Berkouwer emphasized the importance of the doctrine of election - "if we
take seriously the conviction that election lies ... at the heart of
the church, we find ourselves at the centre of the church's faith when
qwe focus on the question of election" (A Half Century of Theology, p.
79). He also discerned the harmful effects of a deterministic doctrine
of election - "this doctrine has been all but comforting ... an offence,
with no real liberating and tension-relieving power ... a decision that
was extremely difficult to rhyme with a gospel of love comforting to
the heart" (A Half Century of Theology, p. 79).
In this post, I will draw comparisons between Arminius and Berkouwer. * Bangs points out that the historical situation in Holland was not a simple one - Calvinism coming in, Arminius nearly ruining it and the Synod of Dort restoring it: “The earliest Dutch Reformed leaders don’t seem to be Calvinists at all. They rise out of the soil, here and there, nurtured by the old Dutch biblical piety, not seized by dogmatic insights, but steadily pressing toward a purified life of faith according to Scripture” (p. 21). This emphasis is similar to Berkouwer’s insistence that election is not a special gnosis for the theological elite. Rather, it is a confession of faith, arising from the hearts of those who have come to know the grace of God ( Divine Election (DE), p. 216). * Bangs observes that Arminius’ theological method is “practical and through faith”: “For the Theology which belongs to this world, is practical and through faith: Theoretical Theology belongs to the o...
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