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In the Middle Ages, the idea of the unity of state and church prevailed in Europe. For example, in the city-state of Geneva, during the early Reformation, only the Reformed religion was permitted. But from the beginning of the Reformation, other voices were also heard, even in Calvin’s circle: pleas for tolerance. This is evident in statements by Geldenhauer, Anastasius Veluanus, Katharina Schütz, and Pierre Viret. This was entirely new for that time. The driving forces behind this shift in thinking were partly pragmatic, but biblical arguments also played a role. The common appeal to biblical texts for the government’s fight against heresy is argued against. Conversely, the parable of the weeds in the field in Matthew 13 is used as proof that God does not want violence against heretics in this dispensation. A generation later, the persecution of heretics by the Reformed was no longer an issue, although this did not yet mean complete religious freedom.