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Section II Hellenism and Roman Stoicism
Hellenism
In 338 B.C. Athenian pride was humbled by defeat at Chaeronea at the hands of Philip. Greece
paid the penalty from its failure to unite, and became part of the Macedonian Empire. The glory of the
city-state vanished when the polis became little more than a municipality in a far-flung empire. A
century later, Greece became part of expanding Rome.
Theories of politics appropriate to the city-state were no longer applicable in this Hellenistic
period. Yet Greek influence remained strong and the empire tried to Hellenize itself through Greek
books and teachers. The Greek language was used in business. Its artistic products, its buildings, baths,
theaters, were paid the compliment of imitation. There was also an increased interest in the mystery
religions, the Orphic, with its basis in the sin of man, and the Eleusinian, with its ritual of death and
resurrection paralleling the agricultural cycle, and offering a refuge in a future life. This is a period, too,
in which the concept of divine right, semi-divine kings, emerges from the influence of Eastern despotic
tradition.
The polis was no longer the end of political organization. With a large empire, including within it
a variety of nations and different laws, the possibility of a universal law emerged. Moreover, the welfare
of the individual was no longer inextricably bound up with that of his city. There was no obligation to
participate politically, nor belief that individual self-fulfilment required such participation.
The two leading philosophies developed in this period were Epicureanism and Stoicism.
Epicureanism
The concepts of Epicureanism are largely known to us through Lucretius rather than Epicurus.
The latter, born an Athenian citizen in Samos in 341, founded his school in his garden, a symbol of
retirement from the world, in 306 and died in 270 B.C.
For the Epicurean, the universe was chaotic and anarchic, composed of atoms and the void. All
knowledge was acquired by sense perception; observation was therefore essential to understanding.
There were an infinite number of worlds, formed by the chance combination of atoms in infinite space.
The gods, unconcerned about human affairs, lived in the void between the different worlds. They were
not to be regarded superstitiously or feared, only to be envied.
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Man himself was made up of body and soul. Death was not to be feared. There was no such
thing as immortality; after death, atoms of the soul were scattered. The aim of life therefore was
pleasure, the pursuit of which brought happiness, the final end. The injunction to follow nature meant,
seek pleasure. Everything was desirable insofar as it led to pleasure, but above all, the aim was absence
of pain and the achievement of peace of mind. This would be obtained personally by self-control, the
mastery and limitation of desires as far as possible to those that were strictly necessary. Also, it implied
limitation of social relationshipslive unknown refusal to be involved in family or political affairs,
scepticism toward religion, which the Epicureans considered largely superstition.
Yet at the same time, the Epicurean thesis was not simply one of pleasure and pain an idea
that became singularly influential but also one of the voluntary creation of society and of law. Society
was not a natural phenomenon but rather a deliberate creation aimed at bringing order out of chaos.
Indeed, pleasure was augmented by the presence of law, provision for punishment and preservation of
order. It was this stress on the opportunity for man to make his own environment that led Marx to
choose Epicurus as one of two writers on whom to do his doctoral dissertation.
Stoicism
Stoicism is derived from stoa or porch, where Zeno, originally a Phoenician, began teaching
about 300 B.C. The theory started from the premise of a natural order of the universe, which included
the process of change, and which was at the same time divine. Man, a part of this divine order, was
capable of understanding it and its laws through the reason possessed by all men. Virtue depended on
knowledge, and knowledge was obtained through reason. The golden rule was following nature, live
consistently with nature, obey the universal law of nature.
Happiness was the result of internal harmony. Nothing ought to disturb ones peace of mind.
Man, living through reason, ought to suppress emotions like fear, lust or anxiety, to reach the desired
state of aphatia, or inner tranquillity.
But if Hellenistic Stoicism stressed self-control of the individual, it also had far-reaching social
implications. The state was no longer the end through which man reached his fulfilment. Since all men
possessed reason, since the law of nature applied to all, a universal society with cosmopolitan
citizenship existed. The natural law theory, touched on by Sophocles, entered political theory
permanently, with the Stoic belief that there was a natural law capable of being understood by man and
providing a basis for political organization.
