You telling me all about what Arminians believe, you tell me what we believe. I have no problem telling you, bit I shouldn't have to since you supposedly know what Arminians believe.
In 1654 Puritans, under Cromwell, were asked to come up with the simplest set of beliefs that would make true fellowship possible among evangelicals.
These Puritans, almost all Calvinists came up with 16 such points.
High Calvinist John Owen presided over the committee.
Not one of the 16 points involve the TULIP or the extent of the atonement or predestination.
I think the Calvinist theology, with all it's flaws, is well done and the best attempt to explain theology.
But I can say that an Arminian is a 100% equal brother in Christ with no qualifications needed.
They need not make any excuse.
Nor does anyone who has a combination of partial beliefs borrowed from each system or if they don't know what we're talking about.
It's fun to debate these issues on a debate forum but anyone who runs around in a church buttonholing people on these issues should be told to stop.
While I'm not a Calvinist or an Arminian I also see both as 100% brethren.
The issue is fun to debate as the differences Center around philosophical ideas rather than Scripture itself (both affirm a belief in the same Bible and both value Scripture while differing in interpretation).
It is fun to debate, but I suspect everybody knows the other will not be persuaded.
I suspect every believer will one day discover they held an understanding that was not quite perfect.
I also suspect Peter will tell me as I walk through the gate that he also knew Calvinism and Arminianism was wrong. :Biggrin
No, it is not Penal Substitution Theory but something a bit deeper.
I believe the Calvinistic (and Arminian) understanding of divine justice is flawed. If I believed otherwise I would be a Calvinist (it is, IMHO, the most consistent if their concept of justice were correct).
It. As a philosophy of justice I suppose it is not necessarily flawed, but I suggest it is worldly and different from what Scripture teaches concerning true justice. Other issues concerning the 16th Century idea of justice exists (for example, Calvin's articulation of "simple punishment", but I think even these issues arise out of misunderstanding exactly what is meant by "morality" in a divine sense (think of Javert's pursuit of Valjean).
I was an Arminian even though it never made sense. Free Will? What role does it play in your brand of Arminianism? It still ends up in supposed self-salvation.