Five Views on the Church and Politics

Part of Zondervan’s Counterpoint series, where essays presenting a number of different perspectives are collected in a single volume, Five Views on the Church and Politics explores the interaction between the Church and the political world with respect to a wide range of Church traditions.

Represented in the book are the views from the Anabaptist (Isolationist), Lutheran (Two kingdom), Black Church (Prophetic), Reformed (Integrationist) and Catholic (In Tension) perspectives. Within these five traditions there is no single answer to how the Church should interact with politics and so each author opts to present a predominant view within their tradition.

Of particular note are the first three essays by Thomas Heilke, Robert Benne and Bruce Fields representing the Anabaptist, Lutheran and Black Church traditions. These are outstanding in their explanation of the history behind each tradition that has helped to shape their view of the political sphere and why each is particularly skeptical, to various degrees, of the Church’s interaction with political systems of governance.

After each essay, a response is presented from the other four perspectives. These are mostly focused on highlighting points of agreement and matters of disagreement and do a wonderful job of sharply identifying the boundaries between each tradition that can often seem unclear.

Finally the book is wrapped up with a look at the US political landscape and how the various traditions affiliate with the two main political parties. The information and statistics contained within will hardly be surprising, but it was interesting to learn that some traditions seem to drift more readily between parties.

Overall the book manages to achieve the difficult goal of clearly communicate what are often confusing distinctions between various Church traditions with regards to political interaction. Anyone looking for a respectful and academic examination of the topic will be rewarded by a thoughtful presentation of a wide spectrum of views that manages not to insult or champion any particular view over another.

As with other books in this series, this is a work comparing different perspectives on the topic, in this case the Church and politics. You can find some views with which you agree, some you will adamantly oppose, and some which will likely question your own perspective. Give it a read.

Five Views on the Church and Politics is an excellent introduction to how five denominations view the intersection of their church and politics. Each of the five give an overview of their theology and how it applies to the topic at hand, then the other four respond with the differences and similarities between the the two denominations. This format is ideal for an academic setting but is also accessible to a layperson who wants to learn about various theologies.

This reminds me of the Bedford Critical Editions within the literature discipline. Those books present a work, usually a novel, then present explanations of various schools of thought, each followed by a critical essay demonstrating how that school of thought might approach the novel in question. Both the Bedford series and this Counterpoints series provide explanation as well as compare-and-contrast opportunities for learners to better distinguish differences.

While intended, I believe, for an academic audience, this would certainly be a wonderful addition to the library of anyone who likes to better understand the views of other people. The disagreements within the book are presented positively and not in a particularly confrontational manner and should be read as educational and not argumentative. The argument can only really begin after one has honestly tried to understand another viewpoint, so read each with a mind toward understanding, not responding, then revisit with an eye toward responding. This will broaden your understanding of both these denominations as well as your own should it not be included here.

I found no entry with which I was in complete agreement yet gained much from understanding these views even if I changed very little of my personal view.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.