Calvinism = Diabolism

My great and good friend, Jeff Duntemann, said in his Contrapositive Diary that he had received an email message:

"Put as simply as possible, the Christian message is this: God hates me because of something I didn't do, and if I don't say the magic words, 'Jesus Christ is my Lord and Saviour,' God will torture me in Hell forever. How can you possibly believe in crap like that?"

In the first place, none of that is Christian.

The Christian God does not hate either sinners or the world.
(1 John 4:8 -- He who does not love does not know God; for God is love. )

The Manichean/Gnostic Light and Dark demi-urges (ultimately derived from the Zoroastrian Ahura Mazda and Ahriman) do hate the world, and sinners. Neither loves his people, just as the Mohammedan Allah has no sons or daughters, only slaves.

The first of the notorious 5 Points of Calvinism (TULIP) is "Total Depravity" -- which teaches self-hate. It also teaches hate of others, because _THEY_ are Totally Depraved, too. Ultimately, it leads to hate of God -- for God made me and them this way.

Calvinism also teaches -- "Perseverance of the saints", the "P" in TULIP -- that the Calvinist is predestined to Heaven or Hell, and that "Once Saved, Always Saved". What this comes down to is an extended argument that:

1) I have no free will.
2) It's not my fault -- God made me that way.
3) It doesn't matter what I do -- good or bad -- I'm predestined anyway.

No free will, no responsiblity, and no moral standards -- only hate.

And who is the only figure in Christian symbology that promotes hate of self, others, and God?

Yup -- Old Scratch himself.

Therefore Calvinism is Diabolism.

I am aware that Calvinists of tender conscience (there were and are a few) have wrestled with this conundrum, and tried to find a solution -- with indifferent success. The real solution is to accept God's love and grace -- become Christians, not Manichean diabolists.

The idea that the Spirit is the only Good, and that all Matter and Flesh are Evil is Gnostic duality, not either Jewish or Christian. Judaism, beside being monumentally Monotheist is equally monumentally Unitive.

In the first chapter of the book of Genesis there are eight repetitions of "And God saw that it was good. ", after every act of Creation. Everything made by God -- including dirt and bodies -- is in its original nature good. The use we put it to, whilst exercising our free will, can be good or evil.

God loves his creation -- every bit of it -- and hates nothing. (John 3:16 -- For God so loved the world . . .)

As for saying: "Jesus Christ is my Lord and Saviour" and being automatically saved, Jesus himself had a few words: (Mark 7:21 -- Not every one who says to me, `Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.)

Being a "mouth Christian" -- reciting a magic spell, and compelling God to save you -- just doesn't cut it.

I takes work (and "works") to be a Christian -- it takes a change of heart (metanoia) -- it takes a radical acceptance of God's love, and a pouring out of that love to others. The mouth Christians and Sola Fide sorts are going to face Jesus in the Judgement, and he will ask them: (Luke 6:46) "Why do you call me `Lord, Lord,' and not do what I tell you?"

The very heart of the Christians message is: (Matt 22:37-40) "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets."

Tell me, O Calvinist, how you can love either God or your neighbor, when you hate yourself?

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Jeff goes on to say:

"Nonetheless, great huge swaths of the Christian world do believe this, even though it's a pretty concise statement of the Great Heresy, Manichaeism, which Augustine of Hippo injected into Christian Tradition."

Beg to differ, Jeff -- it's a "tiny, noisy swath". The 2006 World Almanac & Book of Facts says:

52.5% of all Christians are Roman Catholic (or in Communion with Rome)
10.4% of all Christians are Orthodox (Rome + Orthodoxy = almost 63%)
21.3% of all Christians admit to being Protestant
19.8% of all Christians say they aren't Protestant. (I disagree)

The Calvinist Fulminating Fundmentalists make up perhaps 2%, but make more noise that all the rest of us together.

Don't let the Manicheans take high ground!
Fight their lies with the Truth -- GOD IS LOVE!!!