Cross and Gavel Resources

On Civil Government

2010-07-26T22:27:00.003-04:00

John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, On Civil Government, IV.XX (John T. McNeill ed., Ford Lewis Battles trans., Westminster Press 1960) (1559).

Book 4, Chapter 20 explores Calvin’s thoughts on who and what Civil Government is, or ought to be, and the interaction between it and the Church. For example, Calvin addresses topics like lawsuits among Christians, and the obligation to submit to civil authority.

Note that Institutes is available online here.

The Lord’s calling a basis of our way of life

2010-07-26T22:19:00.005-04:00

John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, The Lord’s calling a basis of our way of life, III.X.6 (John T. McNeill ed., Ford Lewis Battles trans., Westminster Press 1960) (1559).

Chapter X, section 6 is a classic formulation of the Protestant idea of “calling.” Note that Institutes is available online here.

Kingdoms in Conflict

2010-07-26T22:14:00.003-04:00

Charles Colson, Kingdoms in Conflict (1987).

From the publisher:
This bestseller tackles the question: “What does the Bible say, and what do learn from history about the proper relationship between faith and culture?”

Note: This book was updated as God and Government (2007) for a post-911 audience.

We Hold These Truths: Catholic Reflections on the American Proposition

2010-07-26T22:05:00.004-04:00

John Courtney Murray, We Hold These Truths: Catholic Reflections on the American Proposition (Sheed and Ward 1960).

From the publisher: Murray's...disarmingly lucid and accessible prose has caused his book to be widely cited and celebrated, but it still is not well understood. He wanted to show how distinctively Catholic thought could illuminate the authentic American idea of liberty. . . . We Hold These Truths at least offers the hope that Catholic natural-law thinking can bring together the religious devotion and moral concerns of the evangelicals with the devotion to reason and concern for scientific truth of the secular humanists. It offers the hope of getting Americans really arguing again, of holding again the truth that they are capable of engaging in the dialogue about the human good that is the foundation of any civil and civilized moral and political life.

Note: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. published a new edition of this book in 2005.

A House Divided? Anabaptist and Lutheran Perspectives on the Sword

2010-07-26T21:56:00.002-04:00

David M. Smolin, A House Divided? Anabaptist and Lutheran Perspectives on the Sword, 47 J. Legal Educ. 28 (1997).

From Smolin’s introduction:
“Christian law teachers deal with one question that would be no different if we taught history or sociology: what does Jerusalem (our religious faith) have to do with Athens (the academy)? But, because we are law teachers, there is an additional question we must answer: what does Jerusalem have to do with Rome (the state)? . . . We are children of the notion that an entire civilization--including the sword, including government, including force and war--can be Christian, even though we worship a Lord who declined a political kingdom and went to die on the cross. Many theological traditions have wrestled with this dilemma; I will emphasize here the Lutheran and Anabaptist perspectives, and then compare them to Roman Catholic and Calvinistic approaches."

Subsidiarity: The “Other” Ground for Limited Government

2010-07-26T21:44:00.004-04:00

Christopher Wolfe, Subsidiarity: The “Other” Ground for Limited Government, in Catholicism, Liberalism, and Communitarianism: The Catholic Intellectual Tradition and the Moral Foundations of Democracy 81-96 (Grasso, Bradley, and Hunt eds., 1995).

From the review written by Charles J. Reid, Jr. in the Journal of Law and Religion, Vol. 16, No. 2 (2001), pp. 793-796 (review on p. 794): Christopher Wolfe, in Subsidiarity: The ‘Other’ Ground of Limited Government, questions the soundness of Lockean/libertarian notions of limited government and proposes the Catholic idea of subsidiarity—the principle that centralized power should not take from smaller associations those tasks that can be performed by the smaller groups—can provide a more satisfactory grounding for theories of governmental restraint.

Available from JSTOR.

Beyond Good Intentions: A Biblical View of Politics

2010-07-26T21:41:00.002-04:00

Doug Bandow, Beyond Good Intentions: A Biblical View of Politics (1988).

From the back cover: Beyond Good Intentions brings a wealth of knowledge and insight to the question of how Christianity and politics interrelate. Author Doug Bandow believes the key lies in the correct use of the Bible in addressing public policy issues. Too often Christians either ignore or misapply the Bible in the political arena. Beyond Good Intentions is a much-needed corrective which takes the Bible seriously yet avoids proof-texting and questionable interpretive methods.

