The Protectionist Purpose of Law: A Moral Case from the Biblical Covenant with Noah
Political and legal theorists sometimes assign attempts to define the purpose of law and government into one of two categories: 'protectionism' indicates that law and government should protect people from the violation of their rights while <i>perfectionism</i> indicates that l...
| Published in: | Journal of the Society of Christian Ethics |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Philosophy Documentation Center
[2015]
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| In: |
Journal of the Society of Christian Ethics
Year: 2015, Volume: 35, Issue: 2, Pages: 101-117 |
| IxTheo Classification: | CG Christianity and Politics HB Old Testament NCD Political ethics XA Law |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | Political and legal theorists sometimes assign attempts to define the purpose of law and government into one of two categories: 'protectionism' indicates that law and government should protect people from the violation of their rights while <i>perfectionism</i> indicates that law and government should also actively promote virtue in the human community. In this essay I draw primarily from the biblical covenant with Noah (Gn 8:21-9:17), supplemented with other biblical and moral-theological considerations. I argue that protectionism, contrary to common assumptions, need not be individualist, subjectivist, or indifferent to the broader well-being of society. Furthermore, and chiefly, I argue that a strong (yet rebuttable) protectionist presumption ought to govern Christian ethical reflection upon the purpose of law and government. |
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| ISSN: | 2326-2176 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Society of Christian Ethics, Journal of the Society of Christian Ethics
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1353/sce.2015.0033 |