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Martin Luther, pivotal figure of the sixteenth-century Reformation, continues to exercise a powerful influence in the affairs of the twentieth century, not just in the area of religion but also in the political sphere. The direction and desirability of that influence is a matter of dispute. J. M. Porter, a political scientist, here presents revealing selections from nine of Luther's more important writings, all excerpted from the American Edition of 'Luther's Works.' His texts suggest the complexity of the Reformer's thinking, its theological base, and the situational focus of his political utterances. Professor Porter also provides a helpful introduction in which he clarifies the meaning and implications of Luther's famous Òtwo kingdomsÓ theory, whereby the state is freed both from domination by the church and from the temptation to dominate the conscience of its citizens. Here are to be found generous excerpts from the seminal writings which shaped the Reformation and continue to influence the course of events in our time. They illustrate Luther's innovative ideas about the nature of temporal authority, political obligation and its limits, church-state relations, and political resistance, Luther's plain and often pungent words will be of interest to students of history, religion, political science, and ethics - to everyone concerned about the issues of freedom and authority, ideology and politics, violence and nonviolence, war and freedom.
Martin Luther (1483–1546) famously began the Reformation, a movement that shook Europe with religious schism and social upheaval. While his Ninety-Five Theses and other theological works have received centuries of scrutiny and recognition, his political writings have traditionally been dismissed as inconsistent or incoherent. God and Government focuses on Luther’s interpretations of theology and the Bible, the historical context of the Reformation, and a wide range of writings that have been misread or misappropriated. Re-contextualizing and clarifying Luther’s political ideas, Jarrett Carty contends that the political writings are best understood through Luther’s “two kingdoms” teaching, in which human beings are at once subjects of a spiritual inner kingdom, and another temporal outer kingdom. Focusing on Luther’s interpretations of theology and the Bible, the historical context of the Reformation, and a wide range of writings that have been misread or ignored, Carty traces how Luther applied political theories to the most difficult challenges of the Reformation, such as the Peasants’ War of 1525 and the Protestant resistance against the Holy Roman Empire, as well as social changes and educational reforms. The book further compares Luther’s political thought to that of Protestant and Catholic political reformers of the sixteenth century. Intersecting scholarship from political theory, religious studies, history, and theology, God and Government offers a comprehensive look at Martin Luther’s political thought across his career and writings.
Martin Luther and John Calvin were the principal 'magistral' Reformers of the sixteenth-century: they sought to enlist the cooperation of rulers in the work of reforming the Church. However, neither regarded the relationship between Reformed Christians and the secular authorities as comfortable or unproblematic. The two pieces translated here, Luther's On Secular Authority and Calvin's On Civil Government, constitute their most sustained attempts to find the proper balance between these two commitments. Despite their mutual respect, there were wide divergences between them. Luther's On Secular Authority would later be cited en bloc in favour of religious toleration, whereas Calvin envisaged secular authority as an agency for the compulsory establishment of the external conditions of Christian virtue and the suppression of dissent. The introduction, glossary, chronology and bibliography contained in this volume locate the texts in the broader context of the theology and political thinking of their authors.
A cast of distinguished contributors engage critically with Martin Luther King's understudied writings on labor and welfare rights, voting rights, racism, civil disobedience, nonviolence, economic inequality, poverty, love, just-war theory, virtue ethics, political theology, imperialism, nationalism, reparations, and social justice
Just war thinking and realism are commonly presumed to be in opposition. If realists are seen as war-mongering pragmatists, just war thinkers are seen as naïve at best and pacifistic at worst. Just war thought is imagined as speaking truth to power - forcing realist decision-makers to abide by moral limits governing the ends and means of the use of force. Realist Ethics argues that this oversimplification is not only wrong, but dangerous. Casting just war thought to be the alternative to realism makes just war thinking out to be what it is not - and cannot be: a mechanism for avoiding war. A careful examination of the evolution of just war thinking in the Christian, Islamic, and Hindu traditions shows that it is no stranger to pragmatic politics. From its origins, just war thought has not aimed to curtail violence, but rather to shape the morally imaginable uses of force, deeming some of them necessary and even obligatory. Morkevičius proposes here a radical recasting of the relationship between just war thinking and realism.
This book comprises essays that focus on a range of thinkers who challenge the boundaries of the just war tradition. The ethics of war scholarship has become a rigid and highly disciplined activity, closely associated with a very particular canon of thinkers. This volume moves beyond this by presenting thinkers not typically regarded as part of that canon but who have interesting and potentially important things to say about the ethics of war. The book presents 20 profile essays on an eclectic cast of heretics, humanists, and radicals, from ancient Greece to the twenty-first century, who lived through and theorized about violence. The book asks how ethics of war scholars might benefit from engaging with them. Some of these thinkers engage directly with—to augment or criticize—the just war tradition, while others contribute to military thinking across the ages, pushing the boundaries of what was acceptable in war. Many proffer alternative moral frameworks regarding the legitimacy of political violence. The present volume thus invites scholars to reconsider the ethics of war in a way that challenges the standard delineation between just war theory, realism, and pacifism and to reflect on how those positions might inform our own approach to these matters. This book will be of much interest to students of just war theory, ethics of war, war studies, and International Relations.
Religion, War, and Ethics is a collection of primary sources from the world's major religions on the ethics of war. Each chapter brings together annotated texts - scriptural, theological, ethical, and legal - from a variety of historical periods that reflect each tradition's response to perennial questions about the nature of war: when, if ever, is recourse to arms morally justifiable? What moral constraints should apply to military conduct? Can a lasting earthly peace be achieved? Are there sacred reasons for waging war, and special rewards for those who do the fighting? The religions covered include Sunni and Shiite Islam; Judaism; Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant Christianity; Theravada Buddhism; East Asian religious traditions (Confucianism, Shinto, Japanese and Korean Buddhism); Hinduism; and Sikhism. Each section is compiled by a specialist, recognized within his or her respective religious tradition, who has also written a commentary on the historical and textual context of the passages selected.
“A must-read and indispensable guide for those concerned with the bread-and-butter issues of church-and-state relations. . . .” – Peter C. Phan

“The breadth of historical development, the depth of theological and ethical analysis, and the clarity of thought and expression by Kenneth Himes make Christianity and the Political Order an excellent textbook.” – Charles Curran

Beyond electoral campaigns and government structures, the relationship between the political realm and Christianity has always involved the important questions of how we ought to live together, and how we should organize and govern our common life. As the author notes, politics—and the political choices we make—must be "guided by considerations of national and global justice and peace and, for Christians, by the teachings of Jesus," as interpreted by tradition.
Himes examines the relationship between Christianity and politics from the teachings of the Old and New Testaments through the patristic and medieval eras, and from the age of reform to the age of revolution, and throughout the twentieth century into the third millennium. He takes on questions of the role of the church in politics, responsible voting, concerns of globalization, and issues of human rights and war and peace.
With discussion questions and suggestions for further reading, Christianity and the Political Order is a timely and compelling review of the relationship between Christian faith and the political realm both past and present in a classroom-friendly text.