Caesar's Coin Revisited: Christians and the Limits of Government

2010-07-26T21:27:00.003-04:00

Michael Cromartie, ed., Caesar's Coin Revisited: Christians and the Limits of Government (1996).

From Publishers Weekly: “These papers from a conference on the obligation of the Christian citizen to the state explore a variety of responses to Jesus' injunction to "render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's." For example, University of Chicago professor of ethics Jean Bethke Elshtain examines the question of the emperor's sovereignty and the state's power through a reading of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's reaction to Hilter's state. The Cato Institute's Doug Bandow argues for the necessity of a limited government. Each chapter contains responses from all the conference participants with the end result being that Caesar's Coin constructs a meaningful dialogue among thinkers at all points along theological and political continuums."

Note: Al Mohler has also written an interesting essay addressing a particular angle of this topic.

Natural Law and Public Reason

2010-07-26T21:22:00.003-04:00

Robert George and Christopher Wolfe eds., Natural Law and Public Reason (Georgetown University Press 2000).

From the publisher: "Public reason" is one of the central concepts in modern liberal political theory. As articulated by John Rawls, it presents a way to overcome the difficulties created by intractable differences among citizens' religious and moral beliefs by strictly confining the place of such convictions in the public sphere. Identifying this conception as a key point of conflict, this book presents a debate among contemporary natural law and liberal political theorists on the definition and validity of the idea of public reason. Its distinguished contributors examine the consequences of interpreting public reason more broadly as "right reason," according to natural law theory, versus understanding it in the narrower sense in which Rawls intended. They test public reason by examining its implications for current issues, confronting the questions of abortion and slavery and matters relating to citizenship. This energetic exchange advances our understanding of both Rawls's contribution to political philosophy and the lasting relevance of natural law. It provides new insights into crucial issues facing society today as it points to new ways of thinking about political theory and practice.

Making Men Moral: Civil Liberties and Public Morality

2010-07-26T21:14:00.003-04:00

Robert P. George, Making Men Moral: Civil Liberties and Public Morality (1995).

From the publisher: Contemporary liberal thinkers commonly suppose that there is something in principle unjust about the legal prohibition of putatively victimless crimes. Here Robert P. George defends the traditional justification of morals legislation against criticisms advanced by leading liberal theorists. He argues that such legislation can play a legitimate role in maintaining a moral environment conducive to virtue and inhospitable to at least some forms of vice. Among the liberal critics of morals legislation whose views George considers are Ronald Dworkin, Jeremy Waldron, David A.J. Richards, and Joseph Raz. He also considers the influential modern justification for morals legislation offered by Patrick Devlin as an alternative to the traditional approach. George closes with a sketch of a "pluralistic perfectionist" theory of civil liberties and public morality, showing that it is fully compatible with a defense of morals legislation. Making Men Moral will interest legal scholars and political theorists as well as theologians and philosophers focusing on questions of social justice and political morality.

Savior or Servant? Putting Government in its Place

2010-07-26T21:09:00.004-04:00

David W. Hall, Savior or Servant? Putting Government in its Place (1996).

From Amazon: David Hall is a rare breed -- a pastor, scholar, activist, and popular communicator. His electronic journal Premise and a wide array of online sources are treasure troves of information, and his several books on church polity are substantial. With Savior or Servant? he turns his eye upon the realm of the state -- and with no less remarkable results. The book may well be the single best volume of Christian thinking on the issue of the increasingly intrusive state... Examining virtually every passage of scripture as well as every historical and theological movement dealing with the proper place and role of civil government, it is encyclopedic in scope. -- George Grant, World, May 11/18, 1996. P. 22.

The Law of the Covenant: An Exposition of Exodus 21-23

2010-07-26T20:58:00.004-04:00

James B. Jordan, The Law of the Covenant: An Exposition of Exodus 21-23 (1984).

