Across families
Reformed Christianity (Calvinism) and Sunni Islam
Different families with 13 axes in close agreement — the sort of pairing a quiz weighting only the divine axes would never surface. Mean distance across all seventeen axes: 0.11 (0 would be identical).
God’s sovereignty pressed further than anywhere else in Christianity: election is unconditional and grace is irresistible, so nothing whatsoever on the human side earns the outcome. Worship is stripped to what scripture positively commands.
Absolute and undivided oneness, a transcendent God who is nonetheless nearer than the jugular vein, and a revealed text taken as dictated rather than authored. People are born sound and forgetful rather than fallen, which places C3 far from the Christian position despite everything the two share.
Where they agree
A1 Divine reality
Both sit at a divine reality certainly exists — a gap of 0.00.
B3 Institutional authority
Both sit at leaning clergy and tradition decide — a gap of 0.00.
C1 Survival of the self
Both sit at continues in some form — a gap of 0.00.
C2 Shape of time
Both sit at one life, then judgment — a gap of 0.00.
E2 Origin of the cosmos
Both sit at an intentional act — a gap of 0.00.
A3 Plurality
Both sit at strictly one — a gap of 0.01.
E1 Exclusivity
Both sit at one true path — a gap of 0.02.
B1 Source of truth
Both sit at revealed and fixed — a gap of 0.02.
A2 Personhood
Both sit at a personal being one can address — a gap of 0.04.
A4 Locus
Both sit at leaning wholly beyond the world — a gap of 0.07.
D3 The body
Both sit at leaning to be disciplined — a gap of 0.08.
E4 Standing of nature
Both sit at leaning creation, given for use and between creation, given for use and animate and itself sacred respectively — a gap of 0.10.
B2 Reading of sacred text
Both sit at leaning literal and binding and literal and binding respectively — a gap of 0.10.
Where they part company
C3 The human condition
Reformed Christianity (Calvinism): fallen and in need of rescue. Sunni Islam: between fallen and in need of rescue and ignorant but fundamentally sound. A gap of 0.53 on an axis running from “fallen and in need of rescue” to “ignorant but fundamentally sound”.
D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good
Reformed Christianity (Calvinism): given as grace. Sunni Islam: between given as grace and achieved by effort or insight. A gap of 0.43 on an axis running from “given as grace” to “achieved by effort or insight”.
D2 Centrality of ritual
Reformed Christianity (Calvinism): between essential and prescribed and optional or absent. Sunni Islam: essential and prescribed. A gap of 0.42 on an axis running from “essential and prescribed” to “optional or absent”.
All seventeen axes
| Axis | Reformed Christianity (Calvinism) | Sunni Islam | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 Divine reality | a divine reality certainly exists | a divine reality certainly exists | 0.00 |
| A2 Personhood | a personal being one can address | a personal being one can address | 0.04 |
| A3 Plurality | strictly one | strictly one | 0.01 |
| A4 Locus | leaning wholly beyond the world | leaning wholly beyond the world | 0.07 |
| B1 Source of truth | revealed and fixed | revealed and fixed | 0.02 |
| B2 Reading of sacred text | leaning literal and binding | literal and binding | 0.10 |
| B3 Institutional authority | leaning clergy and tradition decide | leaning clergy and tradition decide | 0.00 |
| C1 Survival of the self | continues in some form | continues in some form | 0.00 |
| C2 Shape of time | one life, then judgment | one life, then judgment | 0.00 |
| C3 The human condition | fallen and in need of rescue | between fallen and in need of rescue and ignorant but fundamentally sound | 0.53 |
| D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good | given as grace | between given as grace and achieved by effort or insight | 0.43 |
| D2 Centrality of ritual | between essential and prescribed and optional or absent | essential and prescribed | 0.42 |
| D3 The body | leaning to be disciplined | leaning to be disciplined | 0.08 |
| E1 Exclusivity | one true path | one true path | 0.02 |
| E2 Origin of the cosmos | an intentional act | an intentional act | 0.00 |
| E3 Locus of belonging | between a people, inherited and an individual choice | between a people, inherited and an individual choice | 0.13 |
| E4 Standing of nature | leaning creation, given for use | between creation, given for use and animate and itself sacred | 0.10 |
Positions for Reformed Christianity (Calvinism) rest principally on Westminster Confession of Faith (1646); for Sunni Islam, on Qur’an with the Sahih collections and classical Sunni fiqh. Per-cell sources are listed on each tradition’s own page.
The questionnaire places your answers on these same axes and ranks all 65 traditions by how closely they match. Take it.