"...contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints."- Jude 1:3
Showing posts with label James White. Show all posts
Showing posts with label James White. Show all posts

Sunday, May 18, 2025

Debate Review: James White Vs. Corey Mahler Debate Black Sanctification

 

The following is my debate review of the Black Sanctification debate between James White and Corey Mahler. 

James White Vs. Corey Mahler Debate Black Sanctification
https://youtu.be/taMoR7aAz2Q


 MY REVIEW:

 I'm a Calvinist and a continuationist/Charismatic Filipino and these are my hurried comments and observations about the debate.

- Mahler thinks and theologizes like a deist and Pelagian, rather than a Christian supernaturalist. It's probably due in large part to his cessationism. He's correct that our natural bodies and genetics can play a role in our progress of sanctification, but sanctification is first and foremost a Supernatural and MIRACULOUS work of the Holy Spirit. So, anything is possible. From the human perspective, some individuals might have a more difficult time being sanctified; but from the Divine perspective and omnipotent power, there are no hinderances. As I'll demonstrate later below. The difficulties might even apply to groups and ethnicities, like redheads. As they say, "Gingers don't have souls." [Just kidding]. Whatever the case about ethnicities, the Holy Spirit can overcome any alleged physical, or genetic, or cultural hindrances, weaknesses and disadvantages. Deists have a conception of God that's distant and one who infrequently [if ever] interacts with the world in a direct manner. Historic Pelagians believed that salvation could be attained by human effort apart from God's grace. In their view, grace might help, but it's technically not necessary under Pelagianism. Mahler, so to speak, theologizes like a Pelagian in the senes that he thinks sanctification [which is an aspect of salvation] is anthropocentric, rather than theocentric [or pneumatocentric]. Mahler tacitly denies the omnipotent power of God. It's true that there are some things which God cannot do. For example, Scripture teaches God cannot lie, die or deny Himself [Heb. 6:18; 1 Tim. 1:17; 2 Tim. 2:13]. God cannot perform contradictions [a variant of denying Himself] like creating a married bachelor, or a round square, or a rock too heavy He Himself can't lift. But there's nothing about what Mahler says about sanctification that's impossible for God to change.

- At 1:29:54 White asks a question that Mahler answers at 1:30:18 by saying "I have never once claimed that God couldn't give exceptional spiritual gifts to certain men and that is not inherently reliant on IQ. But some things are...."

If I understood Mahler correctly, he was admitting that God can work in an individual to give him or her exceptional and extra-ordinary spiritual gifts. Given Mahler's statement, why wouldn't God be able to give a supernatural increase of intelligence? Or maybe Mahler grants that possible, but unusual. If so, this is probably why Mahler liked to appeal to the usual and normal way things happen, "all things being equal." That's probably why he wanted the debate to exclude outliers. But that's cheating, and having too low expectations and goals for the church. We ought to strive for constant revival. It's true that revivals are typically an UNusual divinely sovereign outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Admittedly, we can't dictate or control sovereign moves of the Holy Spirit to revive and sanctify Christians, but we are commanded to essentially be in constant revival. To ever grow and strive for standard of perfection. Jesus said, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." [Matt. 5:48]. To be like Jesus, conformed to His image. So, someone might respond by saying Mahler doesn't deny the omnipotence of God, he's merely saying that God normally doesn't perform such miracles. But then Mahler is tacitly denying the omnibenevolence and grace of God toward His people. That's arguably worse. To say God is able but not willing to be super abundantly gracious toward His people, is worse than saying God is not able, but willing to be gracious to His people. A parent would rather hear from a child, "I know you want to, but can't." Rather than, "I know you can, but won't."

- Mahler is right about a hierarchy of loves and commitments. What theologians call the Ordo Amoris, and which Vice President Vance mentioned in a recent tweet. But we are commanded in Scripture to give priority to the family of Christians believers over our physical families, tribes and clans. This is why Jesus said:

Matt. 10:
34    "Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35    For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
36    And a person's enemies will be those of his own household.
37    Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38    And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.
39    Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Faith in Jesus can sever natural and temporal ties to one's family.  Jesus also said:

Mark 10:
28    Peter began to say to him, "See, we have left everything and followed you."
29    Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel,
30    who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.

