About Opentopia
Opentopia Directory Encyclopedia Tools

Arminianism

Encyclopedia : A : AR : ARM : Arminianism

Contents

For the Armenian nationality, see Armenia or the Armenian language.
For the theological doctrines of Arius, see Arianism.
Arminianism is a school of soteriological thought in Protestant Christian theology founded by the Dutch theologian Jacobus Arminius. Its acceptance stretches through much of mainstream Protestantism, particularly Evangelicalism. Due to the influence of John Wesley, Arminianism is perhaps most prominent in the Methodist movement.

Arminianism holds to the following tenets:

Arminianism is most accurately used to define those who affirm the original beliefs of Jacobus Arminius himself, but the term can also be understood as an umbrella for a larger grouping of ideas including those of Hugo Grotius, John Wesley, Clark Pinnock, and others. There are two primary perspectives on how the system is applied in detail: Classical Arminianism, which sees Arminius as its figurehead, and Wesleyan Arminianism, which (as the name suggests) sees John Wesley as its figurehead. Wesleyan Arminianism is sometimes synonymous with Methodism. Additionally, Arminianism is understood by its critics to also include Pelagianism, though supporters from both primary perspectives deny this vehemently.

Within the broad scope of church history, Arminianism is closely related to Calvinism (or Reformed theology), and the two systems share both history and many doctrines in common. Nonetheless, they are often viewed as archrivals within Evangelicalism because of their disagreement over the doctrines of predestination and salvation.

History

Part of a series on
Arminianism

Jacobus Arminius
Background
Protestantism
Reformation
Calvinist-Arminian Debate
People
Jacobus Arminius
Hugo Grotius
The Remonstrants
John Wesley
Doctrine
Total depravity
Prevenient grace
Substitutionary atonement
Unlimited atonement
Conditional election
Conditional preservation
This box: [ view] • [ talk] • [ edit]

Jacobus Arminius was a Dutch pastor and theologian in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was taught by Theodore Beza, Calvin's hand-picked successor, but he rejected his teacher's theology as making God the author of sin. Instead Arminius proposed that the election of God was of believers, thereby making it conditional on faith. Arminius's views were challenged by the Dutch Calvinists, but Arminius died before a national synod could occur.

Arminius followers, not wanting to adopt their leader's name, called themselves the Remonstrants. When Arminius died before he could satisfy Holland's State General's request for a 14-page paper outlining his views, the Remonstrants replied in his stead crafting the Five articles of Remonstrance. After some political manuevering, the Dutch Calvinists were able to convince Prince Maurice of Nassau to deal with the situation. Maurice systematically removed Arminian magistrates from office and called a national synod at Dordrecht. This Synod of Dort was open primarily to Dutch Calvinists (Arminians were excluded) with Calvinist representatives from other countries, and in 1618 published a condemnation of Arminius and his followers as heretics. Part of this publication was the famous Five points of Calvinism in response to the five articles of Remonstrance.

Arminians across Holland were removed from office, imprisoned, banished, and sworn to silence. Twelve years later Holland officially granted Arminianism protection as a religion, although animosity between Arminians and Calvinists continued.

The debate between Calvin's followers and Arminius' followers is distinctive of post-Reformation church history. The heated discussions between friends and fellow Methodist ministers John Wesley and George Whitfield were characteristic of many similar debates. Wesley was a champion of Arminius' teachings, defending his soteriology in a periodical titled The Arminian and writing articles such as Predestination Calmly Considered. He defended Arminius against charges of semi-Pelagianism, holding strongly to beliefs in original sin and total depravity. At the same time, Wesley attacked the determinism that he claimed characterized unconditional election and maintained a belief in the ability to lose salvation. Wesley also clarified the doctrine of prevenient grace and preached the ability of Christians to attain to perfection.

