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Covenants are agreements or pacts used to create a new polity or join existing ones. This action is often necessitated by the absence of an existing authority, as may be the case in a frontier community. Covenanted bodies are formed with voluntary consent by independent and equal parties committing to joint action or obligation. Though the parties to a covenant -whether individuals, defined communities, or legitimate polities -are distinct, their mutual respect and common cause articulated in a covenant creates a new political or social entity. The implicit or explicit moral obligations created by a covenant, including limits on authority, define 'federal liberty'. This conditional liberty differs from 'natural liberty' or the freedom to do whatever one desires (Elazar 1998b(Elazar , 26-7, 1995 Winthrop [1645Winthrop [ ] 1908.Covenanting may integrate elements of natural law or natural right but is distinctly different from political arrangements that are organic, hierarchical, or founded by conquest.Covenants usually include many of the following elements: an historical prologue indicating the parties involved; a preamble stating the general purposes of the covenant and the principles behind it; a body of conditions and operative clauses; a stipulation of the agreed-upon sanctions applied if the covenant is violated; an oath to make the covenant morally binding; and provisions for reaffirmation (Elazar 1995, 24, 194-5).Covenanting enjoys a rich history beginning with the Hebrew peoples and extending into contemporary pseudo-covenants, treaties and trade agreements (Elazar 1998b, 101-59). Strong form or orthodox covenanting draws deeply from theological roots, often making God a party to the covenant and emphasizing both a vertical relationship (with God) and a horizontal relationship (among the people). Weaker forms of covenanting emphasize moral and relational goals, perhaps their divine origin or noting the need for a transcendent

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