I just finished reading a book by Alexander Renault Reconsidering Tulip: A Biblical, Philosophical, and Historical Response to the Reformed Doctrines of Predestination. I must admit the title interested me. Coming from a Reformed background and generally adhering to the doctrine of Predestination, I was curious to see how someone would try to compare and contrast these doctrines to Orthodox doctrines. In the end, I was pleasantly surprised.
The author, coming at predestination from a Presbyterian perspective, does an excellent job of working through each of the elements of TULIP (Total depravity, Unconditional election, Limited atonement, Irresistible grace, and Perseverance of the saints). Mr. Renault covers each element using the following structure: he provides a definition (courtesy of Theopedia, a Calvinist wiki site), then he provides various philosophical, biblical, and historical problems. The philosophical and biblical areas are fairly upfront. The historical section is comprised of quotes from Church fathers throughout history, but generally focused on the first to fourth centuries, which speak against the particular element. The majority of the book is spent working through Total depravity, Unconditional election, and Limited atonement. His sections on Irresistible grace and Perseverance of the saints, while shorter than the others, are not short-changed.
The result is a generally well reasoned, balanced, and thorough examination of the five elements of Tulip. I came out after reading this book with not only a better understanding of the history, philosophy, and theology of predestination, but also a better understanding of problems. Overall, the book is what I would call a fairly ‘easy’ read. It goes into detail in its’ descriptions, but the language is such that you don’t need a seminary degree to understand what he’s talking about.
I came out of a tradition that didn’t hold to the elements of Tulip exactly as Mr. Renault described them in the book, so some of the arguments (both for and against a particular predestinarian element) he put forth didn’t resonate with me as well as others. However, the overall themes and ideas were, in my opinion, accurately represented.
In the end, whether or not you hold to Tulip, the ‘doctrines of grace’, or a similar theology, you will be blessed by this book. You can purchase it online in both ebook and traditional format here.
Disclaimer: I did not receive this book for free, and was under no obligation to write this review.
