It's a church plant from Christ United Reformed church in Santee, CA. And they're telling the story of their effort.
Pastor Andrea Ferrari is a missionary and pastor ordained in the United Reformed Churches in North America. He is an Italian national and serves as pastor of Chiesa Evangelica Riformata ‘Filadelfia’ (CERF) in Milan (Novate), Italy.
Pastor Ferrari has begun a series of short biographical posts based on what appears to be a book about the life of John Diodati (1576-1649) and his doctrine of Scripture. The first two posts are here and here.
The nature of Geneva’s Academy casts much light on Diodati’s life and work. Its basic aim was declared in 1637 by the pastors and professors of Geneva, among whom was Diodati: ‘It is not good that our students should be vain disputants, or that they should be learned in a theory without savour or strength. The true aim which we should set before ourselves . . . is to provide a holy nursery-garden of devout pastors, pure in their faith, strong in their zeal to teach, well conducted and sober, keeping guard with a clear conscience over the grand mystery of piety, and administering with justice the Word of Truth.’ This statement reflects perfectly the original vision of John Calvin himself. According to the Ecclesiastical Ordinances of 1541, the College he wished to see established was to serve the purpose of preparing children ‘for both the ministry and civil government.’ …
Both at the College and the Academy, young people were educated in the so-called humanities. Although ‘the education offered in the College and Academy was in many ways typically humanistic’, from the very beginnings, in Geneva as in Calvin’s own life, ‘humanistic studies were to be directed to the service of the Word of God.’ Calvin did not disregard ‘secular’ human learning, as is evident from reading his Institutes and commentaries. One of the sources of the Reformation had been the scholarly, critical study of the Bible, and each Calvinist minister was expected to be well equipped for the continuing task of biblical study and exegesis . . . Only a man with a high degree of linguistic and philological ability could be entrusted with the task of interpreting to less learned and otherwise occupied people the very words of Almighty God.
I hope you'll take a few minutes to check out this tremendously bold work (both in the 16th century and today).
Posts
