An extraordinary Hollander

Christian Courier has published my latest: An extraordinary Hollander. The subject? A man who served as mentor for Abraham Kuyper. An excerpt:

This year marks the 150^th anniversary of the death of one of the great figures in Dutch – and arguably Western – history. Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer was born in 1801 and was raised in a Netherlands undergoing significant change. When revolution broke out in France in 1789, it would unleash such instability as to plunge Europe into a full generation of war and bloodshed.

Much as Edmund Burke, whom we visited last month, foresaw the Revolution’s trajectory, it fell to Groen to assess it in retrospect. With the advantage of hindsight and under the influence of the Réveil, a Christian revival then sweeping Protestant Europe, Groen was persuaded that the Revolution was rooted in a rejection of God and in misplaced faith in political ideologies and their false promises of earthly salvation.

Read the entire article here. 

Recent activities for July 2026

My Global Scholars Canada newsletter for July 2026 is now posted. Included are a tribute to my work in French, continued work to format my next monograph, my review of a book related to Maryland's history, and a book on Herman Dooyeweerd's philosophical legacy, which I will be reviewing in the near future. I remain grateful, as always, for your support for my work!

Maryland's Revolution of Government, 1689–1692

My wife and I recently travelled into Maryland and, in so doing, made numerous discoveries about our respective ancestors, who were leading figures in the province. Shortly after we returned, we obtained a copy of a fascinating account of a transitional period in its history. The book is by Lois Green Carr and David William Jordan, Maryland's Revolution of Government, 1689–1692, published by Cornell University Press in 1974. I found this book interesting for three reasons. First, my wife and I share a passion for history. Second, I am a political scientist with an enduring interest in constitutional issues and the functionality of political systems. And third, at least three of my direct ancestors, along with my wife's, took part in the events recounted here and merit mention in the text and appendices.

Théologien? Moi?

Someone in the francophone world who styles himself ThéoPol has written me up in this blog post: David Koyzis : le théologien dont les évangéliques ont besoin! ("The theologian evangelicals need!") Here is an excerpt, as translated by Chrome:

David Koyzis is a unique figure. This Canadian is relatively unknown in the Christian world and receives very little media attention; he doesn't even have a Wikipedia page. He holds a doctorate in political science and adheres to Reformed orthodoxy, which theologically aligns him with evangelicals committed to the Holy Scriptures.

Recent activities for June 2026

My Global Scholars Canada newsletter for June is now online. Among the items covered are work on my new book manuscript, a one-day conference on Christian Nationalism, a posthumous use of my work by the Rev. Timothy Keller, an online conversation with Brazil, and a moving expression of appreciation from a British young adult. Thank you for your ongoing support for my work!

Reckoning with Christian Nationalism, 2

Earlier in the week I posted a portion of my response to James Wood's three talks on Christian Nationalism. But there was somewhat more to my response than my post contained. So here is more of what I had to say at Wycliffe College last saturday.

I appreciate Wood’s emphasis on “serious engagement with [Christian Nationalism] before critique.” Indeed we need to discern what is right about someone’s position before we can level a credible critique. I would go further than Wood on this score. There is something right about communal solidarity, full stop. Whether that community is the state, the nation, the family, the workplace community, or something else, we rightly celebrate the bonds that hold people together as they live their lives and pursue their daily vocations. There is in principle much good in the fact that Americans and Canadians love their respective countries and take pride in their achievements.

Justiça pública: questions and answers

Last evening I had another opportunity to talk remotely with people in Brazil connected with the new organization, Justiça pública. I last spoke to them three months ago and immensely enjoyed the experience. This time the event took place over Instagram and is available at this link: Eleições e a Fé na Cidade (Elections and faith in the city). My grasp of Portuguese is rather limited. Apologies as well that we all appear to be backward. A description of the organization: "Justiça Pública is a nonpartisan Christian think tank that develops leadership, conducts research, and proposes a constructive way of doing politics in Brazil." I will be connecting again with Justiça Pública in August.

