82 - Calvin and Social Welfare: Deacons and the Bourse francaise

Calvin and Social Welfare: Deacons and the Bourse francaise
By Jeannine E. Olson
Selinsgrove, Susquehanna University Press, 1989. 341 pp. $55.00.

Today, Geneva is an international humanitarian as well as religious center, but the origins of some of these traditions are not well-known. Olson's book features both religion and welfare, tracing the history of an international relief fund for religious refugees. Olson herself, presently an assistant professor of history at Rhode Island College, brings to the subject a certain sympathy for the international sphere from her earlier work in Africa.

Olson sketches very briefly the social context of welfare reform in Renaissance Europe, then develops in detail the origins and operation of a fund established by well-off French immigrants to Geneva for the benefit of needy compatriots escaping from regions hostile to Protestantism. The Bourse was necessary because Genevan social services, like those elsewhere in Europe, were restricted to citizens or long-time residents. Thus, the refugee fund became a kind of parallel relief agency for non-citizens, and a slightly different, "disestablished" diaconate parallel to the "established" diaconate of the city.

The beginnings of the Bourse francaise are somewhat obscure, but sometime between 1545 and 1550 this fund for poor foreigners was organized with the support and encouragement of the pastors of Geneva (who were all foreigners themselves). The Bourse was similar to the

83 - Calvin and Social Welfare: Deacons and the Bourse francaise

other poor relief agencies of the period, but it had certain peculiarities. First, it was concerned with an international community, both recipients and donors. Secondly, the Bourse at times also served as a kind of church budget for missionary purposes of the international Reformed churches. Most of the Bourse's work, however, was indeed the relief of the daily needs of the many poor or temporarily destitute refugees who came to Geneva in waves especially after 1550.

Olson begins with a very brief reference to John Calvin and the origins of the Bourse, but her interest is practical rather than theological, and the remainder of the text describes various facets of the workings of the fund: personnel, recipients, practical measures, and the like, as these can be gathered from the account books and other data preserved in Genevan archives. There is a delightful note regarding Bibles supplied to the poor: "Clearly books were considered a basic necessity of life along with food, clothing, and shelter." A variety of appendices, a bibliography, and extensive indices complete the book. All French texts are translated into English.

The strength of Olson's book is practical; the theological side is sometimes slightly misleading or weak. A number of the references suggest careless reading of the works cited in the notes. More disappointing is the failure to relate the deacons of the Bourse to the Reformed diaconate generally. The speculation about the "spiritual" duties of diaconal visits to the poor seems to have no basis in the documentation and in fact contradicts Calvinist theory. However, "spiritual" duties such as offering the cup in Communion, which Calvinist theory actually assigned to deacons and which deacons of the city welfare system in fact carried out, are not mentioned. Perhaps refugee deacons were excluded from these duties? Olson does not say. The Bourse regulations of 1581 mention mutual censure before the quarterly Communion services, a practice of the pastors and elders in Geneva, but Olson does not comment on the ecclesiastical significance of this. The same regulations refer to Romans 12:8, which Calvin uses to explain the division of diaconal duties, but although Olson says that the Bourse did not follow Calvin's division, she does not explore the apparent discrepancy between regulations and practice.

Olson's study is a very interesting and even exciting portrait of early Calvinist provision for the material needs of their communities. It is especially helpful to see the way this early "voluntary association" illustrates the breadth of that community, not only diversity of donors and recipients, but also the amazing international ties the mutual aid helped forge among the scattered but closely linked Reformed churches. Olson's work gives a "homey" picture of one of the earliest organizations for international solidarity among Reformed churches.

Elsie A. McKee
Andover Newton Theological School
Newton Centre, Massachusetts