Christian morality is not ultimately instruction in how to make oneself a member of the Christian club. It is not a self-help program whose rules are adopted by a small set of people who wish to better themselves. Christian morals, rather, are simply moral teachings that agree with the natural design of the universe.
James Wilson and the Common Sense Theory of the Common Law
When Thomas Paine published Common Sense in 1776, his was not the only commonly held sense of the term “common sense.” Ironically, the term was already complicated at the American founding.
Distinguishing Before Denouncing: A Review of “Why Liberalism Failed”
Liberalism has failed. Or so confidently declares Patrick Deneen in his obviously named Why Liberalism Failed. Deneen offers one of the more useful and concise attacks on the often vaporously defined liberalism that has, according to Deneen, plagued modern societies for the last several hundred years. Deneen’s proof of liberalism’s failure is not that it failed to change society, but that liberal societies became exactly what they were supposed to be. The liberal state increasingly worked towards removing cultural and social institutions responsible for governing society’s consumer and sexual appetites. Few orthodox Christians dispute that these are woeful problems. And Deneen deserves praise for identifying the ills that plague modern society. The book’s weaknesses are anachronism, and imprecise and lethargic taxonomy.
The Great Commission and the Great Game
By Brian J. Auten I’ll begin by asserting that intelligence ethics is in the midst of its awkward teenage years. The speciality spent its schoolyard days in the post 9/11 and Second Iraq War debate over the morality of torture and enhanced interrogation,...
Protestant Ecclesiology Amidst Contemporary Political Theologies
By Jake Meador This article appeared in the 10th issue of Ad Fontes magazine. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the day that I actually began to understand some of what Reformed theology means on a day-to-day basis. I was a sophomore in college, living near campus...
How Do You Solve a Problem like Maria (and Mary, and Mary, and Elizabeth)? Part II
This article by Sean Morris appeared in the May issue of Ad Fontes magazine. To subscribe to receive full issues in your inbox, click here. How Do You Solve a Problem like Maria (and Mary, and Mary, and Elizabeth)? Part II by Sean G. Morris The first part of this...
Excerpt from “Jesus and Pacifism”: The Teachings of Christ
This article by Andrew Fulford appeared in the April issue of Ad Fontes magazine. This is an edited version of a section from the first title in a new series: the Davenant Guides. To subscribe to receive full issues in your inbox, click here. PART 4: THE...
“The First Fair Trial”: The Genealogy of the Separation of Church and State
What insight did R.L. Dabney have on the origins of American religious liberty?
“Covenant” and Polity in the Thought of the Early Reformers
This article by Simon P. Kennedy of the University of Queensland appeared in the February issue of our Ad Fontes magazine. To subscribe to receive full issues in your inbox, click here. The idea of “covenant” is prominent in Reformed political thought. Indeed, early...
Pragmatism and Principle: John Calvin and Female Government
Pragmatism and Principle: John Calvin and Female Government By David Talcott This is an article from the fifth issue of our journal Ad Fontes. Calvin’s views on women in government are not as notorious as John Knox’s. This is perhaps surprising given his strong,...