No matter what the laws of their individual states might be, men were all members of a
universal brotherhood, for they all possessed equally a share of the stock of reason. Stoicism therefore
implied equality, certainly between the sexes, and in the spiritual sphere. And it provided a beginning
for interstate relations as a means of settling disputes. The belief in a universal brotherhood is only the
political aspect of the view that the universe is a unity, pervaded by reason. This view in turn, is the
rationalization of the perplexity of man, seeking security and certainty in the face of a mighty empire.
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Section V Medieval Life and Thought
Historians generally date the beginning of the idle Ages from the downfall of Rome in 476 A.D.
With the fall of the universal empire, a series of unstable independent kingdoms appeared. Each was
characterized by territorial residence, tribal grouping, common blood relationships, a common law,
largely custom, and a leader (Dux) who was essentially a warrior. Government control, as direct central
government, was weak; local government was the norm, the local lord the important administrative
figure. Towns declined with the decrease of trade. Self-supporting villages became the foundation of an
agricultural economy based on the manorial system.
Feudal System
In this barbarian tribal system with its weak central institutions and absence of paid armies, the
social system was feudalism. Feudalism was essentially a series of defined relationships between
landlords and tenants. In a situation with no universal public laws, each social group had legal
relationships to others, pledging services to its superiors and obtaining protection from them.
The chief features of this system, which was common to all Western Europe, were vassalage and
the fief. Vassalage, whether entered into by formal act or not, meant that the vassal owed the lord
fidelity, gave him certain financial aid, and rendered military service. The lord, in return, undertook to
protect and defend the vassal. The fief was the land allowed the individual on condition that certain
services were performed. Possession of land was conditional, subject to use.
The king, too, possessed land in this way; his possession depended on his care of his people. He
gave protection as he received service. Vassals owed a duty to the king, to give service in both men and
materials, to attend the Kings Court (Curia Regis), to provide taxes and make contributions. But the
services and duties were customary they were not to be determined by the king. There was no legal
partnership between the king and the people, but he depended on them for advice and consultation.
Though these were private rather than public relationships, the series of obligations that all were bound
to perform was an anticipation of the later idea of a political contract which bound the parties to it.
In the feudal system, law was not made by anyone, so much as recovered. The king therefore
promulgated it, rather than made it. He was subject to the laws as was everyone else. Yet, there was
substantial difference between this theoretical concept and actual conditions. It was difficult to ensure
that the king was actually under the law, the rights possessed by vassals were not always clear, and the
right to ownership developed in spite of the theory.
Change took place in this uniform, isolated, self-sufficient system for a variety of reasons.
Friction between the king and the nobles led on one side to a claim for more centralized control, and on
the other to disobedience and refusal. Diseases and plagues, especially the Black Death, reduced the
amount of manpower, and brought a demand for higher wages in the towns. The towns and cities
developed as training centers and received charters from the king; the townsmen...
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Regnum and Sacerdotium
In this unified but localized social structure, the Church pressed the idea of a universal Christian
Commonwealth. In a period of barbarian kingdoms, the argument was put forward of a single society
with two governments, each with separate powers...two swords. God wanted to separate the spiritual
and temporal power. The Pope was superior to the secular rule in the ecclesiastical realm; the ruler was
superior to the Pope in temporal affairs. But ecclesiastic authority was more important than lay. While
the former relied on the coercive power of the ruler in temporal matters, the Christian emperor needed
the church to attain eternal life.
Church and State would become sacerdotium and regnum, two governments in a single
Christian society. With the victories of Cherlemagne... power transferred... was to protect ...
But the claim to papal supremacy... period of dual authority. It was stated most strongly by...
emphasized both ... The pope was supreme head of the church... sun and moon... the Popes light shone
on the inferior satellite, the Emperor. The ecclesiastical ... could control not only in spiritual, but also in
ethical matters. Some, ... argued that the king might be disposed if he ruled unjustly. In his analogy of
the king to the shepherd... he expressed an early theory of popular sovereignty, and a ...
