- "...somehow or other most evangelical Christian young people manage to latch onto...a picture of God (as a doting grandfather) and fail entirely to plumb the riches of either the Bible or Christian theology to deepen their understanding of themselves and God. So many of the brightest and best become vaguely aware that something is missing in their spiritual upbringing, and when they hear the message of Calvinism, they latch onto it as their lifeboat from watery, culturally accommodated spirituality. Who can blame them?" (page 17) In the end, Dr. Olson shows that the "lifeboat" of Calvinism is full of holes.
One should note that Dr. Olson is fair and thorough in his treatment of Calvinism and its emphasis on preserving the "glory of God" at all costs. He lets us hear from Calvin and from other historical (including contemporary) adherents of this theological "system." But he is ruthless in his expectation that they handle scripture correctly and that they maintain logical consistency. On multiple fronts, he exposes their inability to do either/both.
Why should we care? Why bother reading this? I suggest that his depiction (as quoted above) of the failure of our "pop religion/spirituality" and the renewed fascination with this system of theological thought should cause us to take note of it and filter it for truth. If our "church kids" are being spoon fed a watered-down truth that, in the end, will leave them hungry, shouldn't we change the "food choice?" But, we cannot fall into the trap of believing that, just because a bunch of high profile people and preachers are Calvinists that we are safe in adopting it as our new (old) way of thinking. Remember, when it comes to truth, "close to being right" is, ultimately, "being wrong."
