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Pros And Cons Of Calvinism

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As was stated earlier, Federal Calvinism developed in the seventeenth century throughout Europe (James speaks specifically to its rise in England, Scotland, and Holland) and it was a theology that distinguished between different kinds of “covenants”; and out of this made a perspective through which all of its theology is cast. Particularly, it made a distinction between the so-called “covenant of works” and the “covenant of grace.” James offers a brief summary of Federal Calvinism and its two “covenants” from a Scriptural perspective in the following quote: “According to this scheme, God made Adam the child of nature, who could discern the laws of nature by the light of reason. On the basis of this, he entered into a covenant with him (the so-called covenant of works - or should we call it a “contract” between a sovereign and his subjects?) that if he obeyed the laws of nature (which are the laws of God) and fulfilled the conditions of the covenant, he would find eternal life. This is the “foedus naturae” - the contract of nature upon which all society is based. Adam as such is not a private individual but the federal head of the race. Thus when he disobeyed, he brought the curse not only upon himself, but on all for …show more content…

It was the result of misinterpretations and confusion of Scripture; the influence of the sociopolitical and cultural surroundings at the time; and the introduction of human elements of relationality and action into God’s character; that what ultimately led to the rise of Federal Calvinism. Also, (despite not entirely fleshing out the ideas and perspectives of Federal Calvinism in this post) you can see its influence and permeation of the vastly popular New Calvinism movement and tradition of the modern western Church (i.e. John Piper, The Gospel Coalition.

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