Calvin's Preaching [Paperback]

T. H. L. Parker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1992

This rare and important study of John Calvin's sermons gives a complete review of Calvin's preaching activity, purpose, method, and style. Included are the theological considerations that moved Calvin to preach the way he did; his view of the preacher's office, his duty, and the congregation's active participation; a historical account and the preservation of his preaching; Calvin's expository method and the way he applied scripture to the needs of the congregation; and the form of the sermons and the "familiar" style that was employed.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

T. H. L. Parker was a widely respected authority on Calvin's life and thought. He was Reader in Theology at the University of Durham in England.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press (September 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0664253091
• ISBN-13: 978-0664253097
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,429,818 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is an invaluable treatment of Calvin's preaching., July 29, 1998

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[e-mail] (Pearisburg, Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Calvin's Preaching (Paperback)

T.H.L. Parker has produced an outstanding contribution to the realm of Calvin scholarship as well as homiletics with his CALVIN'S PREACHING. The work explores multiple aspects of Calvin's theology and practice of preaching. The importance of preaching for the ministry and theology of Calvin is clear in this work, a long neglected yet vital aspect of Calvin's career as a Reformer and theologian.

Of particular intrigue to modern theologians and preachers is Calvin's view of preaching. The preacher is the mouthpiece of God, according to Calvin. This is a stunning claim for a contemporary Church where preaching is quickly finding itself replaced by cultural forms adopted from art, entertainment, and commerce. For Calvin, preaching is irreplaceable in the life and health of Christians and the Church.

Of particular insight for those interested in modern conflicts over the nature and authority of Scripture is the seamless relationship between the Word of God as Holy Sc! ripture and the Word of God as Preaching. Calvin, like Luther before him, held a sacramental view of preaching as the Word of God that has been lost in consequential Protestantism, a factor Parker attributes to Zwingli and other Protestants afterward who separated The Bible and Preaching as the Word of God, thus diminishing the latter and so doing injustice to the former. Likewise, both Calvin and Luther envisioned preaching as a verbal and audible event rather than a written manuscript. Consequently, neither wrote their sermons out before preaching them, unthinkable for many modern homileticians.

While Parker's description of the manuscripts of Calvin's sermon transcripts is somewhat tedious, his excellent erudition and the power of the subject matter itself make this work invaluable for the library of any preacher and theologian who is interested is remaining faithful to the Reformation heritage today.

CALVIN'S PREACHING forces the contemporary preacher to give pause ! and reconsider the reason and role for preaching today. Wer! e Calvin's view of preaching recovered in the Church today, the possibility of transformation and renewal for preaching, the Church, and even society are unfathomable.