The Foundations of Lockean Political Theory

‘There is’, Locke insists, ‘one science . . . incomparably above all the rest ... I mean theology, which, containing the knowledge of God and his creatures, our duty to him and our fellow creatures, and a view of our present and future state, is the comprehension of all other knowledge directed to its true end, i.e., the honour and veneration of the Creator, and the happiness of mankind. This is that noble study which is every man’s duty, and every one that can be called a rational creature is capable of’ ( Works , 2:360). Throughout his life, Locke subscribed to this basic proposition. Some of the earliest notations recorded in his journals schematically represent the branches and subbranches of knowledge which flow from these main divisions according to the priorities stated in the above quotation. Knowledge pertaining to the spiritual universe and its laws is of the highest order; below this level is a knowledge of the foundations of political society, the science of bodies and the physical world, and the nature of moral phenomena. The architectonic importance of theology, both for its comprehensiveness as the intellectual framework within which all knowledge is accorded its meaning, and for its existential significance as the key to an understanding of all human action, is a constant feature of Locke’s thought. 1