Day Two Off to a Good Start

I'm in the Assembly Hall as I write, waiting for the Wednesday session to begin. I've just come from a seminar in which Doug Kelly presented a paper on Calvin and His Catholicity. The thesis was that "catholic" refers to far more than "universal", which is primarily a reference to the quantity of time and space (through all time and in all places). Instead (from the Greek kata- and -holos) means "according to the whole" and is a reference to quality more than quantity. In other words, the word catholic (which is certainly not properly applied to the Roman church), is a reference to that church and those people who are submitted to all of Scripture. We are not only Sola Scriptura, but Toto Scriptura. Not only Scripture Alone, but All of Scripture. It is this way in which Calvin used "Catholic", intentionally avoiding the application of the term to the Papists, who he did not think worthy of it. Not only is this Calvin's conception of "Catholic", but it is this concept - submitting all belief to the revelation of God contained in the Scriptures and allowing no other authority, which is the "vision" driving Calvin's work. Kelly opposed this to the once common belief that Calvin had an organizing principle (such as sovereignty, predestination, or the Glory of God) into and out of which all his thought flowed. It was a wonderful session. More later.

Oh! One more thing! Our denominational magazine has this headline this morning: "Assembly Elects Bradley as Moderator". I need to get that banner size to hang in my office. It's likely the closest I'll ever come to being elected!