Some observations on Calvin research with special reference to South Africa

The aim o f this article is to take a genera l look a t contem porary C alvin research, re ferring especia lly to what happened in this respect w ithin m ore o r less the last tw enty years: m ore specifica lly this article w ill concentrate on developm ents w ithin the last ten years. The results o f the f in d in g s are spec ifica lly re la ted to C alvin research in South A frica. The article can, in a sense, a lso he seen as an a ttem pt to convey som e o f the results o f the latest In terna tiona l C alvin R esearch C ongress o f 1990 to the C alvin research com m unity in South Africa. In this endeavour fir s t ly som e genera l rem arks are m ade w ith regard to C alvin re.search: second ly current trends in C alvin research are fo c u s e d upon: the th ird heading indicates research needs; a fo u r th para g ra p h outlines m ateria l re.search aids available to C alvin researchers a n d in a conclud ing paragraph a fe w spec ific rem arks with reg a rd to C alvin research in Sou th A frica are made. 1. An overview of general trends in Calvin research Right from the beginning o f the twentieth century there has been some interest in Calvin; which did not necessarily mean that Calvin has always been correctly un­ derstood. Already in 1929 the Dutch theologian Klaas Schiider wrote about "een verblijdende belangstelling voor Calvyn, die allerminst vrucht is van een begrijpen van Calvijn ... waarin zo heel veel wat van Calvijn weinig o f niet weten wil, zich toch op Calvijn beroept" (c f Schiider, 1981:69). Interest in Calvin also does not necessarily mean that Calvin has always been appreciated. In 1986 William Klempa found enough evidence to include the following passage in his paper "The Image o f John Calvin in Recent Research", read at the Colloquium. If anything, Calvin continues to suffer from bad press in both popular and more scholarly literature. He is still pictured as the Genevan dictator ruling a submissive population with a rod of iron, a kind of theological wet blanket and the apotheosis of a pious kill-joy (Klempa, 1987:343). In die Skrijlig 27(4) 1993:537-561 S31 However, it must also be stated that during the past two decades there has de­ finitely been evidence o f a resurgence o f interest in Calvin, an interest which has not only been sustained but which has also gained momentum. The result o f this is inter alia that the image o f Calvin is coming into clearer focus and bears the characteristics o f one o f the truly great scholars o f the sixteenth century. In this respect Harris Harbison (1987:146) wrote the following: ... C alvin preserved closer touch w ith all the m ajor thougth-form s o f the past than e ither Erasm us or Luther, each o f w hom w as m ore genuinely re­ volutionary in his ow n way. He did so because he w as m ore objective in his approach to scholastic, juris tic , and hum anistic learning, because he could absorb their m ethods w ithou t subscribing to their spirit and sw al­ low ing their content, and because he w as m ore catholic in his intellectual tastes. The interest in Calvin throughout the twentieth century is reflected inter alia in the fact that he is probably, apart from perhaps Luther, the theologian in the history o f the Christian Church about whom the most twentieth century biographies have been written. This trend started with the monumental seven volume work of Emile Doumergue in 1899-1927 and has continued in various languages right up to our time with one o f the latest being John Calvin. A Sixteenth Century Por­ trait, a biography written by William Bouwsma. Currently there are probably more than a dozen Lives o f Calvin in print. M ost probably it was the founding o f the European Congress on Calvin Research in 1974 in Amsterdam which led John Leith in 1977 to state that studies on Calvin had been gaining momentum again. Not that studies on Calvin had not been undertaken before that time, but a definite direction and aim for Calvin stu­ dies was stimulated by this Congress. O f that Congress, attended by about fourty reseachers from Europe, A. Wolters wrote: "To my mind, that year and that Congress mark the beginning o f a new era in Calvin studies ..." (W olters, 1987: 350). Its proceedings was published in 1976 in Neukirchen in the volume Calvinus Theologus, a title with which Meianchton honoured Calvin. It was also decided to invite researchers from ail over the world to attend the next Calvin Re­ search Congress. The next Congress, which in fact was the first International Calvin Research Con­ gress, was held four years later in 1978 also in Amsterdam. From all over the worid, except Australia, reseachers convened in Amsterdam. From the beginning it was decided to go about it in an elitair fashion and invite only one hundred experienced researchers and a few o f the younger generation researchers to par­ take in the congress. From the start it was also decided to read only three papers per day with ample time for intensive discussion. It was also the aim o f the con­ gress that the chosen themes o f the Congresses should stimulate as much research Some observations on Calvin research with special reference to South Africa 538 In die Skriflig 27(4) 1993:537-561 as possible. Right from the outset it was found that these International Calvin Re­ search Congresses did not only stimulate various regional Congresses but there was also an urgency among researchers to get to know the writings o f Calvin, to absorb themselves in the thoughts o f Calvin and to gain profit from their re­ search for godliness in general and the church o f Jesus Christ. The proceedings o f the 1978 Congress was published by Kok in Kampen under the title Calvinus Ecclesiae D octor (Neuser, 1982:87-88). The second International Calvin Research Congress was held in Geneve in 1982, The proceedings o f this Congress was published in 1984 under the title Calvinus Ecclesiae Genevensis Custos (Neuser, 1984). New to this Congress was the inauguration o f smaller working groups groups in which new research in a pre­ liminary stage could be presented and where themes for new research could also be introduced. The next international Congress was held in Debrecen, Hungaiy from the 25th to the 28th o f August 1986, the theme being Calvinus servus Christi. The proceedings o f this Congress was published in 1988 by the Pressabteilung des Ráday-Kollegiums in Budapest (c f Neuser, 1988). The most recent International Congress the fifth Quadrennial Congress, was hosted by the Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids Michigan and was held from 20-23 August 1990. The theme o f this congress was Calvinus Sacrae Scriplurae Pro­ fessor. The proceedings o f this Congress is yet to be published. While the so-called International Congress on Calvin Research continued to meet every four years, since 1978 various regional or territorial congresses and colloquia on Calvin research have come into existence. In 1980 the Calvinkongress M ittelosteuropa met for the first time in Debrecen (Hungary), in 1984 in the then East Berlin and in 1988 in Vienna. The proceedings o f the 1984 meeting was published under the title Immigration und Emigration die calvinisiische Einwanderung und Auswanderung in Mitteleuropa. Beitrage des II. Kongresses fiir Calvinforschung in M ittelund Osteuropa 1984 (edited by J. Langhoff and J. Rogge). In the same year, 1980, the first meeting o f the African Congress for Calvin Research met in Pretoria; this was followed by a meeting in Potchefstroom (1984) and a meeting in Stellenbosch (1988). The papers o f the 1980 meeting were pub­ lished in 1982 under the title Calvinus Reformator His Contribution to Theolo­ gy, Church and Society, while the papers o f the second congress were published as John C alvin 's Institutes. His Opus Magnum. Proceedings o f the Second South African Congress fo r Calvin Research 1984. The papers o f the third con­ gress were published under the title: Calvin-France-South Africa (Pont, 1990) This third South Afiican Congress held in 1988, the year o f the tercentenary ce­ lebrations o f the coming o f the Huguenots to South Africa in 1688, had as theme the relationship between Calvin and the Huguenots. P rof Neuser in his article __________________________________________________________________________ p. Coertzen III die Skri/lig 27(4) 1993:537-561 539 "Het werk van de Calvijncongressen en hun toekomstige taken en doelen" (Neuser, 1990:87-91) reports the 1980 Congress in Pretoria as the "African Congress for Calvin Research" while in the mentioned publication it is cited as "the First South African Congress for Calvin Research". Perhaps this disparity with regard to the scope o f the Calvin research in Africa is one o f the issues which have to be addressed in friture. It is a well known fact that some aspects o f Calvin research have been going on for instance in Egypt, with a publication o f the Institutes in Arabic. Certainly other reseachers in Africa have also engaged in research on Calvin and the Reformation and the question is whether they should not be identified and invited to participate in ftiture (South) African congresses on


