comments on Luke 11:27).

Original text: Luc. 27. Beatus venter. Hoc elogio extollere voluit mulier Christi excellentiam: non enim Mariam respexit, quam forte nunquam viderat, sed hoc non parum amplificat Christi gloriam, quod uterum, in quo gestatus est, nobilitet ac beatum reddat. Nec vero absurde, sed ex scripturae more celebratur haec Dei benedictio: scimus enim sobolem, praesertim eximiis virtutibus ornatam, tanquam Dei singulare donum aliis omnibus praeferri. Neque etiam negari potest, quin Deus Mariam filio suo matrem eligens ac destinans summo eam honore dignatus sit. Christi tamen responsum adeo voci mulierculae non subscribit, ut potius contineat obliquam reprehensionem. 

Imo, inquit, beati qui audiunt verbum Dei. Videmus ut fere pro nihilo ducat Christus, quod unum extulerat mulier. Et certe quod praecipuum Mariae putabat esse decus, aliis gratiis longe inferius erat: maioris enim praestantiae fuit, regenitam esse Christi spiritu quam Christi carnem utero suo concipere, Christum habere spiritualiter in se viventem quam eum uberibus lactare. Denique summa sanctae Virginis et felicitas et gloria in eo sita fuit, membrum filii sui esse, ut eam coelestis pater inter novas creaturas censeret (CR 45:348). 

In my opinion, however, it was for another reason, and with a view to another object, that Christ now corrected the saying of the woman. It was because men are commonly chargeable with neglecting even those gifts of God, on which they gaze with astonishment, and bestow the highest praise. This woman, in applauding Christ, had left out what was of the very highest consequence, that in him salvation is exhibited to all; and, therefore, it was a feeble commendation, that made no mention of his grace and power, which is extended to all. Christ justly claims for himself another kind of praise, not that his mother alone is reckoned blessed, but that he brings to us all perfect and eternal happiness. We never form a just estimate of the excellence of Christ, till we consider for what purpose he was given to us by the Father, and perceive the benefits which he has brought to us, so that we who are wretched in ourselves may becomehappy in him. But why does he say nothing about himself, and mention only the word of God? It is because in this way he opens to us all his treasures; for without the word he has no intercourse with us, nor we with him. Communicating himself to us by the word, he rightly and properly calls us to hear and keep it, that by faith he may become ours.

Original text: Egotamen alia de causa et alio fine correctam fuisseputo mulieris vocem, quod scilicet perperam solcant homines Dei dona negligere, quae attoniti miranturet plenis buccis praedicant. Nam haec mulier in Christi laude omiserat quod vero est caput, salutemin ipso omnibus esse propositam: frigebat ergo en-comium illud, in quo nulla fiebat gratiao eius acvirtutis mentio, quae se ad omnes diffundit. Quaremerito Christus aliam sibi laudem vindicat, ne solamater beata reputetur, et quidem carnis respectu,sed ut nobis omnibus solidam et aeternam beatitudinem conferat. Rite ergo tunc demum aestimaturChristi dignitas, dum expendimus, quorsum nobisdatus sit a patre, et quae nobis attulit beneficiapercipimus, ut fiamus in ipso felices qui sumus innobis miseri: sed cur de se tacens tantum verbi Dei meminit? nempe hoc modo thesauros omnessuos nobis aperit, quia sine verbo neque illi quid-quam nobiscum, nec vicissim nobis cum illo. Quumergo se nobis per verbum communicet, recte etproprie ad hoc audiendum et servandum nos vocat,ut fide ipse noster fiat (CR 45:348-349).

In Calvin’s estimate, though it was an honor for Mary to bear Jesus, much more important was that she was given spiritual life by Jesus Christ! In John Calvin's view, all those are blessed if given spiritual life by Jesus Christ. 

To yank one sentence out of John Calvin’s commentary about Mary and think it represents John Calvin as a firm supporter of Roman Catholic Mariolatry is not an accurate way to handle texts. For instance, see how Calvin treats the Hail Mary, and what it means to call Mary blessed:

The angel adds, the Lord is with thee. To those on whom he has once bestowed his love God shows himself gracious and kind, follows and “crowns them with loving-kindness,” (Psalm 103:4.) Next comes the third clause, that she is blessed among women. Blessing is here put down as the result and proof of the Divine kindness. The word Blessed does not, in my opinion, mean, Worthy of praise; but rather means, Happy. Thus, Paul often supplicates for believers, first “grace” and then “peace,” (Romans 1:7; Ephesians 1:2,) that is, every kind of blessings; implying that we shall then be truly happy and rich, when we are beloved by God, from whom all blessings proceed. But if Mary’s happiness, righteousness, and life, flow from the undeserved love of God, if her virtues and all her excellence are nothing more than the Divine kindness, it is the height of absurdity to tell us that we should seek from her what she derives from another quarter in the same manner as ourselves (Calvin's Comments on Luke 1:28).

Original text:  Original text: Postea subiicit angelus, Deum cum ipsa esse. Nam quos amore suo dignatus est semel Deus, illis se propitium et beneficum exhibet, suisque beneficiis ornat et prosequitur. Ideo additur tertium membrum, quod benedicta sit inter mulieres. Benedictionem enim tanquam effectum et probationem divini favoris ponit. Neque enim pro laude hic, meo iudicio, capitur, sed potius felicitatem notat. Sic Paulus gratiam primum, deinde pacem, hoc est, omne bonorum genus fidelibus precari solet, significans, nos tunc demum beatos et divites fore, si a Deo bonorum omnium autore amemur. Quodsi Mariae felicitas, iustitia et vita ex gratuito Dei amore fluant, eius virtutes totaque excellentia mera est Dei liberalitas: plus quam praepostere faciunt, qui ab ea petendum docent quod aliundo nobiscum habet(CR 45:25).

Revised May 2026