John Piper tweeted of this book, “When this kind of critique and warning come from within a movement, it is a sign of health.”

Greg Dutcher. Killing Calvinism: How to Destroy a Perfectly Good Theology from the Inside. Adelphi, MD: Cruciform, 2012. 111 pp.

Sam Storms compares it to medicine: “Many Calvinists will find reading this book to be a painful experience. But medicine is like that.”

Thabiti Anyabwile calls it convicting: “This book blew me away! Greg Dutcher skillfully diagnoses how I kill the very truth I love by my hypocrisy, pride, anger, and judgmental attitude.”

8 Excerpts (one from each chapter):

1. Who praises a windshield? . . . I am concerned that many Calvinists today do little more than celebrate how wonderfully clear their theological windshield is. But like a windshield, Reformed theology is not an end in itself. (p. 14)
2. [M]any Christians simply assume that learning more and more about the Bible and theology—Reformed theology in particular—is the same thing as growing as a disciple. It isn’t. (p. 24)
3. “Cage-Stage Calvinists” . . . . overly zealous Calvinists who perhaps ought to caged up for a while so they can’t do any harm. (p. 37)
4. If we modern-day Calvinists were known for our zeal in sharing the gospel with the lost, we would not even need to mention these heroes of history. (p. 51)
5. C. S. Lewis had, at best, an elusive relationship with evangelical Christianity, never mind Calvinism! Yet many (including me) find enough good in his writings to commend him to others. Isn’t this proof enough that we instinctively know we can learn from people in other theological traditions? (p. 64)
6. Another way to tidy up the Bible’s loose ends is to unnecessarily qualify the passages that may seem to go against Calvinism. (p. 73)
7. [I]n no way am I suggesting that Calvinism logically leads to pride. . . . But our hearts can take any good thing—food, sex, money, even really good theology—and use it as an opportunity to indulge our sinful desires. . . . Calvinism actually lived out can never lead to pride. (pp. 81, 89)
8. What if we all stopped mocking other believers who disagree with Calvinism? What would happen if we simply said, “Tell me more about that. I really want to understand where you’re coming from. I know how much you love the Lord, and I respect your struggle. Let’s talk about it.” Imagine if the first words that came to mind when people thought of Calvinists were “gentle” and “empathetic” instead of “scholarly,” “argumentative,” and “arrogant.” (p. 99)