Reckoning with Christian Nationalism

On saturday, 6 June, I was privileged to participate in a conference at Wycliffe College in Toronto devoted to Reckoning with Christian Nationalism: A Reformed Response. The principal speaker was James Wood, who teaches theology at Redeemer University and is one of the contributors to the Presbyterian Church in America's just-released report on the subject. There was obviously a lot of interest in the subject matter, as reflected in the large number of people who registered for the event.

Four Americas: ideologies & idolatries: Keller's analysis

It has been three years since the Rev. Timothy Keller left us and entered into the presence of his Saviour. Although I never met the man, I am personally indebted to him for endorsing my first book, Political Visions and Illusions, several times beginning in July 2020. I regret that I never had an opportunity to thank him personally for his support. Now Keller's Gospel in Life website has published the first part of an essay, A Political Case Study: Four Americas, Ideologies & Idolatries (Part 1 of a 2-Part Series), written a few months prior to his death in 2023. Here he undertakes to analyze four ideologies shaping political life in the United States, drawing on Reinhold Niebuhr, George Packer, and yours truly. An excerpt:

Burke's continuing relevance

My latest column has been posted at Christian Courier's website: Burke's continuing relevance. An excerpt:

In 1790, one year after revolution had broken out across the channel, the Anglo-Irish statesman Edmund Burke wrote his now classic Reflections on the Revolution in France. Many of Burke’s compatriots, especially his fellow Whigs, thought that the French were finally rid of their absolutist government and were embracing the constitutional institutions which they themselves had long enjoyed. They thus gave qualified support to the revolution.

Burke would have none of this, sensing that something more destructive was afoot in that country. The revolutionaries were going much further than to replace flawed rulers with better ones. In fact, their efforts would soon lead to a reign of terror, something that Burke foresaw in his Reflections.

Read the rest of the column here. I have now been writing for Christian Courier for 36 years. Next month's column will cover Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer, an intellectual and spiritual heir of Burke whose recent biography by Roel Kuiper I have reviewed here.

Recent activities for May 2026

As I usually do in the middle of the month, I have just posted my Global Scholars Canada newsletter for May 2026. Included are big news about my next book, a review of a biography of an important 19th-century Christian statesman, and recent travels in the mid-Atlantic states. Thank you once more for your continued support for my work!

The Antirevolutionary: a review

Imagine growing up in a time of great political and social upheaval and coming to maturity in its aftermath. This was the experience of the young Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer, who was born the first year of the 19th century and died 75 years later. At the time of his birth his native Netherlands had been under French influence for several years. The former Dutch Republic of the 17th and 18th centuries had been replaced in 1795 by the Batavian Republic, a centralized state modelled along revolutionary lines. In Groen's fifth year of life, the republic was further supplanted by a puppet monarchy under one of the Napoleon's brothers. This lasted for four years until the Netherlands was annexed outright to France. Groen was reaching adolescence as the Congress of Vienna was establishing a new European order at war's end. One of the features of this new Europe was an enlarged Kingdom of the Netherlands under a strong monarch from the House of Orange. Often referred to as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, it included what in 1830 would become an independent Belgium.

New book contract: 'Belonging to God'

I am pleased to report that I have just signed a contract for my next book, an in-depth exposition of the Heidelberg Catechism with a focus on its implications for our life in God’s world, especially public life. Although the timeline is admittedly short, the manuscript is basically complete and simply needs to be formatted to conform to the publisher's specifications. This will occupy my time for the next little while.

I see this new book as foundational for my other three published volumes, as it elucidates the faith that underpins them. If the books are to be read in logical order, proceeding from faith basics to application, one would begin with "Belonging to God," then proceed to We Answer to Another: Authority, Office, and the Image of God, then Political Visions and Illusions, and finally Citizenship Without Illusions. I will keep readers informed of the progress of this new project as it moves towards publication.

Recent activities for April 2026

I have now posted my Global Scholars Canada newsletter for April 2026. Included are a book review, the annual Kuyper conference at Calvin University, a remote address to Justiça Pública, and a forthcoming announcement about my next major publication. Details to follow shortly. Thank you for your continuing support for my work!

