ooooooh boy!

so, it's just been firmly established that my new roomies and i have some *ahem* differing theological views. a recent conversation went something like this:

A, casually [we'd been talking about a related issue]: so, what do you both think about predestination?

me, proudly: i'm a zero point calvinist. er, one point, sort of, but i believe it for different reasons than calvinists.

L, carefully: i believe in predestination, and that people can't be saved unless God's planned it for them.

A, sheepishly: i'm a five point calvinist. yeah, definitely.



i'm trying not to get too excited here. but, it's been a while since i had a good predestination conversation, probably because i've run out of friends who want to talk with me about it. which is a bad sign. i truly have been rethinking some things...attitude, tactics, motives...because i really enjoy talking about calvinism and all that, but i think it's mostly because i've had a decent amount of practice and can generally anticipate where the discussion is going. but clearly, i've turned the issue of man's will and God's sovereignty into more of a game -- a simple yet complex puzzle that some people don't think is solvable -- rather than a crucial theological study whose consequences reach deep into the way we see our world, ourselves, our salvation, and our God.

still, it's going to be interesting and, dare i say it, even...fun? should i try to not have as much fun as i do? or is it good that i enjoy thinking about it? because there are a lot of people who, sadly, just don't think about this much, either because it confuses them or because they simply don't think it's that important.

more information can be found in an earlier post on predestination/free will.