The Spirit in Public Theology: Appropriating the Legacy of Abraham Kuyper

In The Spirit in Public Theology Bacote shows how Dutch politician and church leader Abraham Kuyper lived a thoroughly Christian life and explains why Christians need to follow Kuyper by taking their faith into the public sphere. Identifying the characteristics of a true Christian worldview Bacote demonstrates the need for a public theology that stresses engagement between the church and the world. The Spirit in Public Theology should be required reading for pastors students and all Christians who want to take their faith beyond the four walls of the Church. This fine book brings the profound insights of Abraham Kuypers life and thought to bear on the recent explorations of public theology in the English-speaking world. Of special value is the focus on Kuypers theology of the Holy Spirit. People who think a lot about the Holy Spirit do not often connect those thoughts to the public square and people who care about public activism do not often claim the power of the Holy Spirit. We are in Bacotes debt for showing us--with great care and clarity--how Kuyper made the connection. -- Richard J. Mouw Fuller Theological Seminary Bacotes profound encounter with the great Dutch neo-Calvinist exemplar of public theology Abraham Kuyper has given his understanding of the Holy Spirit a deeper and wider even cosmic dimension. In this book Bacote shows the relationship of the Spirit to the preserving power of common grace as it is present in the providential dimensions of politics science and the mandate to be stewards of creation. It is a substantive contribution to our view of Kuyper theology in general and the convergence of the Reformed evangelical and Pentecostal traditions on these key issues of the common life. -- Max L. Stackhouse Kuyper Center for Public Theology Princeton Theological Seminary A useful book for Kuyper devotees as well as for students who want to examine current discussions of the interface between public policy/theory and theology. -- John Bolt Calvin Theological Seminary Here is a balanced exposition on Kuypers classic concept of common grace as a theological rationale for a Christians involvement in public life. Bacote is a creative theologian--well versed in the history of both American and Dutch theology--who successfully appropriates Kuypers thinking for the twenty-first century in a way that is promising for its influence in American culture. --George Harinck Historical Documentation Center for Dutch Protestantism Free University of Amsterdam. Bacote takes a fresh look at Kuypers doctrine of common grace in conjunction with his doctrine of the Holy Spirit and the Spirits work in the whole of creation. Along the way Bacote engages in thoughtful dialogues with Arnold van Ruler John McIntyre and other writers in pneumatology and public theology. This lucid overview of Kuypers public career which analyzes both his guiding principles and their effecitve applications is the best published in English thus far. -- Harry Van Dyke Redeemer College Vincent E. Bacote Assistant Professor of Theology at Wheaton College is President of the Christian Theological Research Fellowship and coeditor of Evangelicals and Scripture.