John Calvin, Calvinism, and the Münster Rebellion: Faith, Power, and a ‘New Jerusalem’

A dramatic, story-driven conversation for Grade 12 students in which hosts James Schultz, Jane Phillips, and Beth Cartwright unpack John Calvin’s life and ideas, explain the core beliefs of Calvinism, and contrast them with the radical Anabaptist experiment in Münster (1534–35). Through vivid storytelling, myth-versus-reality moments, and classroom-ready explanations, the episode explores how different Reformation visions of God, society, and authority led from scholarly Geneva to the bloody siege of a self-proclaimed ‘New Jerusalem’ in Germany.