Calvin on Worship: The Necessity of Reforming The Church
Here are some schematic equations representing Calvin’s thought on worship, according to some people: “Old Testament Worship $ \overset{?}{=}$ Sacrificial Ceremonies in the Temple” and “Worship $ \overset{?}{=}$ Reading of Scripture + Prayer + Sacraments” but “Worship $\neq$ Reading of Scripture + Prayer + Sacraments + Dancing”. According to my reading of Calvin, however, he says that ‘None of the above is right.‘ His view on worship is carefully written in his letter The Necessity of Reforming the Church. And I shall quote Calvin from that letter throughout this post. In essence, what Calvin says there is that worship cannot be defined in terms of external forms; and that the…