www.ChristianContrarians. Blogspot.com

A blog about being honest in matters relating to our Christian Journey

Jack C. Getz 

Founder Christian Contrarians 

HAPPY INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONTRARIANS DAY - 2013!

Contrarian? 

Unfortunately, the word Contrarian conjures images of someone we don’t want to be around. You know the kind: they know everything and just love to correct what others say, as if they were the God-ordained arbiters of the truth. But that is not what I mean by contrarian. 

Those are just contrary people who exhibit little to no grace, don’t know the meaning of holding their peace, and usually spend holiday’s arguing politics or religion at the table until everyone in the room hates them, and possibly everyone else in the house. They have no time for sharing ideas, just pounding out the truth. They don’t understand how anyone could disagree with them, because they are correct. They are supremely proud, which means they compare and compete all the time, always assuming they are more insightful, informed and literate than others. AKA Stubborn, pig-headed, obnoxious. 

A Contrarian, on the other hand, is not contrary, but open to the ideas of others, as long as they make sense to them. Okay, there’s a touch of that pride thing here, but it’s motivation is not about making themselves look good, but in elevating the truth. Contrarians value truth more than anything and when they discover it, their must share it.

Contrarian!

A Contrarian is someone who discerns the incongruity of something which most others easily (blindly?) accept. They are not casual thinkers but feel compelled to present truth-based alternative views to the dogma of their day. They are often very nice folks, but they don’t mess around when it comes to the truth. They study before they speak,  and think before they talk. They are more comfortable with objective than subjective reasoning, but they are not crippled with a total disregard for some metaphysical experiences. 

Their worst nightmare is listening to a dogma-steeped majority parroting positions for which they did not fight.   As my brother says, “They spew what they have been told to spew” without thought of reading a book, or trying to learn why they believe what they believe. Their foundation is their historic teachings and their intellectual champions are people who agree with them, or teachers who told the what “WE believe.  Finally, and maybe the worst of all indictments, the masses of dogmatic thinkers use circular logic to prove their point. “The Bible is true because it says it’s true.” It may be true, but there are more reasons than that!

This post is not about celebrating the negative, but encouraging the positive. The true Contrarian doesn’t care about winning the argument, just presenting the truth, honestly, without fear of the labeling or judgement they incur. They ought not be rude or courteous, not haughty but humble, and not weak, but courageous and controversial. 

Who are these Contrarians? Will we recognize their names? The next part of their newsletter will list just a few. Not all are Christian Contrarians, but all were/are driven by truth before anything else. That alone differentiates them from tyrants and tin gods. Most of the famous Contrarians paid dearly for their stances.  These are the folks we honor today on this, the first INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN CONTRARIANS DAY 2013. 

But, please don’t get stuck in the past, there are many closet Contrariness among us today. As the first unanimously elected President of the ICCD Society, I call on all Contrarians (Christian or not) to use my blog to make yourself known. Coming out of the closet takes courage, but when you do, you will discover the freedom of being part of a family of honest people who think before they talk, and embrace before they judge. 

I will list a short list of Contrarians below, not all are Christians, but all are courageous people. In every case, they stood against the authority or opinion of their, paying some price for doing so.  But, for them, the reward of truth outweighed any personal consequences inflicted upon them for speaking it.

Please notice I am not listing contemporary Contrarians, although I have a few in mind. Unfortunately, they speak against the grain with courage today but it’s too soon to put them on my list.  Apparently, it’s only okay to name names only after they die! Being a Contrarian on my list does not mean I always subscribe to their doctrine, but I honor their courage in standing against the power of the day.  Enjoy today, think the truth, speak the truth and celebrate those who are courageous to stand against the tide. 

Abraham

Moses

Elijah/Elisha/Prophets
Queen Esther

Socrates

John The Baptist

Jesus

Paul

Galileo

 Martin Luther

Christopher Columbus

Charles Finney

Catherine Booth

Mark Twain

Diedrich Bonhoeffer

Martin Luther King Jr. 

