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Showing posts from March 17, 2024

Calvin on the True Church and its Marks

  "Just as a body without a soul is but a carcass, so the church deprived of the Word of God is but a chaos...Since our Lord has chosen us as his flock, we must take care to have what is shown to us in this passage, namely that we are persevering in the apostles' teaching, that we are united with one another in love and brotherly affection, and that we employ the sacraments rightly, and invoke God with one heart and one mind. When those features are present, we can confidently say we have a church such as God requires. So then, let people think what they will of us. Let them call us 'heretics.' Let the pope anathematize us to his heart's content as being separated from the church. We must nonetheless truly acknowledge that the church of God is none other than the one I have described, and that God is pleased with it and approves of it. Let them say what they will about us. It is enough that we have what God commands and that we know the church consists of those thi