The printing industry was especially important in Geneva during Calvin’s rise to prominence. Robert Estienne printed French editions of the works of Beza, Hotman, Viret, and Calvin from Geneva. Jean Crispin, a groomsman at Beza’s secret marriage published popular devotional material, and a range of educational material was produced for the burgeoning Academy. Bibles and theological texts flew off Genevan printing presses. Perhaps the largest single printing venture of the sixteenth century, Beza’s French translation of the Psalms into metrical form, went to press in Geneva’s old town. This Huguenot Psalter, which became the revival song-book of expansionistic Calvinism, went through numerous editions (27,400 copies were printed in 1562 alone). Sacred songs would lodge distinct ideas in the popular mind, especially aided by reading the Bible in the vernacular and sermons devoid of pretentious theological encumbrance. The singing of Psalms afforded the community of faith an opportunity to express their unity of belief and their united resolve to resist powers that arrogated authority unto themselves, if those powers (civil or ecclesiastical) were not ordained by God. Indeed, some anti-Reformation leaders viewed the singing of Psalms as a subversive act of resistance.
The ability to defend the views of Calvin rapidly in print magnified the lasting impact of his thought. The number of books published in Geneva rose from three the year Calvin arrived (1536) to 28 in 1554 and 48 in 1561. The number of volumes printed in Geneva the five years prior to his death was a stunning average of 38 volumes per year (a ten-fold increase in 25 years). The average dropped to 20 per year after his death. In addition, there may have been even more printers than those formally registered. Approximately 200 refugee printers settled in Geneva during Calvin’s lifetime. By 1563, there were at least 34 presses. A mere five years after Calvin’s death, a Dutch contemporary wrote: “The printed works flooding into the country could not be stopped by legal prohibition. The more edicts issued by the courts, the more the booklets and papers increased.” Read more»
David Hall | “Publishing the Faith” | August 5, 2025
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David Hall
Reverend David W. Hall is married to Ann, and they are parents of three grown children and grandparents of eight grandchildren. He has served as the Senior Pastor of Midway Presbyterian Church (PCA) since 2003. Previously, he served as Pastor of the Covenant Presbyterian Church in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (1984–2003) and as Associate Pastor at the First Presbyterian Church in Rome, Georgia (1980–1984). He was ordained to pastoral ministry in 1980. He was educated at Covenant Theological Seminary and is the editor and author of several volumes.
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