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Reformation 500 Celebration, one of the most exciting family history events of the year, it is only 8 weeks away! Are you considering attending along with hundreds of other christian families for this special occasion? Or, are you looking for a practical way to educate your family on how the Protestant Reformation reshaped the world and birthed liberty in the West? If the answer to any of these questions is “yes”, we encourage you to make plans to attend the Reformation 500 Celebration in Boston, this July 1-4. Additionally, through the help of several scholars, an online training course on the history of the Reformation, is now available to assist you in learning from home, and preparing for the event!
Announcing the Reformation Online Study Course
Study the Reformers Online with Our Live Lectures
In anticipation of our national celebration which coincides with John Calvin’s 500th birthday, Vision Forum Ministries is pleased to announce a 14-part online course in Reformation history, featuring eminent scholars and teachers such as Dr. Joe Morecraft and Dan Ford. From May 5 to June 18, we will host a one-hour internet lecture every Tuesday and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., EDT, wherein our faculty will delve into some of the most important ideas that the Reformers championed -- ideas that led to broad-sweeping cultural reform. The course will take place completely online. Cost is $150 per nuclear family, and no travel is required — just a working computer and faster-than-dial-up internet connection! Following the course, each registered student will be mailed a certificate of course completion.
Our 14-part study will chiefly focus on the Reformers' impact on the three basic human institutions ordained by God: family, church, and state.
The course will include a look at John Calvin’s own life and example — a testimony that continues to have a profound impact on the world five hundred years after his birth. This most influential of all the Reformers, Calvin’s life and thought is something that every generation would do well to study and better understand. Next, we will examine the Reformation’s return to Bible-directed worship advanced by such leading Reformers as Calvin, Zwingli, and Knox.
Additionally, learn about the remarkable revival of morality and culture within the family which resulted from the reintroduction of a biblical view of marriage. This view, along with the revival of the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers and the resulting rise in family worship, provided the fertile ground in which boys and girls could grow into fearless workmen for the glory of God. Finally, we will explore the Reformation doctrine of civil government as well as civil resistance. What is the nature and bounds of civil government? When and how should tyrannical governments be lawfully checked? These are questions which our Founding Fathers grappled with in the years leading up to the War for Independence, and they were guided in their conclusions by the scriptural exposition of John Calvin and his spiritual descendants.
Announcing the Reformation 500 Essay Contest
Winner to Serve as Junior Grand Marshal of the Reformation 500 Children’s Parade And to Receive Calvin’s Commentaries — This and More!
Students, it’s time to pick up your pens!
God’s word gives hope, and it’s important that the next generation is equipped to defend the great hope that comes when His principles are faithfully applied and to show the disastrous results that occur when they are set aside — to “be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh [us] a reason of the hope” (I Peter 3:15) that we have as believers in Christ.
To encourage this outcome in light of John Calvin and Charles Darwin’s birthdays this year, Vision Forum Ministries is pleased to announce the Reformation 500 Essay Contest. The topic for the contest: “Calvin vs. Darwin: How Their Contrasting Worldviews Birthed Hope and Hopelessness.”
Contestants are expected to compare and contrast the impact of John Calvin and Charles Darwin’s worldviews on Western culture, giving specific examples of how their ideas have led to hope and hopelessness. The contest is open to any young man or lady eighteen years of age and under. The essay is not to exceed fifteen hundred words. It should be typed, double-spaced, and submitted by email with an accompanying biographical sketch, including a photograph of the essay’s author, age, email address, and phone number.
Submit your essays to:
CalvinVsDarwin@visionforum.org
Submissions must be received no later than May 25th. Two winners will be selected from the entries. The Grand Prize winner will:
- Receive a Free Family Pass to the Reformation 500 Celebration
- Serve as Junior Grand Marshal of the Reformation 500 Children’s Parade
- Be recognized on stage at the Reformation 500 Celebration
- Receive a 23-volume anniversary edition of Calvin’s Commentaries
- Receive a framed Geneva Bible leaf (pre-1640 edition)
- Have their winning essay posted on Vision Forum Ministries’ website
The runner-up essay winner will receive a 23-volume anniversary edition of Calvin’s Commentaries and a framed Geneva Bible leaf (pre-1640 edition).
