Alana L. on how to recognize (and defeat) Calvinism (series intro)
Introduction
Here's a great new video from Alana L.: 5 Signs Your Loved One is Becoming a Calvinist
I've been wanting someone to make a video like this for awhile now - to help people recognize Calvinism when they hear it, to help them realize it's a big deal that they should take seriously and research, and to help them know why it's wrong and how it spreads.
Those who've studied against Calvinism know how very tricksy it is. But those who don't know anything about it, or how to recognize it, or how it takes over, or how it sounds like it's teaching one thing when it's really teaching something totally different, or how it twists or misinterprets Scripture... well, they are sitting ducks, fish in a barrel who become easy targets for a Calvinist pastor (especially a stealth Calvinist pastor) who slowly and strategically indoctrinates them into this twisted theology, before they ever see it coming, like boiling a frog in a pot. [Sounds like the beginning of a dumb joke: "So a duck, a fish, and a frog all walk into a church..."😁]
[Note: I am not judging the hearts of Calvinists. I think most garden-variety Calvinists in the congregation are good, well-meaning people trying to honor God as best they know how, as Calvinists have taught them. And I think most are true Christians, because most were Christian before they got bewitched by Calvinism. (Read this friendly "debate" between another non-Calvinist and myself about if Calvinism is a false gospel or the true gospel just warped.) But they are trapped in this bad theology and need help getting out of it, not condemnation for being in it. So my problem is not with them, but with the leaders, pastors, and theologians who are doing the trapping. But that being said, I am not saying that all Calvinist pastors are consciously and deliberately deceptive or intentionally trying to manipulate/gaslight/shame people into Calvinism. Some are, but not all. But while their intentions might be good (to spread what they truly think is Gospel Truth), it's still manipulative and deceptive, even if the pastor thinks he doesn't mean to be that way.]
People in my last church - which we left because of a Calvinist take-over - can't even seem to identify the pastor's theology as Calvinism (they're taught it's "just what the Bible teaches, right from Scripture, and it's a mystery that you can't fully understand so just accept what I tell you"), and so they don't think it's a big deal or something worth worrying about.
And they can't tell that Calvinism teaches something very different from the plain commonsense teachings of the Bible, because they've been strategically taught to view Scripture through Calvinist glasses (and taught to not examine it too closely or question it - because that would be questioning God), and so they become convinced that Calvinism is really in the Bible, when it's really not.
And so they can't even see that there's a problem that needs to be fixed.
And how in the world can we rescue people who are trapped in a twisted theology when they don't even realize that they're trapped, that it's twisted, and that they need to be rescued!?!
If I ever wondered before how "cults" get such a tight grip on people's minds so easily, I don't wonder anymore. I've seen it happen firsthand. [Here's our letter to our elders about the Calvinism in our church and "We left our church because of Calvinism (things my Calvinist pastor said)". And here's a post on how different Calvinism is from the plain, clear, commonsense understanding of the Bible: "Why is Calvinism so dangerous?".]
The average Christian has no idea that they need to be on alert for, and alarmed by, Calvinism and its tactics. They don't know that it spreads by deception, out-of-context verses, bad definitions, bad analogies/illustrations, false dichotomies, manipulation, gaslighting, thought-reform, strategic control of resources and leadership positions, and by flattering those who agree but shaming those who disagree, etc. [Here's my post on how Calvinism spreads: "The 9 Marks of a Calvinist Cult".]
And so they simply trust their Calvinist pastor and willingly ingest what he spoon-feeds them, convinced that they're being "good, intelligent, humble Christians who are honoring God and seeking unity in the church" - unlike those "bad, stupid, ignorant, divisive, troublemaking Christians who dishonor God, resist His truth, and steal His glory" when they question their Calvinist pastor and push back against his theology.
Alana herself learned the hard way what happens when you disagree with and push back against Calvinism. See her videos "In and Out of Calvinism: The Whole Story" and "Shunning in the Church/My story: where I've been and where I am now".
And, much to her shock and dismay, she even had high Calvinist John MacArthur demean her in a pubic interview - not to her face or by name, but if you know the story then you know he's talking about her (see Great Light Studios video "Leaving Calvinism after 19 years, with Alana L", at the 2:31 minute mark.). Here's what he said about her:
"You know I was looking at the internet the other day and some wistful girl said 'How I became a Calvinist and left Calvinism'... well, the sophomoric comment ["pretentious or juvenile," I looked it up] like that, from somebody who should keep her thoughts to herself because she has no idea what she's talking about, is to be measured against someone who for 50 years has taken every text of the Bible and put doctrine into that text and see if it survives. And I can say that it has." [Translation: "Don't listen to that ignorant, uneducated girl, but listen to me, a giant of the faith."]
