Dr. Brian Armstrong's 19-page resume details presentations, speeches, conferences and seminars on John Calvin that he attended around the globe.
The Georgia State University professor traveled to South Africa, Korea and beyond to discuss the French theologian. In the early 1970s, he studied at the Institute of Reformation at the University of Geneva in Switzerland.
"We put the children in the local schools, and he studied and did research," said Carol Demarest Armstrong, his wife of 52 years. "It's hard to even describe such a wonderful experience."
For 31 years, Dr. Armstrong taught at GSU, where he was a professor emeritus of history. He retired in 1998 at the onset of Alzheimer's disease and, on Thursday, died from complications of the illness at his home in Hiawassee. He was 74.
A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Thursday at McConnell Memorial Baptist Church in Hiawassee. Banister Funeral Home handled arrangements.
Dr. Armstrong grew up on a working dairy farm near Guys Mills, Pa., the son of a mother who wanted him to become a preacher. He graduated from New York's Houghton College, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Boston and Princeton Theological Seminary.
Though Dr. Armstrong studied theology, he realized the ministry was not his calling. In graduate school, he became interested in the Reformation, particularly John Calvin. The study, interpretation and teachings of Calvin embodied his career. In later years he focused on Pierre Du Moulin, a scholar and orator, and co-wrote a biography on his life.
"Dad traveled in elite circles, but he was real practical and pragmatic about everything he did," said a son, Brett Armstrong of Franklin, Tenn. "He thought that everything Calvin wrote and said was designed to impact people where they were and where they lived, and that's the way [Dad] tried to live his life."
Curt Armstrong of Decatur was 6 when his father received the fellowship to study in Geneva. There, he learned French and as an adult lived in France before a recent return to metro Atlanta.
"As a scholar, Dad said it got more and more interesting as he got older because he had this vision of things in which everything connected. A lot of his writings dealt with what it was to love, love well and what God's love means," he said. "I think that's the way he viewed Calvin."
At GSU, the scholar was a professor, department chairman and assistant dean. He served as president of the Calvin Studies Society, the Sixteenth Century Studies Society and the International Congress for Calvin Research.
Before retirement, Brian and Carol Armstrong lived in Decatur and Stone Mountain. He enjoyed camping and gardening, a nod to his childhood farm days. He was at work on several publications before his demise.
Additional survivors include brothers Kent Armstrong and Larry Armstrong of Guys Mills, Pa.; a sister, Bonnie Montgomery of Athens, N.Y.; and seven grandchildren.
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