Book Review: Reformed Christian Politics

The Presbyterian Church in America is the second-largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States. As with all conservative Presbyterian denominations, it is experiencing differences over political and social views, especially those centering on the term “Christian Nationalism” and what it may or may not represent.

At the General Assembly last June, the PCA approved Overture 47 and formed an Ad Interim Study Committee to examine the issue of Christian Nationalism and its connection to ethnonationalism. The committee was appointed by Kevin DeYoung, who served as moderator of that General Assembly. Prominent figures on the committee include David Strain of First Presbyterian Church in Jackson, MS, Drew Martin, professor at Covenant Theological Seminary, and Paul McNulty, former president of Grove City College. Their deliberations did not conclude ready for a full report this year, but they released a 35-page partial report on June 4, 2026. This report will be presented as a non-binding study document for the guidance of PCA churches at the upcoming 53rd General Assembly in Louisville.

Among other things, the report states that “promoting the free exercise of all religions… This position is entirely consistent with the PCA’s constitutional standards.” Much of the debate surrounding alleged Christian Nationalism centers on the nature of religious liberty. It concerns whether religious liberty is primarily an issue of freedom of conscience to worship God, or a pluralistic call for a religiously neutral government.

In anticipation of this report, two PCA ministers, Sean McGowan of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Tallahassee, FL, and Zachary Garris of Bryce Avenue Presbyterian Church in White Rock, NM, along with Stephen Wolfe, the author of The Case for Christian Nationalism, published Reformed Christian Politics. There is currently an overture asking the General Assembly to append this book to the study committee’s report on Christian Nationalism. The focus of the book is not so much on racial questions, though it does provide a holistic natural law basis for recognizing ethnic and racial differences. Instead, its primary emphasis is on the nature of the distinction between church and state.

Their work is a wonderful contribution, even for non-Presbyterians curious about historic Reformed Christian teaching on civic religion. The central claim of the report is that the “government must promote true religion” as “conducive” and “prudent” (vi, ix, x). This must be understood in the way the authors intended, not as a justification for church establishments, but as a repudiation of secularism in support of an American “pan-Protestant country” (117).

Not in Conflict

In demonstrating their case, the authors take aim at what they see as current popular misunderstandings on the nature of politics, the difference between creation and salvation principles, the church’s relationship to society, the relationship of magisterial and ecclesiastical realms, and the idea that divine sanction and the consent of the governed are not in conflict. They state that ethics and politics ought not be conflated (6), that the principles of social life flow from “the created nature of man,” including religion (16), that the physical church is part of the commonwealth (25), “that ministers are subject to civil restraint” (38), and that both God and the governed play a role in legitimating civil authority (55).

If politics is truly “the art of associating men for the purpose of establishing, cultivating, and conserving social life among them,” then religion would naturally be included in this arrangement (9). Yet there are prudential limitations to this, like the limitations imposed by one’s own body upon the clothing one wears. Civil arrangements must be suitable to social conditions. In the section on Reformed Political Theory, Stephen Wolfe writes: “divine law nor natural law requires magistrates to suppress false religion absolutely and extensively—especially if doing so would be to the detriment of the church or commonwealth.” This means that discretion should dictate what kind of government and laws are best applied, informed by social conditions that may include differences between peoples that prevent more restrictive Christian-derived laws, either because they are unnecessary, unenforceable, or unsuitable due to negative consequences. On this point, Wolfe writes, “The United States, via both law and custom, should promote Christianity within the limits of its heritage” (65).

Early American Context

Sean McGowan traces the history of much of this in the early American context. He points out that Presbyterians in Virginia did play a role in advocating for the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom in a context where they were significant but occupied a minority status. However, American Presbyterians never intended to separate religion and the state, as they were foremost in advancing Sabbath-keeping laws, laws against blasphemy, and took laws restricting sexual ethics for granted. Even Stuart Robinson, whom many advocates for reformed two-kingdom theology incorrectly cite (a theology the authors oppose vociferously), supported Sabbath laws (111) and believed American law must recognize Protestant Christianity (119).

Questions naturally arise about the revisions made to the Westminster Confession of Faith for the American context in 1788 that removed things like the civil magistrate’s role in suppressing heresies and calling synods. Zachary Garris points out that these revisions do not “forbid the magistrate from suppressing blasphemy” (130) but leave it an open question. The revised Confession still calls magistrates “nursing fathers” who ought to “maintain piety” within the American context, where Protestant Christianity was established by default, even if a particular church or denomination was not.

Church Involvement in Politics

One of the most helpful sections for my own understanding involved the spirituality of the church. This is a doctrine much maligned today because modern people view it as a justification for turning a blind eye to slavery. Ligon Duncan’s teary-eyed comments at T4G in 2018, where he lamented the impact of his teachers who allegedly believed Christians ignored the command to love their neighbor when it came to race-related issues, involved this question of the spirituality of the church. To what extent should the church engage in political affairs? This is a very practical question today.

Garris does a great job surveying the Presbyterian landscape on this question. He quotes James Henley Thornwell, who stated: “Beyond the Bible she [the church] can never go, and apart from the Bible she can never speak.” James A. Lyon likewise said: “it is the duty of the Christian… to impregnate every profession, calling and pursuit in life, with the principles of religion,” but not “to participate in any respect whatever in purely secular affairs.”

The spirituality of the church is not the same thing as the separation of religion from political life. Rather, it puts religion in its proper place, upholding the universal moral principles and laws dictated by the Creator without directly occupying the role of the magistrate in practically applying these principles and laws. I have written about this elsewhere as the distinction between purely political concerns, which are situational and strategic, and prophetic concerns, which are universal and straightforward. The main point is not to dissuade the church from its spiritual mission of declaring the Word of God and orienting souls to spiritual life.

There are also sections in this book explaining how reformed two-kingdom theology and theonomy are out of step with historic Reformed thinking and providing further clarification on Stephen Wolfe’s views. For those who do not want to read the entire Case for Christian Nationalism but have heard some of the accusations against it, this is a helpful chapter.

Conclusion

Reformed Christian Politics makes a good case that, even in the American context, the magistrate does have a duty to promote true religion. In our day, this is best applied when considering the great issues impacting localities and the country more broadly. The authors do not triage which areas should be focused on more than others, but it is certain that the figures they write about from the past—including John Calvin, Charles Hodge, and Robert Lewis Dabney—would be shocked to see how far secular thinking has permeated Western societies. To get back to something that offers man transcendent value and treats him according to his nature, it is necessary that all institutions in society recognize the God of Scripture. This object begins with the church, but the conditions for its implementation are directly affected by the government, which can either assist within the restrictions God has placed on government, or deter by upholding a liberal neutral society that places no premium on one religion over another.

The PCA would do well to consider this work.