Orders of creation (or sometimes creation orders) refer to a doctrine of theology asserting God's hand in establishing social domains such as the family, the church, the state, and the economy. Although it is commonly traced back to early

Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

, Alister E. McGrath, Joanna Collicutt McGrath. ''The Open Secret: A New Vision for Natural Theology''. Blackwell Publishing, 2008. . p. 160. the doctrine is also discussed within

Reformed Christianity Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Calv ...

as well as modern

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...

. During the 1930s–1940s rise of European

neo-orthodoxy In Christianity, Neo-orthodoxy or Neoorthodoxy, also known as theology of crisis and dialectical theology, was a theological movement developed in the aftermath of the First World War. The movement was largely a reaction against doctrines of ...

, the meaning of this doctrine in regard to the foundations of church and state (e.g., how its interpretation by 19th-century German theologians may have aided in legitimizing the then-contemporary

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

party or how it would support the reality or non-reality of

natural law Natural law ( la, ius naturale, ''lex naturalis'') is a system of law based on a close observation of human nature, and based on values intrinsic to human nature that can be deduced and applied independently of positive law (the express enacte ...

) came into dispute amongst such famed theologians as Karl Barth,

Emil Brunner Heinrich Emil Brunner (1889–1966) was a Swiss Reformed theologian. Along with Karl Barth, he is commonly associated with neo-orthodoxy or the dialectical theology movement. Biography Brunner was born on 23 December 1889 in Winterthur, in the ...

, and

Dietrich Bonhoeffer Dietrich Bonhoeffer (; 4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and anti-Nazi dissident who was a key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have ...

. Though a specific 1934 controversy between Brunner and Barth over the interpretations of the doctrines of natural law and the orders of creation John W. Hart. ''Karl Barth Vs. Emil Brunner: The Formation and Dissolution of a Theological Alliance, 1916–1936''. Peter Lang, 2001. was not inherently political, Barth alleged that Brunner's position gave credibility to pro-Nazi "

German Christians Christianity is the largest religion in Germany. It was introduced to the area of modern Germany by 300 AD, while parts of that area belonged to the Roman Empire, and later, when Franks and other Germanic tribes converted to Christianity from t ...

Notes

{{reflist Protestant theology

See also

Notes