[Prideful much, Johnny!?! It's like "No one questions ME! Don't you know who I am!?! Who is this tiny, stupid girl who comes out against me, a spiritual giant? Am I a dog that you come at me with sticks?"]
It's sad. It's sad to watch good Bereans who double-check what they're being taught against the Bible and who are willing to take the risk of speaking out and pushing back against bad theology being mocked, shamed, silenced, shunned, villainized, pushed out, fired, expelled, etc. by the Calvinist church (it's happening to a few wonderful friends of ours right now too, at the church we left in 2019, and all we can do is watch it happen while praying for them and giving them a supportive, listening ear)...
... while, at the same time, watching other good, well-meaning, humble Christians slowly slide into the powerful grip of smart, stealthy Calvinist pastors, without even realizing it - because they don't know what's happening, can't recognize it, and don't even know why it matters. And even more sad is that most of them won't realize it until it's too late, until they're either fully indoctrinated (and totally unable to understand the plain, simple, beautiful truths of Scripture anymore) or until their faith has been suffocated to death and their hearts destroyed.
Like these people:
From a Reddit post called "Calvinism is disgusting":
"As an ex-Christian who used to be a Calvinist, what alarmed me is that all the fears about satan applied to god... [Calvinists] ascribed so many characteristics to god that could be applied to satan that made them seem indistinguishable." (from 'deleted')
"I remember as I was leaving my faith, I thought 'If God exists, then he let my parents waste thousands on private Christian education, let me be baptized and study his word and be confirmed, let me have periods of doubt and repentance, all when he knew that I would be damned to hell.' Even when I was still a Christian, he knew that I was damned and he never helped me." (Uriah_Blacke)
"My parents used to say 'even the cutest baby is a dirty rotten sinner.' It was somewhat of a joke in our family, but also definitely what we all believed. I’m turning 30 this year and I still have trouble turning down the volume on this narrative about myself. It has led to issues in my friendships, with my partner, and now, with my parents... I have deconstructed to the [point] of agnosticism... This has crippled my emotional growth as an adult in ways..." (foreverlanding)
"The [Calvinist] concept of total depravity is so completely toxic. I'm still unlearning this as well. It does make me angry sometimes thinking about how absolutely f*cked up it is to teach children they are inherently awful just for being... The system is designed to make you feel like a POS [piece of sh*t] just for being a human. I'm 37 now and am agnostic after trying really hard to believe until about 2ish years ago. I feel more hopeful and free without the church." (eab1728)
"Agreed. Total Depravity isn't the "Good News" espoused in Reformed circles... Reformed doctrine never allowed me to truly accept my own self-worth; it robbed me of dignity and replaced it with constant, grating guilt. And it's utterly worthless in the face of real hardship... I am a universalist now, which couldn't be further from Reformed doctrine. And honestly, what a relief." (come_heroine)
"This is a screenshot from an email that I sent to my mom when I was 12 years old, simply titled "distressed". [In the email, the 12-year-old is telling the parent that she (I'll just assume it's a 'she' for now) is distressed because she's praying and reading the Bible, but nothing is happening. She's looking for assurance that she's saved, one of the elect. And the father replies that she should keep asking God to show her the way, that only God can save her, that only God can awaken her dead spirit and make her alive, that she can't do anything to save herself. So essentially, it's "Do something about it, but you can't do anything about it, and so wait to see if God convinces you that you're one of the elect." So confusing. So biblically off-track. This girl is doing her part, reaching for God, crying out for God, and yet the father basically tells her that she can't do that, that all she can do is wait to see what God does, and that if she's not elect then there's nothing she can do about it and there's no hope for her. No wonder the kid is distressed!] I'm so angry that I was taught that I was completely bad, simply by being human, and I deserved to be tortured by the Creator for all of eternity, AND I COULD DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. All I could do was pray to God and hope that he had mercy on such a miserable, worthless, depraved wretch such as twelve-year-old me. I lived with a phobia of hell until the cage of my mind opened when I was 22, and I could finally think for the first time in my life..." (why-homo-sapien)
"A few years ago I was wondering why my self-esteem was so crap and then suddenly realised that the people who taught me to hate myself were my parents, through the medium of calvinism :)" (pktechboi)
From the Reddit post (with a few minor spelling and punctuation corrections) called I have posted on another Group as well. I NEED SOMEONE TO EXPLAIN Calvinism to me because what I understand of it is scaring me!!! : r/Christians (reddit.com): "Okay.... so I have just watched a sermon from Paul Washer (which I thought was one of the most amazing sermons I have ever seen). That man has a fire for Christ that cannot be extinguished. But for the first time, I found out what Calvinism is. And I am scared to death!!! So if I am not elected by God to be saved, I will not be saved??? No matter how much time I devoted to prayer, how many times I have been broken by his feet have, how many hours I spent learning scripture, how many days I "thought" I was talking to my best friend. It was all just a lie??? I come in heaven just to realize I was never elected??? And get thrown into hell because the day I was born I was already doomed from the beginning??? And my whole faith is just one big hoax???"(Dingus_bellator1027)
[That's some serious struggling going on right there! And Calvinism can offer no real hope, no real help, no real comfort other than "wait until you die to see if you won the salvation lottery or not".)