This ecclesiastical argument ... basing its action on its ... was attempting to act in all spheres,
political... It was in a favourable position, compared to the feudal communities, to influence or control
human affairs by canon law and its penal code. The.. political participation depended on religious
allegiance and orthodoxy.
Those who upheld secular power used the same argument to reach a different conclusion.
...Since authority was of divine origin, secular rulers were responsible to God alone, unhindered
by ecclesiastical interference. Even if the right of excommunication by the Pope were granted, he still
had no authority to remove the ruler or absolve subjects of their oaths. The only limitation on secular
power was the observance of custom and natural law.
The original premise of dual authority... in which all... a realization of the Stoic universal
society foundered because... The recurring problems were the appointment... taxation of Church...
secular powers... The intellectual duel between two powers was largely fought on legal grounds. In
general, the canonists upheld the Papal authority, and the lawyers of the ... supporting the Emperor on
Roman law, the power of... The Diet of Worms, in 1122, established a compromise in which the papal
power over investiture was differentiated in different countries... 12
th
century, Innocent III again
expressed the theory of papal supremacy. In England...
John of Salisbury
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This was the setting in which John of Salisbury (1110-1180), friend of kings and scholars, and
secretary to Becket, wrote his Policraticus, the first important medieval political work. John, an eloquent
ecclesiastical spokesman, was concerned with the limitation of the ruler by higher or divine law. Under
such law, an individual fulfilled his duties, but also could resist the prince if he did not conform to law.
It is a theory of a stable society, understood through an organic analogy. The Commonwealth
was a body endowed with life by the benefit of divine favor. The prince was its head, the priesthood
its soul, the Senate its heart, judges and governors its eyes, ears and tongue, officials and soldiers its
hands, financial officers its stomach, and husbandmen its feet. All co-operated for the good of the whole
interrelated, co-ordinated society.
No one conclusion can be drawn from the book. The prince was minister of the common
interest and served his fellow servants. Yet also the prince obtained his power from God and
performed those sacred duties which seem unworthy of the hands of the priesthood. Tyranny, the
abuse of power by the prince, was part of Gods ordering of the universe, yet at times it might be right
and just, even a public duty, to kill a tyrant. The higher law, to which all were subject, seemed to put no
controls on the prince, for the normal restraints were internal: The prince puts a bridle on himself. The
Policraticus show s the nature and complexity of 12
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century issues.
The Origin and Significance of Feudalism
(from Mediaeval Institutions by Carl...)
What precisely do... a wholly modern... neither ... nor its equivalent in any other language was
apparently invented... Although men in... with vassals... with ... they apparently did not think.. broad... a
set of feudal principles... To have any validity, therefore, whatever generalization we make... And thos
institutions must be of the region where the custom properly called ... mediaeval Gaul. A sociology... but
only comparison... determine the feudal...
Turning then to the... we av no trouble in finding the ... It was the feudom or fief. Yet this is not
the primary element... Feudalism ... vassalage; for a fief could not exist...
...The status of vassal, we know from countless documents of the eleventh and twelfth... be acquired...
merely ... And solely in this way could one become... Although fiefs might be declared hereditary,
vassalage was never inherited. When a vassal died, his fief legally reverted to the lord, in whose hands it
remained until such time as the heir performed homage and so qualified himself to receive the
investiture. Only a vassal could properly be a fief holder, and there can be no doubt... vassalage was
restricted to mature men. The reason... Clergymen, it is true, often held fiefs while debarred from
bloodshed by canon law. But the qualifications that came to be put on their homage and fealty were
plainly the result... Feudal tenure... was essentially military... was a military...
... The basis of the new system...need. The king gave fiefs to his vassals... sub-infeudation on the part of
the latter for the .... securing a better army; and there was... demand... The rapid introduction .... was of
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... The profession of arms came to be governed by an aristocratic code of chivalry a set of rules that
had meaning only to highborn. Thus in the ... knight and noble were virtually synonymous... Land held ...
whatever the nature ... was no fief; the tenant, however free in law, was no vassal.