From the inside flap: How relevant are the laws of the Old Testament for today? God said that Israel was to be a light to the nations (Hebrews 42:6). That someday all nations would come to Jerusalem to receive the Law (Micah 4:2). That in His Law, "every transgression and disobedience receives a just recompense" (Hebrews 2:2). That all peoples would marvel at the wisdom and justice of Israel's laws (Deuteronomy 4:6-8). Yet, with the change from the Old to the New Covenant, there are clearly changes in the Law, "for when the priesthood changes, there must also take place a change of law" (Hebrews 7:12). How, then, are we to approach the many laws found in the Old Testament? Some of them are obviously superior to our modern law today (such as restitution instead of imprisonment for theft.) Some of them have obviously been superseded in Christ (such as the sacrificial system). Some of them seem overly harsh (such as the death penalty for "cursing" parents). Some of them seem weird and strange (such as the prohibition on boiling a kid in its mother's milk). In this book, Mr. Jordan provides four introductory chapters of the nature of Biblical law, on the redemptive historical context in which the law was first written, and on the overall changes in the law system which the New Covenant brings. Then, moving to the concrete, Mr. Jordan provides the first truly in-depth commentary on the case laws of Exodus 21-23, the Book of the Covenant. The laws are taken up one at a time. In each case, the question is asked, "What did this law mean to the people of the Old Testament age?" Then the question is asked, "What relevance might this law have for the Christian faith today?" Finally, the question is asked, "How does this law shed light on the work of Jesus Christ, of whom all Scripture speaks? That is, how can we preach Christ from this law?" In his preface, Mr. Jordan states that he has not tried to say the last word on these chapters of Scripture, but that he has tried to say a first word, and to challenge the Church to look further into these verses to find the wisdom for today. No preacher and no student of the Word can afford to be without this study.

Note: This book, published by the Institute for Christian Economics, is a worth-while introduction to a theonomist view towards Exodus 21-23. One should be sure to read the Introduction by John M. Frame. Pages 93 – 130 address Criminal Law, and pages 131 – 144 address Property Law.
The book is available for download here, or here (PDF).

The City of God Meets Anabaptist Monasticism

2010-07-26T20:56:00.001-04:00

David M. Smolin, The City of God Meets Anabaptist Monasticism: Reflections on the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of Wisconsin v. Yoder, 25 Capital U. L. Rev. 841 (1996).

Some Religiously-Devout Justices, Civil Religion, and the Culture War

2010-07-26T20:43:00.001-04:00

Christopher Wolfe, Some Religiously-Devout Justices, Civil Religion, and the Culture War, 81 Marq. L. Rev. 427 (1998).

A Treatise on the Study of Law

2010-07-26T20:41:00.002-04:00

William Murray, Earl of Mansfield, A Treatise on the Study of Law (William S. Hein & Co. 1973) (1797).

The Gladsome Light of Jurisprudence

2010-07-26T20:32:00.007-04:00

Michael H. Hoeflich, The Gladsome Light of Jurisprudence: Learning the Law in England and the United States in the 18th and 19th Centuries (1988).

From the publisher: Jurist of the 18th and 19th centuries were often in disagreement as to the proper method of instructing students who wished to take up the practice of law. This volume distills the essential elements of the controversy over legal education and offers many articles and papers on the topic that are no longer available in print. A compilation of seventeen essays by influential legal scholars of the period, it presents arguments for and against the educations approaches that dominated English and American legal study for more than two centuries. Dean Hoeflich's introduction examines the historical and legal context that formed the background of the controversy. Many of the essays that follow are polemical contributions to the debate on the relative merits of apprenticeship and academic training--the methods of legal education that were commonly practiced. Some authors favored a pragmatic, non-elitist training, others recommended greater emphasis on systematization and method through the teaching of logic, moral philosophy, or Roman law. Still others proposed a blending of approaches or altogether new types of legal education--some of which were frankly utopian. Several essays focus on the need to develop American legal education independent of English models. Renowned jurists such as Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., and William Blackstone are represented, together with lesser known legal thinkers credited with substantial or original contributions to the field. The editor provides supplementary notes on the authors, a bibliography, and an index.

The Idea of a Christian College

2010-07-26T20:24:00.003-04:00

Arthur F. Holmes, The Idea of a Christian College (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publ’g Co. 1987) (1975).

From the publisher (regarding the 1987 edition): This revised edition of a classic text provides a concise case for the role of the Christian college and its distinctive mission and contribution. Holmes has extensively revised several chapters and included two new chapters: "Liberal Arts as Career Preparation" and "The Marks of an Educated Person."

The Ideal of a (Catholic) Law School

2010-07-26T20:22:00.001-04:00

Christopher Wolfe, The Ideal of a (Catholic) Law School, 78 Marq. L. Rev. 487 (1995).

A Lawyer’s Miscellany: Scriptural Resources for Christian Lawyers

2010-07-26T20:20:00.000-04:00

Joseph A. Allegretti, A Lawyer’s Miscellany: Scriptural Resources for Christian Lawyers, 26 Fordham Urb. L. J. 1183 (1999).