From the Reddit post "Verily verily I say unto thee, f*ck this sh*t!" which starts with this quote from Kevin DeYoung (which can also be found in his article on limited atonement): "Jesus did not die for every sinner, but for His own people. The Good Shepherd gives His life not for the goats, but for the sheep":
"This was a huge factor in my own deconversion. Even if this was an actual literal proven fact, there's no way I could love and worship a being who did/does this." (from justalapforcats)
"Welp, that takes a lot of pressure off of me as an atheist. I won't worry about whatever Jesus did, because he didn't die for me anyways." (from chucklesthegrumpy)
Miss_an100 responds to that with "...When I realized our own judicial system treats us better than this sadistic god, I was out. 30 years of my life. Sure, there were good memories. But the weight of it all sure took a toll on me eventually. Thankful I can breath a bit more easy now not worrying if I have committed the unpardonable sin. I’m certain I have 100x over. ;) ..."
If you are raising kids in a Calvinist church, take all of this very seriously. Because this could be them someday: "I have recently discovered the doctrine of election and I believe that I am not elect. I don't have any spiritual fruit and I hate God with all my heart. My question is, at this point is it right to want to die? Might as well go to hell now instead of later. I do not want to kill myself (I never will hopefully) but I cant see a reason to live when my end destiny will be the same." (from "deleted") (Found in Election and Suicide : r/Calvinism (reddit.com))
(And I can only hope that the last one is a sick joke.)
Yeah, that's pretty much Calvinism in a nutshell, minus the colorful language (or not, because even that colorful language was "ordained" by Calvi-god for his glory).
When they're taught that "Calvinism IS the gospel, Calvinism IS Christianity," how could they know any better? They don't know that they can - that they should - throw out the Calvinism, but keep God, Jesus, the Bible, the gospel. And so in their desperate efforts to escape the destructive Calvinist doctrines, they throw it all out. Sad. So sad. They'd rather have no God than the Calvinist god.
This is why it's so important to speak out against Calvinism, to help people know that Calvi-god is not the God of the Bible, that Calvinism is NOT the gospel! Because Calvinists are constantly claiming it is. And so if we don't research it and expose it and push back against it - if we are lazy, apathetic, or compromising/tolerant about it - the more Calvinism will spread, the more churches it will take over, and the more people it will destroy.
I agree with Kevin Thompson at Beyond the Fundamentals who said something like this: If we're nice and tolerant and "can't we just be unified and not make a big deal about this" about Calvinism, the Calvinists will just use our niceness against us, to push their doctrines even more. They don't want to be unified with those who don't see things their way; they want to convert them to Calvinism. And nothing less will do. Kevin calls Calvinism a cancer in the Church. And you can't politely tolerate a cancer - because its main job is to grow and spread and take over. And so the cancer needs to be cut out, not tolerated.
In fact, I think Calvinism is one of the biggest threats to the evangelical church today, destroying the church from the inside out... because compared to other more obviously-wrong theologies that we know to reject right away, Calvinism appears to be (presents itself as) so godly, intelligent, God-glorifying, and on-track, so "we have a high view of Scripture," so "aren't we so humble to accept such difficult teachings." And this tricks and traps many people before they even realize it.
I can't remember where I read it, but I once heard that discernment isn't being able to tell right from wrong, but it's being able to tell right from almost right. Because "almost right" is more deceptive, more effective at tricking people because it's harder to discern. Where have all the good Bereans gone!?!
And so thank you, Alana, for making a video like this! It's much needed and appreciated, and I hope you do more like it.
“Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what [their pastor] said was true.” (Acts 17:11, slightly modified😉)
Okay, so now, in this series - in the next posts - I'm gonna highlight Alana's points about how to recognize when a friend is becoming a Calvinist (watch her video first though; it's good, concise, and full of information, and she gets even more in-depth about getting out of Calvinism in this 54-minute video: "5 Years out of CALVINISM"), and I'll add a bunch of additional notes of my own.
I'll try to make a super-short version of this post after the series, a "just give us the bottom-line" one. But for now, I'll just publish it as a series. [The posts in this series will be added to the "Alana L." label as they get published.]
