Why is Calvinism so influential among American Evangelicals while
Lutheranism is not?
We might describe the statistically modal convert to Calvinism—that is,
the most frequently observed kind of convert—as a person like this: A
young adult, usually male. Raised in a broad though indistinct
Evangelical (and sometimes nominally Catholic) home. Bright. A reader.
Searching for better intellectual answers to questions about God, Jesus
and the Bible. Is open to becoming a pastor. Why does this young man so
much more often become a Calvinist instead a Lutheran? Continue Reading »
Last week, Pat Robertson told his viewers that he believes Alzheimer’s disease to be a “kind of death,” a basis for the un-afflicted spouse to seek divorce and move on with their life—so long as they act mercifully and provide a means for care of that spouse. This view . . . . Continue Reading »
The gloomy pitcher’s count facing Protestant denominations did not prevent Orthodox Presbyterians from celebrating their seventy-fifth with humility and gratitude. … Continue Reading»
There’s little less fashionable today than praising the Puritans, especially for their egalitarian political idealism, their promotion of genuinely humane and liberating learning, and their capacity for enjoyment and human happiness. Praising the Puritans is especially difficult for us because . . . . Continue Reading »
The New York Times’ profile of evangelical women’s speaker Priscilla Shirer by writer Molly Worthen (Housewives of God) raises some interesting points about the complementarian view of leadership in church and family, intimating that a functional egalitarianism may more accurately . . . . Continue Reading »
Two well known strands of Protestant theology are the Calvinist and Arminian. There are a number of differences between these two schools but one of them keys on soteriology (salvation). Calvinists would hold that once a person is saved, he is always saved. Arminians dispute this idea. Consider the . . . . Continue Reading »
I have no idea how long ago I received my review copy of Abide by Jared C. Wilson, but it has had me on a guilt trip every since it came in the mail box.See: Jared and I sort of met because we both started blogging at Evangel, and I think we weren’t supposed to like each other. He’s a . . . . Continue Reading »
A while ago I posted a few thoughts on the idea that Evangelicalism is somehow dying, and while we’re waiting for the next round of statistical data to roll in, the Christian Science Monitor — which first popularized the idea that Evangelicalism is about to collaspe — has come up . . . . Continue Reading »
To follow-up on my blog post “Sunday of Orthodoxy: Or, When Schisms Are Functionally Irrelevant,” the excerpt below has helped me to understand John Calvin’s treatment of idolatry. Understanding must precede criticism.From Charles Partee, The Theology of John Calvin (Louisville: . . . . Continue Reading »
Via Tyler Cowen, a paper by Davide Cantoni casts some doubt on the efficacy of the Protestant Ethic: Many theories, most famously Max Weber’s essay on the ‘Protestant ethic,’ have hypothesized that Protestantism should have favored economic development. With their . . . . Continue Reading »
