The Thinker: Calvinist Lessons for Modern Indonesia

This year marks the 500th birthday of one of the most influential figures in history, Reformation leader John Calvin. His influence, not only in ecclesiastical matters but in almost every aspect of culture, extends from 16th century Geneva to 21st century Indonesia.

Calvin is among the most brilliant theologians the church has ever known and he remains an influence in this country. Christian schools and universities started by Dutch Calvinist missionaries here were founded on his vision of spirituality and vocation, and from these institutions have emerged intellectuals and leaders, many of whom played critical roles in both decolonization and nation-building.

It is also what Calvin would call “providential” that the July 8 presidential election comes just two days before his birthday. In this regard, it is worth recalling what this man of faith had to say about civil government.

The right to choose government leaders, for Calvin, was a gift from God, and for that reason he favored representative government over the absolute monarchies of his day. But he also did not favor unbridled democracy, which in the 16th century meant direct action by the people, which he feared could lead to anarchy and could easily be manipulated by demagogues.

The form of government he advocated was close to the modern republican government. He rejected the absolute power of kings who ruled with no checks on their authority, and he suggested the distribution of political power among qualified people, who would assist each other in running the affairs of the government. This was Calvin’s contribution to the principle of checks and balances embodied in the constitutions of most democratic nations.

Calvin called his ideal “a system compounded of aristocracy and democracy.” But he did not mean a hereditary aristocracy — for that would be close to monarchy — but rather the rule of people properly educated in morality and civil government. For Calvin, this idealized combination of aristocracy and democracy exceeded all other systems.

This means, in modern practice, that citizens must be well informed about candidates for office and must wisely choose their leaders. The people deserve the kind of government they get, and must discharge their political duties wisely.

But evil government need not be perpetuated. Once rulers become corrupt, unjust, irresponsible or prove to be incompetent, the people have the right to change them through elections. Only in extreme cases would Calvin consent to more radical actions.

If, on the other hand, certain groups cause rebellion, it is the duty of the rulers to secure order and stability. For Calvin, the state was divinely ordained and obedience to elected officials, considered ministers of God, was required of every citizen.

These ideas may sound familiar to us as concepts we live with, at least in general terms. But Calvin’s views on absolute monarchy were once considered revolutionary and they were radically opposed to the ideas propagated by Machiavelli, a political philosopher 40 years his senior. Fortunately, history has largely followed the lead of people like Calvin, with the rule of law supplanting the Machiavellian principle that “the end justifies the means.” For Calvin, both the end and the means had to be justified by the standards of truth, justice and righteousness.

In the representative democracy Calvin envisioned, the rulers and the ruled must be guided by liberty, equality and fraternity. But Calvin the moralist would have no tolerance for freewheeling interpretations of morality; for him, liberty did not mean licentiousness, but was always regulated by duty. Equality also does not mean egalitarianism or leveling, since neither is possible without eroding more fundamental human rights. Equality for Calvin referred to equality before the law and equal opportunity for all.

Finally, the people of Indonesia are electing their leaders in a time of global economic crisis. We should trust the people to choose their leaders on the basis of clear moral values and principles not unlike those espoused by thinkers like Calvin. These are enduring values drawn from divine law; they have saved many nations from turmoil. Let the same values and principles guide the Indonesian people and spur them on to progress, peace and prosperity.

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