An overview of general trends in Calvin research
Right from the beginning o f the twentieth century there has been some interest in Calvin; which did not necessarily mean that Calvin has always been correctly un derstood.Already in 1929 the Dutch theologian Klaas Schiider w rote about "een verblijdende belangstelling voor Calvyn, die allerminst vrucht is van een begrijpen van Calvijn ... waarin zo heel veel w at van Calvijn weinig o f niet w eten wil, zich toch op Calvijn beroept" ( c f Schiider, 1981:69).Interest in Calvin also does not necessarily mean that Calvin has always been appreciated.In 1986 William Klempa found enough evidence to include the following passage in his paper "The Image o f John Calvin in Recent Research", read at the Colloquium.
If anything, Calvin continues to suffer from bad press in both popular and more scholarly literature.He is still pictured as the Genevan dictator ruling a submissive population with a rod of iron, a kind of theological wet blanket and the apotheosis of a pious kill-joy (Klempa, 1987:343).
However, it must also be stated that during the past tw o decades there has de finitely been evidence o f a resurgence o f interest in Calvin, an interest w hich has not only been sustained but which has also gained momentum.The result o f this is inter alia that the image o f Calvin is coming into clearer focus and bears the characteristics o f one o f the truly great scholars o f the sixteenth century.In this respect Harris Harbison (1987:146) wrote the following: ... C alvin preserv ed clo ser touch w ith all the m ajo r tho u g th -fo rm s o f the past than e ith e r E rasm us o r L uther, each o f w hom w as m ore genu in ely re volutionary in his ow n w ay.H e did so because he w as m ore objective in his a pproach to scholastic, ju ristic , and hum anistic learning, because he could ab so rb th eir m ethods w ith o u t subscribing to their spirit and sw al low ing th eir content, and because he w as m ore c atholic in his intellectual tastes.
The interest in Calvin throughout the twentieth century is reflected inter alia in the fact that he is probably, apart from perhaps Luther, the theologian in the history o f the Christian Church about whom the most twentieth century biographies have been written.This trend started with the monumental seven volume work o f Emile Doumergue in 1899-1927 and has continued in various languages right up to our time with one o f the latest being John Calvin.A Sixteenth C entury P or trait, a biography written by William Bouwsma.Currently there are probably more than a dozen Lives o f Calvin in print.
M ost probably it w as the founding o f the European Congress on Calvin Research in 1974 in Amsterdam w hich led John Leith in 1977 to state that studies on Calvin had been gaining momentum again.Not that studies on Calvin had not been undertaken before that time, but a definite direction and aim for Calvin stu dies w as stimulated by this Congress.O f that Congress, attended by about fourty reseachers from Europe, A. W olters wrote: "To my mind, that year and that Congress mark the beginning o f a new era in Calvin studies ..." (W olters, 1987: 350).Its proceedings w as published in 1976 in Neukirchen in the volume Calvinus Theologus, a title with which M eianchton honoured Calvin.It w as also decided to invite researchers from ail over the world to attend the next Calvin R e search Congress.
The next Congress, which in fact was the first International Calvin Research C on gress, w as held four years later in 1978 -also in Amsterdam.From all over the worid, except Australia, reseachers convened in Amsterdam.From the beginning it w as decided to go about it in an elitair fashion and invite only one hundred experienced researchers and a few o f the younger generation researchers to par take in the congress.From the start it w as also decided to read only three papers per day with ample time for intensive discussion.It was also the aim o f the con gress that the chosen themes o f the Congresses should stimulate as much research as possible.Right from the outset it w as found that these International Calvin R e search Congresses did not only stimulate various regional Congresses but there w as also an urgency among researchers to get to know the writings o f Calvin, to absorb them selves in the thoughts o f Calvin -and to gain profit from their re search for godliness in general and the church o f Jesus Christ.The proceedings o f the 1978 Congress w as published by Kok in Kampen under the title Calvinus E cclesiae D o cto r (Neuser, 1982:87-88).
The second International Calvin Research Congress w as held in G eneve in 1982, The proceedings o f this Congress w as published in 1984 under the title Calvinus E cclesiae G enevensis Custos (Neuser, 1984).N ew to this Congress w as the inauguration o f smaller working groups -groups in which new research in a pre liminary stage could be presented and where them es for new research could also be introduced.The next international Congress w as held in Debrecen, Hungaiy from the 25th to the 28th o f August 1986, the theme being C alvinus servus C hristi.The proceedings o f this Congress w as published in 1988 by the Pressabteilung des Ráday-Kollegiums in Budapest ( c f Neuser, 1988).The most recent International Congress -the fifth Quadrennial Congress, w as hosted by the Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids Michigan and w as held from 20-23 August 1990.The theme o f this congress w as Calvinus Sacrae Scriplurae Pro fe sso r.The proceedings o f this Congress is yet to be published.(Pont, 1990) This third South Afiican Congress held in 1988, the year o f the tercentenary ce lebrations o f the coming o f the Huguenots to South Africa in 1688, had as theme the relationship betw een Calvin and the Huguenots.P ro f N euser in his article "Het w erk van de Calvijncongressen en hun toekomstige taken en doelen" (Neuser, 1990:87-91) reports the 1980 Congress in Pretoria as the "African Congress for Calvin Research" while in the mentioned publication it is cited as "the First South African Congress for Calvin Research".Perhaps this disparity with regard to the scope o f the Calvin research in Africa is one o f the issues which have to be addressed in friture.It is a well known fact that some aspects o f Calvin research have been going on for instance in Egypt, with a publication o f the Institutes in Arabic.Certainly other reseachers in Africa have also engaged in research on Calvin and the Reformation and the question is w hether they should not be identified and invited to participate in ftiture (South) African congresses on Calvin research.
In 1987 the East Asian Calvin Congress met for the first time in Kobe, Japan, w ith participants from Japan, South Korea and Taiwan as well as a few partici pants from the Phillipines.
In Northern Am erica more than one regional research congress have come into being.At Davidson in the United States the Colloquium on Calvin Studies meets every two years.Some o f the papers read at the Colloquia have been published i.a.: Calvin Studies 11 (Leith & Raynal, 1986).Calvin Studies III (Leith, 1986).Calvin Studies / F (Leith & Johnson, 1986).The Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan also hosts research congresses on a regular basis.The first w as held in 1976 with the papers presented under the title Renaissance, Reformation, Resurgence (1976)  * Secondly he pointed out that Calvin's theology o f a D uplex cognitio dei w as not a closed system -on the contrary, Calvin preferred to combine a number o f biblical and theological concepts in the socalled loci-method.With this approach he com bined the rhetorical method, the result being that Calvin w as not rigidly consistent in his use o f the loci approach -some issues and questions he left unresolved (Klempa, 1987:345-346).
* Thirdly, Klem pa rem arked that Calvin's inestimable contribution to Prote stantism w as not only that he gave evangelical theology a dogmatic form but that he also connected it with the mainstream o f the church's theological tra dition.This point o f view does not only account for the respectfiil attention o f an increasing number o f Rom an Catholic scholars to his thought, but also for the persuasive pow er it exhibits, as well as for its connection with the dominant theological tradition and its ecumenical significance.During the course o f the twentieth century Calvin's Institutes have been read by more and more scholars and many theological students have discovered the Institutes as a foundational source on which to base their initial theological training (Klempa, 1987:347).
The importance o f studying the Institutes o f course places a big responsibility on the shoulders o f the Calvin researchers o f our continent.

