John Calvin was born on July 10, 1509 in Noyan, France.  He was the son of Gerard Couvan and Jeanne Le Franc of Cambrai.  His father Gerard Couvan who was a local bishop later enrolled him into The University of Paris at the age of 14.  He studied Theology and law to prepare him for priesthood.  He was a very well educated man.  He later became a very influential leader of the protestant reformation.  His work helped lead the way for all of the non-catholic religions.  He worked extensively for what he believed in and it later prevailed.  He later died in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 27, 1564.

John Calvin did many things in his life.  He was a well educated man and he came from a big family.  Probably the one thing that John Calvin did that he is remembered for was huge role in the Protestant Reformation.  What he did paved the way for many non-catholic Christians.  What John Calvin did was so huge because during that time period no one went against the Catholic Church, but John Calvin didn’t only go against the Catholic Church but he led the way to the new Protestant Christian religion.  He added many ideas to the Protestant religion. Ideas that were not known of by early reformers, or were a topic that the early reformers did not want to talk about.  He and other reformers created Calvinist societies in cities they went to.  He felt the church should play a larger role in the government, working with it not above it.

1. What title would you give this person’s biography and why?

The title I would give to the biography of the protestant revolutionist John Calvin’s biography would be. “John Calvin a Revolution of the Century”.  I would give that title to this biography because during John Calvin’s time the Roman Catholic Church was a huge organization that controlled almost all aspects of life and no one thought of going against or rebel against even if they did not have the same beliefs.  John Calvin was different and rebelled against it and finally got what he wanted. 

2. What “Senior Superlative” would this person be voted?

John Calvin would be voted the senior superlative of “Most likely to rebel”.  He would be given this “Senior Superlative” because during that time period the RCC was so powerful it was above Kings and Queens and had much more authority.  It would be almost like a high school superintendent who had a different belief system than a student, and the student decided to rebel.  The RCC is that superintendent and John Calvin is the student.  John Calvin stood up for what he believed in causing a huge reformation which led the way for all Christian religions except for Catholicism.

Bibliography:

"Calvin, John." Reviewed by Hugh T. Kerr. The New Book of Knowledge®. 2009. Grolier Online. 3 Mar. 2009 <http://nbk.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?assetid=a2004280-h>.

McNeill, John T. "Calvin, John." Encyclopedia Americana. 2009. Grolier Online. 3 Mar. 2009 <http://ea.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?assetid=0071950-00>.

Noll, Mark A. "Calvin, John." Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia. 2009. Grolier Online. 3 Mar. 2009 <http://gme.grolier.com/cgi-bin/article?assetid=0049350-0>.

Jeff F.