Sphere Sovereignty by Abraham Kuyper offers a theological and philosophical framework, emphasizing the distinct, God-ordained authorities within various spheres of life-such as the church, state, family, and education. Kuyper argues that each sphere has its own autonomy, directly under God, without interference from the others, particularly the state. This work not only navigates the balance between these spheres but also critiques the overreach of state power into areas like the church and education. Kuyper's insights advocate for a society where diverse domains operate freely within their God-given jurisdictions, championing the principle that Christ claims sovereignty over every square inch of life. His vision remains influential in discussions on faith, politics, and society, offering a blueprint for Christian engagement in the public square while respecting the distinct roles and responsibilities divinely appointed to each sphere of life.

In his lecture, Abraham Kuyper contrasted sphere sovereignty with state sovereignty, criticizing the latter for leading to a deification of the state and suppression of other life spheres, including academia. He also addressed popular sovereignty, stemming from the French Revolution, as promoting an idolatry of individual rights. Advocating for sphere sovereignty, Kuyper envisioned the Free University to operate under divine authority, free from external institutional pressures, aiming for God's glory rather than that of the state or individual. This vision of pluralistic social theory, emphasizing unique, God-ordained spheres, remains influential in Reformed Christian circles.

Abraham Kuyper delivered the lectures on Sphere Sovereignty in 1880. These lectures were part of a series he gave at the Free University in Amsterdam, which he helped to found.

Communion with the Lord is sweeter than honey.

In his meditations, Abraham Kuyper reveals a side of himself unseen in his well-known theological writings. First published in 1880 and 1883 and never before translated in English, the devotions in Honey from the Rock were written for the nourishment and health of his soul. Rather than the public figure and theologian, we see a man thirsting and hungering for God's presence.

Modern readers entering this sacred space will be spiritually renewed, restored, and replenished by the light of God's Word, before returning to our daily callings. James De Jong introduces these powerful devotions from Kuyper.

How do Christians bridge the divide between our lives inside and outside the church?

Abraham Kuyper believed that a healthy view of Jesus' kingship was essential to closing that gap. In this first volume of Pro Rege, Kuyper discusses how Satan's kingdom opposes, undermines, and obscures Christ's kingship. He then lays out the kingship of Christ according to Scripture. From his vantage point at the dawn of the 20th century, Kuyper explains the scope of Christ's dominion over all of life in his own culture--yet does so in a way that also strikingly impacts the 21st-century reader.

This new translation of Pro Rege, created in partnership with the Abraham Kuyper Translation Society and the Acton Institute, is part of a major series of new translations of Kuyper's most important writings. The Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology marks a historic moment in Kuyper studies, aimed at deepening and enriching the church's development of public theology.

What are the political and social implications of the gospel?

In Our Program, Abraham Kuyper presents a Christian alternative to the secular politics of his day. At that time, the church and state were closely tied, with one usually controlling the other. But Kuyper's political framework showed how the church and state could engage with each other while remaining separate. His insights, though specific to his time and place, remain highly relevant to Christians involved in the political sphere today.

This new translation of Our Program, created in partnership with the Kuyper Translation Society and the Acton Institute, is part of a major series of new translations of Kuyper's most important writings. The Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology marks a historic moment in Kuyper studies, aimed at deepening and enriching the church's development of public theology.

Kuyper on a Theological Approach to Justice

The practical outworking of Kuyper's doctrine of common grace demanded a commitment to seeking Christ's glory in every sphere of human life. Christians are called to witness to the lordship of Christ through sacrificial service, not domination, and such service calls us to seek charity and justice for all people.

In this anthology of articles and reflections, Kuyper articulates a Christian vision for engaging with society. Though his analysis was intended for his late-nineteenth-century Dutch context, his thoughts remain strikingly relevant for Christians living in the modern world. For Kuyper, God's law preserved civil justice, making humane life possible. However, the law itself could not save society--only the gospel can transform the heart. But the gospel is for all of life. Kuyper elaborated a social Christian approach to politics, resulting in a distinct perspective on property, human dignity, democracy, and justice.

Abraham Kuyper believed that Jesus is King of all creation, making it absurd to distinguish between Christian life inside and outside the church. In previous volumes of Pro Rege, Kuyper examined Christ's universal kingship and its implications for the life of the church and the family; in this third volume, he extends his analysis of Christ's kingship and rule to areas of society not encompassed by the family and the church - specifically, culture and the arts, civil society, and government.