More on the 'Neo-Calvinist rodeo': two cheers for the market

In my previous post I mentioned my own fairly minor role at this year's Kuyper conference as a respondent to Dylan Pahman's excellent book, The Kingdom of God and the Common Good. Pahman has now posted his own account of his role as an Orthodox Christian at the "Neo-Calvinist rodeo": Dispatch from KuyperCon. Here is Pahman:

We talked about our common ground of Scripture and catholicity. We debated the proper relation between the Law and the Gospel. We discussed the fraught history of traditionally Orthodox societies with autocracy, while nevertheless noting many important—and too often overlooked—exceptions. To that end Koyzis even expressed his hope that my book would be translated into Greek, Russian, and other traditionally Orthodox languages.

Kuyper Conference 2026

From 26 to 28 March I was at the annual Kuyper Conference at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I travelled there by car with Harry Van Dyke and Peter Schuurman and stayed, along with Peter, at his brother Derek's house near campus. Peter is, of course, executive director of Global Scholars Canada, the organization with which I am affiliated. The conference always offers an opportunity to meet and get to know new people and to renew older friendships, but this one was especially memorable, as Calvin University celebrates 150 years of providing Christian higher education in the Reformed tradition.

Justiça pública: Brazil

On saturday, 21 March, I was privileged to address remotely a network of Christian professionals engaged in public life in Brazil. This was under the auspices of Justiça Pública, a new organization established "To promote public justice for all Brazilians through a faithful, courageous, and constructive Christian presence in the public sphere." One of the inspirations behind this effort is the 49-year-old Center for Public Justice, on whose board of trustees I currently serve. Here is a description from an electronic English-language brochure I received last year:

Justiça Pública is a nonpartisan Christian think tank that develops leadership, conducts research, and proposes a constructive way of doing politics in Brazil.

Brazil is undergoing a profound demographic transformation, with the rapid growth of evangelicals, while at the same time facing a crisis in its political practices—marked by radicalism, polarization, and constructive paralysis [sic]. In this context, God has called us to propose an alternative: a long-term vision built by Christians with genuine commitment to the faith, above and beyond any ideology.

Should Christians be leftists? A review

Phil Christman. Why Christians Should Be Leftists. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2025. 174 pages. ISBN 978-0-8028-8405-3.

The best that can be said of this book is that the author is preaching to the choir. Phil Christman is a follower of Jesus Christ who has come to see himself as a political leftist and is now evangelizing for the cause. However, given his general approach, he is unlikely to persuade anyone not already onside.

Christman claims that “my Christianity has led me out of conservatism, past liberalism, to the left” (12). What does this leftism consist of? Support for “massive redistribution of wealth (either through alms or taxes), the right of marginalized communities and exploited nations to self-defense, a much-lessened emphasis on punishment-for-its-own-sake and on revenge and a much greater emphasis on harm reduction in our systems of punishment, an abhorrence of war, and an avoidance of the hoarding of wealth and power” (15-16). Christman spends the rest of the book unpacking this collection of priorities.

A new book for Christian scholars: Creation Regained: Disciplinary Perspectives

Creation Regained: Disciplinary Perspectives: two tributes

As I mentioned in a previous post, this newly published volume, Creation Regained: Disciplinary Perspectives, is a tribute to my great friend, former colleague, and even one-time instructor, Al Wolters. His classic book, Creation Regained: Biblical Basics for a Reformational Worldview, has been an influential introduction to a general approach to life anchored in the orderly possibilities God has built into his creation and in the scriptures which illuminate the path before us as we fulfil our respective callings. Our reformational philosophy discussion group, to whom this new anthology is dedicated, aspired to flesh out the implications of Wolters' insights for the several academic disciplines, including the highly theoretical and the more concrete and practical. This book is thus a tribute to Wolters' life and work.

Yesterday I was privileged to present to Wolters his copy of this book.