The "brothers and sisters and mothers and children" in verse 30 are likely a reference to fellow believers who replace the natural physical "brothers or sisters or mother or father or children" that the Christian was forced to leave to follow Christ. 

Paul said in Gal. 6:10 "So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith."

- Mahler says "Man cannot fly." As a Calvinist and continuationist, I disagree. Peter could walk on water by faith in Christ. Jesus said a man of faith can command a mountain to move from here to there [Matt. 17:20]. Therefore, if God wills it and empowers a Christian to do so, a CHRISTIAN CAN FLY. In God's usual providence so far in Redemptive History, it's the usual case that Christians don't move mountains by speech, et cetera. But Christians ought to strive to do Jesus' works and greater. As I said, we shouldn't underestimate the power of sanctification or have low expectations.

12    "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me WILL ALSO DO THE WORKS THAT I DO; AND GREATER WORKS THAN THESE WILL HE DO, because I am going to the Father.
13    Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14    If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

I'm a convinced Protestant and don't know enough about the case of the Franciscan friar Joseph of Cupertino, but allegedly he could fly or levitate. My immediate instinct is to say that if he did fly it was likely due to demonic influence. But I'm not one of those Protestants who thinks all Catholics are certainly unsaved. Some Catholics are likely saved in my opinion. In which case, it's not outside the realm of possibility that Joseph of Cupertino did fly by the power of the Holy Spirit and/or assistance of angels.

- Mahler said, "God cannot make a man pregnant." No, God can, but He wouldn't because God wouldn't violate His design of the reality and fixity of genders. God can transmute water into wine. God can heal the abnormality of an intersex person so that the person is one sex or the other. But sanctification is not essentially rooted in one's nature. It's rooted in the power of  the Holy Spirit to make one like Jesus.

- Mahler said, "Christians can't regrow limbs". Yes they can, even if it's not common. What's usual is not necessarily what's normal or expected by God from us. God commands and expects us to do the miraculous works of Jesus and greater works [John 14:12-14], though most of us don't. To adapt and re-purpose a saying from David Hume, "You can't get a divine OUGHT from a providential IS [or was]." Things can change in the future. Just as God providentially worked to clarify the doctrine of justification during the 16th century Reformation after years of theological darkness during the late Middle Ages, for all we know, in the 22nd century most Christians will be able to regrow limbs through faith in Christ. The church is maturing down through Redemptive History according to Paul.

Eph. 4
11    And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,
12    to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,
13    until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,
14    so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.
15    Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,
16    from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Eph. 5
25    Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,
26    that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
27    so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.


- At 2:05:23 Mahler said, "God has set the rules, God plays by the rules. We have only to recognize and accept the rules."

God's rules include:
Mark 9:23 " 'If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes."

Eph. 3:20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,

God asks, in Jer. 32:27, "Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard/difficult/wonderful for Me?"

- Mahler quotes Luke 10 where it says, "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes." Mahler assumes it was genes, rather than culture that would have made that the case. And he assumes cultures flows directly from genes. But he's probably committing the error of single factor analysis. The influences that develop cultures are likely multi-faceted. And include things like invasions, malnourishment, weather, soil, fauna, flora, and the landscape [e.g. mountain ranges, flat lands, islands, volcanic activity, earthquakes, etc.]. Landscapes can hinder communication and therefore the dissemination and progress of ideas and technologies. Eskimos probably had difficulty finding materials to write with and on besides bones and skins. Examples could be multiplied.

