“Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s” was the profound response of Jesus to a political trap set by the Pharisees. What they thought would be their “gotcha” moment only further established His authority.
In the messy world of modern democracy, we could do with a further dose of such wisdom. As Christian Nationalism gathers pace in some hearts and minds, there’s an urgent question that needs answering: what role should Christianity play in the governance of modern, secular societies where the majority don’t claim Jesus as Lord?
In this book, James Lusk argues against the idea of “theonomic” rule (where Christians impose God’s law on others) and instead argues for democracies that protect individual rights and associations. He does a good job in highlighting many of the contradictions inherent within our conceptions of democracy and, by extension, we see how these things will grow as the shared values of our post-Christian age become ever more frayed. There is much more to consider and explore here.
For the most part, however, I found myself asking the question “So what?” It felt beyond the reach of any casual reader yet too brief to be an academic work, so it doesn’t seem to have a well-defined audience. I was also unsure how the sometimes-long presentation of information and extensive histories presented in such detail were answering the questions the book set out to address, which made it hard to follow. Similarly, trying to draw the origins of supposed “culture wars” to specific events or pieces of legislation seems to be too narrow a focus to understand such complex problems, especially when accompanied by assertions that didn’t have requisite space to flesh out the argument.
All in all, the questions this book sets out to address are ones we need to develop our thinking on. A more balanced approach could have seen them answered more effectively.
DEMOCRACY AFTER CHRISTENDOM
By James Paul Lusk
Cascade Books. 184 pages. £19
ISBN 978 1 666 757 132
