Church Laws and Ecumenism: A New Path for Christian Unity edited by Norman Doe Review by John Witte, Jr. Law is the backbone of Christian ecclesiology and ecumenism. That is the central message of this collection of well-written and well-integrated chapters on church law by scholars of a dozen global Christian churches. And that has…
The Cambridge Companion to the First Amendment and Religious Liberty edited by Michael D. Breidenbach and Owen Anderson Review by Lael Weinberger Religious liberty has been the subject of lots of debates over the course of American history. The founding period saw debates about state establishments. The nineteenth century was marked by the public-school “Bible…
“Character Formation, Ethical Education, and the Communication of Values in Late Modern Pluralistic Societies” by Michael Welker and John Witte, Jr. Five hundred years ago, Protestant reformer Martin Luther argued that “three estates” (drei Stände) lie at the foundation of a just and orderly society — marital families, religious communities, and political authorities. Parents in…
The Revolution in Freedoms of Press and Speech:From Blackstone to the First Amendment and Fox’s Libel ActWendell Bird This article is adapted from the introduction of the author’s new book: The Revolution in Freedoms of Press and Speech: From Blackstone to the First Amendment (Oxford University Press, 2020). The conventional view of the history of…
Great Christian Jurists in English History edited by Mark Hill QC and Richard H. Helmholz This volume is part of a fifty-volume series on “Great Christian Jurists in World History”, presenting the interaction of law and Christianity through the biographies of 1000 legal figures of the past two millennia. Commissioned by the Center for the…
Great Christian Jurists in French History edited by Olivier Descamps and Rafael Domingo This volume is part of a fifty-volume series on “Great Christian Jurists in World History, “presenting the interaction of law and Christianity through the biographies of 1000 legal figures of the past two millennia. Commissioned by the Center for the Study of…
The Medieval Luther edited by Christine Helmer Staging a conversation among distinguished Luther scholars, historians of Christianity, and philosophers, The Medieval Luther makes the case that it is impossible to understand Luther’s most important doctrines without exploring his philosophical inheritance. After all, Luther was an ardent participant in and contributor to the philosophical disputes of…
Great Christian Jurists in Spanish History edited byRafael Domingo and Javier Martínez-Torrón This volume is part of a 50-volume series on “Great Christian Jurists in World History, “presenting the interaction of law and Christianity through the biographies of 1000 legal figures of the past two millennia. Commissioned by the Center for the Study of Law…
Great Christian Jurists in German HistoryMathias Schmoeckel and John Witte, Jr. This volume is part of a 50-volume series on “Great Christian Jurists in World History, “presenting the interaction of law and Christianity through the biographies of 1000 legal figures of the past two millennia. Commissioned by the Center for the Study of Law and…
Great Christian Jurists in American History edited by Daniel L. Dreisbach and Mark David Hall This book is part of a 50-volume series on “Great Christian Jurists in World History,” exploring the interaction of law and Christianity through the biographies of 1,000 legal figures of the past two millennia. Commissioned by the Center for the…