- Mahler speaks as if ethnicities are fixed or ought to be fixed. If the latter, then the New Testament would universally prohibit miscegenation and interracial marriages. On the contrary the New Testament allows for miscegenation (e.g. Timothy's father was Gentile and mother Jewish). The former contradicts history. Ethnicities aren't fixed, but are changing and developing all the time. The "races" are constantly interbreeding. For example, many Latinos and Hispanics are genetically a mixture of the natives of the Americas and the Spanish. That "race" didn't exist prior to the arrival of the Spanish. Even then, when Europeans after Columbus arrived into the New World, they found some natives with blue eyes and other European-like features. That's because Europeans were arriving on the Americas long before Columbus, but it just wasn't recorded in history. See for example, the books of Barry Fell. Where Europe and Asia meet there are peoples who have features that are both European and Asiatic. For example, European fighters can look positively Asian. Like Russian boxer Ruslan Provodnikov [pictured below]:





Or take a look at Uzbekistani MMA fighter Shavkat Rakhmonov. He's ethnically Kazakh. Kazakhstan, where Rakhmonov grew up, is in Central Asia, a region that lies between Eastern Europe and East Asia. [pictured below]:






There was a time when the peoples of the British Isles were more diverse such that some were Angles, Saxons, Picts, Jutes, Celts etc. But they so interbred that now the major divisions are English, Scottish and Irish [and other smaller ones like Welsh, etc.].


- By God's ORDINARY providence the genetics of people groups could improve or worsen by His choice of which couples mate and which sperms and eggs join in fertilization. God could do this as a part of a judgment or blessing of a society for faithfulness or unfaithfulness. God could cause a nuclear accident so that a people group's DNA degrades, or introduce through cosmic radiation a mutation that causes a people group to gradually improve. A virus or a vaccine could dramatically degrade the genome of an ethnicity. And we haven't even talked about God's EXTRA-ORDINARY supernatural providence. Therefore, races and ethnicities can change in the "quality" of their genetic make-up. Making many of Mahler's points and concerns moot.

- Mahler appears to have great pride in his Germanic heritage. But it was the Germanic peoples who, to a large extent, caused the fall of the Roman Empire because of their attacks grounded in their warrior culture. Including the Visigoths, Vandals, Ostrogoths. Some of them were pagans, some Arians and others Semi-Arians. The pre-Christian Germanic peoples had a strong warrior ethos, which often glorified violence and warfare. Raiding and pillaging were common practices. They were polytheists, rather than monotheists or Animists [etc.]. They made sacrifices to their gods, which could involve animal or even [if I'm not mistaken] human sacrifices. Blood feuds and revenge were common and lead to ongoing cycles of violence and conflict. In many Germanic societies, even after the inauguration of the Christian Era, there was a lack of written set of codified laws [unlike the Babylonians with their Code of Hammurabi in the 18th century BC]. It was Christianity that changed all this. It took about 2000 years after the Babylonians had the written Code of Hammurabi for all the Germanic peoples to have a written code.

- Mahler repeatedly said that blacks couldn't produce a theological giant like Augustine. Augustine's ethnicity is uncertain. He was born in an area where the population would have likely had some black ancestors. He is often described as North African with a mix of Berber [mother] and Roman [father] descent.

The great theologian Athanasius was called by some the "black swan." It's not certain why he was called that. One speculation is that he might have been ethnically black [if not in whole then in part]. If I recall, he was born in Alexandria, Egypt, which is located in the northeastern part of the African continent. So he may have had some African, Greek and Roman descent.

- While one's intelligence affects one's progress in sanctification, who is to say that the Holy Spirit can't give quantum leaps in intelligence? Also, one has to ask, who is more sanctified, the person of very high intelligence who knows a lot of the Bible and theology but disobeys God, or the person of lower intelligence who believes and obeys what God has revealed? We mustn't limit God's power. For all we know, Samson might have been a scrawny 5 foot man whom God specifically chose to highlight that his power was not of human, but of divine origin. For all we know Solomon was a person of low intelligence before God answered his request for wisdom. He may have gone from a low IQ to a high IQ of 150 or 250 [or higher]. We mustn't limit the promise of James 1:5 to exclude an increase in intelligence.

James 1:5-8 ESV

[5] If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. [6] But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. [7] For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; [8] he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

Ironically, Mahler's theology and practice is thoroughly infused with the doubt described in this passage. And doubt is one of the symptoms of low sanctification. Where is Mahler's white superiority now?


