• Rights, Resistance, and Revolution in the Western Tradition: Early Protestant Foundations

    Author(s):
    John Witte, Jr. (see profile)
    Date:
    2008
    Subject(s):
    Human rights, Protestantism, Calvin, Jean, 1509-1564
    Item Type:
    Article
    Tag(s):
    Theodore Beza, Tyranny, Resistance, Subjective rights, Contract theory, Law and religion, Calvinism, John Calvin
    Permanent URL:
    http://dx.doi.org/10.17613/pzts-n151
    Abstract:
    This Article analyzes the development of rights talk in the pre-Enlightenment Protestant tradition, especially as formulated by the sixteenth-century Calvinist theologian and jurist, Theodore Beza. Responding to the horrific persecution born of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of 1572, Beza mobilized classical, Catholic, and Protestant sources alike to develop a coherent Calvinist theory of rights, resistance, and revolution against tyrants. This Article details Beza's arguments, places his work in its historical and intellectual context, and highlights the innovations Beza contributed to the intersection of legal, political, and theological teachings. It concludes by showing how Beza's theory of subjective rights and resistance to tyranny helped to plot the course of modern democratic and constitutional theory.
    Metadata:
    Published as:
    Journal article    
    Status:
    Published
    Last Updated:
    4 years ago
    License:
    All Rights Reserved
    Share this:

    Downloads

    Item Name: pdf 139bezalegalhistart.pdf
      Download View in browser
    Activity: Downloads: 443