Current landscape

Advocates of both Arminianism and Calvinism find a home in many Protestant denominations. Denominations leaning in the Arminian direction include Anglicans, Methodists, Free Will Baptists, General Baptists, Churches of Christ, Disciples of Christ, Seventh-day Adventists, Pentecostals, and Charismatics. Denominations leaning in the Calvinist direction are grouped as the Reformed churches and include Particular Baptists, Reformed Baptists, Presbyterians, and Congregationalists. The majority of Southern Baptists, including Billy Graham, accept Arminianism with an exception allowing for a doctrine of eternal security.["The Baptist Faith and Message, 2000 Revision"] Harmon, Richard W. Baptists and Other Denominations (Nashville: Convention Press, 1984) 17–18, 45–46 Dongell, Joseph and Walls, Jerry Why I Am Not a Calvinist (Downer's Grove: Intervarsity Press, 2004) 12–13, 16–17 Many see Calvinism as growing in acceptance,Dongell 7–20 and some well-known Southern Baptists such as Albert Mohler and Mark Dever have been trying to lead the Southern Baptist Convention back to a Reformed view of faith. The majority of Lutherans hold to a third view of salvation and election that was taught by Philip Melanchthon.

The current scholarly support for Arminianism is wide and varied. One particular thrust is a return to the teachings of Arminius. This approach is advocated by F. Leroy Forlines (author of The Quest for Truth: Answering Life's Inescapable Questions — ISBN 0892658649). Forlines (professor emeritus at Free Will Baptist Bible College), Robert Picirilli (former academic dean and professor at Free Will Baptist Bible College, and author of "Grace, Faith, Free Will" — ISBN 0892656484), Stephen Ashby (professor at Ball State University and contributor to Four Views on Eternal Security — ISBN 0310234395) and Matthew Pinson (president of Free Will Baptist Bible College and editor of Four Views on Eternal Security) are four of the more prominent supporters. Forlines has referred to this type of Arminianism as "Classical Arminianism," while Picirilli, Pinson, and Ashby have termed it "Reformed Arminianism." Other scholars who show sympathy with this view include the Christian churches scholar Jack Cottrell (professor at Cincinnati Christian University), the Churches of Christ scholar John Mark Hicks (professor at David Lipscomb University), I. Howard Marshall (Professor Emeritus at University of Aberdeen), and Jonathan Wilson (professor of theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia). Through Methodism, Wesley's teachings also inspire a large scholarly following, with vocal proponents including J. Kenneth Grider, Stanley Hauerwas, and William Willimon.

Recent influence of the New Perspective on Paul movement has also strongly influenced Arminianism — primarily through a view of corporate election. Proponents of this movement include James Dunn and N.T. Wright. Other Arminian theologians holding similar perspectives but not directly aligned with the New Perspectives movement include Robert Shank (author of Elect in the Son — ISBN 1556610920), David Pawson (British teacher/theologian and author of Once Saved Always Saved: A Study in Perseverence and Inheritance — ISBN 0340610662), Paul Marston and Roger Forster (co-authors of God's Strategy in Human History — ISBN 1579102735), Jerry Walls and Joseph Dongell (professors at Asbury Theological Seminary and co-authors of Why I Am Not a Calvinist — ISBN 0830832491).

Theology

Arminian theology usually falls into one of two groups — Classical Arminianism, drawn from the teaching of Jacobus Arminius — and Wesleyan Arminian, drawing primarily from Wesley. Both groups overlap substantially.

Classical Arminianism

Portrait of Jacobus Arminius.
Enlarge
Portrait of Jacobus Arminius.

Classical Arminianism (sometimes titled Reformed Arminianism or Reformation Arminianism) is the theological system that was presented by Jacobus Arminius and maintained by the RemonstrantsAshby, Stephen "Reformed Arminianism" Four Views on Eternal Security (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002), 137; its influence serves as the foundation for all Arminian systems. A list of beliefs is given below:

The Five articles of Remonstrance that Arminius' followers formulated in 1610 state the above beliefs regarding (I) conditional election, (II) unlimited atonement, (III) total depravity, (IV) total depravity and resistible grace, and (V) possibility of apostasy. Note, however, that the five articles completely denied perseverance of the saints; Arminius, himself, said that "I never taught that a true believer can… fall away from the faith… yet I will not conceal, that there are passages of Scripture which seem to me to wear this aspect; and those answers to them which I have been permitted to see, are not of such as kind as to approve themselves on all points to my understanding."Arminius Writings, I:254

The core beliefs of Jacobus Arminius and the Remonstrants are summarized as such by theologian Stephen Ashby:

  1. Prior to being drawn and enabled, one is unable to believe… able only to resist.
  2. Having been drawn and enabled, but prior to regeneration, one is able to believe… able also to resist.
  3. After one believes, God then regenerates; one is able to continue believing… able also to resist.
  4. Upon resisting to the point of unbelief, one is unable again to believe… able only to resist.Ashby Four Views, 159