Regardless of what you think of Sid Roth's show and theology, this testimony of Ricky Roberts seems believable to me. And that regardless of his theology and other alleged supernatural experiences. Roberts claims he was mentally retarded and that God healed him to such an extent that he was able to earn multiple doctorates. There are a number of his testimonies on YouTube, some are better than others. Hopefully the ones linked below aren't taken down because one of them isn't officially hosted on one of Roth's channels. If God can do what He apparently did for Ricky Roberts, why not others? And why not more frequently as Redemptive History progresses? Especially if [as I suspect] Postmillennialism is true.


He Had An IQ of 78. Now He Holds 7 Doctorate Degrees!
https://youtu.be/0GgAieY098I


Here's a different version


Ricky Roberts - Sid Roth - It s Supernatural

https://youtu.be/8hyeaysI9A8



I ask again, if the claims of Roberts about his supernatural increase of intelligence are true, then why assume God can't do it again for any other Christian or even ethnicities? To say God can't, or won't, or it's unlikely is pure unbelief. That's how atheists and deists think. We need to raise our expections to God's authorized level whereby all things are possible and nothing is impossible with God. Or with the Christian who has [God given] faith.

Matthew 19:26 But Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Mark 14:36 And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will."

Luke 1:37    For nothing will be impossible with God."

Luke 18:27 But he said, "What is impossible with men is possible with God."

Mark 10:27 Jesus looked at them and said, "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God."

Mark 9:23 And Jesus said to him, "'If you can'! All things are possible for one who believes."

Matt. 17:20    He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."


 

Monday, December 6, 2021

Guillaume Bignon Comments on the Highly Anticipated Dialogue/Debate Between William Lane Craig and James White

 

The following video is (Calvinist) Guillaume Bignon's commentary on the recent dialogue/debate between (Molinist) William Lane Craig and (Calvinist) James White. What I really like about Bignon is that he's not only well versed in the debate between Calvinists and non-Calvinists, but he can express and defend the Calvinistic view very well and articulately. 


William Lane Craig vs. James R. White: Calvinist Philosopher Weighs In
https://youtu.be/EGUi5ZZkAzs


In the video (at 56:45) Guillaume makes reference to his nearly two hour interview on the topic of the Manipulation argument on the Parker's Pensées podcast episode 27 HERE.





Here's the original video Bignon is commenting on.


 William Lane Craig vs James White - Calvinism vs Molinism on the Problem of Evil
https://youtu.be/ECcN-fisQRk







Here's James White's Post-Debate Interview by Eli Ayala


James R. White vs. William Lane Craig (Post-Debate Interview)
https://youtu.be/G74B8vdsgIw







Friday, November 1, 2013

James White Debates on Calvinism





James White vs. Michael L. Brown

Here are links to their FIRST "debate" which took place on their respective radio show and podcast.  Two days on Brown's show, then two days on White's show.




Their SECOND debate
https://youtu.be/yEU2IuC1d24
This debate took place  at Southern Evangelical Seminary, February 14, 2013.
(another version can be viewed HERE)




Who Controls Salvation?
James White vs. George Bryson
https://youtu.be/O1KJY-PpKFs



Freedom of the Will vs. Bondage of the Will
James White vs. Steve Blakemore
https://youtu.be/r9BEqpiQHDo







Thursday, October 31, 2013

Saturday, October 5, 2013

"The Ergun Caner Controversy" by James White


A lecture by Dr. James White exposing the lies and deceptions of Ergun Caner.


It starts at 14 minutes into the video. So, either fast forward, OR CLICK HERE to open a new window that will automatically play it at the right time.



