Preterite (was Re: OK 2b Luddite?)

[Steve Maas]

P.s use of preterite is not a first. The OED lists as a meaning of preterite 
"One who is passed over or not elected by God." There's only one citation, 
to the May 1864 _Fraser's Magazine_ (You gotta love it -- "The reprobates 
who are damned because they were always meant to be damned, and the 
preterites who are damned because they were never meant to be saved.")

The OED, again, lists as a meaning (really, two closely-related meanings) of 
preterition "The passing over of the non-elect; non-election to salvation."  
The first citation is to the indispensable _Anatomy of Melancholy_ (Burton, 
1621; III, iv, II, iii), "Our indiscreet pastors .. speak so much of 
election, predestination, reprobation _ab aeterno_, subtraction of grace, 
preterition, voluntary permission, &c."

Paul Mackin
>Pynchon appropriated the grammatical and general term "preterite"
>meaning past or past tense to apply to the poor and wretched of the
>earth, by analogy with those who are passed over, not Elected for
>Salvation, under the theological doctrine of Preterition.

Joseph Tracy
>I sort of deduced something like that but am confused, because despite a
>pretty good familiarity with theological language, I am un familiar with
>the term Preterition. I know the term perdition, meaning lost, but it's a
>different root word. Is Preterition a Calvinist term? any more info on the
>history?

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