Calvinism , the theology advanced by John Calvin, a Protestant reformer in the 16th century, and its development by his followers. The term also refers to doctrines and practices derived from the works of Calvin and his followers that are characteristic of the Reformed churches.

When did Calvinism become popular?

Calvinism spread quickly across the Continent during the middle decades of the 16th century as a dynamic and transnational reform movement. International connections were maintained by contacts between reformers and Reformed churches.

When did Calvinism start in America?

American Calvinism owes its existence to the transplanting of European churches and religious institutions to North America, a process that began in the 16th century, first with Spanish and French Roman Catholics, and accelerated a century later when Dutch, English, Scottish, and German colonists and immigrants of ...