All the Evidence Against Ergun Caner Compiled  



Monday, June 3, 2013

Dr. James White lectures on Islam A to Z



part 1 of 2


part 2 of 2



Here's a link to TurretinFan's review of James White's newest book 
"What Every Christian Needs to Know About the Qur'an"

Sunday, May 12, 2013

James White's Lectures on Church History


http://razorskiss.net/Downloads/audio/church%20history/  (50 lectures in total)

Here's another source from Monergism.com for James White's lectures on Church History.
The lectures linked below were given starting 2016:

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Debates Between Evangelicals and Catholics

 goo.gl/gBylSm
Refresh/Reload page if you see a white blank square where a YouTube video should be.





apologist (Catholic) Luis Dizon's playlist of debates between Catholics and Protestants



Does The Bible Teach Sola Scriptura?
James White vs. Gerry Matatics
November, 1992
Transcript




Does The Bible Teach Sola Scriptura?
James White vs. Patrick Madrid
September 28, 1993
(Video LINK) (Video Link)
Transcript





The Marian Dogmas (The Great Debate I)
James White vs. Gerry Matatics
Video LINK





Sola Scriptura (The Great Debate II)
James White vs. Gerry Matatics





The Papacy (The Great Debate III)
James White vs. Mitch Pacwa
Video LINK





The Mass (The Great Debate IV)
James White vs. Robert Sungenis
Video LINK





Justification by Faith? (The Great Debate V)
James White vs. Robert Sungenis
Video LINK






Purgatory (The Great Debate VI)
James White vs. Peter Stravinskas
Video LINK





Veneration of Saints and Images (The Great Debate VII)
James White vs. Patrick Madrid
Video LINK





Is The Roman Catholic Priesthood Biblical & Ancient? (The Great Debate VIII)
James White vs. Mitch Pacwa





Is The Apocrypha Scripture? (The Great Debate IX)
James White vs. Gary Michuta





Is It Possible for a Non-Christian to Enter into Heaven? (The Great Debate X)
James White vs. Bill Rutland





Sola Scriptura
James White vs. Mitchell Pacwa





Two Consecutive Debates:  
1. Is the Papacy Biblical? 
2. Is the Papacy Historical?
(the 2nd debate appears to begin at 2:00:10)
James White & Robert Zins vs. Scott Butler & Robert Sungenis

An inferior version of the above debate HERE





Is The Roman Mass a Propitiatory Sacrifice? April 2003 
James White vs. Robert Sungenis





The Bodily Assumption of Mary
James White vs. Robert Sungenis
Video LINK





Is Purgatory Biblical?
James White vs. Robert Sungenis





The following are the FOUR classic debates between James White and Robert Fastiggi. I've listed them in the order they were held (AFAIK).


How Is Man Justified Before A Righteous And Holy God?
The debate begins at 31 minutes into the video. The debate itself is only in audio.
Video LINK





Do Roman Catholic Indulgences Really Forgive Sins?





Is The Roman Catholic Pope Infallible? [Papal Infallibility Debate]





Is the Roman Catholic Doctrine Of The Virgin Mary Biblical?
Papal Infallibility
James White vs. Robert Sungenis




Sola Scriptura
James White vs. Peter D. Williams
video LINK
OR




Justification
James White vs. Art Sippo
Video LINK


Sola Scriptura Debate
James White vs. Tim Staples





Did Mary Have Other Children?
James White vs. Gerry Matatics
Video LINK





https://archive.org/details/DidMaryHaveOtherChildrenSvendsenVsMatatics
The Perpetual Virginity of Mary: Did Mary Have Other Children?
Eric Svendsen vs. Gerry Matatics





Sola Scriptura Debate
Robert Zins vs. Gerry Matatics
Video LINK





Predestination or Free Will?
James White vs. Robert Sungenis
Video LINK





God's Predestination
James White vs. James Akin
Video LINK





http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=5301512831
Eternal Security
James White vs. Gerry Matatics





Mary: Sinless Queen of Heaven or Sinner Saved by Grace?
Tony Costa vs. Robert Sungenis
(https://youtu.be/Wus6CrzleRw)




Can A Christian Lose Their Salvation? 
James White vs. Trent Horn
(https://youtu.be/72TRODe8BdA)




Immaculate Conception Debate
James White vs Christopher Ferrara
(https://youtu.be/dZ-QxQO1lQo)




http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=62171751103
Do the Catholic Church's Teachings on Mary Constitute Authentic Christian Doctrine/Teaching?
James White vs. Peter D. Williams




http://www.blogtalkradio.com/healingxoutreach/2019/05/18/hxo-debate-did-saint-cyril-of-jerusalem-teach-sola-scriptura
Did Saint Cyril of Jerusalem teach Sola Scriptura?
"Turretinfan" vs. William Albrecht




