US Constitution

God who gave us life gave us liberty. The excising of God from the public square has had a serious deleterious effect on our society. So much so that few Americans realize that our system of government was predicated on explicitly Christian principles. Even fewer can articulate the difference between a “democracy” and a “republic”. We will examine the documents of the founding, and through them the thought processes of the men who bequeathed to us arguably the greatest system of government ever devised by man.

Course Objectives:

The student will be able to:

1. Expound on that view of Law and Government which is based on a Christian worldview and distinctively American in nature.
2. Understand the presuppositions upon which "The American View" is based and be able to identify these presuppositions in the text of the Declaration of Independence
3. Understand the relevance of God and His Word to Law & Government by articulating the Biblical purpose of Government.
4. Distinguish the American/Biblical View from other views of law and government.
5. Appreciate the basic principles of law, including Blackstone’s definitions of The Law of Nature, Revealed Law, and Municipal Law.
6. Understand the definition of “Constitution”.
7. Appreciate the importance of the study of history to the restoration and maintenance of lawful government.
8. Identify, the proper scope, nature and limits of the federal and state governments
9. Articulate the scope and nature of our departure from the government given to us by the founders.
10. Describe the steps necessary to recover what was lost, and progress toward the ideal so that the succeeding generations may reap the harvest of our labor

Texts:

• Holy Bible (ESV)
• Frederic Bastiat. The Law
• RJ Rushdoony. Law and Liberty
• Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. The Complete Federalist Papers
• Publius. The Anti-Federalist Papers
• Thomas Jefferson. Notes on the State of Virginia
• James Madison. US Constitution
• Second Continental Congress. Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union

NOTE The only course material the student will need to purchase is Rushdoony’s work Law and Liberty. All other listed texts, as well as other required supplemental reading, will be supplied by the instructor.