Beza has often been maligned by modern historians as a cold-hearted scholar who twisted the teachings of John Calvin into rigid “high” Calvinism. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. Beza and Calvin shared an incredible affection for one another, such as resembles that of Paul and Timothy or Luther and Melancthon. Beza was an astute theologian and saw the daily implications of his theology — he saw the persecution that the Huguenots were suffering in France and willingly left the comfort of home and friends to intercede for them in the courts of the nobility. And even in his debates with other Protestants (Lutherans), he always saw them as brethren with whom he may have disagreed on certain points, but with whom he shared the bond of Christ. A good example for those of us who consider ourselves to be inheritors of the Reformed tradition in the 21st century.