The vassals obligation, being military was ipso facto political; so, according to Carolingian
standards, it was proper for him to receive political privilege in return. The ... of lord to ... no power of
jurisdiction. Feudal justice could not... form the territorial immunity which every fief was construed...
And insofar as the feudal lord had the.. courts, to levy tolls and ... to requisition labor... to raise... the
population... he was obviously a public official. It is indeed, no mere form of words to assert that ... for
the rule of primogeniture... in feudal law... Another phase .. mat be seen in the fact that by the... more
important agents of... been brought within the... The transition was an informal one, of which the
capitularies tell us little. But that the result was quite in accord ... policy... If every feudal tenant was to
some degree a count within his own territory...
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Section VI The Two Realms: The Last Phase
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The most significant . . . Defensor Pacis . . . individuality . . of man . . . external acts were subject
to control.
...need for law to obtain community approval, by the people or its weightier part . . . It was
this community approval that made law valid...
...ecclesiastical authority ... the whole body of the faithful including both clerics and laymen ...
The rule of the Pope...
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Section VII The Renaissance
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MACHIAVELLI
The Prince and the Discourses
The Art of Politics
Those who by the exercise of abilities become princes, obtain their dominions with difficulty but
retain them easily and the difficulties which they have in acquiring their dominions arise in part from the
new rules and regulations that they have to introduce in order to establish their position securely. It
must be considered that there is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor
more dangerous to handle than to initiate a new order of things.
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He who becomes prince by help of the nobility has greater difficulty in maintaining his power
than he who is raised by the populace, for he is surrounded by those who think themselves his equals,
and is thus unable to direct or command as he pleases. But one who is raised to leadership by popular
favour finds himself alone
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...for how we live is so far removed from how we ought to live, that he who abandons what is
done for what ought to be done, will rather learn to bring about his own ruin than his preservation. A
man who wishes to make a profession of goodness in everything must necessarily come to grief among
so many who are not good. Therefore it is necessary for a prince, who wishes to maintain himself, to
learn how not to be good, and to use this knowledge and not use it, according to the necessity of the
case.

Section VIII The Reformation
...Indeed, the 16
th
century Reformation was not produced by doctrinal disputes only. Political
problems and opposition between the new states and the Church on taxation, ... also played their
part. The Reformation was a complex phenomenon ... the Reformation was marked ... by war... Whether
a country would remain in the old Church, as did France, or turn to the newm as did England ... was
largely determined by political and military... The idea of universal Christendom .. disappeared with the
rise of national churches, as well as nation-states.
For political theory...
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Both the two great religious reformers ... asserted the right of individual conscience and the
possibility of direct relationship between the individual and God, against Papal supremacy. But
politically, for Luther this meant a claim for secular independence, and for obedience to those princes ...
who had adopted to the new religion. For Calvin, it led to ecclesiastical association with the secular
power and even theocracy, if that power was Protestant, and for his supporters, to resistance if
persecuted.
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Luther
... The function of civil authority was to promote those conditions . . . the state assisted the
kingdom of God . . With the civil disturbances . . Luthers insistence on the need for secular coercion
became stronger.
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...He denounced trading companies and monopolies . . and dishonest activity.
Calvin
Calvin (1509-1564), French-born, was educated in theology and... Converted to Protestantism,
he wrote his... and left for ... where he spent the ...apart from a ...Strasbourg.
For Calvin, civil power was as necessary as bread and water, light and air, and more excellent.
It was ... to control... and wickedness of man,.. order, to prepare men for the right kind of life, and to
preserve the true .... the church. It could use its powers of coercion to enforce discipline and preserve
social peace and harmony.