Calvin's life and work
Particular fields o f interest for scholars in this field o f Calvin research have been a sociological and political interest in Calvin, exegetical history, biographies, Cal vin and his environment and the role o f language and herm eneutics with regard to Calvin research.Together with this worV Kingdon has also published a series o f articles on social welfare in C alvin's G eneva as well as some articles on Post-Calvinian France (Kingdon, 1971(Kingdon, , 1988(a)(a)).Furthennore Kingdon has also presented papers at the International Calvin Research Congress on Calvinus Legislator: the 1543 'C on stitution ' o f the C ity o f G eneva (Kingdon, 1988).

Sociological and political interest
Apart from these articles by Kingdon other articles and books written from a sociological point o f view have also been published.As regards the position o f Calvin and politics, and specifically the relationship be tw een church and state, research in this regard has been a perennial topic o f dis cussion."Much o f the new er research in social history has impacted upon inter pretation o f the political situation in sixteenth century Geneva" (Gam ble, 1990:3).
It is interesting that in his article "Calvin and the Government o f Geneva" King don argues that the institution o f eldership in G eneva w as the result o f an anti clerical revolution wliich began in 1535 when the first Protestants revolted against their bishop.This revolution w as then carried further and com pleted by Calvin (Coertzen, 1991:331).That research in this regard is still continued is clear from the 1991 Bibliography o f Peter de Klerk and also from a publication like that o f Harow Hopfl, The Christian Piety o f John Calvin (Hopfl, 1982).
In South Africa L.F. Schulze w rote on Calvin a nd 'Social E th ic s '.H is View on Property.Interest an d U sury (Schulze, 1985).In 1990 Douglas S. Bax w rote on From C onstantine to Calvin: the D octrine o f the Just War.In 1990 L.F. Schul ze w rote a series o f articles "Hoe interpreteer ons Calvyn" (Schulze, 1990).In 1989 Johan Janse van Rensburg w rote an article in D ie K erkhode "Johannes Calvyn en menseregte".It is clear that South African researchers have kept them selves busy in this field o f interest.The question how ever remains to which ex tent it am ounted to original research from primary sources.

