Turretin, Francis

, son to the preceding, was born at Geneva, Oct. 17, 1623. After pursuing his studies in the classics and philosophy with great credit, he entered on the study of divinity, under the celebrated Calvinistic professors, John Diodati, Theodore Tronchin, Frederick Spanheim, &c. While a student he supported in 1640 and 1644, two theses, “De felicitate morali et politica,” and “De necessaria Dei gratia.” He afterwards went to Leyden, and formed an acquaintance with the most eminent scholars there; and afterwards to Paris, where he lodged with the celebrated Daille", and studied geography under Gassendi, whose philosophical lectures he also attended. He then visited the schools of Saumur and Montauban, and on his return to Geneva in 1647 was ordained, and in the following year served both in the French and Italian churches of that city. In 1650 he refused the professorship of philosophy, which was offered to him more than once, but accepted an invitation to the pastoral office at Lyons, where he succeeded Aaron Morus, the brother of Alexander. In 1653 he was recalled to Geneva to be professor of divinity, an office which Theodore Tronchin was now about to resign from age, and Turretin continued in it during the rest of his life. In 1661 he was employed on a similar business as his father, being sent to Holland to obtain assistance from the States General to fortify the city of Geneva. Having represented the case, he obtained the sum of 75,000 florins, with which a bastion was built, called the Dutch bastion. He had an interview with the prince and princess dowager of Orange at Turnhout in Brabant; a.nd having often preached while in Holland, he was so | much admired, that the Walloon church of Leyden, and the French church at the Hague, sent him invitations to settle with them; but this he declined, and returned to Geneva in 1662. He had not been here long before the states general of Holland wrote most pressingly to the republic, requesting that Turretin might be permitted to settle in Holland and similar applications were made from Leyden, &c. in 1666 and 1672 but he could not be reconciled to the change, and resuming his functions, acquired the greatest fame, both as a divine and professor. He died Sept. 28, 1687.

Besides some sermons dedicated to madam de Schomberg, he wrote an answer to a piece published by a canon of Aneci, in order to render the protestants odious, among other things, upon the doctrine of the obedience of subjects to their lawful princes. He wrote also an answer to the letter, which the bishop of Lucca sent to the families at Geneva, which were originally of his diocese, to exhort them to the profession of the catholic religion, which their ancestors had abandoned. But what will chiefly perpetuate our author’s memory is his “Institutio Theologiae Elencticae,” in three volumes 4to, his theses “De satisfactione Christ!” against the Socinians, and “De necessaria secessione ab Ecclesia Romana.” There is an excellent abridgment of his “Institutio,” by Leonard Riissen, which has gone through several editions; the best, if we mistake not, is that of Amsterdam, 1695, 4to. ¹