The state was divinely instituted God maintains principalities. Christ reigned in the state as
he did in the church. The whole of life, therefore, should be..The task of control as one in which church
and state were united, each retaining its distinct character. Both church and state acknowledged God as
the ultimate sovereign, bestowing His grace by an act of will on the elect; Divine Will itself was
responsible for existing inequality. Religion became the glorification of God,...
Because the church was necessary as an intermediary to salvation, p.... were subordinate to it.
Both temporal and ecclesiastic discipline were necessary. The church could not use the sword, because
it had no power to coerce, but it could censure, admonish and excommunicate. Calvinism in Geneva was
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based on discipline and obedience, with a ministry and a Consistory to control social, political...
behaviour. Though not .... in the ... the Geneva regime closely resembled.... enforced... made by... Its
control was ... and thorough. Its ... differences ...Where Calvinists constituted a majority, an autocratic
system... But what if Calvinists, as a minority ... Calvins advice to move or devote...
But Calvinism had its politically progressive side also. It demanded an educated, literate people
who could read and understand their Bible and ministers. A system of education open to all was started.
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LUTHER
Secular Authority...
The Divine Nature of Secular Authority
We must firmly establish secular law and the sword, that no one may doubt that it is in the
world by Gods will...
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... Those belonging to the kingdom of God are all true believers in Christ and are subject to Christ. . . My
kingdom is not of the world, but whoever is of the truth hears My voice; and continually in the Gospel
He refers to the kingdom of God...
Why is this? Because the righteous does of himself all and more than all that all the laws
demand. But the unrighteous do nothing that the law demands, therefore they need the law to instruct,
constrain, and compel them to do what is good. A good tree does not need any teaching or law... when
it is able by its own to do this better than any man ...
...that they may humble unto grace and unto faith in Christ.
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For this reason these two kingdoms must be sharply distinguished, and both be permitted to
retain; the one to produce piety, and the other to bring about external peace and prevent evil deeds;
neither is sufficient in the world without the other. For no one can become pious before God by means
of the secular government, without Christs spiritual rule. Hence Christs rule does not extend over all
but Christians are always in the minority and are in the midst of non-Christians. Where there is only
secular rule or law, there, of necessity, is sheer hypocrisy, though the commandments be Gods very
own. Where [...] the spiritual government rules alone overland and people, there evil is given free rein
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and the door is opened for every kind of knavery; for the natural world cannot receive or comprehend
spiritual things.
But perhaps you will say, since Christians do not need the secular sword and the law, why does
Paul say to all Christians, in Romans xiii, Let all souls be subject to power and authority? And St. Peter
says, Be subject to every human ordinance, etc., as quoted above. I answer, as I have said, that
Christians, among themselves and by and for themselves, need no law or sword, since it is neither
necessary nor profitable for them. Since, however, a true Christian lives and labours on earth not for
himself, but for his neighbor, therefore the whole spirit of his life impels him to do even that which he
need not do, but which is profitable and necessary for his neighbor. Because the sword is a very great
benefit and necessary to the whole world, to preserve peace, to punish sin and to prevent evil, he
submits most willingly to the rule of the sword, pays tax, honors those in authority, serves, helps, and
does all he can to further the government, that it may be sustained and held in honor and fear. Although
he needs none of these things for himself and it is not necessary for him to do them, yet he considers
what is for the good and profit of others, as Paul teaches in Ephesians v.
He serves the State as he performs all other works of love, which he himself does not need. He
visits the sick, not that he may be made well; feeds no one because he himself needs food: so he also
serves the State not because he needs it, but because others need it, - that they may be protected and
that the wicked may not become worse. He loses nothing by this, and such service in no way harms him,
and yet it is of great profit to the world. If he did not do it, he would be acting not as a Christian but
contrary even to love, and would also be setting a bad example to others, who like him would not
submit to authority, though they were no Christians. In this way the Gospel would be brought into
disrepute, as though it taught rebellion and made self-willed people, unwilling to benefit or serve any
one, when in reality it makes a Christian the servant of every one. Thus in Matthew xvii, Christ gave the
tribute money that He might not offend them, although He did not do it.
