Christian Realism and American Power

In a world where some men have chosen to be monsters, Christian realism navigates between utopian idealism and cynical realpolitik, taking seriously both human nature and the demands of political responsibility without giving up on ethics. This essay sets out the structure of that tradition as an ethic of responsibility for the use of American power. Using Reinhold Niebuhr's “Serenity Prayer” as a frame, it traces a theological logic of creation, fall, restoration, and eschatological hope. Drawing on Augustine, Aquinas, Martin Luther, Paul Ramsey, Jean Bethke Elshtain, and Nigel Biggar, it positions the just war tradition as a moral enterprise grounded in a sovereign's responsibility for the maintenance of order, justice, and peace. On this account, the deontological criteria tell us when force is obligatory, not merely when it is permissible. When the prudential criteria counsel restraint, that restraint should register as a tragedy. As a palliative to that eventuality, the essay concludes with a reflection on future hope.