I teach a high school class on government and economics at a classical Christian school. Below is the list of books and original sources that I have used to prepare for and teach the class. Not everything on the list has a Christian perspective, but even those that do not can, when viewed from a Christian worldview, help us understand how Christian government and culture should–or should not–be organized, including the laws that we should live under and the limits that are placed on the authority of four primary spheres of government: self-government, family government, church government, and civil government.
The Bible (Genesis 1:1-2:3; Psalm 2; Psalm 27:1-6; Isaiah 9:1-7; Matthew 28:16-20; John 1:1-5; Romans 13; Colossians 1:15-17; Revelation 21:1-11, etc.)
Four Texts on Socrates by West and West
The City of God by Augustine
Letter to Vincentius by Augustine
Letter to Emperor Anastasius by Pope Gelasius I
The Magna Carta by King John of England
The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli
On Secular Authority by Martin Luther
On God and Political Duty by John Calvin
Vindiciae Contra Tyrannos: A Defense of Liberty Against Tyrants by Junius Brutus
Lex Rex: The Law is King by Samuel Rutherford
The Magdeburg Confession: 13th of April 1550 AD by Pastors of Magdeburg
Common Sense by Thomas Paine
The Declaration of Independence
The Constitution of the United States
The Law by Frederic Bastiat
God and Government by Gary DeMar
The Tragedy of American Compassion by Marvin Olasky
Slaying Leviathan: Limited Government and Resistance in the Christian Tradition by Glenn S. Sunshine
Mere Christendom by Douglas Wilson
The Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrates: A Proper Resistance to Tyranny and a Repudiation of Unlimited Obedience to Civil Government by Matthew J. Trewhella
Savior or Servant? Putting Government In Its Place by David W. Hall
Defending the Declaration: How the Bible and Christianity Influenced the Writing of the Declaration of Independence by Gary T. Amos
The Emergence of Liberty in the Modern World by Douglas Kelly
A Theological Interpretation of American History by C. Gregg Singer
Christianity and the State by Rousas John Rushdoony
Law and Liberty by Rousas John Rushdoony
The Law of the Covenant by James B. Jordan
By This Standard: The Authority of God’s Law Today by Greg Bahnsen
Never Before in History: America’s Inspired Birth Hardcover by Gary Amos (Author), Richard Gardiner
Sir William Blackstone and the Common Law by Robert D. Stacey
The Founding of the Democratic Republic by Martin Diamond
The War Between the States: America’s Uncivil War by John J. Dwyer
Investigating American Democracy: Readings on Core Questions by Thomas K. Lindsay and Gary D. Glenn
Terms of Engagement: How Our Courts Should Enforce the Constitution’s Promise of Limited Government
by Clark M. Neily III
The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Constitution by Kevin R. C. Gutzman
An Introduction to Constitutional Law: 100 Supreme Court Cases Everyone Should Know
by Randy E. Barnett and Josh Blackman
Discover more from
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
1 thought on “The Christian Foundations of Government: A Bibliography”
Comments are closed.