Yeah, a theological post. Now, I'm not sure how to approach this as I don't want to start a debate/argument, but would rather share something our catechism class was discussing and learning about. It's the differences between the Remonstrants and modern day Arminianism.
We all know the Canons of Dort, and how hard they can be on Arminians. They show inconsistencies in thinking, and point out very valid and Biblical reasons why we as Reformed people believe the way we do. I just think that maybe we don't really think about the context in which the Canons were written.
At the time of the writing of the Canons, there were some really crazy beliefs and thoughts floating around the theological communities. I don't think I need to quote any since they can mostly all be seen in the Rejection Paragraphs. These Canons were written, yes, as a declaration of faith, but probably more so as a counteract to the thinking of the day.
What we need to think about is the fact that we are living hundreds of years down the road from those times. The Remonstrants aren't so pronounced, and modern day Arminians are quite far off from what the Remonstrants believed. What an Arminian church may claim as their declaration of faith, may not be quite what the PEOPLE of that church believe in heart and soul.
There needs to be a realization of the difference. So just as we make a distinction between the "Catholic" church and the "Roman" church, we need to define our terms. After our discussion today, our Pastor chose the words "classical Arminians" in his sermon to describe the teachings of a truly stringent Arminian church. He did this to point out that the general "Arminian" church believe differently than what their creed might say they do.
We need to be aware and careful of a tendency to "be proudful of our humility". We know that according to the Reformed belief, the Reformed Christian "has more" to be thankful for and humble about. Sometimes this can translate(though unintentionally) to a personal pride in "being more humble than those proudful Arminians". We need to recognize they are our brothers and sisters in Christ, and probably share many beliefs at heart that we do.
Now, no debate. Sure, post your comment, but try not to be confrontational...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
Maybe it is the reformed church that has changed, maybe it is US who have gotten weaker, maybe we need to return to the stronger roots of our reformed faith, maybe we do not see the danger in Baptistic/Evangelical teachings anymore and need to become more grounded in our Reformed faith.
Hm... Interesting-I never thought of it that way before, but it's good: it causes self reflection and action on our part.
Everyone, all denominations definitely need to be more grounded in our Christian faith.
Thanks for the comment...
Yes, we need to go back to the truth of the reformation, that Calvinists and Arminians ARE different. Pentecostals are a good example of Arminians, and examples in our mission show us that at times they are just as bad a Catholics.
Well... this discussion isn't really going where I was hoping it would. Because of that, I'm closing comments for now.
If you read the post, and had some thoughts you'd like to share with me-email or FB me.
Post a Comment