SGM Case Dismissed: Cross Made Bigger
As the blogosphere’s newly appointed “rabid anti-Calvinist,” I figured I would weigh in on the dismissal of the SGM lawsuit and live up to my new name by blaming this vile injustice on Calvinism.
It’s not a huge stretch; after all, the former primary defendants are Calvinists, and even in light of the horrific accusations, CJ Mahaney continues to be supported by the Calvinist community at large via speaking engagements, and silence. I understand that Kevin DeYoung, who has been silent on the issue, was quick to announce the dismissal on Twitter. The case also exemplifies the hilarious notion that these are men of the Word. The Bible states that accusations against an elder should only be heard by two or three witnesses; in this case, there were eleven, and on the record. Yet, NO Calvinist anywhere will take note of the accusations. Besides, the Bible states clearly that elders are to be beyond reproach, and CJ is hardly that.
The contemporary Calvinist resurgence movement known as New Calvinism has been getting massive press on its spiritual abuse for about ten years now. How bad is it? There are now two organizations formed for the express purpose of keeping Reformed churches out of court, and paid for by the sheep through donations! I will make this as simple as possible by once again commenting on a popular Neo-Calvinist illustration, published by them—not me:
Click on to Enlarge
This illustration is Calvinist epistemology. This is a visual description of Calvin’s first sentence in 1.1.1 of the Calvin Institutes: wisdom is deducted by knowledge of God and man; i.e., the top and bottom trajectories. That makes the cross bigger. That’s a good thing, right? In Luther’s epistemology, this illustration is known as the Theology of the Cross or the Cross Story as opposed to the glory story. Any possible contribution of good by us makes the cross smaller. That’s a bad thing, right?
Now think about this epistemology as set against these horrific abuses. Do I really have to do the math on this? How are people with this worldview going to look at the subject of justice? If we deserve justice, our trajectory goes up and the cross gets smaller. What about the victims? If they were totally innocent in the situation the trajectory again goes up and the cross gets smaller. What about any pure outrage concerning the actions? Why outrage? That’s a deeper knowledge of how evil we are which makes the cross bigger.
And to a Calvinist, that’s a good thing.
paul
Paul's Passing Thoughts 
Reblogged this on Clearcreek Chapel Watch.
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“Rabid”? And here I thought you had all your shots.
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Andy,
No, I haven’t had any shots.
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Don’t despair our Heavenly Father knows all about what happened. And didn’t He say, “Vengeance is mine!” ?
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Paul, Christianity Today had a misleading title saying the lawsuit was dismissed. It has now been corrected. Most of the case was dismissed – 2 plaintiffs were not because of their age and when they reported. This is why we need an overhaul of the nation’s Statute of Limitations laws. It’s ridiculous to leave criminals on the streets because victims finally mustered enough courage to report and file a lawsuit.
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Julie Anne,
So, it’s still on in Maryland? SAME case, minus 9 plaintiffs?
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Yes, Paul, the lawsuit is filed in MD, and it’s all part of the same case. My understanding is that the 2 plaintiffs who have not been dismissed live in VA, so that’s another hurdle for this MD case.
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Julie Anne,
Hurdle? In what way? Is the case still open in Maryland or does their attorney have to appeal?
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I believe the case with the 2 remaining is still open and the attorney will appeal the others. Again, that is my understanding based on the limited information that has been sent out.
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Oops – by hurdle I mean that it complicates matters that the 2 remaining plaintiffs live in VA and the case was filed in MD. The 2 states may differ on Statute of Limitations laws.
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Julie Anne,
Thanks Julie. We will be watching for updates.
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Paul, I just found this new Courier-Journal article by Peter Smith which has me puzzled because it is worded differently from the original WJLA article regarding the two plaintiffs. I’m not sure where Peter got his info. I’ve sent Atty. Susan Burke an e-mail to ask for clarification.
http://www.courier-journal.com/comments/article/20130518/NEWS01/305180046/Lawsuit-alleging-sexual-cover-up-Sovereign-Grace-Ministries-dismissed
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Thanks Julie, I am really confused about the SoL thing because it is a civil case and not criminal.
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Paul, I got this response: “The case remains pending for two plaintiffs against Maryland defendants.”
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Julie Anne,
Wow, so much for media accuracy! OK, this is good news–keep us posted!
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They ought to drop the “knowledge” nonsense and just admit what they really mean. Here’s the real Calvinist diagram:
God’s holiness ————————————————————————————-
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ | | |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ —– —– ————–
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ | | |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ | |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ | |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ |
The more we Calvinists behave in a totally deprave manner \ |
Your diagram makes it look like they think the cross grows from both top and bottom; where in reality the Calvinists think it grows from the bottom only. In fact, they probably think it shrinks a bit from the top but makes it for it by growing twice or three times as much on the bottom as they sin harder and harder.
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grrr. stupid wordpress erased the spaces and messed up my diagram. 😦 All fixed 🙂
God’s.holiness.————————————————————————————-
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner.\……|…….|…………..|
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner..\…—–…—–……..———-
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner…\….|…….|…………..|
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner….\………..|…………..|
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner…..\……….|…………..|
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner……\……………………|……..
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner…….\…………………..|
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner…….\…………………..|
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner……..\………………….|
The.more.we.Calvinists.behave.in.a.totally.deprave.manner………\…………………|
That’s what the Calvinists really believe.
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