It is common for people who disagree with Calvinism and Reformed Theology to accuse those who believe in such things as being "Fatalistic." This is a major false accusation that results from people failing to understand what Calvinism really teaches in the first place. Calvinism teaches what is called "Determinism" and unfortunately many people get this term mixed up with "Fatalism" and use them interchangeably assuming that they mean the exact same thing. They do not mean the exact same thing and there is one major difference between the two.
One of the definitions of Fatalism is as follows: "The doctrine that all events are subject to fate or inevitable predestination and that man is ultimately unable to prevent inevitability." We must first note that fatalism deals specifically with "events." It does mention anything about human choices, actions, or human will. In other words, it is ignoring how things got to be the way they are. The "means" to the ends is completely ignored by fatalism.
Determinism states: "The philosophical doctrine that every state of affairs, including every human event, act, and decision is the inevitable consequence of antecedent states of affairs." If we pay close attention and compare these two definitions we understand that there are certainly similarities. More importantly it mentions that everything is determined and dependent upon previous affairs which have caused each event. It is important to understand these differences to see that Calvinism does not teach Fatalism, but instead teaches Determinism.
A good analogy to demonstrate the differences in these two terms more fully is to imagine that Tom, Dick and Jane are on a boat and Dick accidentally falls overboard. Jane is a fatalist, and therefore turns to Tom and says "If it is "fated" for him to live, he will live. We do not need to throw him a rope." Tom is a determinist, and he responds by saying "What if it is "fated" that we throw him a rope?" As you can see the fatalist ignores causes, effects, and the means to the ends. The determinist recognizes that it is not only events that are important but also that everything leading up to those events is just as important.
In summary, Calvinism teaches that God has determined everything that happens, including human choice and therefore leaves no room for the concept of human free will. Fatalism stresses the idea of human free will but still tries to believe in the idea that God has predetermined certain events. Fatalism teaches that God determines certain events but leaves everything in between up to chance. This is extremely illogical to say the least. Those who bash the doctrines of Calvinism should take a second look at what they themselves believe.
