Christian Realism

Was Abraham Kuyper a Christian Realist?

Abraham Kuyper unquestionably had his failures and his blind spots. But he also labored to find balanced and faithful Christian realist positions on international affairs. We would do well to imitate those principles today.

The Bible is Not Enough: Evangelical Thinking about Nuclear Weapons is Confused
The Bible is Not Enough: Evangelical Thinking about Nuclear Weapons is Confused

What does the Bible teach us about nuclear weapons treaties? Nothing. That’s right. Nothing. If one scours their Bibles, they will find not one single passage that tells us what God thinks about nuclear non-proliferation treaties.

Abraham Kuyper Among the Nations
Abraham Kuyper among the Nations

We have an introductory, if provisional, picture of anti-Revolutionary foreign policy and Abraham Kuyper’s platform coming into the highest political office in the Netherlands in the early twentieth century. How did this platform fair? What “necessary adjustments” (as Kuyper called them) did he need to make between his Calvinistic international theory and the actual work of foreign policy?

Why Christian Pragmatism Isn’t Realistic Enough

Simply being good in order to do good is not enough. That is true. But simply being skilled—to have what Machiavelli calls virtú (as opposed to virtue)—in order to do good is also not enough.

Ten Theses on Christian Realism: A Reply to Scott McKnight
Ten Theses on Christian Realism: A Reply to Scot McKnight

Scott McKnight recently posted a blog on Christian realism quoting long sections from Lee Camp’s new manifesto Scandalous Witness. Daniel Strand responds.

Soberness in Victory: A Reflection on V-E Day from 75 Years Ago

On May 8, 1945, the Allies accepted Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender. Shortly thereafter, Reinhold Niebuhr explained why the victors should be sober and humble.

Abraham Kuyper Overseas Manifesto
Abraham Kuyper’s Overseas Manifesto

While much has been made of Abraham Kuyper’s Calvinistic contributions to domestic political theory, very little (in English) has been said of his foreign policy.

Christian Realism and Fires that Won’t Go Away: A Book Review of William Brodrick A Whispered Name
Christian Realism and Fires that Won’t Go Away: A Review of William Brodrick’s A Whispered Name

William Brodrick’s “A Whispered Name” is a lyrical reflection on responsibility, judgment, grief, the elusiveness of justice, reconciliation, and human longing.

Reinhold Niebuhr and the Second World War

Beginning in 1940, Reinhold Niebuhr made the case for a sober, realistic, and morally grounded US involvement overseas, out of the central admission that whatever America’s own faults, a punctilious detachment from world affairs might very well result in the triumph of greater imbalances and injustices

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