Calvin taught that a Christian is under authority to Jesus Christ, not under authority to the laws/rituals/practices of the Old Testament. This Christ-centeredness meant a re-examination of many church and societal prohibitions including the charging of interest rates on loaned money. In Calvin's day, charging interest on money was considered a sin, usury. As Christians were forbidden to loan money, the early banking houses were Jewish, which, as we sadly know, led to resentment and hatred.
 
Calvin argued that not only was there nothing wrong with charging a reasonable rate of return on money, but that it created capital and was a benefit to society. But beware! The human heart is an idol machine. Money and wealth would be created, but would it be for the common good or would it be for self-aggrandizement and self-adornment?  Calvin encouraged fellow Christians to use their wealth to create wealth, to create new opportunities and more employment. Farmers could plant more crops, factory owners could expand their factories and employ more workers. Thus Calvin's thinking became seminal to the development of capitalism; the Protestant work ethic was born!

 

The philosopher Alasdair Macintyre has wisely observed that every philosophical system has a corresponding sociology. Calvin may, rightly I believe, be called the father of the modern economic state. But we must understand Calvin's total thought which begins with the insistence that human nature is 'fallen.' Calvin believed in a free market but only with corresponding checks and balances. Left to the devices and desires of our own hearts, there would be massive corruption. Need I remind you of what happens when the markets or banks operate without checks and balances? Had we followed Calvin's teachings--all of them--we might not find ourselves trying to recover from a world economic crisis.

 

Calvin--500 years old and still relevant!