Exegetical history
Regarding this field o f Calvin research Gamble (1990) w rites in his paper: "There has been a renaissance o f interest in exegetical history, which is easily observable in the regular meetings o f scholars at the University o f G eneva to discuss six teenth-century exegesis."Some o f the most important scholars and publications in this field o f study are the following: T.H.L. Parker "Calvin the Biblical Exposi tor" (Parker, 1964:23-31); Calvin the Exegete: Change a n d D evelopm ent (Par ker, 1987).David Steinmetz: John Calvin on Isaiah 6: A Problem in the H isto ry o f Exegesis (Steinmetz, 1982).D avid Wright: C alvin's P enleteuchal C r;/;c/5/n (Wright, 1986).Susan Schreiner: "Through a M irror Dimly: C alvin's Ser-• mons on Job" (Schreiner, 1986:175-193 (Parker, 1971) and C om m entaries on the Epistle to the R om ans 1532-1542 (Parker, 1986b).Very significant work with regard to the w ay in which Calvin did exegesis w as done by A lexander Ganoczy in conjunction with Stephan Scheld and Klaus Muller, In the publication C alvin's H andschriftliche Annotationen zu C hrysostom os (Ganoczy et al., 1983) (1988).Gamble (1990:5) concludes that the result o f these studies have brought certain hallmarks to the fore.
First, in terms of the direction of Calvin Studies, more work has been put into Calvin's Old Testament commentaries recently than his new.Second, opinion is fairly solid that 'lucid brevity' or 'brevitas et facilitas' is the hall mark of Calvin's exegetical method.Thirdly the concept of accommodation has been demonstrated as integral to Calvin's method.Fourth, John Chrysostom has been proven to be a prime exegetical tutor to Calvin.
O ne question w hich remains in this regard is w hether there w as any continuity o f C alvin's exegetical method dating from his Seneca com mentary to his biblical commentaries.
In the publication John Calvin a n d the Church.A Prism o f Reform (George, 1990) one section is devoted com pletely to the interpretation o f Holy Scripture with articles by G eorge W. Stroup "Narrative in C alvin's Hermeneutic" (1990), Roland M. Frye, "Calvin's Theological U se o f Figurative Language" (1990) and Jam es Luther M ays, "Calvin's Commentary on the Psalms: The Preface as Intro duction " (1990).This book, the result o f colloquia on Calvin studies which con vened on the cam pus o f D avidson College, D avidson, North Carolina, presents itself as a part o f the contem porary Christian church's rediscovery o f Calvin as a formative influence on its own history and as a surprisingly relevant source in its efforts to live out "the faith once delivered unto the saints" during the last decade o f the tw entieth century" (George, 1990:11).

The only indication o f work in this field o f research which has been done in South
Africa during the last twenty five years w as an article by P.A .V erhoef "Luther and C alvin's Exegetical Library" (Verhoef, 1968:5-20).Cognisance should o f course also be taken o f the work o f A .M. Hugo: Calvijn en Seneca (Hugo, 1957).

Biographies
In his paper o f 1990 Gamble did not specifically deal with biographies, although he did for instance mention and discuss the w ork o f William Bouw sm a in other respects.Biographies are a very significant aspect o f Calvin research and some important work has been done in this field.N euser is o f opinion that a detailed study o f the life o f Calvin is o f great necessity in our time.In recent times a great many shorter descriptions o f the life o f Calvin have appeared in print but a really extensive biography is still amiss -"een grote biografie ontbreek" (Neuser, 1990: 90).The deeper researchers probe into the theology o f Calvin, the greater the need to understand his theology in view o f his life.The following issues should be considered: W hat w ere the factors in his life which led to certain results and viewpoints in his theology?In which w ay did his theological viewpoints in fluence the tim es in which he lived?
Throughout the twentieth century significant biographies have appeared.(Ganoczy, 1966).W ord has it that this w ork is to be translated in English.In his article "Recent Biographical Studies o f Calvin" (W olters, 1987:349-359) W olters w rites that the most significant biography to be produced in our time is that o f T.H.L. Parker: John Calvin: A Biography, (Par ker, 1975).This w ork supersedes his earlier brief introduction to Calvin, Portrait o f Calvin (Parker, 1954).With sympathy tow ards Parker, W olters however points out that the work has more the character o f a theological assessm ent o f Calvin than that o f a biographical description: . . . it does not illum ine the internal u nity o f C alvin's life in the c ontext o f his tim e.It is an insight g ained by a theologian after long reflection on the significance o f C alvin in the histo ry o f theological inquiry; it is not a pattern w hich can be show n to em erge out o f the givens o f C a lv in 's lifetim e (W olters, 1987:353).
One wonders to what extent Bouwsm a has tried to correct this approach by Par ker in his own work, John Calvin.A Sixteenth C entury Portrait ( 1988).Another recent biography on Calvin is not a biograpiiy in tiie real sense o f the w ord but an anthology o f selected docum ents bearing on Calvin's life and thought.The vo lume was edited by G.R. Potter and M. Greengrass under the title John Calvin (Potter & G reengrass, 1983).W olters evaluates it as "a small, handy source-book which can serve as an excellent textbook in college history courses" (W olters, 1987:354).The result o f original research is the substantial and detailed study o f Uwe Plath: Calvin und Basel in den Jahre 1552-1556 (Plath, 1974).The work is the result o f many years o f carefiil research in archives and brings to light many new connections and bits o f information which bear directly on Calvins biography (W olters, 1987:355).Two more biographies o f a more popular nature have also been published during the last decade or so.From the pen o f L. Janse we had H el Leven van Johannes Calvijn (Janse, 1980) and from the South African writer Jansie van der Walt Calvin a nd H is Times w as published (Van der W alt, 1988).
Although characterizing the last mentioned biography as a popular biography, which is very sympathetic to its subject, W olters is also o f opinion that it is based on solid research (W olters, 1987:351).Although it has, to my know ledge, not appeared in print I want to mention the paper which Heiko O bennan read at the 1990 Calvin Congress in Grand Rapids, Initia Calvini: The M atrix o f C alvin's Reformation (O bennan, 1990).Apparently the paper is part o f a thought pro voking biographical study undertaken by Oberman.Researchers in South Africa will certainly have to take note o f this.For O bennan the search for the historical Calvin is also very important and it is in this regard that he writes: That B ouw sm a's approach has not met with ju st approval is clear from reviews on the book w hich have been published.It how ever remains important for reseachers to take note o f this publication.
One aspect in the Calvin biographies which continues to be highlighted is Cal vin's conversion.The current discussion w as mainly sparked o ff by the abovementioned w ork o f G anoczy which in its turn built on the earlier book by P. Sprenger, D as R álsel urn die B ekehrung C alvins (Sprenger, 1960).This debate has been reflected in South Africa with the publication o f the article o f W. Neuser, "Calvin's Conversion to Teachebleness" (Neuser, 1985:14-27).

