Arminianism is a view of the atonement that is named, not for Armenia, but for the Dutch Protestant theologian Arminius. It was in response to Calvinism. Because Calvin’s views were already established when Arminius formulated his rebuttal, Calvinists attacked Arminianism as a heresy, even though both viewpoints are legitimately drawn from scripture and within the historic mainstream. The controversy has not ended: recently, a well-known preacher misrepresented Arminianism on television and portrayed it as a dangerous heresy. The Arminian position is as follows:
Salvation is conditional upon repentance and faith.
The atonement is universal; that is, Jesus died for everyone.
We are morally free. We must choose between good and evil, salvation and death; and we are held accountable for our choice. (That is, Jesus died for everyone, but only those who have faith are saved.)
The grace of God can be resisted. We can choose not to be saved. (Matthew 23:37)
There is danger of apostasy. While it is not possible to lose one’s salvation through commission of a sin or misplace it through oversight, it is possible to deliberately abandon it—or to put it in other words, you can’t fall from grace, but you can jump. (Hebrews 6:4-5)
Within the United States, most evangelical groups that are Wesleyan in theology or origin adhere to some form of Arminianism. Outside the United States, most evangelicals subscribe to some form of Arminianism. Arminianism is more compatible with eastern Orthodoxy than Calvinism is.