Can a Good Christian be a Good Lawyer?

2010-07-26T20:15:00.003-04:00

Can a Good Christian be a Good Lawyer?: Homilies, Witnesses, and Reflections (Thomas E. Baker & Timothy W. Floyd eds., 1998).

From the publisher: Law professors Thomas E. Baker and Timothy W. Floyd asked some of their legal colleagues to respond to this provocative question: “Can a good Christian be a good lawyer?” Here are twenty-one highly personal narratives that answer the question of how each writer tries, sometimes but not always successfully, to be both a good Christian and a good lawyer. How does a lawyer called to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ reconcile his or her faith with the secular calling to the legal profession? The editors did not set out to provide some kind of final resolution or unified consensus. Instead, they have compiled a remarkable collection of reflections by lawyers, judges, and academics who represent many different branches of Christianity. The reader is likely to find many role models to emulate and the inspiration to continue to fight the good fight in these accounts grounded in legal and Christian thought. Reading about these real-life ethical dilemmas, conflicting loyalties, and personal difficulties offers the reassurance that others have shared their ongoing struggle to rhyme their career with their faith. Although every lawyer will find Can a Good Christian Be a Good Lawyer? especially meaningful, these essays speak to all persons of faith who strive to practice their beliefs in their work.

Finding and Fulfilling the Central Purpose of Your Life

2010-07-26T20:08:00.005-04:00

Os Guinness, The Call: Finding and Fulfilling the Central Purpose of Your Life (Word 1998).

This book is divided into 26 chapters for easy use as a devotional guide.

From the publisher (1998 edition): Os Guinness has penned a classic reflective work on life's purpose. Far bigger than our jobs and accomplishments and higher than our wildest ideas of self-fulfillment, our calling does more than give purpose and meaning to our lives--it completes God's plan for us.

Note: An updated edition was published in 2003 that includes a workbook for individual or group study.

Mere Christianity

2010-07-26T20:05:00.000-04:00

C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (Macmillan Co. 1943).

A forceful and accessible discussion of Christian belief that has become one of the most popular introductions to Christianity and one of the most popular of Lewis's books. Uncovers common ground upon which all Christians can stand together. (From Harpers Collins Publishers).

The Abolition of Man

2010-07-26T20:02:00.002-04:00

C.S. Lewis, The Abolition of Man (London, Oxford University Press, H. Milford 1943).

From the back cover: In this graceful work, C. S. Lewis reflects on society and nature and the challenges of how best to educate our children. He eloquently argues that we need as a society to underpin reading and writing with lessons on morality and in the process both educate and re-educate ourselves. In the words of Walter Hooper, "If someone were to come to me and say that, with the exception of the Bible, everyone on earth was going to be required to read one and the same book, and then ask what it should be, I would with no hesitation say The Abolition of Man. It is the most perfectly reasoned defense of Natural Law (Morality) I have ever seen, or believe to exist. If any book is able to save us from future excesses of folly and evil, it is this book."

Roger Williams: The Church and the State

2010-07-26T19:44:00.003-04:00

Edmund Morgan, Roger Williams: The Church and the State (1967).

From the publisher: A classic of its kind, Edmund S. Morgan's Roger Williams skillfully depicts the intellectual life of the man who, after his expulsion in 1635 from the Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded what would become Rhode Island. As Morgan re-creates the evolution of Williams's thoughts on the nature of the church and the state, he captures with characteristic economy and precision the institutions that informed Williams's worldview, from the Protestant church in England to the Massachusetts government in the seventeenth century. In doing so, Morgan reveals the origins of a perennial—and heated—American debate, told through the ideas of one of the most brilliant polemicists on the subject, a man whose mind, as Morgan describes, "drove him to examine accepted ideas and carry them to unacceptable conclusions." Forty years after its first publication, Roger Williams remains essential reading for anyone interested in the church, the state, and the right relation of the two.

Can Man Live Without God?

2010-07-26T13:29:00.002-04:00

Ravi K. Zacharias, Can Man Live Without God? (1994).

From the publisher: In this brilliant and compelling defense of the Christian faith, Ravi Zacharias shows how affirming the reality of God's existence matters urgently in our everyday lives. According to Zacharias, how you answer the questions of God's existence will impact your relationship with others, your commitment to integrity, your attitude toward morality and your perception of truth.