Wesleyan Arminianism

Part of a series on
Methodism

John Wesley
Background
Christianity
Protestantism
Pietism
Anglicanism
Arminianism
Doctrinal distinctives
Articles of Religion
Prevenient Grace
Governmental Atonement
Imparted righteousness
Christian perfection
People
Richard Allen
Francis Asbury
Thomas Coke
Albert C. Outler
Charles Wesley
George Whitefield
·
Largest groups
World Methodist Council
United Methodist Church
AME Church
Church of the Nazarene
British Methodist Church
Related movements
Holiness movement
Salvation Army
Personalism
Pentecostalism
This box: [ view] • [ talk] • [ edit]
Further information: Methodism
John Wesley has historically been the most influential advocate for the teachings of Arminian soteriology. Wesley thoroughly agreed with the vast majority of what Arminius himself taught, maintaining strong doctrines of original sin, total depravity, conditional election, prevenient grace, unlimited atonement, and possibly apostasy.

Wesley departs from primarily on three issues:

Other variations

Since the time of Arminius, his name has come to represent a very large variety of beliefs. Some of these beliefs, such as Pelagianism (see below) are not considered to be within Arminianism orthodoxy and are dealt with elsewhere. Some doctrines, however, do adhere to the Arminian foundation and, while minority views, are highlighted below.

Open theism

The doctrine of open theism states that God is not all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present, but is rather most-powerful, most-knowing, most-present. As such, open theists resolve the issue of human free will and God's sovereignty by claiming that God is not logically capable of predetermining human choices - salvation or otherwise. Clark Pinnock is one of the most well-known propenents.

Some Arminians, such as professor and theologian Robert Picirilli, reject the doctrine of open theism as a "deformed Arminianism".Picirilli, Grace, Faith, Free Will, 40 - Picirilli actually objects so strongly to the link between Arminianism and Open theism that he devotes an entire section to his objections. See 59ff. Joseph Dongell stated that "open theism actually moves beyond classical Arminianism towards process theology."Dongell, Joseph and Walls, Jerry Why I Am Not a Calvinist, 45 The majority Arminian view accepts classical theism - the belief that God's power, knowledge, and presence have no limits outside of His divine character. Most Arminians reconcile human free will with God's sovereignty and foreknowledge by holding three points:

Corporate view of election

Further information: Conditional election
The majority Arminian view is that election is individual and based on God's foreknowledge of faith, but a second perspective deserves mention. These Arminians reject the concept of individual election entirely, preferring to understand the doctrine in corporate terms. According to this corporate election, God never chose individuals to elect to salvation, but rather He chose to elect the believing Church to salvation. Dutch Reformed theologian Herman Ridderbos says "[The certainty of salvation] does not rest on the fact that the church belongs to a certain "number", but that it belongs to Christ, from before the foundation of the world. Fixity does not lie in a hidden decree, therefore, but in corporate unity of the Church with Christ, whom it has come to know in the gospel and has learned to embrace in faith."Ridderbos, Herman Paul: An Outline of His Theology trans. John Richard de Witt (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1975), 350-351

Corporate election draws support from a similar concept of corporate election found in the Old Testament and Jewish law. Indeed most Biblical scholarship is in agreement that Judeo-Greco-Roman thought in the 1st century was opposite of the Western world's "individual first" mantra - it was very collectivist in nature.Abasciano, Brian Paul’s Use of the Old Testament in Romans 9:1-9: An Intertextual and Theological Exegesis (T&T Clark Publishers, 2006), ISBN 0567030733 Identity stemmed from membership in a group more than individuality. According to Romans 9-11, supporters claim, Jewish election as the chosen people ceased with their national rejection of Jesus as Messiah. As a result of the new covenant, God's chosen people are now the corporate body of Christ, the church (sometimes called spiritual Israel - see also Covenant theology). Pastor and theologian Dr. Brian Abasciano claims "What Paul says about Jews, Gentiles, and Christians, whether of their place in God’s plan, or their election, or their salvation, or how they should think or behave, he says from a corporate perspective which views the group as primary and those he speaks about as embedded in the group. These individuals act as members of the group to which they belong, and what happens to them happens by virtue of their membership in the group."

