Institutes of the Christian Religion
John Calvin’s systematic account of Christian teaching, first published in 1536 and enlarged through successive editions to its final form in four books in 1559. It is the principal doctrinal work of the Reformed tradition.
John Calvin published the first edition in 1536 and went on revising and enlarging the work for more than twenty years. The final Latin edition of 1559 is arranged in four books: on the knowledge of God the creator, on the knowledge of God the redeemer, on the way in which the grace of Christ is obtained, and on the church.
It is a primary source for what Calvin taught and for the doctrine of the churches that followed him, and it is cited here for that purpose. Much of the fourth book is controversy with the Roman church of his day. Chapter 6 of that book argues against the primacy of the Roman see, and in the course of it Calvin weighs the tradition about Peter at Rome (4.6.14–15). Where he reports the views of his opponents, the report is his own.
Cited in
- about 2085 BC, traditional date
- c. AD 64–68, traditional date
- AD 251 to AD 258, firm date
- AD 787, firm date
- 1536 to 1541, firm date