Did Multiple Popes Deny the Immaculate Conception (Turretinfan vs. Albrecht)
https://youtu.be/AsoQ7wVgJow




Did St. Athanasius practice Sola Scriptura?
William Albrecht vs. Turretinfan
https://youtu.be/BXrz4njTrK8




Immaculate Conception Debate
(Albrecht vs. Turretinfan)
https://youtu.be/jg-BAml7QkQ




The Deuterocanon/Apocrypha Debate
Turretinfan v Albrecht
https://youtu.be/xMf2YYBIm8M




The Holy Eucharist Debate
Turretinfan v Albrecht
https://youtu.be/TTTI9vpn7VY




Prayer & Intercession of Saints Debate: Biblical & Historical? 
Albrecht vs Turretinfan
https://youtu.be/Mqzahkzr8Wg




Is Purgatory Biblical & Ancient Debate
Albrecht vs. Turretinfan 2018
https://youtu.be/oZIfAqhU7A8





Sola Scriptura and Unity Debate 1/7
Turretinfan vs. Albrecht
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qhi6gVU4U7k&list=PL0634C27CFB1C7CA7



Search for more debates between Turretinfan on YouTube.





Debate is between two Protestants.




Are Roman Catholics Our Brothers and Sisters in Christ
James White vs. Douglas Wilson
LINK




Roman Catholic Debates on Sedevacantism


Saturday, April 27, 2013

Dr. Michael L. Brown and Dr. James R. White Debating Predestination



This debate took place  at Southern Evangelical Seminary, February 14, 2013.
Their SECOND debate
(another version can be viewed HERE)



Here are links to their FIRST "debate" which took place on their respective radio show and podcast.  Two days on Brown's show, then two days on White's show.


Thursday, January 31, 2013

Calvin and Servetus


Many anti-Calvinists argue against Calvinism because of what happened to Michael Servetus. Here are some resources as to how my fellow Calvinists deal with this objection.


The Truth About Calvin and Servetus

https://youtu.be/iC58NtAeHZA











 



A summary of what James White claims really happened between John Calvin and Michael Servetus.

According to James White, Calvin risked his life to privately meet with and discuss theology with Michael Servetus. But Servetus didn't show up. Later on, when it was known that Calvin knew Servetus' pseudonym (Michael de Villanueva), the city Servetus lived in, and that  he was employed by an archbishop in a major city, Calvin reluctantly gave up the information. The man who squeezed the information out of Calvin confessed that he had real difficulty getting the information out of Calvin because Calvin would have rather refuted Servetus in writing than have him executed. But because there was a governmental investigation going on, Calvin gave in.

Servetus' arrest by the Catholic authorities was aided by Calvin having provided evidence of the real identity of Michael de Villanueva. However, Servetus eventually escaped.

Servetus then made a beeline flight to Geneva. During that time Calvin wasn't, as many think, the autocrat of Geneva. He wasn't even a citizen of Geneva. He became a citizen six years later in 1559. Servetus entered Geneva knowing that if he was discovered that he would almost certainly be arrested for heresy. Sometime in Geneva Servetus himself accused Calvin of heresy and attempted to convince the Genevan authorities to arrest him on charges of heresy. Knowing that at that time Calvin had many opponents in Geneva and that the elections didn't go in Calvin's favor. And so Servetus tried to get Calvin's political enemies to side with him against Calvin. Servetus even filed a motion accusing Calvin of simony. He did so in such a way that if it succeeded Calvin's home and property might fall to Servetus.

When the Genevan authorities eventually convicted Servetus of heresy and determined he was worthy of the death penalty the ministers (including Calvin) asked that Servetus be executed in a way that was quicker and less painful. But the secular council refused. Even up until the night before Servetus was executed Calvin tried to convince him of the error of his ways in hopes that he would repent. Finally, it was William Farel, not Calvin, who accompanied Servetus to his execution.










This blog was actually posted 3/7/2014