Friday, November 18, 2005

basics of Dooyeweerd's social philosophy

Three Principles and Tasks

1. Sovereign Creator
God is the absolute sovereign Creator of all that exists. He called all creation into being, and providentially governs its becoming. All that exists is constantly dependent on Him, and is never exempt from His sovereignty.

2.Creation Ordinances
God’s rule over creation is covenantal, ordering and governing all creatures by His law. God is Himself above His law, but accommodates Himself in His relation to creation by law and covenanted faithfulness to it. God’s law is pluriform and makes the diversity and development of creation possible, including that of social structures. God created all things good. His laws for human activity (norms) can be disobeyed, but the goodness and integrity of these norms is not destroyed.

3. Sphere Sovereignty
The development and differentiation of social spheres is normed by God. Each sphere is given its own distinct responsibilities. This delegated sovereignty is always dependent upon and accountable to God by His law.

The task of Dooyeweerd’s social philosophy is to:
a) identify the differentiated social spheres,
b) describe the respective norms for their inner natures and functions
c) define the proper relationships between the spheres.

See here for related discussion, and see also my previous post under the headings Clouser's Dooyeweerdian Theory of Society and Chaplain's Criticism of Dooyeweerd's Social Philosophy.