In answering the question on whether liberty lies at the heart of Liberal philosophy, giving reference the early and later versions of liberal philosophy, I first explore the ideological underpinnings of liberal philosophy, Calvinism. Calvinism from its origins in Neo-Platonic Christianity has influenced many radical and revolutionary social movements. The Protestant Reformation in England was inspired by Calvinism as were the subsequent revolutions in France, America and Russia. The Calvinist philosophy of liberty of the individual has underpinned these great social transformations and will no doubt underpin all progressive future social change. The historical notion of liberty that underpins western democracy is the history of revolution. The notion of liberty is egalitarian inspired individualism. The rise of liberalist individualism in Europe led directly to the Protestant Reformation. The subjective philosophy, that is freedom, is applied objectively, through the philosophical notion of individualism. It is the objective nature of individualism that underpins the philosophy of Liberalism in western democratic nations. The dialectical nature of freedom and liberty of the individual are as such, that Libertarian ideologies in western democracies are based on the subjective writings of John Calvin, in his book, The Institutes of the Christian Religion and the objective events of the English Revolution led by Our Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. It was under the establishment of the Republican Parliamentary supremacy, over dictatorial monarchism in England in the mid seventieth centaury under its leader Our Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell, that the notion of the governance of the individual liberty was established. The Anglican Diocese of Sydney is one of the last remaining Calvinist dioceses in the International Anglican Communion. On the Sydney Anglican Media website Lesley Hicks in his article, The History of the Anglican Church, describes the historical influence that Calvinistic philosophy had on the leaders of the English Reformation, “But Elizabeth also particularly opposed the Puritans, or Presbyterians, the followers of John Calvin of Geneva”. (Hicks 1994:3) Hicks establishes in his paper, the fact that the Calvinistic Puritan leaders were the originators of the English Reformation. It was Calvins notion of the liberty of the individual that gave the foundation for the great democratic social transformation that was the English Revolution. The revolutionary nature of Calvinist philosophy with its accent on the liberty of the individual opposed strongly the dominance of oppressive Catholic Church doctrine. These ideas led to the formation of Protestant Church, with the greatest of all, being the Anglican Church. The radical nature of the opposition that was leveled against the oppressive doctrine of the Catholic Church is further explored by Hicks, “Throughout its Post-Reformation history the Anglican Church has existed amid a pull from both Roman Catholic doctrines and practices on the one hand and Calvinist Presbyterianism on the other. The former requires ignoring or setting aside Reformation insights and the historic biblical standards of the Prayer Book and Thirty-Nine Articles, while the latter relates more to church discipline and government, which could or should be seen as matters of liberty. (Hicks 1994:4) The radical nature of the application of the Calvinist philosophy of liberty of the individual has a significant impact on the social transformation of European society. It was through the radical ideology of the English Puritans and their revolutionary Calvinist philosophy that liberty came to the fore as the dominant form democratic governance in the new world of Republicanism. The English Revolution in the seventeenth centaury marked the dawning of the Age of the Bourgeoisie. It was though this Calvinist inspired revolution that the light of liberty began to shine through the darkness of Feudalistic monarchist oppression. The beheading of Charles the 1st by Our Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell on behalf of the people of England marked the point of change, between the Medieval Age and the Age of Democracy. It was this event that established a Republican government that was dedicated to the ideas of Liberalism. The founder of the British Republic and commander-in-chief of the parliamentary New Model Army, Our Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell instituted a democratic system that was based on Calvinist notion of liberty. The worlds first democratic system which was instituted by Our Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell, was a parliamentary based system. This system was known as the Commonwealth. It was called this as all the capital wealth of the nation was owned on behalf of the people through there elected representatives in the House of Commons. In a speech to the House of Commons, meeting in Westminster Abbey, Our Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell outlined how liberty of the individual was the underling philosophy of the democratic English Commonwealth system, “When we shall come to give an account to them (the people) we shall be able to say, oh! We have quarreled for and contested for the liberty of England.” (Cromwell cited in Hill 1970:193) In this way the Republican based system of governance was based on the philosophies of Calvin. These ideas came to dominance in seventeenth century England produced the first national application of the philosophy of freedom of the individual, which in political terms is known as Liberalism. It has now grown to be the most power force in the philosophy of governance. . The three major liberal revolutions that marked the early period of Liberalism, executed the dawning of freedom within those nations. It is not by any random chance that the same nations that have adopted the principles of Calvinist Liberalism as the basis of a new governance. They have also been the same nations that have prospered immensely as a result. Andrew Heywood in his book, Political Ideologies: An Introduction, explains the interconnectedness of the liberal ideology that underpinned these three great democratic social transformations, “The English Revolution of the seventeenth century and the American and French Revolutions of the late eighteenth century each embodied elements that were distinctively liberal.” (Heywood 2003:25) The common liberal elements that underpinned the English, French and American Revolutions, liberty of thought, freedom of the individual and a Republican political structure. These principles were based on Calvin contribution to the revolutionary process of history. The Calvinist notion of liberty of the individual is not without its detractors though. The totalitarian left has launched several ill-informed tirades on the notion of liberty of the individual and on Calvin himself. Bourgeois Melbournite Peter Singer is one of these ill-informed people. In his book, How