Question: What impact did the Calvinist doctrine have on Dutch society?
There is a powerful teaching abounding in Christendom, that all of us are "PREDESTINED" to be in one destination or another after death; often loosely termed "Heaven or Hell". This is based on the teachings of various Groups since the Reformation, which has an approx. date of AD 1530. Some purists state that the exact date is AD 1505 and linked to England's Henry 8th with some justification. The result of Henry's resistance to Rome was the Church of England (C of E). Leaving aside the internal political struggle in England, by those trying to restore The Roman Church, many Church leaders were not content that the C of E was sufficiently radical in its separation from Roman Church's Doctrines.
Calvin himself refused to dogmatically conclude what many of his fellows and students readily accepted. But, what Calvin formally refused to confirm was embodied eventually in the Articles of the Synod of Dort (AD 1618-19). This definition holds that “Christ died only for the elect (chosen)”. What this means in effect is that only some people are “elected” to be saved, which to the writers does not seem to conform to the whole of Scripture, and especially to the New Testament! It is however ironic that Calvin is now chained to that definition, in what became known as the “Calvin Secondary Form", but was in fact under the force of Beza! Calvin is however on record as stating before his death that “election is related to the Person and Work of Christ”; which all true Christians will agree with as Christ Jesus is the "elect" of God; and we as His Body are therefore also "elect" (see: Isa. 42:1 and Rom. 8:33).
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