The Significance of Religion in John Locke's Advocacy of Revolution

174 Pages·2017·0.81 MB·English

by  Glenn Andrew Moots

Louisiana State University
LSU Digital Commons
LSU Master's Theses Graduate School
2008
Appealing to Heaven: The Significance of Religion
in John Locke's Advocacy of Revolution
Glenn Andrew Moots
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College
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APPEALING TO HEAVEN:
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF RELIGION IN JOHN LOCKE‟S ADVOCACY OF REVOLUTION

A Thesis

Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the
Louisiana State University and
Agricultural and Mechanical College
in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of
Master of Arts

in

The Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies

by
Glenn A. Moots
A.B., The University of Michigan, 1991
M.A., Louisiana State University, 1993
M.S., Walsh College, 1996
Ph.D., Louisiana State University, 2007
May, 2008
©Copyright 2008
Glenn A. Moots
All rights reserved

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My committee, Professors Mary Sirridge, Francois Raffoul, and James R. Stoner Jr., were
very gracious to review and improve a project that far exceeded its projected scope, length, and
timeframe. Their keen insight and critical remarks are helpful not only for this project but also for
my future research. I am thankful for their mentoring. I am especially thankful to Mary Sirridge for
her careful edits and conceptual critiques. I take responsibility for the remaining errors, of course.
Thanks are also due to my compatriots in Locke studies. Some helped me mine the riches of
Locke through their papers and books while others have worked with me to form conference panels
and thereby spur formal and informal conversation. I look forward to a long and fruitful
engagement with them over the years to come.
Thanks are also due to Joe Feeney, another “prodigal son” who (like me) returned to
graduate school later than most. His passionate academic interests and his good heart have been an
encouragement to me over many academic labors.
The Acton Institute and Intercollegiate Studies Institute have been very generous in
providing funding for this and other research projects. Without their support, I would not have the
time to complete them.
Finally, my greatest appreciation is due to my family. Time with them is a precious
blessing, and I hope that this project proves to be worth that sacrifice!

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................. iii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................................. v

ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... vi

CHAPTER
I. INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. ... 1

II. RELIGIOUS MOTIVATIONS FOR LOCKE'S POLITICAL IDEAS…………………19

III. PROVIDENTIAL UNDERSTANDING IN AN ESSAY CONCERNING HUMAN
UNDERSTANDING ............................................................................................... 46

IV. LAW AND REVELATION IN THE REASONABLENESS OF CHRISTIANITY ... 86

V. POLITICS AND REVELATION: DISCERNING DIVINE IMPERATIVES AND
WARRANTS ......................................................................................................... 113

VI. APPEALING TO HEAVEN: REVOLUTION RECAST .......................................... 131

VII. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 148

ENDNOTES ....................................................................................................................... 154

BIBLIOGRAPHY .............................................................................................................. 163

VITA ..................................................................................................................................... 167

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

It is customary in a work on Locke to cite the primary sources within the text itself. Locke's works
are cited using the following abbreviations. Complete information on the editions cited is provided
in the bibliography. I have also taken the liberty of modifying spelling and removing italics.
Grammar and capitalization has been left as it appears in the editions used.