Calvin and his environment
M ajor research has also been taking place during the past years with regard to Calvin and his environment i.e. with regard to the relationship betw een Calvin and late medieval theology, the relationship between Calvin and the Renaissance and Humanism and thirdly, the relationship betw een Calvin and his contem poraries.
Various A field o f research which has received ample attention during the past years has been the relationship between Calvin, Renaissance and Humanism.At the 1986 Congress in D ebrecen C. Augustijn states in his paper "Calvin und der Humanismus" the following: "Eine Reihe van Calvinforschem hat in den letzten Jahrzehnten das verhaltnis Calvins zum Huinanismus seiner Zeit studiert" (Augustijn, 1988:127ff.).Since that date w ork by authors such as M cGrath, T.F.Torrance, and Bouwsm a, w hich have been mentioned above, as well as the w ork o f M ary Potter Engel, John C a lv in 's P erspectival A nthropology (Engel, 1988) and other w orks included in the D e Klerk bibliography, have confirmed that this line o f Calvin research is very much alive and well.An article by Bouw sm a (1990:28-41) "Calvin as Renaissance Artifact" in the above mentioned Jo/jaj Calvin a n d the Church.A Prism o f Reform can also be mentioned in this regard.To a large ex tent the issue o f the research is about w hat humanism is and w hether Calvin can be categorized as a humanist.To answ er these questions involves more than ju st an analysis o f Calvin's exegetical method -a study o f his anthropology and most probably o f his epistomology should also be undertaken.With regard to this field o f research Gamble (1990:14)  Two articles by B.J. van der W alt "The Intellectual D ecor o f the Refonnation with Special Reference to Calvin" (Van der W alt, 1991 a:2 0 1-208) and "Renais sance and Reformafion Contem poraries but not Allies" (Van der W alt, 1991b: 209-256) confirm participation from South Afi'ica in this debate.
As far as the relationship between Calvin and his contem poraries are concerned, there has also been continued interest in this topic during the last years.As far as his relationship with Luther and Erasmus is concerned it appears that there has been progress in the analysis o f both Luther's and Erasm us's influence.Scholars who have contributed in this regard are among others G anoczy and Scheld as well as Torrance and Engel.At the 1986 Congress Bishop Rogge read a paper on: "Themen Luthers im Denken Calvins" (Rogge, 1988:71).He concluded his paper with a citation from Peter Meinhold made in 1964: C alvin 'erganzt ... in ein er grossartigen G eschlossenheit ... das W erk L ut hers nach m eh r als ein e r Seite h in ', bringt 'es recht eig entlich erst zu ein e r letzten V ollen d u n g and A u sfo rm u n g ', die L uther 'a u f G rund g e sch ich tlich er B edingtheiten n icht m oglich gew esen ist'.
The strongest contemporary American proponent o f Erasm us's influence on C al vin is William Bouwsma, He argues that the differences betw een Calvin and Erasmus are more o f a temperamental than o f a substantial nature.
H e rem inds us for exam ple that the w ord Institutes as a book title had a l ready been used by E rasm us.In m any w ays G an o czy / Scheld agree w ith this analysis: seeing in E rasm us m any foundation s for later P rotestant e x e gesis (G am ble, 1990:15).
A view contrary to this is put forw ard by T.F.Torrance who maintains that Calvin had a different epistomoiogical foundation than Erasmus (in G amble, 1990:15-16).
W ith regard to other contem poraries much w ork has been done as can be seen in the D e Klerk bibliographies o f the past four years -one o f the latest publications is the very well docum ented w ork o f M arijn de Kroon M artin R ucer u n d J o hannes Calvin R eform atorische Perspektiven E inleitung und Texte (D e Kroon, 1991).
Although no South African contribution regarding C alvin's relationship with Erasmus and Luther could be found, a few articles appeared on C alvin's rela tionship with other contemporaries.I.L. de Villiers w rote on "Johannes Calvyn en die Franse lelie" (De Villiers, 1987:15)

Calvin, language and hermeneutics
Regarding language and herm eneutics Gamble (1990:17) states: Some o f the greatest advances have been made and where much more research is needed ... Research investigating Calvin and his environment has produced a re-examination of the philosophical/theological underpin nings of his thought and this re-examination has produced some new in sights into the foundations of Calvin's language and epistomology.
R esearchers on these issues include i.a.Bouwsma, Torrance and Selinger.At the moment Gilbert Vincent is the expert researcher in analizing C alvin's views on language and its impact on theology -c f his book Exigence ethique el interpre tation dans I'oeuvre de Calvin (Vincent, 1984) and his more recent article "La Rationalité herm énetique du discours théologique de Calvin" (Vincent, 1987:133-154).In this field reference can also be made to the interesting and well docu m ented w ork o f Paul C. Bottger C alvins Institutio als Erbauungshuch.Versuch einer literarischen A nalyse (Bottger, 1990).
R esearchers such as G anoczy/Scheld, Parker and Torrance are in harmony that Calvin had a different exegetical method as well as a different hermeneutic met hod as that o f his contemporaries.The work which these researchers have done in this regard have paved the w ay for further research that has to be done in this respect.In South Africa 1 could establish one article which relates to the topic o f C alvin's view on language and hermeneutics -that o f H.J. Schutte, H.W .Simp son and D. Breed "Calvyn se logika" (Schutte et at., 1990).

