Todd Billings on the New Calvinism
Dec.16, 2009 by
in
General
Todd Billings, professor of Reformed Theology at Western Theological Seminary, recently wrote an article explaining the New Calvinism for Christian Century. Prof. Billing, featured in the March/April 2009 issue of Modern Reformation, argues that a significant danger to the theological recovery sought by the New Calvinists is the less than accurate and inadequate way of equating Reformed theology (with its ecclesiology, especially) with the so-called Five Points of Calvinism.
Different authors in different places (including this place) have made this argument and Prof. Billings provides another compelling voice for this important conversation.
December 27th, 2009 at 6:20 pm
So does the book that the White Horse Inn advertises and is available from the Westminster Sem. CA on-line bookstore, Glory Road, fall into the same kind of criticism? I saw Baptist authors mentioned, and time and time again I have heard Reformed theologians say that they are also not Reformed. By the way I think that this is true, Baptist are not a part of the Reformed tradition.
December 31st, 2009 at 4:29 pm
Could it be that many are too concerned with the name “Reformed”? It seems like new-calvinists wear it as a badge of honor (and many times pride), even though they are not truly reformed, while the truly reformed get upset that these non-reformed people have hijacked their name.
Its true – I am not totally reformed. I do believe in reformed soteriology, but I am credobaptist. Therefore, I am not “Reformed”. But why do some people seem to get soooo huffy about the new Calvinists inappropriately using the name? Are we (all of us) too excited about the name Reformed? Do we boast more in the name Reformed than in the cross of Christ.
Sometimes I wonder.
April 20th, 2010 at 7:52 pm
just because u dont have a reformed church government dont make u not calvinistic.Johnathon edwards and the congregationalists were calvinistic in theology but not in church government