Presbyterians and Independents

June 29, 2011 By Peter Leithart

Like our interpretations of ancient rabbinic debates, our interpretations of church historical debates often deal with theological content abstracted from the political circumstances that actually gave rise to the content. In his classic The Puritan Origins of the American Self , Sacvan Bercovitch points out that debates between Presbyterians and Independents regarding free will were really about the question of England’s national destiny. Both sides used the “leading nationalist expositors of Revelation,” but they diverged on the “relation of human... Read more

No Establishment

June 29, 2011 By Peter Leithart

In his book, A Christian America , Robert Handy describes some of the debate concerning the First Amendment: “The religious question was given considerable attention during the debate over the First Amendment. Madison apparently would have liked to have the remaining establishments in the states eliminated, but the Senate refused to allow this, for those which remained in three New England states had their defenders. Some attempts were made in the course of the Senate debate to have the amendment... Read more

State-formation

June 28, 2011 By Peter Leithart

In 1500, Europe had five hundred independent political units. Four centuries later, it had twenty-something. How did this happen? According to Charles Tilley ( The Formation of National States in Western Europe ), this was the result of deliberate efforts at state-building. He writes, “state-makers only imposed their wills on the populace through centuries of ruthless effort. The effort too many forms: creating distinct staffs dependent on the crown and loyal to it; making those staffs (armies and bureaucrats alike)... Read more

Christianity and Politics

June 28, 2011 By Peter Leithart

Sheldon Wolin ( Politics and Vision: Continuity and Innovation in Western Political Thought ) lays great emphasis on the way Christianity “revitalized” political thought and life, yet he argues too that in the end the church failed to transform political ideas: “The supreme irony of this development was that it helped prepare the way for the emancipation of political theory from its servitude to theology. For although the categories of religion were becoming increasingly politicized, the reverse was not true... Read more

Eucharistic meditation

June 26, 2011 By Peter Leithart

Ecclesiastes 2:24-25: Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God. For who can eat, or who can have enjoyment, more than I? Vapor of vapors, Solomon writes. All is vapor. Wise man and fool both die; nothing lasts forever, no matter how carefully and skillfully built. Trying to control reality is like trying to sculpt... Read more

Exhortation

June 26, 2011 By Peter Leithart

We confess our sins every week, and we need to. But like anything, it can become a formality, so we need to remind ourselves regularly why we do it. Confession is exposure. Confession brings hidden sin into the open. We avoid real confession because confession brings shame. We’d rather keep our sins safely under wraps. We think we can manage. But hiding is deadly, and it is futile. Everything is laid bare before God. “There is nothing covered up that... Read more

Introspective America

June 25, 2011 By Peter Leithart

In a 1998 essay, “Is America an Experiment?” Wilfred McClay notes that, for all our supposed materialism and pragmaticism, Americans are “a remarkably introspective people,” with an “incorrigible” habit of trying to divine the meaning of our country. McClay lists a selection of options: “First, there is the Puritan idea of America as a probationary ‘errand into the wilderness’ and Americans as a people called to a mission of redemption and a life of the most rigorous self-examination. There are... Read more

Jezebel’s children

June 24, 2011 By Peter Leithart

According to Revelation 2, the false prophetess Jezebel has children, her disciples. And these too are going to suffer the judgment of Jesus. Jesus is going to “kill them with death” (apokteno en thanato). The doubling is for emphasis, and reminds us of the “dying you will die” of Genesis 2-3: They will surely die when Jesus comes to the church, like Yahweh coming into the garden in the Spirit of the day. The double death is also an anticipation... Read more

Jezebel’s children

June 24, 2011 By Peter Leithart

Letter to Thyatira

June 24, 2011 By Peter Leithart

The fourth of Jesus’ messages to the seven churches of Asia, to Thyatira, is arranged in a neat chiasm. A. Jesus the Son of God, v 18 B. Love, Faith, Service, Perseverance, v 19 C. Jezebel, vv 20 D. Tribulation for adulteresses, v 21-22 C’. Children with pestilence, v 23 B’. To the rest, vv 24-25 A’. Victors share Son’s authority, vv 26-29 (more…) Read more