e it possible for those who were not fluent in Greek to study theWord of God. Luther also wrote another influential work, Small Catechism of 1529, whichwas also known as the layman's Bible. It summarized Christian beliefs into clear, simplelanguage and told how they should live. During the Reformation, Luther discovered that he had founded a new church. Hecomplained that his name should not be given to a group whose name should only be taken fromChrist; but Lutherans still believe in the doctrines he originated. John Calvin teachings were especially influential in Switzerland, England, Scotland, andcolonial North America. Calvin's followers in France were known as the Huguenots, and inEngland they were know as the Puritans. During the Reformation, the people were insisting that anyone, not just the hierarchy, beinvolved in political and religious policy making. This inspired Calvin's teachings. The Calvinistsdeveloped political theories that supported constitutional government, representativegovernment, the right of people to change their government, and the separation of civil andchurch government. The Calvanists originally intended these ideas to apply to the aristocracy,but democracy eventually arose in England and America. Calvin's basic religious beliefs were the superiority of faith over good works, universalpriesthood of all believers, and the Bible as the basis of all Christian teachings. The concept ofuniversal priesthood was that all believers were considered priests. This was unlike the RomanCatholic Church which had various ranks of priests. Calvin also believed that men could only be saved by the grace of God. He believedthat only the Elect would be saved and that no one knew who the Elect were. He also believedin Predestination, which is the idea that your entire life is already planned for you. Many of Calvin's ideas were controversial, but he improved the morals of the Churchdrastically. Calvin developed...
