Executive Summary

This white paper presents a proposed curriculum for a law school that grounds its instruction in biblical principles and the English common law tradition as the bedrock of an originalist approach to jurisprudence. By combining scriptural ethics, the natural law tradition, and historical common law reasoning, this curriculum seeks to train future lawyers, judges, and policymakers to apply the law with fidelity to foundational sources rather than contemporary ideological fashions.

The program’s core premise is that both biblical law and the English common law recognize transcendent principles of justice that must be interpreted faithfully, not remade arbitrarily. Thus, a biblically and common-law–anchored curriculum provides a holistic intellectual and moral formation for legal professionals in a world where the integrity of legal reasoning is increasingly contested.

I. The Philosophical Basis of the Curriculum

A. Biblical Law as the Root of Justice

Law as covenant: Torah as a revealed framework for social order, contract, and accountability. Biblical jurisprudence as emphasizing covenantal faithfulness, restitution, impartiality, and the protection of the vulnerable. Distinction between ceremonial, civil, and moral laws as applied to contemporary legal reasoning.

B. Common Law as the Development of Ordered Liberty

English common law as precedent-driven, rooted in custom, equity, and natural law. Magna Carta and the development of limited government. Blackstone’s Commentaries and the inheritance of common law principles in American constitutionalism.

C. Originalism as a Hermeneutic of Law

Originalism as textual fidelity: seeking original public meaning rather than judicial activism. Parallels to biblical exegesis: literal-historical-grammatical interpretation as the safeguard against arbitrary reinterpretation. Rejection of legal positivism in favor of enduring principles.

II. Structure of the Law School Curriculum

The program is designed as a three-year professional degree (JD equivalent), with a strong interdisciplinary foundation in theology, history, and jurisprudence.

Year One: Foundations of Biblical and Common Law

Courses:

Introduction to Biblical Law – Mosaic law, covenantal structures, case laws, prophetic critique. History of Common Law – Anglo-Saxon customs, Norman influence, development through Magna Carta, Coke, and Blackstone. Legal Hermeneutics – Methods of interpretation in scripture and law. Contracts and Covenants – Parallels between biblical covenant and modern contract law. Property and Stewardship – Biblical views on land, inheritance, and dominion; common law property rights. Legal Writing and Rhetoric I – Persuasive writing rooted in clarity, precedent, and justice.

Year Two: Institutions, Rights, and Justice

Courses:

Constitutional Law I: Origins – The U.S. Constitution, biblical influences, and common law heritage. Torts and Restitution – Harm, liability, and biblical restitutional justice. Criminal Law and Procedure – Due process in scripture and common law; protection against false witness and arbitrary punishment. Family and Inheritance Law – Marriage, guardianship, and inheritance in biblical and common law. Equity and Natural Law – Chancery courts, biblical equity, conscience, and fairness. Legal Writing and Rhetoric II – Advanced argumentation in appellate style.

Year Three: Application, Originalism, and Professional Formation

Courses:

Constitutional Law II: Originalism and Judicial Philosophy – Competing schools of thought, defenses of originalism, critiques of living constitutionalism. Comparative Legal Systems – Roman law, civil law, and biblical common law distinctives. Law and Religion – Freedom of conscience, church-state relations, biblical principles of authority. Advanced Seminar: Biblical Jurisprudence in Contemporary Issues – Case studies in bioethics, technology, and human rights. Capstone: Moot Court and Clinical Practice – Application of biblical and common law reasoning to modern disputes. Professional Responsibility and Moral Formation – Virtue ethics, integrity, and the calling of the lawyer as advocate for justice.

III. Pedagogical Methods

Textual Fidelity: Close reading of scripture, constitutional texts, and legal precedents. Historical Contextualization: Training students to situate law within historical traditions rather than abstract positivism. Practical Advocacy: Moot courts, legal clinics, and internships emphasizing originalist reasoning in real cases. Moral Formation: Integration of ethical and spiritual formation with professional skills.

IV. Institutional Outcomes

Graduates of this law school will:

Possess deep grounding in biblical and common law sources. Be capable of originalist interpretation of constitutions, statutes, and precedents. Advocate for justice informed by enduring principles rather than shifting ideologies. Provide leadership in courts, legislatures, and communities with intellectual and moral integrity.

V. Conclusion

In an era of legal instability, a law school rooted in biblical and common law traditions provides an enduring foundation for the practice of justice. By uniting theological, historical, and jurisprudential instruction, this curriculum develops lawyers not only as technicians of the law but as stewards of justice in service to both God and society.