The Calvinist International
“Article 36 of the Belgic Confession Vindicated against Dr. Abraham Kuyper”. by P. J. Hoedemaker Ruben Alvarado (Translator) Pantocrator Press (2019) Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) rightly stands as a towering figure in late 19th and early 20th centuries. Moreover, he is known for key principles that have fashioned the nature of Reformed thought in Europe, […]
Peter Hitchens has written a rather remarkable essay on the difference between the religious persecution carried out by Queen Elizabeth I and that done by Bloody Mary. What’s more remarkable is that it was published by First Things. Mr. Hitchens’ essay attempts a number of things, but its most important point is that the character […]
In a truly bizarre thread on Twitter yesterday–the eve of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation–started by our own Steven Wedgeworth, a number of traditionalist Roman Catholics speculated as to whether it would be a good thing for the church to take up the cause of burning heretics at the stake again, even if the […]
I’m excited to announce a miniseries of essays between Prof. Thomas Pink of King’s College London and myself. Earlier this year, I posted two essays on Roman Catholicism and religious liberty (here and here). These were brought to the attention of Prof. Pink, and he and I began an email correspondence over the summer. Prof. […]
A little over a week ago, we began the argument that the disruption currently occurring within the Roman Catholic Church is an inevitable reverberation of the 20th century. A fundamental transformation then occurred, and the classic position on religious liberty and the rights of the human conscience was been replaced by a new teaching. We […]
Althusius’ two kingdoms doctrine, as outlined in chapter XXVIII of the his Politca methodice digestica, has further knock-on effects for his political science than what I discussed in my previous post. Immediately following the instructions about the civil magistrate and freedom of conscience, Althusius explains that the prudent ruler will ‘abstain from persecutions’ of sects which […]
In his Politca methodice digestica Johannes Althusius makes the following observation about the spiritual nature of faith, warning the civil magistrate not to assume control over what is solely God’s jurisdiction: A magistrate in whose realm the true worship of God does not thrive should take care that he not claim imperium over that area of the […]
In a 2012 essay, Dr. Thomas Pink of King’s College London both provocatively and persuasively argues that the Roman Catholic Church still retains the right to use coercive force against all persons who have come under its jurisdiction. He acknowledges that many Roman Catholics, including many of the clergy, find this idea highly offensive, and […]
R. Scott Clark of Westminster Seminary California has updated a post about the accusation of tyranny against Calvin and the “theocracy” of Geneva. But as Matthew Tuininga points out, even though valid there’s only so much that such contextualization and tu quoque can do. Thus, writes Tuininga, “I do think more needs to be said than […]