Joseph Gilbert

Grateful to @AmReformer and @tlloydcline for publishing my article, “The Theological Origins of Political Power.” My hope is that it brings depth to our discussions of political authority and its relationship to religion within God’s created order. americanreformer.org/2026/03/the-th…

@MichaelCarlino Love the Junius maxing

Amen. "Supernatural theology, moreover, is the wisdom of divine matters, which proceeds from first principles that are known in relation to itself by the light of a superior knowledge, beyond the mode of human reason." ~Junius

The doctrine of the Trinity cannot be proven to exist by a bare imposition of rational necessity. This is because it is a truth above reason. We accept it based upon divine testimony from Scripture. This is faith seeking understanding.

Defining nature, grace, and other terms related to the axiom "grace perfects nature." open.substack.com/pub/jonathanra…

@jonathanramont is doing great work on helping people understand the Reformed Orthodox position on nature and grace. His latest substack article provides great definitions. Check it out! open.substack.com/pub/jonathanra…

One’s political theology is heavily related to one’s ecclesiology. If we like the ecclesiology of the Reformed Orthodox, we should like their political theology.

@docMJP America is a Protestant country.

I very quietly came to something like this conclusion a few decades ago. Few scholars like anyone saying this. Pisses everyone off. But Aquinas has a more nuanced view about regime forms than monarchists or liberal admit. Good on Knowles for saying it. But very important caveat: it’s not the ideal regime for Aquinas (and many of the founders), but the most practical one.

“Liberty and Popery cannot live together.” John Adams to Louisa Catherine Adams, May 17, 1821.

Protestants believe in natural law. We were a Protestant nation. We were decidedly not Catholic. Our founders didn’t believe Catholics were good citizens. “I have long been decided in opinion that a free government and the Roman Catholick religion can never exist together in any nation or Country.” John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, February 3, 1821.

“ When we interpret the American founding, we can totally grant that these men were not endeavoring to establish a Catholic Republic...but we can recognize that what they have done has created a meaning that is very much in line with the natural law tradition, with Thomisitic traditions, scholastic tradition.” - @michaeljknowles

Our founding fathers were hesitant to accept both Jewish and Catholic immigrants into this country because they were afraid it would lead to the encouragement of Sabbath breaking. We have always been a Protestant nation. Sorry @michaeljknowles.

I was blessed to be able to give my first chapel message @MidAmericaSem yesterday. The text was Isaiah 6:1-7, with the theme of ‘Our Longing for Transcendence’.

The syllogism is way too vague. Terms are unclear. As others have pointed out, I don’t see how this doesn’t formally meld the ends of church and state.

Sounds neat. But a total disaster of false inference and conflation. First of all, it isn't valid. But, to be gracious, an argument doesn't have to contain all the premises. Second, it would grant both church and state the same formal, intrinsic, and earthly end. But since the state's absolute end is virtue, the church (in this understanding) must be subordinate to the state, for it is necessary to the state's end. Indeed, it must be a formal part of the commonwealth by its nature, and thereby under the state. The correct way to put it is: the church's supernatural end is piety and eternal life, but the secondary effect of its ministry supports the state's pursuit of public virtue. The church is necessary for public virtue, not having public virtue as its intrinsic formal end, but in its supplying the foundation and means of sustaining virtue via piety. Thus, the intrinsic ends are distinct yet mutually supporting, and there is no formal subordination between them. DeYoung is stating things even Erastians would avoid.

"Those therefore that endeavor themselves to teach the people in sacred assemblies, have need of a double doctrine and understanding: the one of things divine, which they properly call divinity, comprised in the holy writings of the prophets and apostles; the other of things humane, in which we do not only account the arts called liberal, and the parts of philosophy commonly handled in the schools, and likewise the tongues, but also civil discipline, and judgment of political and economic affairs." - Andreas Hyperius, Practice of Preaching

@JonMcK1647 @AaronGarriott Appreciate it!

@AaronGarriott @JosephGilbert_ Top tier intern material. Wise. Likable. High IQ.

My brother @JosephGilbert_ is interning with us this summer. He’s a humble, sharp man, and this article is excellent. Well worth your time.

@AaronGarriott Thanks Aaron!

My argument here is similar to @JosephGilbert_ 's analysis which you can find here: americanreformer.org/2025/07/a-beat…

My theses on nature and grace. jonathanramont1.substack.com/p/theses-on-na…

“The divine law is that which has been inspired by God, infused in rational creatures, and informs them with common and individual notions beyond nature for the purpose of transmitting them to a supernatural end by a supernatural leading.” Francis Junius (Mosaic Polity)