Protestantism as Liberalism

Abstract

Milton develops a novel conception of Protestantism, a category that shapes his thought. He rejects doctrinal standards, arguing that what really matters—what makes all Protestants—is the commitment to working out one’s faith from the Bible alone (sola scriptura). He thus retains the formal, but rejects the material, principle of the Reformation. This position underlies Milton’s liberal commitments. A believer must be free to work out her faith from the Word of God; she must be free to come to an explicit faith. Milton uses this definition of Protestantism to argue against censorship. Milton also maintains the separation of church and state for theological reasons: a state church that imposed belief on Christians would be merely a ‘civil papacie’. This definition of Protestantism also underlies his arguments for tolerance. For Milton, politics are religion.