Recently, President Bush said, “One of the best ways to safeguard religious freedom is to aid the rise of democracy. Democratic governments don’t all look alike. Each reflects the history and traditions of its own people. But one way — but one of the defining features of any democracy is that it makes [...]

     Continuing my summary of A Theological Interpretation of American History, I turn to what Prof. Singer said about the Puritan conception of liberty. Singer says that to the Puritans, “Liberty was not a natural right, but a God-given right and privilege to be zealously guarded from despots, to be sure, but also subject to precise biblically-defined limits.” 

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Singer begins his account of American history with a sharp focus on the Puritans. Puritans carved out a unique political and ecclesiastical culture in the Northeast, and to understand our history, you must understand their thought and practice. Singer outlines Puritan political philosophy; he writes: 

In the Puritan view of life man could no more [...]