ABSTRACT
In the discussion between the religionists and the political realists Morgenthau and Waltz, it appears that both positions have their strengths and weaknesses. This chapter gives a summary of the various positions and lists the strengths and weaknesses of each of them. I present an approach that overcomes the weaknesses and combines the strengths. This approach is the so-called Normative Practice Approach (NPA) as developed within the Amsterdam School of Philosophy. Since this approach combines insights from the religionists, the Amsterdam School, Waltz and Morgenthau’s realism, and Niebuhr’s Christian realism, I call this a new Christian realism. It stands in the tradition of Morgenthau’s classical realism and Waltz’s neorealism. It accepts the demand for theory, but it is critical of the rigidity of neorealism. It is called a Christian realism because it agrees with the worldview of Christian realism and the Amsterdam School. The chapter concludes with some recommendations on religious sensitivity and literacy in practice.
