The freedom Calvinism says it preserves
Calvinism took away the freedom from man, but left it to God.
The contrast captures a dispute about the kind of freedom humans possess, but compresses the opposing position. The Westminster Confession, a major Reformed statement first printed in 1646, affirms both God's unchangeable decree and human willing without coercion. Chapter IX distinguishes the fallen person's inability to achieve saving good unaided from the will's natural liberty; grace restores willing for spiritual good. Chapter III.1 expressly denies that divine determination destroys creaturely liberty. Chapter V.3 also permits divine action beyond ordinary means, supporting Chesterton's point about God's freedom. These are the positions of the confession inspected in CCEL's online transcription, not a claim that every Calvinist formulation is identical. Westminster Confession, III.1, V.3, IX.1–5.
Chesterton treats freedom as a power endangered by determination; the confession treats divine determination and voluntary agency as compatible. Calling this simply the removal of human freedom therefore states his judgment on the Reformed account, rather than its own description of itself.
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