Calvins theology
Much has been pubhshed on the theology o f Calvin and related topics during the past few years.Anyone wanting to determine the extent o f com pleted research topics available should consult the annual De Klerk bibliography.As far as the general trend o f research is concerned, Gamble is o f opinion that it largely rotates around the question o f the structure o f Calvin's theology and in this respect he states that "Calvin scholarship has shown increasing unanimity that the D uplex Cognitio D ei must be reckoned with as either a controlling principle o f his theo logy or the controlling principle" (Gamble, 1990:21).According to G am ble much o f this unanimity in current scholarship on this issue stem s from scholarly agree ment on the foundations o f Calvins epistomology itself Bouwsma made a considerable contribution to this last mentioned debate with his article "Calvin and the Renaissance Crisis o f Knowing" (Bouwsma, 1982:190-211).In 1987 Charles Partee on the other hand once again posed the question on "Calvin's Central Dogma again" (Partee, 1987:191-199).He argues in favour o f a theologic rather than a philosophic approach to the theology o f Calvin and is o f opinion that such an approach is to be found in the doctrine o f the union with Christ.In his article in the D owey Festschrift Brian Arm strong also made a con tribution to this debate -Armstrong stresses that the historical context should be brought more to the fore in the endeavour to find an answ er to the question o f whether or not the D uplex Cognitio D ei is a or the fundamental principle o f Cal vin's thought.
There is no indication that the above-mentioned debate figures in any way in South African theology.Be it so or not, to my mind it remains important for re searchers in this country to take note o f the issues which are on the agenda o f re searchers elsewhere.
A part from these w orks the following South African contributions on the theology o f Calvin have been made.P H. Pick: C alvyn en Westphal: die ontw ikkeling van 'n N agm aalsleer (Pick, 1989); A.D. Pont: D ie am p as diensw erk in die kerk (Pont, 1989b;127-136  N euser also mentions the need for a Calvin-BegrifFslexikon (Neuser, 1990: 89-92).
Gamble concluded his paper in a last paragraph by writing "Calvin research con tinues to explode ... Nevertheless, further work needs to be done" (Gamble, 1990: 25).

Research aids
In conclusion 1 want to refer to the research aids for Calvin research which N euser mentions in his paper on the future tasks o f Calvin congresses.
Firstly he mentions the Annual Calvin Bibliography published since 1972 by Peter de Klerk.It is really to be hoped that this work will eventually be published in one volume.This w ork published annually in the Calvin Theological Journal is readily available in South Africa.
Secondly N euser mentions the w ordconcordance on the Institutes compiled by F.L. Battles.Unfortunately this w ork is only available on M icrofiche and as far as I could establish it is not available in South African libraries.I understand a private copy is available in Potchefstroom.A new concordance, also on fiches and com piled by R.F.W evers has also recently becom e available.In some way or other attem pts should be made to make these w orks available to researchers in South Africa.
Thirdly N euser also mentions the Concordance to the Latin Bible o f John Calvin (6 vol.) also com piled by W evers (Neuser, 1990:91-92).

Calvin research in South Africa
1 would like to make a few suggestions concerning future Calvin research and research congresses in South Africa: * 1 think it is necessary that each Calvin congress should appoint a steering com mittee taking responsibility togetlicr with a specific institution for tiie or ganizing o f research congresses.
The steering com mittee can for instance submit proposals to the Congress with regard to a theme and papers for a next congress.In this w ay general developm ents in Calvin research will be taken into account and these deve lopments can be accom m odated within our own research community.To my mind this procedure will structure our Calvin research program -som e thing which 1 think we need.Nobody encourages overorganization, but we need a more fixed structure if w e want to develop a Calvin research pro gram.
Secondly 1 would like to suggest that thought be given to the possibility to let participants submit papers which they want to read at our congresses.
The venue o f a congress can be published worldwide.M aybe participants can then submit papers which the steering com mittee can consider, given the development o f our research program.Perhaps such a method will open up our congress for researchers from other fields o f theology and learning to participate.The steering com mittee can at the same time be given the free dom to invite certain scholars o f standing which they deem necessary.
Thirdly 1 would like to suggest that some fonn o f report on the position o f Calvin research, both national and international, should be read at every South African research congress.This procedure will m ost probably keep us informed about necessities that have to be addressed.

W
hile the so-called International Congress on Calvin Research continued to meet every four years, since 1978 various regional or territorial congresses and colloquia on Calvin research have come into existence.In 1980 the Calvinkongress M ittelosteuropa met for the first time in Debrecen (Hungary), in 1984 in the then East Berlin and in 1988 in Vienna.The proceedings o f the 1984 meeting was published under the title Im m igration und Em igration -die calvinisiische Einw anderung und A usw anderung in M itteleuropa.B eitrage des II.K ongresses fiir C alvinforschung in M ittel-und O steuropa 1984 (edited by J. Langhoff and J. Rogge).In the same year, 1980, the first meeting o f the African Congress for Calvin Research met in Pretoria; this w as followed by a meeting in Potchefstroom (1984) and a meeting in Stellenbosch (1988).The papers o f the 1980 meeting were pub lished in 1982 under the title C alvinus R eform ator H is Contribution to Theolo gy, Church a nd Society, while the papers o f the second congress w ere published as John C alvin's Institutes.H is O pus M agnum.P roceedings o f the Second South A frican Congress fo r Calvin Research 1984.The papers o f the third con gress w ere published under the title: Calvin-France-South A frica

