Portal:Christianity/Selected biography/August 2006

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John Calvin (July 10, 1509 – May 27, 1564) was an important French Christian theologian during the Protestant Reformation and is the namesake of the system of Christian theology called Calvinism. He was born Jean Chauvin (or Cauvin) in Noyon, Picardie, France, to Gérard Cauvin and Jeanne Lefranc. French was his mother tongue; Calvin derives from the Latin version of his name, Calvinus. Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses in 1517, when Calvin was 8 years old. Calvin was a prominent advocate of the five solas of the Reformation, which teach that the Bible alone and not the church leadership is the final authority for matters of faith and morals, and that salvation is attained purely through grace without any contribution from the good deeds of the person in question. He is also widely known for his teaching on predestination, in which he argued for personal responsibility.

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