Thus you observe in the words of Christ quoted above... that He indeed teaches that Christians
among themselves... nor law. He does not... forbid one to serve... those who have... and the law; much
rather, since... and are not to have... you to serve those who have progressed so far as you and still need
them. Although you do not need to have your enemy... your weak neighbor does... help him, that he
may ... enemy... which is not possible unless power and ... honored and feared. Christ does not say,
Thou shalt not serve.. but Thou shalt not resist evil. As though He said, Take heed that you bear ...
and serve you and be of profit to you, but you ... help, serve.. and use to it. I would have... too exalted
and noble to have any need of it, ... need of you.
You ask whether a Christian, also, may bear the secular sword... since Christs words, Thou shalt
not resist the evil, are so clear ... that sophists have had to... I answer, You have now heard ... The
question... must be directed... to the non-Christians, whether as a Christian you may there bear it. Here
the other... that you are under obligation to serve and further the sword by whatever means you can...
soul, honor... For it is nothing that you need, but something quite useful... for the ... your neighbor.
Therefore, should you .... lords, or .... that you are qualified, you should offer your services and seek the
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place, that necessary... may by no means be despised and become inefficient or perish. For the world
cannot dare not dispense with it.
...in this case you would enter entirely... and work of others, which benefited neither yourself
nor... character, but only your neighbor and others; and you would not do it to avenge yourself or to
recompense evil for evil... for the .... and for the maintenance of... As concerns yourself, you would
abide by the Gospel and govern yourself... to Christs word, gladly turning the other cheek and letting
the mantle go with the coat, when the matter concerned you and your cause. In this way, then things
are well balanced, and you satisfy at the same time Gods kingdom inwardly and the kingdom of the
world outwardly...
(Extracts from Secular Authority, Part I, sections 1 6.)
The Extent of Secular Authority
Every kingdom must have its own laws and regulations, and without law no kingdom or
government can exist, as daily experience sufficiently proves...
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The words of Scripture that speak of mercy apply to the kingdom of God and to Christians, not
to the kingdom of the world, for it is a Christians duty not only to be merciful, but to endure every kind
of suffering robbery, arson, murder, devil and hell. It goes without saying that he is to smite, slay and
recompense no one. But the kingdom of the world is nothing else than the servant of Gods wrath upon
the wicked, and is a real precursor of hell and everlasting death. It should not be merciful, but strict,
severe and wrathful in the fulfilment of its work and duty. Its tool is not a wreath of roses or a flower of
love, but a naked sword; and a sword is a symbol of wrath, severity and punishment.
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The Duty of Princes
Christ Himself ... The wordly princes exercise lordship and they that are chief exercise
authority. . . For cursed and condemned is every kind ... not done in love. But they are done in love . . .
toward the profit . . of others.
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...If a prince himself is not wiser than his jurists, and does not know what is more than is in the
law-books
A princes duty is fourfold: First, that toward God consists in true confidence and in sincere prayer;
second, that toward his subjects consists in love and Christian service; third, that toward his counsellors
and rulers consists in an open mind and unfettered judgement; fourth, that toward evil doers consists in
proper zeal and firmness. Then his state is right, outwardly and inwardly, pleasing to God and to the
people. But he must expect much envy and sorrow, - the cross will soon rest on the shoulders of such a
ruler.
Finally, in addition, I must make answer to those who dispute about restitution, that is, about
the returning of goods unlawfully acquired. . . . No more definite law can be found on this subject than
the law of love. In the first place, when such a case is brought before you, the matter is soon settled if
they are both Christians; for neither will withhold what belongs to the other, nor will either of them
demand that it be returned. If only one is a Christian, namely, the one to whom restitution is to be
made, it is again easy to settle, for he does not care whether it never be returned. The same is true if the
one who is to make restitution is a Christian; he will do so. But whether one is a Christian or not a
Christian, you must decide the restitution as follows. If the debtor is poor and unable to make
restitution, and the other party is not poor, the you should let the law of love prevail and acquit the
debtor. For, according to the law of love, the other party, too, owes it to him to relinquish the debt, and
if necessary to give him something besides. But if the debtor is not poor, then let him restore as much as
he can, all, half, a third, or a fourth of it, provided that you can leave him enough to assure a house,
food, and clothing for himself, his wife and children; for this you would... much less ought... since you do
not need it and...