the
French Humanist"the "Liberal Interpretation" 2 and the N ationahst and D ia lectical Interpretation^.Due to the fact that there is a trend among some South African researchers to identify Calvin and Calvinism simplistically with the ideology o f apartheid, it is essential for Calvin researchers in this country not only to have know ledge o f the various schools o f interpretation but also by means o f their research and publica tions to prove the falseness o f this theses and to put forward the real Calvin.Therefore, in conclusion o f this part o f the article, which refers to general deve lopments in Calvin research I would like to point to three remarks which J. Klempa made in the introduction to the Colloquium: "The Image o f John Calvin in R e cent Research."I do this because these remarks are, to my mind, also very rele vant for Calvin research in Southern Afinca, and for that m atter for Calvin re search in A inca. * Firstly, he said: W e w ill not understand C alvin aright i f at the outset w e do n o t grasp som ething o f his deep personal aw aren ess o f the d irecting and sustaining presence o f the living G od. ... T hose w ho fo llo w ed in his foo tstep s shared his attitude and th u s w ere alw ays a m ajor force to c ontend w ith.C alvin sought to know G od and to m ake G od know n (K lem pa, 1987:344-345).
Some observations on Calvin research with special reference to South A frica * Sec for example the following works: John Calvin.A Study in French Humanism (Q Breen), The Social Humanism o f John Calvin (A Bieicr) and to a certain extent -Calvin: The Origins and Development o f his Religious Thought (F, Wcndcl) 2 Sec for example Alexander Schweizer, F C. Bauer and Otto Ritschl as well as Max Weber, Protestant Ethic and the Spirit o f Capitalism and E. Trocltsch, Social Teaching o f the Christian Churches (2 vols) -the last two works representing the so called 'sociological' view within the Liberal Interpretation.^ In the last instance Van der Goot distinguishes what he calls 'the Nationalist and Dialectical Interpretation' as put forward by Hennan Bauke in his book Die Prohleme der Theologie Calvin's (1922).
There has lately been an upsurge o f sociological interest in Calvin and Calvin stu dies.This interest has mainly been the result o f the work o f Robert M. Kingdon.Since 1962 he has been working on tlie R egisters o f the C om pany o f Pastors.

C
o n fro n ted w ith various claim s o f C alvin the P latonist, the Stoic, the Scotist, o r th e nom inalist ... it is n o t too m uch to conclude th a t C alvin is cau g h t in a tru e captivitatis system atica.W h at m akes W illiam J. B ouw sm a 's J o h n C alvin.A S ixte en th C e n tu ry P o rtra it the m ost significant b io g ra p h y since F rancois W endel is his q u est for the histo rical C alvin, a m an n o t o f o n e system but a real hum an bein g e x p o se d to a com p lex bun d le o f co n tra d ic to ry im pulses(O berm an, 1990; 13).
concludes: W e are left, after eight y ears o f furth er research and a n u m b er o f articles, w ith n o consensus.N evertheless, a guide to fu rth er research in C alvin's re lationship to hum anism should follow certain rules; c arefu lly d efining term s; using the w ord 'hu m an ism ' self-consciously ra th e r than haph azard ly ; analyzing hum anism not e x clusively from the vantage p o in t o f literary m ethodology but im plem enting cu rren t research and insights into C alvin's view o f both histo ry and hum ankind.
Some observations on Calvin research with special reference to South A frica ♦ ♦ Historical and exegetical research o f the life and writings o f Calvin is an other field o f research which can be addressed by South African scholars.
a very good relationship with the praesidium o f the international congress.This relationship should be kept up and fostered -w e definitely need the expertise o f the praesidium and fellow researchers for our own re search both in South A fnca and abroad.*Contactwith the rest o f Africa with regard to Calvin research must be sought and expanded.*Studentsmust be inspired to engage in Calvin research.

