The Character of a Nation by James Calvin Davis - 9780567726568

Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

The Character of a NationJohn Witherspoon and the Moral Foundation of the United States\nAuthor(s): James Calvin Davis\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, United Kingdom\nImprint: Bloomsbury Academic\nISBN-13: 9780567726568, 978-0567726568\nSynopsis\nWhat can the life and thought of an eighteenth-century clergyman and college president tell us about the political crises that threaten American democracy today, including institutional racism? The Character of a Nation explores the political ethics of American Founding Father and theologian John Witherspoon [tel] and his ideals and failures, asking how a chastened understanding of this important historical figure might inform struggles over American political character in our day.\n\nReflecting the influence of two intellectual traditions, orthodox Calvinism and the Scottish Enlightenment, Witherspoon understood political virtue asa commitment to natural rights, benevolent other-regard, and the common good. Withers.