Ahh, the sweet joys of celebrating Chauvinism

UPDATE: Apparently I was a bit too "erudite" for my own good and forgot that many people are not aware of the fact that "Chauvin" is an alternate spelling for "Calvin" . . . the play on words was intended to tweak the noses of feminists -- remember back in the day when "male chauvinist pig" was a popular phrase among the bra-burners? -- but there was no intent to imply that Calvin was a chauvinist in the sense of "excessive nationalistic fervor." (That chauvinism derives from a different person, Nicolas Chauvin.) The fervor of Jean Chauvin (Calvin) was not for the glorification of any earthly nation, but rather for the glorification of God and the coming of His Kingdom -- and with regard to those two things, especially the former, it is hard to imagine what might constitute "excessive fervor." Be that as it may, I'll try to confine myself to humor and sarcasm that is self-explanatory . . . memo to self: avoid jokes that require their own leather-bound commentary to be properly understood. I may as well add that everything Jean Calvin stood for was pretty nearly diametrically opposed to the Napoleonic hero-worship, warmongering and imperialism associated with Nicolas Chauvin (who may have been a legendary personage, by the way.)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

John Lofton and Joe Morecraft discuss Chauvinism in this year commemorating 500 years since Chauvin's birth. They offer evidence against some of the oft-repeated myths about this great man and his doctrines -- including some perpetuated by Keely Emerine-Mix.

Among other things, I was happy to hear about his personal zeal for evangelism. That fact is something that needs to be publicized more. At the same time, even R. J. Rushdoony commented on the fact that historically the Presbyterians lagged behind such groups as the Methodists and the Baptists in missions work. I remember hearing him joking about how the Methodist evangelists went West on foot, the Baptists on horseback, and the Presbyterians by train. On the other hand, Presbyterian and the Reformed missions were very active in East Asia, as evidenced by the fact that South Korea is today one of the world's leading bastions of Presbyterianism.

Be that as it may, Morecraft's comments on the place of evangelism within the context of predestination are quite helpful, in my opinion, and serve as an antidote to some of the common misrepresentations.