Ancient Christian Witness

"I think a difference can be demonstrated. In short,
Calvinists of the era were more likely to support the institution slavery, and
Arminians of the era were more likely to support abolitionism. For example
(Calvinists) Edwards and Whitfield both supported slavery, while
(non-Calvinists) Wesley, Asbury, Wilberforce, and Finney all advocated
abolishing slavery.There were some notable exceptions to the examples above -
John Newton (author of "Amazing Grace") was a Calvinist and also an
abolitionist. And over time many Calvinists joined the abolitionist movement. In
fact Jonathan Edwards Jr fought against slavery. However, it is noteworthy that
many of "trail blazing" abolitionists were from Non-Calvinist backgrounds, and
argued against slavery using Arminian theological concepts.When one looks at the
two theological systems, this makes sense. Calvinists focus on the sovereignty
of God. Part of that focus is a belief that the world is the way it is because
God wants it that way. Thus on the issue of slavery a Calvinist might reasonably
argue that slavery is ordained by God and gives Him glory."