These scholars also maintain that Jesus was the only human ever elected and that individuals must be "in Christ" (Eph 1:3-4) through faith to be part of the elect. Joseph Dongell, professor at Asbury Theological Seminary, states "the most conscipuous feature of Ephesians 1:3-2:10 is the phrase 'in Christ', which occurs twelve times in Ephesians 1:3-4 alone...this means that Jesus Christ himself is the chosen one, the predestined one. Whenever one is incorporated into him by grace through faith, one comes to share in Jesus' special status as chosen of God."Dongell, Joseph and Walls, Jerry Why I am Not a Calvinist, 76 Markus Barth illustrates the inter-connectedness: "Election in Christ must be understood as the election of God's people. Only as members of that community do individuals share in the benefits of God's gracious choice."Barth, Markus Ephesians (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1974), 108

Comparison to other views

Understanding Arminianism is aided by understanding the theological alternatives - Pelagianism and Calvinism. Arminianism, like any major belief system, is frequently misunderstood both by critics and would-be supporters. Listed below are a few common misconceptions.

Common misconceptions

Comparison to Calvinism

Ever since Arminius and his followers revolted against Calvinism in the early 17th century, soteriology has been largely divided between Calvinism and Arminianism. On the conservative side of Calvinism is Hyper-Calvinism and on the liberal side of Arminianism is Pelagianism, but the overwhelming majority of Protestant, evangelical pastors and theologians hold to one of these two systems or somewhere in between.

Similarities

Differences

Comparison to Pelagianism

Further information: Semi-Pelagianism, History of Calvinist-Arminian Debate
Pelagius was a British monk and opponent of Augustine of Hippo and Jerome in the early 5th Century AD. When he arrived in Christian Rome from Britain, Pelagius was appalled at the lack of holiness he found. Pelagius preached justification through faith alone, but also believed salvation was finished through good works and moral uprightness. Furthermore, Pelagius completely denied the double predestination and irresistible grace affirmed by Augustine #redirect . Several of his students - notably Caelestius - went further than their teacher and rejected justification by faith.

Through the influence of Augustine and Jerome, the teachings of Pelagius and Caelestius were rejected by the Papacy as heretical. Historically Pelagianism has come to represent any system that denies original sin, holds that by nature humans are capable of good, and maintains morality and works are part of the equation that yields salvation. Semi-Pelagianism is a variation on the original more akin to Pelagius' own thought - that justification is through faith, but that Adam's original sin was merely a bad example, humans can naturally seek God, and salvation is completed through works. Both systems reject a Calvinist understanding of predestination.

Many critics of Arminianism, both historically and currently, claim that Arminianism condones, accepts, or even explicitly supports Pelagianism of either variety. Arminius referred to Pelagianism as "the grand falsehood" and stated that he "must confess that I detest, from my heart, the consequences [of that theology]."Arminius Writings, II:219ff (the entire treatise occupies pages 196-452) David Pawson, a British pastor/theologian, decries this association as "libelous" when attributed to Arminius' or Wesley's doctrine.Pawson Once Saved, Always Saved?, 106 Indeed most Arminians reject all accusations of Pelagianism; nonetheless, partially due to Calvinist opponents,Pawson 97-98, 106 Picirilli Grace, Faith, Free Will, 6ff the two terms remain intertwined in popular usage. Listed below are similarities and contrasts between Arminianism and Pelagianism.

Similarities: Both systems reject doctrines of Calvinistic predestination and irresistible grace. Both systems accept the Biblical importance of works, morality, and striving to become more holy.
Differences: Arminianism maintains original sin, total depravity, substitutionary atonement, and salvation through faith alone. Arminianism maintains that works and holiness, while important, have no determining effect on salvation at any point in the process.

See also

Doctrine People, History, Denominations Opposing Views

Further reading

Supporting

Opposing

Notes

History – (see History of Calvinist-Arminian Debate for additional notes
Current Landscape – Footnotes 1-4
Classical Arminianism – Footnotes 5-17
Wesleyan Arminianism – Footnotes 18-23
Open Theism – Footnotes 24-28
Corporate Election – Footnotes 28-32
Common Misconceptions – Footnotes 33-40
Comparison to Calvinism – Footnotes 41
Comparison to Pelagianism – Footnotes 42-45

External links

 

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

Search Titles
0123456789
ABCDEFGHIJ
KLMNOPQRST
UVWXYZ?

E-mail this article to:

Personal Message: