Reformed social theology: Contexts and constraints

The social theology of the Reformed church was informed by a succession of impulses and themes. Seven of these are outlined – politics as vocation, civil resistance, coordination of church and state, democratic tendencies, nationalist ideals, and economic concerns. While many of the Reformed churches initially followed a Christendom model of church-state partnership, this has been problematised in the modern era. An assessment of the place of these national churches is offered, followed by a consideration of ways in which the above mentioned classical themes might be retrieved at a time of rising populism.