Created in partnership with the Abraham Kuyper Translation Society and the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion & Liberty, the Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology marks a historic moment in Kuyper studiesâ?one that will deepen and enrich the church's public theology.

Based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the Acton Institute is a nonprofit research organization dedicated to the study of free-market economics informed by religious faith and moral absolutes.

With a sure hand and a passion for preserving the essential Kuyper, James C. Schaap has pared away the complex language of a century-old translation of the original Dutch text Nabij God te Zijn (1908) to reveal the heart of Abraham Kuyper's meditations in fresh, vivid words.

This series of lectures was delivered by Abraham Kuyper at the Princeton Theological Seminary in 1898. Over the course of the lectures, he discusses Calvinism and the way it pertains to many aspects of life including politics, science, and art. According to Kuyper, Calvinism has a natural affinity for scientific investigation, because like scientific inquiry, Calvinism seeks to unify the cosmos under universal laws. Predestination, he says, proves that a set of laws exist to govern the world, and science is merely trying to figure them out. When it comes to art, Kuyper launches into a defense of Calvinism, which is often maligned as a religion that seeks to stamp out art and its significance. Readers will find here a thorough and elegant explanation of Calvinism and its particular outlook on life. Anyone wanting to know how the religion is unique among the many Christian sects will find it an enjoyable and informative read. Dutch theologian ABRAHAM KUYPER (1837-1920) was prime minister of the Netherlands from 1901 to 1905. He developed Neo-Calvinism, which emphasizes the sovereignty of Jesus over all mental pursuits and supports the idea that there exists a grace given by God to all things in order to sustain the continued unfolding of creation. Kuyper wrote a number of books including Conservatism and Orthodoxy (1870), The Social Question and the Christian Religion (1891), and Common Grace (1902).

Calvinism is not just five points, but is, as Dr. Kuyper makes clear, a whole, complete, coherent worldview. These Lectures represent the next step in Calvinism for those who have learned the five points, the doctrines of grace, and are ready to move on to the more developed meaning of those doctrines for the rest of the Christian worldview. Here you will find perhaps the most classic, single-volume exposition of just that: the doctrine and meaning of Calvinism expanded into a whole system of thought, in this case expressed in six areas of life: worldview, religion, politics, science, art, and the future.
Throughout these lectures, Dr. Kuper contrasts the glories of Calvinism, as biblical Christianity itself, over against various versions of humanism, paganism, pantheism, mysticism, and more, often including key differences in each area with Roman Catholicism, Lutheranism, Anabaptism, and liberal Christianity. The reader will be awakened to many developments in history they probably did not know stemmed directly for one of these religious worldviews, and how Calvinism not only corrects the errors, but lays the positive foundations for the values and institutions the free world holds most dear.

Kuyper on the Divine Purpose for Education

Among Abraham Kuyper's many accomplishments was his founding of the Free University of Amsterdam, where he also served as president and professor of theology. This collection of essays and speeches presents Kuyper's theology and philosophy of education, and his understanding of the divine purpose of scholarship for human culture.

Included are convocation addresses given at the Free University, parliamentary speeches, newspaper articles, and other talks and essays on the topic of education. Much of the material deals with issues still being debated today including the roles of the family and state in education, moral instruction, Christian education, and vouchers.

This classic by Dr. A. Kuyper gives us 50 graphic character sketches that radiate scriptural insight. Each character study is based on a specific passage of Scripture.

In this volume, originally published in English in 1900-it was translated by HENRI DE VRIES (1847-1932)-Abraham Kuyper addresses what he feels is a scarcely discussed topic among theologians and practicing Christians: the person and work of the Holy Spirit. Much had been written about Jesus and the Father, but he found very little about the Holy Spirit, whose job it is to sanctify the soul. Kuyper divides his work into three volumes. Volume One covers the work of the Holy Spirit in the Church; Volumes Two and Three cover the work of the Holy Spirit in the individual. Dutch theologian ABRAHAM KUYPER (1837?1920) was prime minister of the Netherlands from 1901 to 1905. He developed Neo-Calvinism, which emphasizes the sovereignty of Jesus over all mental pursuits and supports the idea that there exists a grace given by God to all things in order to sustain the continued unfolding of creation. Kuyper wrote a number of books including Conservatism and Orthodoxy (1870), The Social Question and the Christian Religion (1891), and Common Grace (1902).

Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) is one of the most remarkable men in the history of Reformed Christianity. He was eminent in Dutch public life for half a century and left a deep imprint on Dutch immigrant communities in the United States, Canada, and South Africa. A theologian, politician, journalist, university founder, and seminal thinker in the history of modern Calvinism, Kuyper offered an engaging critique of the nineteenth century that still has much to say at the end of the twentieth.

This anthology, published in the centennial year of Kuyper's famous Stone Lectures, gathers sixteen key writings by Kuyper never before available in English. Included in this volume are Kuyper's definitive statements on politics, education, culture, and the religious currents and social problems of his time. Also included are Kuyper's own conversion narrative, his critiques of Modernism and of Holiness theology, his proposals on common grace and Calvinist politics, his reflections on a culture in thrall to pantheism and evolution, and his classic address on sphere sovereignty.

Freshly translated and rendered in a clear, accessible style, these writings clearly display Kuyper's wide-ranging and creative Christian mind. Editor James Bratt provides helpful explanatory notes and an introduction to each piece. Photographs, cartoons, and short excerpts from some of Kuyper's better-known works also make this an attractive volume that will stand as the premier Kuyper reader for years to come.

God's Gifts for a Fallen World

Common Grace is often considered Abraham Kuyper's crowning work, an exploration of how God expresses grace even to the unsaved. Kuyper firmly believed that though many people in the world will remain unconverted, God's grace is still shown to the world as a whole.

In this third and final volume of Common Grace, Kuyper brings his argument to its logical completion by turning to practical implications. With detailed explorations on matters of church and state, family, upbringing, and society, Kuyper provides practical guidance for all who desire to flourish within the created order, a world in which God's grace is generously given to all.

Kuyper on the Positive Potential of Business

In his vast treasury of writings, Abraham Kuyper addressed nearly every sphere of society, including politics, science, and the arts. But his views on business and economics are often overlooked because he rarely engaged with that sphere directly. Still, his doctrine of common grace has great significance for showing how Christ is at work in the workplace.

In this anthology of essays, speeches, and reflections, we see Kuyper's attempts to think positively and creatively about the calling and potential of business. Included are his ideas about economic freedom, the eternal value of earthly work, stewardship and philanthropy, economic globalization, the workings of God's grace in business, and the social function of money.

Experience the Psalms with Abraham Kuyper.

Well-known as a public figure and theologian, Abraham Kuyper was also, like David, a man after God's own heart. His profound thought was energized by a vibrant faith. It is fitting that the Psalms--the anatomy of the human soul--inspired abundant meditation for Kuyper as he endeavored to apply Christ's Lordship to all of life.

Translated and introduced by James De Jong, these thirty-one meditations on the Psalms reveal the devotion of a seasoned saint who remained faithful to his Lord.

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In Common Grace Abraham Kuyper presents to the church a vision for cultural engagement rooted in the humanity Christians share with the rest of the world.

Kuyper fills a gap in the development of Reformed teaching on divine grace, and he articulates a Reformed understanding of God's gifts that are common to all people after the fall into sin. This first volume contains Kuyper's demonstration of the biblical basis for common grace and how it works.

This new translation of Common Grace, created in partnership with the Kuyper Translation Society and the Acton Institute, is part of a major series of new translations of Kuyper's most important writings. The Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology marks a historic moment in Kuyper studies, aimed at deepening and enriching the church's development of public theology.

What is the relationship between the church and the state?

Dutch politician and Christian activist Abraham Kuyper was deeply invested in debates over the influence Christianity should have on his nation. As a pastor and theologian, he was just as concerned about the ailing Dutch church. In On the Church, the Acton Institute and the Abraham Kuyper Translation Society have partnered with Lexham Press to publish seven brand-new translations of Kuyper's most influential essays and speeches on the relationship between Christianity and the world.

Kuyper believed that Christians must neither hide from the world behind the walls of physical church buildings nor engage the world solely through earthly institutions. The introductory essay by Ad de Bruijne discusses how Kuyper's incisive view of the church still can--and must--apply today, just as it did at the turn of the 20th century.