Was John Bunyan a calvinist?

[JJonas]

Hello!

I have a question for calvinists:

Recently I read a lot of puritan books and biographies and heard that all puritans were calvinists. That should apply to John Bunyan too, as stated by Banner of Truth: “Bunyan was a warm-hearted, committed, thoroughly and truly evangelical Calvinist” (source: https://banneroftruth.org/us/resour...uction-to-john-bunyans-the-pilgrims-progress/).

However when I read his book “The pilgrim's progress”, I didn't discover any calvinist beliefs there. On the contrary, I found examples that I cannot bring together with the “perseverance of the saints” and the “limited atonement” doctrines:

* As Christian was at the house of the Interpreter, he saw things that should encourage and warn him for his further pilgrimage. One of the things was a man in an “Iron cage of Despair”, because as he said: “I have crucified him [Jesus] to myself afresh” (Heb 6.6). I guess that a calvinist would say, this man was never saved. However, why should “this man's Misery” be “an everlasting Caution” to Christian, as barely he left the house of the Interpreter, he got saved at the encounter with the Cross?

* Why should Christian be in a great distress at the prospect of not being received at the Celestial City unless he finds his Pass that he lost on the hill of Difficulty?

* In the Dungeon, as Christian was contemplating suicide, why did Hopeful warn him that it would cause him to go to Hell “for no murderer has Eternal Life”?

So, how could Bunyan be possibly calvinist and warn of the possiblity to lose salvation? Or did he believed a weaker form of calvinism?

Kind regards
Jonas

 

[Whatever]

Here is a different view.

All We Do Is Succeed: The Story of John Bunyan’s ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’

During John Bunyan’s twelve years in jail, he wrote a book that would become, for two centuries, the best-selling book written in the English language.

www.desiringgod.org

I will quote some of it: It is a lot longer at the url.

Calvinism in Delightful Colors​

The genius of Bunyan’s book, along with its immediate popularity, owes much to the writer’s sudden fall “into an allegory.” As an allegory, Pilgrim’s Progress operates on two levels. On one level, the book is a storehouse of Puritan theology — “the Westminster Confession of Faith with people in it,” as someone once said. On another level, however, it is an enthralling adventure story — a journey of life and death from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City. The poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge would later write, “I could not have believed beforehand that Calvinism could be painted in such exquisitely delightful colors” (Life, Books, and Influence, 166).

Those who read Pilgrim’s Progress find theology coming to them in dungeons and caves, in sword fights and fairs, in honest friends and two-faced flatterers. Bunyan does not merely tell us we must renounce all for Christ’s sake; he shows us Christian fleeing his neighbors and family, fingers in his ears, crying, “Life! life! eternal life!” (Pilgrim’s Progress, 14). Bunyan does not simply instruct us about our spiritual conflict; he makes us stand in the Valley of Humiliation with a “foul fiend . . . hideous to behold” striding toward us (66). Bunyan does not just warn us of the subtlety of temptation; he gives us sore feet on a rocky path, and then reveals a smooth road “on the other side of the fence” (129) — more comfortable on the feet, but the straightest way to a giant named Despair.

The cast of characters in Pilgrim’s Progress reminds us that the path to the Celestial City is narrow — so narrow that only a few find it, while scores fall by the wayside. Here we meet Timorous, who flees backward at the sight of lions; Mr. Hold-the-world, who falls into Demas’s cave; Talkative, whose religion lives only in his tongue; Ignorance, who seeks entrance to the city by his own merits; and a host of others who, for one reason or another, do not endure to the end.

And herein lies the drama of the story. Bunyan, a staunch believer in the doctrine of the saints’ perseverance, nevertheless refused to take that perseverance for granted. As long as we are on the path, we are “not yet out of the gun-shot of the devil” (101). Between here and our home, many enemies lie along the way. Nevertheless, let every pilgrim take courage: “you have all power in heaven and earth on your side” (101). If grace has brought us to the path, grace will guard our every step.

 

[JJonas]

Thank you very much for pointing to the article!

“I could not have believed beforehand that Calvinism could be painted in such exquisitely delightful colors”

I am apparently too ignorant of Calvinism because I don't have a clue where Calvinism is to be found in the book and the author of the article doesn't give clue! It is indeed true, that he made an interpretration of the story (“All We Do Is Succeed”) that connects with the doctrine of the saints’ perseverance, but an arminian could just as, if not more(!), legitimately make an interpretation that connects with their views on the security in Christ!

On one level, the book is a storehouse of Puritan theology — “the Westminster Confession of Faith with people in it,”

I don't know this confession of faith in details but I believe that the book must have represented a subset of this confession of faith that can be agreed by many non-calvinists.

Bunyan, a staunch believer in the doctrine of the saints’ perseverance, nevertheless refused to take that perseverance for granted.

I cannot make sense of this phrase! Isn't the doctrine of the saints’ perseverance about taking that perseverance for granted? Whether Bunyan is a staunch believer in the saints’ perseverance, I cannot judge. What I can say is that I don't see a trace of this doctrine in his book!

 

[JJonas]

Would the calvanists here accept the following challenge: Read “The Pilgrim's Progress”, then explain how it expresses the calvinistic doctrines of grace (TULIP)?

Charles Spurgeon, calling this book “the Bible in another shape”, used to read it once a year, so it will definitively be a good read for you!

 

[Whatever]

Isn't the doctrine of the saints’ perseverance about taking that perseverance for granted?

We never take any of God's promises for granted.

CHAPTER 17
Of the Perseverance of the Saints​

1. They, whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually called, and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.

