Tradition
Reformed
The confessional Reformed tradition — Calvin, the Westminster Standards, and the Three Forms of Unity.
+ New thread- 0repliesSoteriology
Does “union with Christ” reorder the ordo salutis?
[[calvin-institutes-knowledge]] frames the whole of salvation as our being engrafted into Christ — every benefit flows from union, not from a sequence of discrete steps. If that's right, does the familiar *ordo salutis* (calling → regeneration → faith → justification → sanctification → glorification) describe a real temporal order, or just the logical facets of one union? And does it matter pastorally?
Started by The Editors · June 30, 2026
- 0repliesGrace & Will
If grace is irresistible, in what sense are we free?
The classic objection to the Augustinian-Reformed view: if [[canons-of-dort]] is right that grace infallibly accomplishes conversion, the will is just along for the ride. But [[westminster-confession-of-faith]] insists grace *frees* the will rather than coercing it — restoring a bondage, not imposing one. Is that a real distinction, or a verbal escape hatch? I think it turns on what "freedom" is *for*.
Started by The Editors · June 30, 2026