加尔文政治思想研究路径反思——论斯金纳《近代政治思想的基础》下卷对加尔文的误读

Reflections on the Study Path of Calvin's Political Thought——On Skinner's Misreading in The Foundations of Modern Political Thought

斯金纳在《近代政治思想的基础》下卷中对加尔文政治思想的研究,暴露出非常多的混乱和问题。这些问题的背后,是斯金纳的研究方法在运用于像加尔文这类的神学政治家时所暴露的不足。研究加尔文的神学政治思想,首先,必须以加尔文的神学理论,特别是与政治理论直接相关的神学理论为基础。其次,必须审慎地区分加尔文神学政治思想中的构成性因素与策略性因素。最后,在界定加尔文在政治思想史脉络中所处的位置时,必须注意思想史发展的断裂性与一致性的统一。

Skinner's famous study of Calvin in The Foundations of Modern Political Thought has exposed a lot of confusions.What lies behind these confusions is the deficient of his method,especially when it is applied to the kind of theologies like Calvin's.To study Calvin's political thought,we must firstly study his theology,in particular the part related to his political thought.Secondly,we must carefully distinguish between the constitutive and strategic elements in Calvin's political thought.Finally,when defining the location of Calvin in the context of the history of political thought,we must pay attention to the continuity and discontinuity of the development of the history of political thought.