(Though of course using different terminology, the five main questions of doctrine in debate at Dordt were in this sequence.)
I’m not conducting any study; I’m just wondering because I’ve never seen the solution to this problem!
The abbreviation was originally reportedly used in 1932 in the well-known book The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination by Loraine Boettner, according to Ken Stewart in the comments below. Stewart doesn’t think Boettner came up with it, but he hasn’t been able to find any evidence of its use before.
The Points of Calvinism: Retrospect and Prospect, Scottish Bulletin of Evangelical Theology, 26. 2 (2008): 187–203, which Stewart rewrote into a chapter for his upcoming book, Ten Myths About Calvinism, contains more information on this (IVP, 2010).
Second update: Read the comments. The author recalls hearing it eight years earlier, in 1913, which is the date it has now been traced back to. Therefore, it dates at least to 1905. I’m going to claim that 1905 is the best date we have, with 1913 serving as the first recording in the historical record, barring someone from finding an earlier reference. Ched and Bart did a great job, as did Google Books.
Who came up with the moniker “tulip”?
Note that the AP European History test was revised for the 2015–2016 school year before this article was published. Explore the course framework here to see what is still in the Course and Exam Description.
Background:
As was previously established, the reformation movement of the 15th and 16th centuries gave rise to Calvinism. With his infamous “95 theses, which were essentially criticisms of the Catholic Church, Martin Luther set the ball rolling. This motivated numerous other theologians to reconsider the church’s corruption and hunt for religious alternatives. In a sense, Protestantism was born in this situation.
John Calvin, a well-known theologian, joined the movement as well. Luther and other Protestants and Calvin had a lot of similar beliefs, yet they also held some significant disagreements. The acronym “Tulip” became associated with his views. Although he did not explicitly state that these were his beliefs, Calvin did indeed come up with the acronym. The phrase was actually created by his adherents to describe their viewpoints.