Of the Nature & Qualification of Religion in Reference to Civil Society

Sanuel Pufendor's "Of the Nature and Qualification of Religion" sharply separates politics from religion, advocating a moderate defence of toleration rather than unlimited religious liberty. Writing in response to the revocation of the Edict of Nantes by Louis XIV, Pufendorf contests the sovereign's right to control the religion of his subjects: state and religion pursue wholly different ends. He concludes that, when rulers transgress their bounds, subjects have a right to defence their religion, even by force of arms.