Your name here ????

Guest Post : Three Reasons Why I Preach an Armenian Theology

October 25, 2013 By Roger E. Olson Leave a Comment

“Three Reasons Why I Preach An Arminian Theology” by T. E. Hanna (Guest Post)

I think it is fair to say that our contemporary Christian subculture is saturated in a Reformed theology.

This isn’t necessarily bad. Many of these voices hail from brilliant scholars whose knowledge and wisdom adds powerful depth and vibrancy to our understanding of God and scripture. D. A. Carson’s commentary on the New Testament use of the Hebrew Scriptures, for example, is always within reach when I dig through one of Paul’s epistles. The cultural reflections of The Gospel Coalition provide ready handles for grabbing hold of contemporary issues and thinking through them from a Christian perspective. Tim Challies has a powerful gift for breaking down complex theological ideas into easily accessible concepts. These voices add something of value to our modern Christian landscape.

At the same time, the sweeping move within Western Christianity to adopt a theological lens rooted in Calvinism means that other pieces of the puzzle — important pieces —are either left behind or left wanting.

As a pastor, I have found that proclaiming an Arminian theology to my congregation has become increasingly important amidst the growing influence of Reformed theology. Not only does Arminianism staunchly defend the character of a good and loving God, but it also retains the power of the Christian hope. In a world where hope is challenged by the repeated barrage of the suffering we see in the media, the beauty of the Christian message is sorely needed.

An Arminian understanding retains this hope, and it does so on three levels.

1. Hope For Our World

Rather than a marked selection of individuals chosen by God to one day leave earth behind and step into a heavenly kingdom, Arminianism presents a God whose kingdom is invading our world even as we speak. This is part of the glory of Christianity — that when Jesus arose from the waters of His baptism proclaiming that “the kingdom of God is at hand”, He meant what He said. Our world is a broken place, afflicted with the realities of suffering and pain, but the Spirit that hovered over the waters in Genesis 1 still broods over His creation. What we find is a hope for the present, a restoration that begins now, and a God who invites us into the midst of His work.

2. Hope For Our Communities

The Reformed doctrine of Unconditional Election paints a stark picture when faced with those who do not yet know Christ. If God chooses some for salvation and not others, the parallel implication is that He thus rejects some and not others. Hope languishes in the face of an unchanging God that has chosen to reject from salvation some of the very people we have come to love. An Arminian perspective addresses this, however, removing that rejection from God and placing it where it belongs: in the human heart. The beauty of this is that such a rejection is not yet final. While God is unchanging, we are not. God is still working, still extending His grace, still inviting our friends and family to respond to His love. This imparts to us a responsibility to make that love known, but it also fills us with hope in knowing that just as He wooed us, so is He wooing them. They, too, have the opportunity to respond to the grace that He so lovingly extends to all.

3. Hope For Ourselves

Perhaps the most beautiful aspect of Arminian theology is found in the broader concept of salvation. To us, salvation is so much more than those slated for heaven and those abandoned to hell. Instead, salvation is about life — abundant life — that begins here and extends forth into eternity. What we are being rescued from is not just eternal condemnation, but sin itself. Sin, left unchecked, will ultimately consume and destroy us. The beauty of grace, however, is that these chains are slowly being stripped from our soul. This is the image of sanctification to which we cling: that we are progressively being freed from those very things which rob us of our own humanity. Freedom does not wait until the kingdom of God is manifested in the eschaton. It begins now, transforming and shaping us, and leading us on into the eternity where our glorious hope shall finally be viewed in full.

This is why I preach an Arminian theology. It is not only because I hold it to be true, but because I believe it to be necessary. In an era where the objects of our hope are challenged on a daily basis, we need to be reminded that God is still here. He is still working. He is still restoring. He is still loving and extending His grace.

It is in his grace where our hope finds wings.

T E Hanna is the author of Raising Ephesus: Christian Hope for a Post-Christian Age, and he writes regularly on issues of faith and culture on his blog atOfDustAndKings.com.

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