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CALVIN
Institutes of the Christian Religion
The Ruler...
This consideration constitutes true royalty: to acknowledge yourself in the government of your
kingdom to be the minister of God. For where the glory of God is not made the end of the government,
it is not a legitimate sovereignty, but a usurpation. And he is deceived who expects lasting prosperity in
that kingdom which is not ruled by ... God, that is, his holy word;... where there is no vision, the people
perish. Nor should you be seduced from this pursuit by a contempt of our meanness. We are fully
conscious to ourselves how very mean and abject we are...; being (if you please) the refuse of the
world...; so that nothing remains for us to glory in before God but his mercy alone, by which, without
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any merit of ours, we have been admitted to the hope of eternal salvation, and before men nothing but
our weakness, the slightest confession of which is esteemed by them as the greatest disgrace. But our
doctrine must stand, exalted above all the glory... because it is not ours... but ... of the living God, and of
His Christ, whom the Father hath constituted King, that he may have dominion from sea to sea... and
that he may rule in such a manner that the whole earth, with its strength of iron and with its splendour
of gold... may be broken to pieces... for thus do the prophets foretell the magnificence of his kingdom.
The Idea of Christian Liberty
Christian liberty... consists of three parts. The first... the consciences of believers, when seeking
of assurance of their justification before God, should raise themselves above the law and forget all the
righteousness of the law. For since the law leaves no man righteous, either we must be excluded from
all hope of justification or it is necessary for us to be delivered from it, and that so completely as not to
have any dependence on works. For he who imagines that in order to obtain righteousness he must
produce any works.. can fix no limit ... but renders himself a debtor to the whole law. Avoiding... all
mention of the law and dismissing all thought of our own works, in reference to justification, we must
embrace the Divine mercy alone, and turning our eyes from ourselves, fix them solely on Christ. For the
question is not how we can be righteous, but... we can be considered as righteous. And the conscience
that desires to attain any certainty respecting this must give no admission to the law. Nor will this
authorize anyone to conclude that the law is of no use to believers, whom it still continues to ... exhort
and stimulate to duty, although it has no place in their consciences before the tribunal of God. For these
two things, being very different, require to be properly and carefully distinguished by us. The ... life of
Christians ... an exercise of piety, since they are called to sanctification. It is the office of the law to
remind them of their duty and ... excite them to the pursuit of holiness and integrity. But when their
consciences are solicitous and on what ... confidence, if called to his tribunal,.. no consideration of the
requisitions of the law, but Christ... must be proposed... who exceeds all the perfection of the law.
The second part... dependent on the first... their consciences do not observe the law as being
under any legal obligation; but that, being liberated ... they yield a voluntary obedience to the will of
God. For being possessed with perpetual terrors, as long as... under the dominion of the law, they will
never engage with alacrity and promptitude in the service of God unless they have previously received
this liberty. . . . If they advert to the law, they see that every work... is accursed. Nor is there the least
reason for any person to ... concluding that an action is not necessarily altogether evil because it is
imperfect, and that therefore the good part of it is accepted by God. For... requiring perfect love,
condemns all imperfection unless is rigor be mitigated. Let him consider his work, therefore, which he
wished to be thought partly good, and he will find... to be a transgression of the law... it is imperfect.
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THIS IS ONLY A PREVIEW

Section IX The Right of Resistance
Protestant
The struggle between the different religious groups led to the conviction that resistance to
authority was not inevitably wicked....
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Section X Sovereignty and Divine Right
...
...In this respect there is no difference between ... If it were otherwise, and the absolute authority
delegated by the prince to a lieutenant was regarded as so... who would thereby forfeit his eminence