Publisher's Description

William Farel lived his life as one of the magisterial Reformers in the shadow of John Calvin, and for that reason has been little known.  In 1536, he would meet Calvin in Geneva and, by God’s grace, be the main agent in Calvin’s call to the city. Jason Zuidema has written a thrilling account of Farel’s life and challenges the classic thinking that a worn-out Farel handed over to Calvin in Geneva.

Calvin described his encounter with Farel in his preface to his commentary on the Psalms: 'Guillaume Farel detained me at Geneva, not so much by counsel and exhortation, as by a dreadful imprecation, which I felt to be as if God had from heaven laid his mighty hand upon me to arrest me'.

Although Farel was some twenty years older than Calvin, he was an intellectual giant and continued to be a major influence in the Reformation process. He developed a passion to spread the Gospel to other French speaking lands. 

About the Author

Jason Zuidema (Ph.D., McGill University) is Affiliate Assistant Professor in the Department of Theological Studies, Concordia University, Montreal. His books and articles focus mainly on French-speaking Church history from the Reformation to the 21st century. Jason and his family are members of the Église réformée du Québec.