Eric Patterson

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.

Eric Patterson contends in Just American Wars that the US is unique because of how it considers ethical and moral dilemmas when it fights. Particularly, the country’s democratic institutions force any politician who wishes to engage in a war to explain to voters, civil society, and other parts of the government why the war must be fought.

Eric Patterson’s Just American Wars is not only a book about America’s wars. It is also a book about the ongoing moral effect of just war tradition on American values and behavior.

On Veterans Day earlier this month, the Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC, hosted an event that addressed how the Bible relates to war. In addition to Mark Tooley, Providence’s co-editor, contributing editors Joseph Capizzi and Eric Patterson participated. Below is an unedited transcript of their remarks and a video of the event.