Calvin Symposium. The proceedings w as published in 1987 under the title: In H onor o f John Calvin 1509-64. Papers fro m the 1986 International Calvin Sym posium M cG ill University. To my mind it is quite relevant for reseachers in South Africa to take note
seen to be the foci o f his thought (o f B.B. W arfield, Calvin and Calvinism and Calvin a nd the Reformation).
*The confessional interpretation, also called the Calvinist, Protestant Scho lastic interpretation by Henry van der Goot (1975).W ithin this school o f interpretation Calvin is viewed through the eyes o f the W estm inster C onfes sion and the H eidelberg Confession with the result that Scripture and predes ♦ tination are Apart from the bibliographies as reported in the various issues o f the annual Calvin Bibliography by Peter de Klerk tw o significant bibliographies should especially be mentioned.One o f the bibliographies is written by the D utch scho lar W. de G re ef Johannes Calvijn zijn w erk en geschriften (1989).This work has been called an indispensable introduction for anyone w ho w ants to start with a study o f Calvin.D etailed biographical information is given as w ell as elaborate registers and indications o f sources which can help researchers further on the way.The other important publication is the 1991 edition o f the first volume o f A good indication o f the most recent trends in Calvin research is the Calvin Bibliography, com piled by Peter de Klerk and published annually in the Calvin Theological Journal.In the 1991 issue De Klerk distinguishes seven main fields o f interest in Calvin, some o f them with extensive sub-divisions.Bibliographies.C alvin's w orks (w orks, selected w orks and selection o f works).C alvin's life and w ork (biographies, com mentaries on his writings, relation w ith Reform ers, relation with others, his Humanism, his period in Switzer land and France).*Calvinstheology(Calvin's theology in general, the doctrine o f God, the doc trine o f man, the doctrine o f Christ and salvation [Christology, grace, faith.Holy Spirit, justification, sanctification, Law -Gospel, predestination], the doctrine o f church and sacrament [ecclesiology, apostolate, sacraments, baptism.L ord's Supper, eschatology]).*Calvin'saesthetic, social-ethical and political views.*tinctionof w hich he said in his paper: "It is in this ... area o f recent Calvin re search w here, in my opinion, some o f the greatest advances have been made and w here much more research is needed"(Gamble, 1990:17).__________________________________________________________________________ p. Coertzen In die Skrijlig 27(4) 1993:537-561 ^ 2.1 Bibliographies ... it is a bibliography, a technical instrum ent.B ut it is also a collectio n o f m onographs.A nd at the sam e tim e it is a kind o f b iography.T he histo ry o f the com m on cause and c o-operation betw een the first author, his secretaries and his (often o ver-active) pub lish ers is recorded here.It is the h isto ry o f the m an and his books, the instrum ent and effort w hich p ropelled the great sixteenth century R eform ation o f church and society.In this field o f research A Bibliography o f Calviniana 1959-1974 appeared in South Africa in 1975 (see Kempff, 1975).This bibliography w as a publication o f the then still functioning Institute for the Advancement o f Calvinism.This biblio graphy which started where Niesel left off, w as regarded as the first contribution o f the I A.C. tow ards international Calvin research.It remains a pity that this in stitute, which had been doing excellent work with this bibliography and which re garded the study o f the original sources as o f utmost importance, has had to scale down its work.Some kind o f infrastructure for the co-ordination o f Calvin and Reformation research needs to be established once again in South Afiica.
(Innes, 1983)n in C alvin's G eneva,(Innes, 1983)and John C al vin on the D iaconate a nd Liturgical A lm sgiving(M cK ee, 1984).It is clear that much o f this research has been done in an attem pt to study Calvin against the background o f his contemporary environment.This kind o f research has to be done in order to outline the real Calvin.On the other hand it should always be re m embered that in the end history is more than just the putting together o f con tem porary causes and results.
.) Irena Backus: Aristotelianism in Some o f C alvin's a nd B eza 's E xpository a nd Exegetical W ritings on the D octrine o f the Trinity with Particular Reference to the Terms "ousia" a n d "hypostasis"(Backus, 1987).
Particularly noteworthy in this regard are the books o f T.H.L. Parker: C alvin's O ld Testament C om m entaries (Parker, 1986a); C alvin's N ew Testament C om m entaries first time in an English translation in 1963.In 1965 it w as issued for the first time in the Fontana Library with an eigth impression in June 1978 and an en larged French edition in 1983).This biography is still considered by many to be one o f the best on John Calvin.An important biography on Calvin which covers the period 1523-1539 is A lexander G anoczy's L e J e u n e Calvin.G enese el evolu tion de sa vocation réform atrice O rganizer o f R eform ed Protestantism (1906), W .F. Dankbaar: Calvijn, zijn weg en w erk (1957), Jean Cardier: Calvin I'hom m e que D ieu a dom pté (1958) Francois W endel: Calvin, the O rigins an d D evelopm ent o f H is Religious Thought, (published in French in 1950 by Presses Universitaires de France, and for the In this endeavour they have m ade use o f earlier w ork done by scholars such as Karl Reuter in D as G rundverstandnis d er Theologie Calvins. 1 could find no indication that any South Afincan researcher has done any w ork in this field o f research during the past few years. scholars, like Alister E. M cGrath, John Calvin a n d iM te M edieval Thought (1986) and Late M edieval Theology a n d the O rigins o f the Reform ed Church (1987), Thomas F. Torrance, The H erm eneutics o f John Calvin (1988), Suzanne Selinger and David Steinmetz, Calvin a n d the A bsolute Power o f G od (1988), have been engaged in studying the issue o f C alvin's relationship to late medieval theology.
); A.L. Rheeder: D ie siel en liggaam by Calvyn en Plato: 'n vergelykende studie (Rheeder, 1989); C.S. Shim: A n Evaluation o f C alvin's South African scholars have made a contribution with regard to research concer ning current issues in Calvin research, in other areas, how ever, it must be stated that no research has come forth from South African scholars.It is important fr>r South African researchers to stay abreast with Calvin research which is being done in other parts o f the world and which is being addressed at international congresses.At the same time they will have to state the relevance o f current Calvin research for South Africa today.Taking cognisance o f the w ork o f other researchers can benefit them.In this regard it can only be usefiil to take note o f research needs which have already been identified.Much has been done with regard to the theology o f Calvin, but much more needs to be done.Fields in which further research is necessary include inter alia the doctrine o f justification and sanctification, Calvin's ecclesiology and his teachings on the offices in the church and also his exegesis.There is also a need for a new textcritical edition o f the w orks o f Calvin.Work in this regard is being done as it remains absolutely foundational for Calvin research.
The following South African theologians also made contributions on the theology o f Calvin in the F estschrift fiir Wilhelm N euser which w as published in 1991: B.J. van der Walt: "The Idea o f Reform"; J.J. Steenkamp: "A Review o f the C oncept o f Progress in Calvin's Institutes"; P C. Potgieter: "The Providence o f G od in C alvin's Correspondence"; A.D. Pont: "Confession o f Faith in Calvin's G eneva"; P. Coertzen: "Presbyterial Church Government.lus Divnnum, lus Ecclesiasticum or lus Humanum?" and L.F. Schulze: "Totius as Psalmberymer."M uch more could be said about Calvin research at the moment.There is for instance the issue o f Calvin's own w orks and also the influence o f Calvin and Calvinism.With regard to Calvin's own w orks substantial w ork has been done in South Africa by P ro f Simpson with the Afrikaans translation o f the Institutes.The above-m entioned researchers w anted to indicate some o f the issues in Calvin research which have been addressed in our day as well as factors which have to be kept in mind when one attem pts Calvin research.In some fields o f research * * There is a definite need for a detailed analysis o f the Insiiiutes o f Calvin, not of*knov/r Kut jijmU'cic' n.f fiií» Institutes Iin portant thouglits and them es in this regard have been neglected up to now.* There is a need for a detailed biography on the life o f Calvin.*