Are You Sure You're Reformed?

Many Christians today call themselves "Reformed", including many "Reformed Baptists" in my own denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention. But what does it mean to be Reformed?  The answer is not as simple as you may think.  

A woman called me to find out if our church would be a good fit for her family, and when I asked her what she was looking for she said "Reformed."  But as we continued to speak, I learned that she had no idea what it meant to be Reformed.  She just knew that some of her favorite YouTube preachers and podcasters called themselves Reformed, so she assumed that's what she needed to be to faithfully follow Jesus. But that's not the case. Over the centuries there have been many faithful and fruitful Christians who were not Reformed. 

Some equate Reformed with Calvinism, but not all Reformed denominations and churches would call themselves "Calvinists" (Olson).  Reformed theologian Donald McKim, the author of many books on Reformed theology, says that you don't have to be a Calvinist to be Reformed. "Not all Reformed Christians today subscribe to [the] 'Five Points of Calvinism' (McKim, Introducing the Reformed Faith, xiii)."  In fact, there are Arminians who call themselves "Reformed Arminians" even though they reject most of TULIP, such as Baptist theologian Matthew Pinson.  

Many Baptists and "Bible Church" Christians call themselves Reformed because of their devotion to Calvinism, but other Reformed Christians would deny them that label because they reject Covenant Theology and infant baptism.  The WCRC (World Communion of Reformed Churches), an ecumenical body of 214 denominations in 107 countries, does not include any Baptist denominations, while it does include the Remonstrant Brotherhood of the Netherlands, the oldest Arminian church in the world.  

A traditional approach to defining "Reformed" is that it includes those churches who confess the "three symbols of unity" -- the Heidelberg Catechism, the Belgic Confession, and the Canons of Dort.  This excludes Presbyterians because they adhere to the Westminster Confession of Faith, even though they call themselves Reformed and are Calvinists.  

Some might assume that being Reformed means that you are merely Protestant, but there are many Protestants who don't call themselves Reformed, such as Wesleyans, Lutherans, and many Baptists.  

Also, being Reformed doesn't necessarily mean that you follow the great reformers such as Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli. Lutherans reject the label of Reformed since, among other things, they reject the Calvinist doctrines of double predestination, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the saints.  Many Lutherans label all Protestants other than Lutherans as Reformed, and that includes Arminians (Olson).  

Some Pentecostals describe themselves as "Reformed Pentecostals," but this has nothing to do with their stance on Calvinism; it simply means they do not believe in John Wesley's doctrine of entire sanctification.  

Another way "Reformed" might be defined is that it describes those who affirm the Five Solas of the Reformation.  But that too is problematic, because there are many who affirm the Five Solas but also reject what some consider to be core tenets of Reformed theology (e.g., TULIP, or infant baptism).  

As you can see, it's not that easy to nail down what it means to be "Reformed."  One reason for this is that there is no governing body who has the authority to officially define the term.  Theologian Roger Olson points this out.  "... [T]here is no worldwide magisterium (formal authority) that has the power to decide who is and who is not Reformed or Calvinist.  Practically speaking, anyone can apply these labels to themselves in any way they want to and no one can do anything about it (except reject their claims) (Olson, Against Calvinism, 28)."  In a blog post, Olson adds that "Reformed" is difficult to define because it is a contested concept, and because it is indexical -- its meaning depends on context and who is using it (Olson, "You Might Be 'Reformed' If...").  

Does this mean that the label "Reformed" has no meaning? No, but maybe some people should stop calling themselves Reformed.  Historical theologian Roger Olson wrote, "Personally, I think it would 'unmuddy' the waters a lot if baptistic Calvinists would stop calling themselves Reformed.  [This would include Baptists and Bible Church folks who are Calvinists.] Those who belong to Reformed churches may and should continue to call themselves Reformed, but insofar as they are baptistic (ecclesiastically and in terms of the ordinances) they should call themselves merely Calvinists and not Reformed."  Even if you disagree with Olson, I think we should at least agree that you should not assume that people know what you mean when you use the label "Reformed", or that everyone agrees with your definition of the term, or that you are the final authority on what it means to be Reformed.