February 23, 2005
 

Calvinism in the Las Vegas Airport

So I just finished this book last night. Honestly, the title alone sold me on the purchase. It is written by Richard Mouw who is the current president of Fuller Theological Seminary. As a Calvinist, Mouw, seeks not to defend or define Calvinism, but instead he seeks to speak to those who carry that particular name. His main goal is to encourage Calvinist to make their theology “travel well.” He begins by discussing a scene in a movie where a prostitute is talking to a Calvinist preacher in the (you guessed it) Las Vegas airport. When their discussion turns to spiritual matters, the preacher explains his faith using the common TULIP formula. Obviously, the prostitute doesn’t think to highly of this presentation and the conversation dissolves. With this as his launching pad, Mouw begins to encourage Calvinists to realize that, while the 5 points are great, they are really not the best way to express the Christian faith to someone on “the outside.” He backs this point up by looking at the first question from two catechisms of the Reformed faith (the Westminster Catechism and the Heidelberg Catechism). Mouw argues that, while both questions present the same essential truth, it is the Heidelberg confession that people can really understand and hold on to. While the premise of the book is excellent, I found that the content seemed to wander and at some point I had no idea where he was coming from or going. If you can get past the points where you say, “huh?” and dig down for the heart of the book, it would be worth the read (especially for you hardcore 5 point preachers). If you are one who gets caught up in every little detail, this one might drive you crazy.

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