Theonomy

Definition and Meaning

Theonomy (Korean sinyuljuui, 神律主義) means "the law (nomos) of God (theos)." The term refers to the position that the law God has given in Scripture, particularly the Mosaic law of the Old Testament, should serve as the standard not only for personal ethics but also for the laws and penal sanctions of the state. Theonomists appeal to Matthew 5:17–18, where Christ declares that He came not to destroy the law but to fulfill it. On the basis of this passage, they argue that Old Testament law remains in force unless the New Testament explicitly modifies or abrogates it.

A perennial subject of debate within this position is how a modern state should apply the civil provisions of Leviticus and Deuteronomy, such as the statutes prescribing death by stoning. Theonomists themselves, however, disagree about the precise scope of application.

The theologian Paul Tillich also used the term "theonomy." Tillich, however, employed it as a concept in the philosophy of culture, in contrast to autonomy and heteronomy, so his usage differs from the position treated in this article.

Biblical and Historical Background

The Reformed tradition has historically divided Old Testament law into three categories: moral, ceremonial, and civil (judicial) law. Chapter 19 of the Westminster Confession of Faith states that the judicial laws given to Israel expired together with the state of that people. It adds, however, that the "general equity" of those laws is still required. Theonomists interpret the phrase "general equity" broadly, taking it to mean that the penal principles of the civil law remain valid today. Some also cite the legislative efforts of certain Puritans as precedent.

Modern theonomy took systematic form in the United States in the latter half of the twentieth century. Its representative works include the following:

• Rousas John Rushdoony, The Institutes of Biblical Law (1973)
• Greg Bahnsen, Theonomy in Christian Ethics (1977)

This movement is often called "Christian Reconstructionism," and it is generally associated with a postmillennial eschatology.

Many Reformed theologians, by contrast, have criticized theonomy for failing to take adequate account of the changes brought about by the new covenant in the New Testament. A collection of critical essays by the faculty of Westminster Theological Seminary is regarded as a representative example of this critique. Theonomists respond that they do not advocate forced conversion or ecclesiastical rule over the state; rather, they seek only to apply biblical standards of justice to society.

In the Korean Church

No Korean denomination is known to have adopted theonomy as its official position. The subject is chiefly introduced and critically examined in Presbyterian theological circles in discussions of law and gospel, church and politics, and capital punishment and the church.

The basic presuppositions differ by denomination as follows:

• Presbyterian: Following the Westminster Confession of Faith, Presbyterians divide the law into three categories and hold that the civil law does not apply directly today. Theonomy is treated as an internal debate over the interpretation of this teaching.
• Methodist and Anglican: The Methodist Articles of Religion inherited by the Korean Methodist Church and the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Anglican Church of Korea likewise state explicitly that the civil precepts of Moses need not of necessity be received in any commonwealth.
• Baptist and Pentecostal: Baptist and Pentecostal churches have often been influenced by dispensationalism. Because they tend to place greater emphasis on the discontinuity between the Mosaic law and the church age, they generally hold positions far removed from theonomy.