Two Tracts of Government Tracts, page number

Letter Concerning Toleration Letter, page number

First Treatise of Government TI.paragraph number, page number

Second Treatise of Government TII.paragraph number, page number

Some Thoughts Concerning Education Thoughts.paragraph number, page number

The Reasonableness of Christianity R, page number

Essay on Toleration Essay, page number

Essay Concerning Human Understanding E.book.chapter.section number, page number

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ABSTRACT

This research addresses the intersection of philosophy and theology in Locke‟s philosophy,
particularly his political philosophy. The justification for this inquiry is Locke‟s use of the phrase
“Appeal to Heaven” in the Second Treatise together with his advocacy of resistance in the Letter
Concerning Toleration. The thesis begins with a brief survey of the relevant secondary literature
and frames the intersection of theology and political philosophy. The thesis then seeks to justify the
claim that Locke‟s political ideas were motivated by religious concerns. This includes a close
examination of An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, The Reasonableness of Christianity
and his works on religious toleration. The thesis then examines the Two Treatises and Letter
Concerning Toleration in light of what Locke said elsewhere about the significance of God and
religion. The intended goal is to demonstrate that Locke‟s argument for resistance and revolution is
ultimately motivated by his own theistic religious arguments.
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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 The Controversial Locke
Locke is a philosopher whose work inspires academic controversy. Some of that
controversy concerns the particulars of Locke‟s liberalism and his political philosophy.1 This
includes, but is not limited to, its contemporary significance, historical roots, and motivations.2
Some scholars recommend Locke as an antidote for what they fear to be moral peril in
contemporary liberalism.3 Others indict the liberal tradition and cite Locke as its primary villain.4
Some scholars leave aside Locke‟s political theory and instead devote themselves to other facets
of his philosophy.5 There is renewed interest in the relevance of religion in Locke‟s overall
philosophy.6 And whereas Locke used to be known for the most part as a “social contract
theorist” or “empiricist” because of traditional focus on either the Two Treatises (or sometimes
just the Second Treatise) or An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, there is new emphasis
on viewing Locke‟s major works as an integrated study.7 Locke has become a figure of such
prominence and debate that one is tempted to ask, when coming to a new Locke study, “Which
Locke will this be now?” There are now new Lockes and old Lockes.
This project focuses on an aspect of Locke‟s political philosophy quite appropriate for
examination in light of such controversies, his treatment of political resistance and revolution.
That question intersects with many of the current debates and offers a fresh examination of
another previously “settled” matter in Locke studies. By studying one of the most radical of
modern political doctrines, as articulated by one of liberalism‟s godfathers, we gain insight into
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the foundations of liberalism. We may also gain insight into the American Revolution, where
Locke‟s ideas had important historical significance.8 We may even be able to gain lessons
applicable to contemporary liberalism‟s theory and practice.
Reconsidering this area of Locke‟s political philosophy may require distancing ourselves
from what we think we know. As is so often the case in Locke, the well-worn paths from past
scholarship are sometimes the least profitable to travel. Tarcov is probably right in asserting that
Americans consider Locke to be “our political philosopher.”9 But sometimes what appears most
familiar is not well known. What Locke has come to represent to us in popular terms, or simpler
academic terms, may not be borne out by a careful study of Locke‟s own argument.
We then approach Locke with a fresh perspective to review his arguments about
resistance and revolution. The “new” Locke scholarship (in general) may not have everything
quite right, but the revisionists are forcing a badly needed reexamination. Previous discussions of
Locke‟s arguments on resistance and revolution see these as corollaries of his theories about
rights and contract. Simmons almost gets it right when he asserts “It is in his theory of resistance
that Locke completes his account of the political relationship, applying his views of political
consent and of the limits on political consensual transactions to an analysis of injustice and
misfortune in actual political life.”10 But what about those areas where Locke justifies resistance
in terms not fitting into the traditional “Lockean” model, as evidenced in his Letter Concerning
Toleration? As Simmons also argues, it is not always clear that inalienable rights are rightly used
in discussing the political consequences of religion in Locke.11 I contend there is an important
religious aspect of Locke‟s theories about revolution and resistance.
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1.2 Ambiguity in the Conventional Interpretation of Locke’s Resistance Theory
Understandably, arguments for resistance and rebellion in Locke are usually drawn
exclusively from the Second Treatise. Given its focus on government as a fiduciary, and the
background of the state of war, it is easy to think of the question entirely in those terms. Dunn
presents that straightforward view: “The right of resistance within Locke‟s theory is based upon a
concept logically antithetical either to the state of nature or to the legitimate polity. It derives
from the notion of the state of war.”12 Trust is breached when peace is violated through the abuse
of law (by the civil magistrate). The result is a restoration of the state of war. The violation of the
magistrate merits that resistance, according to Dunn‟s Locke, because he has abandoned “the way
of „reason‟” for the way of force and violence. Security has been removed and replaced with the
state of war.13
Such a general analysis is clear enough from a legal perspective, perhaps. But it remains
morally ambiguous. It also provides no clear direction for Locke studies, already a house of
mirrors reflecting a host of different Lockes. Dunn‟s minimalist study, typical of most
presentations of revolution in Locke, could be read as the secular natural right Locke, the Puritan
Locke, the hedonic Locke or even a Hobbesian Locke.14 And despite Dunn‟s reputation for being
the main proponent of a religious Locke, the relationship between God and resistance is thinly
articulated in Dunn. Dunn offers only two allusions to the ubiquitous Lockean prescription of
God as judge between contending parties.15 Dunn offers no substantial historical or theological
context for Locke‟s resistance theory, merely contrasting it with that of John Knox.16
Simmons‟s treatment is a bit more helpful, but it takes liberties with Locke‟s own
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