First Christianity Today had ” Young, Restless, Reformed ,” an article about the growing number of young, doctrinally serious Calvinists. Now those young Calvinists are thinking about getting hitched, and along comes ” Restless, Reformed, and Single ”:
By day, firefighter Dean Scott puts out flames in rural western Washington. By night, he tries to kindle them between Reformed singles around the country.Scores of Christian dating websites (and dating sites that market themselves to Christians) are doing their part to solve the delayed marriage problem by promising to pair like-minded couples. But Scott’s SovereignGraceSingles.com hopes to take compatibility tests to a new level, making sure that singles are on the same page theologically.
Singles who build profiles on SovereignGraceSingles answer questions such as, ” How have the Doctrines of Grace changed or affected your life?” “Do you have a Quiet Time?” and “Who is your favorite biblical character and why?” Members’ usernames include tulips, restingingrace0611, and ReformedSoutherner.
But what about the whole predestination thing? Baylor’s Roger Olson, author of Arminian Theology , thought that it wasn’t compatible with online dating: “It’s an example of a larger dissonance between Calvinist theology and Calvinist practice. If God has foreordained everything, then why should I feel any urgency to act?” Dean Scott counters, “I don’t think it’s antithetical to God’s sovereignty at all. It’s a means that he’s provided to use in the lives of single, Reformed folks.”
And it makes one ponder: Isn’t this a case of persevering saints who have been conditionally elected, captured by an irresistable grace—or Grace, as the case may be?
