July 4th -- Happy "Presbyterian Rebellion" Day!

Calvinism in America ^ | 1932 | Loraine Boettner

[lupie]

Funny how when people have a high view of scripture and acknowledge the sovereignty of God in ALL areas of life, the result is liberty.

Conversely when scripture is watered down and God is reduced to an impotent being knocking helplessly on the "heart's door" hoping that it will be opened, the results are a society that will accept the intrusions of government placidly.

Very well said.

[lupie]

(100%) Presbyterian/Reformed
(90%) Congregational/United Church of Christ
(75%) Baptist (Reformed/Particular/Calvinistic)
(51%) Anglican/Episcopal/Church of England
(46%) Eastern Orthodox
(44%) Seventh-Day Adventist
(43%) Lutheran
(42%) Methodist/Wesleyan/Nazarene
(41%) Baptist (non-Calvinistic)/Plymouth Brethren/Fundamentalist
(35%) Church of Christ/Campbellite
(28%) Roman Catholic
(13%) Pentecostal/Charismatic/Assemblies of God
(9%) Anabaptist (Mennonite/Quaker etc.)

[Dr. Eckleburg]

We have two infants in our small church’s nursery named Calvin. :)

That's great. Our younger son says he'll name his first son Calvin (let us pray his future wife agrees.) 8~)

[Persevero]

“The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination, I believe is his work. Excellent stuff.”

Yes, sounds so dry, reads so well. Also, “Roman Catholicism” was a very helpful book for me, also by him. It is a critique of Roman Catholicism but is written in a scholarly tone and is not nasty or bashing.

[Calvinist_Dark_Lord]

That's great. Our younger son says he'll name his first son Calvin (let us pray his future wife agrees.) 8~)

Just don't give the kid a stuffed tiger named Hobbes. ;^8

[Cronos]

Catholics among the Founding Fathers --> there were

1. Church of England/Episcopalian: 28
2. Presbyterian: 8
3. Congregationalists: 8
4. Lutherans: 2
5. Dutch Reformed: 2
6. Methodists: 2
7. Catholics: 3 (C. Caroll, D. Caroll & Fitzsimons)
8. Deists: 7 (including Thomas Jefferson

1. John Caroll had initially been a priest before devoting himself to the Revolution

2. Fr. Pierre Gibault who pledged the support of the region of S-W Indiana to the USA (to Col. George Rogers Clark)

3. John Barry, a native Irishman who captained a number of ships during the war. Barry was the first to capture a British war vessel on the high seas; he also was wounded in a sea batter yet captured two British ships and fought the last battle on the seas of the Revolutionary war. He was George Washington's choice for commander of the US navy -- he was issued Commission Number 1 by Washintong and was not only the first American commissioned naval officer but also it's first flag officer

4. the Catholic Philadelphia merchant Stephen Moylan became Quatermaster General of the Continental Army

5. Among the international Catholics who came to support the American Revolution you have
   • the Marquis de Lafayette, a Catholic Frenchman
   • the Polish captain Tadeusz Kosciuszko -- both were key in the Revolutionary War
   • Casimir Pułaski, a Pole who led Washington's cavalry and died in the battle for Savanna

6. John Caroll says this about Catholic participation in the Revolutionary war (remember the country was only 1.6% Catholic):"Their blood flowed as freely, in proportion to their numbers, to cement the fabric of independence as that of their fellow citizens. They concurred with perhaps greater unanimity than any other body of men in recommending and promoting from whose influence America anticipates all the blessings of justice, peace, plenty, good orders, and civil and religious liberty"

If Dr. Eck's post says "Charles Carroll had no part in drafting the document nor any of the debates; he just showed up to sign it.", then Of the Delegates who actually met to negotiate the Constitution history recognizes six as actual authors of the Constitution. Of these six none were Presbyterians such as Dr. Eck's grouping -- if one wants to somehow say that only those religious groups that had members who drafted the constitution are American...

Anyway the list of those who did draft the Constituion were:

1. John Adams - Unitarian
2. Benjamin Franklin - Deist
3. Thomas Jefferson - Deist
4. John Jay - Episcopalian
5. James Madison - Episcopalian
6. George Washington - Episcopalian
7. Alexander Hamilton - Episcopalian

If one takes Dr. Eck's post about not having a part in drafting the document and just signing it then hmm.... only unitarians, Deists and Episcopalians are true Americans according to that (false) statement.

[Cronos]

doesn't the OPC preaches that OPC members do not get Judged - and they are the only ones who are resurrected which is a substitute for Judgement. As well, the OPC teaches covenant succession, which is the doctrine that church members' children are saved regardless of whether or not they are even Christian?

[Cronos]

a refutation of the heretical 5 points of Arminian Remonstrance

how can Arminianism be heretical when that is the belief of Pentecostals, Methodists and many Baptists? Are these Pentecostals, Methodists and many Baptists following heretical beliefs?

[Cronos]

What exactly were these criticisms that Servetus put forth? Calvin didn't like getting criticised I guess?

Belot,an Anabaptist was arrested for passing out tracts in Geneva and also accusing Calvin of excessive use of wine. A man in Geneva who publicly protested against the reformer's doctrine of predestination was flogged at all the crossways of the city and then expelled.

He must have been an egotist, but he was strict -- Calvin's Letter to the Marquis Paet, chamberlain to the King of Navarre, 1561. "Honour, glory, and riches shall be the reward of your pains; but above all, do not fail to rid the country of those scoundrels [Anabaptists and others], who stir up the people to revolt against us. Such monsters should be exterminated, as I have exterminated Michael Servetus the Spaniard."

no wonder Martin Luther said of Calvin's actions in Geneva, "With a death sentence they solve all argumentation" (Juergan L. Neve, A History of Christian Thought, vol. I, p. 285).

[P8riot]

Arminianism denies the efficacy of Christ’s sacrifice.

[Cronos]

Arminianism denies the efficacy of Christ’s sacrifice.

well, in my humble opinion I've not noted any pentecostals who do that -- and they are Arminians

[P8riot]

Most do, but just don't realize it.

Calvinists believe that salvation for the elect was completed on the cross and that there is nothing we can add to it, therefore giving full glory to God for that salvation.

Conversely, Arminians believe that Christ only made it possible for us and all of the world to be saved, that it really depends on the individual to accept that salvation, thus elevating the will of man over the sovereignty of God and the efficacy of the blood of Christ.

[Cronos]

NLZ, as I gave in post 86, the numbers of Catholics who were founding fathers were in disproportionate number to their % in society (Catholics at the time of American Independence were just 1.6% of the colonies' population)

Out of the 60 you have 3 Catholics --> that's 5% of the signers were Catholics (as compared to 1.6% of the population).

ditto for the numbers of Catholics who served and/or died for Independence -- much higher than their % in society

[twigs]

My guess is that the number of Presbyterian warriors struck a sensitive cord with the British, more so perhaps than their being Calvinists. Presbyterians mostly sprang from Scottish soil, didn’t they? The British and Scottish conflict was an old one. It also surfaced in the Battle of King’s Mountain in South Carolina.