2. This perseverance of the saints depends not upon their own free will, but upon the immutability of the decree of election, flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father; upon the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ, the abiding of the Spirit, and of the seed of God within them, and the nature of the covenant of grace: from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility thereof.

3. Nevertheless, they may, through the temptations of Satan and of the world, the prevalency of corruption remaining in them, and the neglect of the means of their preservation, fall into grievous sins; and, for a time, continue therein: whereby they incur God’s displeasure, and grieve his Holy Spirit, come to be deprived of some measure of their graces and comforts, have their hearts hardened, and their consciences wounded; hurt and scandalize others, and bring temporal judgments upon themselves.
============================================
Larger Catechism
Q. 79. May not true believers, by reason of their imperfections, and the many temptations and sins they are overtaken with, fall away from the state of grace?
A. True believers, by reason of the unchangeable love of God, and his decree and covenant to give them perseverance, their inseparable union with Christ, his continual intercession for them, and the Spirit and seed of God abiding in them, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

 

[JJonas]

I don't see anything about potentially losing salvation in the text. I read in point 3 about bringing temporal, not eternal judgments upon self. It's like what happened to David with the story with Batscheba. It was a succession of wrong decisions, starting with enjoying laziness in his palast instead of going to war with his men. After being confronted with his sins, David repented but hat to suffer a great deal of temporal jugdments until the end of his life! Nevertheless he persevered in faith until the end.

In short, point 3 of the text doesn't nullify point 1, namely that the saints “can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved”. Not granted is the absence of temporal judgments, granted is OTOH the absence of an eternal judgment. I however see a different message in the Pilgrim's Progess.

 

[JJonas]

After 1.5 year later, I believe my question to be resolved, as I meanwhile learnt a little more about Calvinism (from reading books from the Puritans and from Spurgeon), so that I conclude that John Bunyan could certainly be calvinist and still write his Pilgrim’s Progress story as he did.

As I understand: on the one hand a calvinist believes, that if there is real grace working in the heart of someone, then he has real faith and he will persevere to the end; indeed: what Jesus began in his heart, he will finish it, as he is the “the founder and perfecter of our faith” (Heb 12:1). Such a person can find comfort in the assurance of his salvation. However, a calvinist will also warn not to presume too quickly to be saved, as “the heart is deceitful above all things” (Jer. 17:9): the faith of every professing christian will be tested someday, to show if it is genuine or not. Therefore, when Christian lost his Pass or when he did contemplate suicide and doubts where raised in himself or in one of his companions that he may not be received in the Celestial City depending on what would happen next, it is because his faith was tested right at these moments: if his faith is the result of the grace of Jesus working in his heart, then it will pass all of such tests, as it proved right in the story. Maybe that was what Whatever wanted to express with the text im bold which didn't make sense to me at the time?

Then, concerning the man in an “Iron cage of Despair”, I also read sometime ago a calvinist perspective on the solemn warnings in Heb 6 and 10; I think it was from Spurgeon, but John Bunyan may share the same perspective as well. Here is it to the best of my remembering: It is clear from these texts and their context that these solemn warnings are addressed to a group of people that include real believers. These solemn warnings will cause a godly fear in all real christians that they may not commit such a terrible sin. A real believer will indeed persevere to the end; however God saw it fit, to use both the consolation of the assurance of salvation and the godly fear caused by these solemn warnings as different means contributing to make the believers persevere to the end.

Such reasonings are however absent from the story of Bunyan. He convincingly depicts in many places how the grace of God works to deliver Christian from many perils, and even from any thoughts of going back, to lead him safely to the Celestial City; but in other parts of the story, solemn warnings are expressed to show that Christian should not take his perseverance for granted. However, John Bunyan made no attempts to explain how conflicting doctrines in apparence relate to another. Had he made so, then would his Calvinism have been apparent in his story. But he didn't try to explain the mystery, so what is left is the plain biblical doctrines “in Delightful Colors”, the language that every real christian should understand and love, whether calvinist or not. It is no wonder to me that this book was so much read and in so many languages translated.

I believe that when every real christian will do the same as John Bunyan did, to have a godly fear before the Word of God and to put it first and their particular school of thoughts second, then there would hardly be any division in the Church of Jesus Christ. We could very well disagree with the calvinistic explanation of Heb 6 and 10 above, but the godly fear here expressed, not to violate the Word of God when it challenges one's school of thoughts, but to let it speak plainly in all its force is something we can all learn from! Once I heard Mike Winger say that he also believes that once saved, we are always saved, but that he doesn't honestly know, how to conciliate that with the solemn warnings such as in Heb 6 and 10. How many times have you heard such an honest response? For my part, I don't know how many times I have heard twisted interpretations of these Bible passages from preachers that shared about the same doctrinal view on the eternal security of salvation, but I still can remember 4 or 5 of them that have nothing in common, save the obvious goal to silence the Word of God there. Isn't it a bit puzzling that people sharing the same beliefs on the matter came to such different interpretations of a text that relate to their common beliefs? But if the unsaid goal with any particular interpretation is to put the Word of God out of the way, does it really matter if this is done with interpration A rather than B or C?

 

[Fastfredy0]

Was John Bunyan a calvinist?​

Per ChatGPT
Yes, John Bunyan was a Calvinist. He is best known for writing The Pilgrim's Progress, but his theological views were strongly influenced by Calvinism. Bunyan adhered to Reformed theology, emphasizing the doctrines of grace, the sovereignty of God, and the total depravity of humanity. His views were in line with the Puritan tradition, which was heavily shaped by Calvinist thought. Bunyan was also a member of the Baptist denomination, which held to believer's baptism and was aligned with many of the tenets of Calvinist doctrine.