Recently, I was pointed to a presentation of the Calvinist view of the will that has been circling the internet (here). When I read it, I found it to be well written, and an excellent…
Glynn. Martin
Is The Name ‘Arminian’ Too Poisoned To Use?
So a member of SEA recently shared on our Facebook page a question by a Calvinist pastor that he knows. I’m not going to mention the full comment here since he went on to make…
Recent Debate with SEA Member Martin Glynn on Eternal Security
This was a debate that I was asked to join last minute. I had a really good time and the guys involved were true brothers in the Lord. The topic was on eternal security and…
Martin Glynn, “Reponse to Jesse Morrell’s Video: Beyond Augustine”
Jesse Morrel has recently released a video where he argues that Calvinism is rooted in ancient gnostic theology. While many of you know that I am against Calvinism, I don’t completely agree with Morrel’s assessment of…
Playing With Action Figures
Probably one of the poorer arguments that I think we Arminians use is what is often referred to as “the robot analogy”. Now I don’t think it is bad for the reasons that Calvinist do. Calvinists…
Essential Attributes Vs Relational Attributes
What I want to say here is going to be a bit technical, so please hold your horses, but I think that this is important in terms of a particular argument that I hear from…
A Good Friday
Let me rephrase what Jesus said to the rich young ruler: why do we call today good? I love Jesus. He comforts me, He takes care of me, and He defines my very existence. Yet…
Why Being A Calvinist Is Awesome
[This is satire. Everything said here is meant to be funny. I am fully aware that what I am saying is an exaggeration.] I’ve given up. After much struggling, I’ve finally have been convinced by…
Does God Lament?
Recently I watched this video by a Calvinist who clearly isn’t the sort to engage in intellectual discourse. In order to show the incomprehensibility of Arminianism, he performs a scene which he believes typifies God’s…
Playing With Dolls (Reposted)
In honor of Valentine’s Day, here is an old article about God’s love for us. A question that I was recently considering was whether or not God could truly love us if we did not…
Why I Am An Arminian
Part VI: Convinced by Scripture
In this final post, I’ll look at the most important reason for believing any theology: why I think Arminianism is what the Scripture teaches. One thing that you may notice though is that I am…
Why I Am An Arminian
Part V: Unconvinced by Prooftexts
Here I intend to go through certain Scriptural arguments that I have heard from Calvinists, as well as providing links to more extensive examination of them. In the post after this, I’ll look at the…
Why I Am An Arminian
Part IV: Theology
I do not know whether or not you have noticed, but as I’ve been going, I am moving from my least relevant reasons to my most relevant reasons as to why I am an Arminian…
Why I Am An Arminian
Part III: History
Many Calvinists claim that they represent historical orthodoxy. However, I believe that the opposite is true. In this post I intend to traverse Christian history and tease out, on a very basic and incomplete level,…
Why I Am An Arminian
Part II: Calvinists
Introduction Considering that I have always been an Arminian, deciding between Arminianism and Calvinism was a matter of whether or not Calvinism challenged my own beliefs enough for me to lose my trust in them.…
Why I Am An Arminian
Part I: Testimony
Finding Scotia I grew up in a village called Scotia. When I was a child, all I really knew was my home, my school, and some sites from my car. I knew my home was…
An Outline of the FACTS of Arminianism vs. The TULIP of Calvinism
An Outline of the FACTS of Arminianism vs. the TULIP of Calvinism by Brian Abasciano and Martin Glynn (To view this outline in a chart that sets the two positions side by side rather than…
Amyraldism vs. Four-Point Calvinism
I’ve been musing about the idea of Limited Atonement, and there are a few posts that I intend to write about it. In preperation though, I would like to make a point about a distinction…
CALVINIST RHETORIC: Jargon
Or “The Obscenity of Obdurate Obnubilating Obfuscation” What I mean by Jargon If we equate any philosophical debate to battle I would argue that our basic weapons are our ideas and arguments, and our rhetoric…
Molinism, Calvinism, and I Corinthians
I just finished Dr. Olson’s book Against Calvinism (It is really difficult to find time to read when you have a one year old). In appendix 1, Dr. Olson goes over several attempts by Calvinists to protect God’s character despite their theology. One particular argument caught my eye: the use of middle knowledge.
Roger Olson explains:
Molinism… is the belief that God possesses “middle knowledge” — knowledge of what any creature would do freely in any possible set of circumstances. The creature may possess libertarian freedom — freedom not compatible with determinism and able to do other than it does — but God knows what he or she wold do with that ability in an conceivable situation. [Roger Olson, Against Calvinism, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2011), 184]
Recent Posts
Roy Ingle, “Calvinism and the Atonement”
Why Does God Deny the Opportunity of Choice for or Against Him to Young Children Who Die and the Mentally Impaired?
Mark K. Olson, “Wesley’s ‘Warmed Heart’ at Aldersgate – What Really Happened?”
Adam Roe, “The Crucial Thread of Prevenient Grace: A Wesleyan Perspective on Divine Drawing”
