Predestination and Logic

The teachings on Free Well that come out of Arminianism and Calvinism are both built on the foundation of a common logical fallacy. The informal fallacy of false dilemma is where two concepts are presented as a mutually exclusive choice where no other options exists. This is an especially foolish assumption when trying to guess the unknowable operation of an omnipotent and omniscient God.

In other words, this fallacy presents the choice of either A or B... but ignores the possibility of an option C, D, E, F, etc. An absurd example of such a fallacy would be: "If you are an animal, you are either a dog or a cat." Such a statement is illogical because an animal could be a horse, cow, or any number of other creatures.

The Arminian/Calvinist debate over eternal election which rages is built on this kind of false dilemma. They want to force you into using your limited human reason to choose either option A or option B. Both of these options have been carefully crafted and argued by the flawed source that is the human intellect. At the same time, infallible Holy Scripture clearly makes both options unsupportable. It is okay to say that there could be an unknown "option C" regarding our eternal election that is beyond our human understanding. In the end, we must stand on only what Scripture reveals and not what we can try to figure out with our limited capabilities and knowledge. Everything beyond the clear testimony of Scripture is just guess work.

...of course a Calvinist has already told me that this position is a "cop out". :P

Funny Song!

Enjoy this song... "I Think My Wife's a Calvinist". I ran across it because this was the song that came after listening to "All Things Are Better in Kione" over at incarnatus est. Both are VERY funny.

I don't want to ruin it for you... but the hook about the unconditional election in his romantic relationship is priceless!

I almost peed myself!

Deuling Church Signs

...this is funny and sad at the same time. As a person who has suffered through the tortures of sign duty I can tell you that someone has waaaay too much time on their hands.

A Priest Analyzes Western Theology

Fr Alvin Kimel, a catholic Anglican, has written a soul searching post about the western faith on his blog: Pontifications. (Lutherans might chuckle at the ironic name choice: Pontifications. Hehe... at least four jokes/snide remarks about the dogmas of the papacy are on the tip of my tongue right now.)

This is a rare glimpse into one man's honest look at a theological issue that is kept free from all of the dogmatic mumbo-jumbo and sectarian posturing. In addition to striking a fatal blow to the heartless doctrine of double Predestination, the author asks some interesting questions that we should all be asking about works-righteousness and making bargains with God. Interestingly, he identifies this sinful doubt of God's infinite love as the motive that spawned the "quid pro quo transactionalism" that Luther addressed in the Reformation. [For those who do not know Latin and have missed all 17 seasons of Dick Wolf's Law & Order: quid pro quo means "something for something".]

I am sure that Fr Kimel probably would never put it this way, but he correctly points to the fatal error that plagues all Christians: the desire to be self-justified through appeasement under the Law rather than simply embracing the free gift of the Gospel by faith alone. Fr Kimel writes a better argument for Sola Fide than I ever could. This wise priest then asks a million dollar question: "To what extent does this transactionalism still shape the spiritual lives of Catholics and Protestants today?" I would love to hear some of your answers to that question!

Incidental references to purgatory aside, this is a post that is definitely worth your time. The title is Disbelieving the Predestinarian God. Here is a sample:

Why do Western Christians fear God? Might not it be because the God who saves and damns in absolute, inscrutable determination still haunts our imaginations? When confronted with such a deity, we will always urgently ask the question “How can I get a gracious God?” Hidden deep below all conscious thought lies the knowledge that perhaps, just perhaps, God has abandoned us, abandoned “me,” unto perdition. And so God himself becomes our enemy. The holy Creator becomes Satan!

But even if the hard predestinarianism is pushed into the theological and homiletical background, it continues to do its insidious work. If we are unsure, even to the tiniest degree, that God wills the good of every human being—if “I” am uncertain that he wills “my” good—then we must find ways to negotiate with him. Hence the rise of that quid pro quo transactionalism that often characterized late medieval spirituality and church life, against which Martin Luther so powerfully protested. To what extent does this transactionalism still shape the spiritual lives of Catholics and Protestants today?