Paleopresbyterianism Versus Neopresbyterianism - The Covenanters' Theology Revived in Modern Times

Since the late 1980s or early 1990s the American conservative movement has begun to break apart. The movement had been held together for many years by a common fear of Soviet expansionism. With the collapse of the Soviet empire, divergent elements within the conservative movement began to reassert their distinctive emphases. Broadly speaking, the movement has fractured into two groups, the "paleoconservatives" and the "neoconservatives" ("paleo" meaning "old" and "neo" meaning "new"). The "paleos" hold to the original position of the Old Right, namely, opposition to Big Government and support for conservative cultural morality. The "neos" are much more willing to compromise with Big Government, and have less enthusiasm for cultural conservative issues such as opposition to fetal murder (abortion) and "homosexual rights." The terms "paleoconservative" and "neoconservative" are therefore helpful in making distinctions between hard core conservatives who are committed to the original conservative position, and those who are willing to water down genuine conservatism for the sake of expediency or respectability.

Similarly, among the broad presbyterian movement, a type of fracture has also begun to emerge. Some presbyterians are returning to the original presbyterian position of full subscription to the Westminster Standards including obedience to the continuing moral obligations of the National Covenant of Scotland and the Solemn League and Covenant. This group could accurately be labelled "paleopresbyterians" since they hold to the original conceptions of what presbyterianism means. In contrast, those presbyterians unwilling to accept full subscription to the Standards or the binding nature of the Covenants could be called "neopresbyterians" since they have effectively watered-down the original presbyterian position. Using these terms will help to clarify the issues at stake in the emerging debate between Covenanters (paleopresbyterians) and all other presbyterians (neopresbyterians).

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