Are We To Live: Ethics in an age of self-interest, Singer launches one of his anti-social self-indulgent ping-pong balls, “Individualism triumphed over the traditional idea of community in Protestant countries if Northern Europe, including Britain and its offshoots in North America, Australia and New Zealand, however individualism has been pushed to a new extreme.” (Singer 1993:32) Not only does Singer attack the underlying Protestant principles of western democracy he also attempts, in vain, to undermine the Calvinist notion of liberty of the individual. In this way Singer fires a salvo in the bows of democracy by attacking the notion of equality of the individual before both the law and before our God. Through attacking the principles of liberty of the individual, Singer reaffirms the Calvinistic origins of Liberalism. Singer gives reference to the Calvinist philosophy in his attempt to undermine our democratic system, “Of all the leaders of the Reformation, John Calvin went furtherest in revising the traditional religious attitudes to the business classes. A distinctive (and repugnant) element of his theology is the doctrine of predestination according to which salvation cannot be earned by good deeds or even by a morally faultless life.” (Singer 1993:65) Singer attacks both on Calvin and his underlying principle of liberty of the individual. Singer also attacks the underlying principle of Protestantism, the doctrine of predestination. This anti-liberal stance of Singer stems from his failure to understand the principle of the revolution in stages. These series of events that lead inevitably to social change, bring us closer step by step towards a the perfection and purity of the Utopian society. The underlying principle for Singers attacks are outlined further in his book. His main target is that of liberal Protestant principles that underpin western democratic nations especially that of the United States of America, “When the Pilgrim Fathers and other Puritan settlers left England for the New World, they took Protestant, and especially Calvinist, doctrines with them.” (Singer 1993:67) Singer in his overly emotional style attempts to attack western democracy and its underlying principle, that of the liberty of the individual. In would seem that Singer would rather have our lives dictated to be the feudalistic Catholic monarchs that were liquidated in the Protestant Reformation. The conservative and self-indulgent nature of Singers ill-informed remarks shows his contempt for the radical and revolutionary nature and purity of Calvinist ideology, which is the only common way forward for humanity. The radical and revolutionary nature of the Calvinist revolution can be summed in a simple word, ‘predestination’. Matthew Brook who as Master of Trinity College at Cambridge University, was at the centre of the English Revolution, explains how at the centre revolution is the doctrine of predestination is the core element of radical and revolutionary social change, “This doctrine of predestination is the root of Puritanism, and Puritanism is the root of all rebellions and disobedient untractableness.” (Brook cited Hill 1970:209) Brook who lived and rebelled almost four hundred years ago understood the revolutionary nature of Liberalism. Through purity, liberty and destiny many millions of people have come to find salvation through the blood of revolutionary sacrifice. The French Republican revolution was, indeed inspired by the ideology of the English Revolution. Through the trademark principles of the French Revolution of the eighteenth century, Liberty, Egality and Fraternity, the seeds of revolutionary change were sown in Russia, at the start of the twentieth century. The beginning of the twentieth century was ushered in with much fanfare and hope for a more civilized and rational society. The dreams of a Utopian world quickly faded as the people awoke to the news of World War One. It was these circumstances that Europe’s last Feudalistic enclave erupted into revolt and then into open revolution. The Bolsheviks led by Vladimir Lenin, seized the day and the opportunity and took power on behalf of the Russian peasants. They replace the Feudalistic Monarchist system with a modern liberal republican system that came to be known as Sovietism. The Utopian principles of Soviet ideology had there origin in the economic principles develop by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels. These principles are referred to by scholars as Marxism. Frederick Engels outlines in his paper; Socialism: Utopian and Scientific, how the Calvinist ideology has been at the centre of all the great European social transformations, “Calvins church constitution was thoroughly democratic and republican; and where the Kingdom of God was republicanised, could the kingdoms of this world remain subject to monarchs, bishops and lords?” (Engels 1973:105) It was through the principle of individual atonement before God that led to the establishment of Liberal Democratic Republics. At the centre of these republics was the Calvinist notion of liberty of the individual. In conclusion the Calvinist notion of liberty of the individual provides the basis to the political philosophy of Liberalism. It was through Calvin’s notion of individual atonement for sin before God that we get the notion of liberty of the individual the underpins the philosophy of Liberalism. Whilst earlier versions of Calvinist Republicanism in Geneva, England and the New England colonies concentrated on subjective freedom, the later versions of Liberalism in France, America and Russia concentrated on objective freedoms in society. Freedom of the individual, which is liberty, was Calvins main contribution to the Protestant Reformation and our modern notion democracy. The principle of liberty is the basis of the political ideology of Liberalism. Whether it be voting for a representative to a democratic parliament or belonging to a congregation of a Protestant church, the basis of affiliation to that corporation is the freedom of the freedom of that individual not to belong. References Brook, M., cited in Hill, C., 1970, Gods Englishman: Oliver Cromwell and the English Revolution, Penguin Books, London. Calvin, J., 1962, Institutes of the Christian Religion, James Clarks & Co., London. Engels, F., 1973, Socialism: Utopian and Scientific, Selected Works, Progress Publishers, Moskva. Heywood, A., 2003, Political Ideologies: An Introduction, Palgrave MacMillian, Hampshire and New York. Hill, C., 1970, Gods Englishman: Oliver Cromwell and the English Revolution, Penguin Books, London. Hicks, L., 1994, The History of the Anglican Church, Sydney Anglican Media,  http://www.sydeny.anglican.asn.au/history.htm 9th October 2004. International Bible Society, 1992, Holy Bible: New International Version, International Bible Society, Colorado Springs. Sabirov, K. H., 1987, What is Communism, Progress Publishers, Moskva. Singer, P., 1993, How Are We To Live: Ethics In An Age Of Self Interest, The Text publishing company, Melbourne.