Bărnuțiu was influenced early-on by the philosophy of Immanuel Kant (Kantianism), in which he saw the means to reform society in opposition to traditional theological views.

[5] In 1843, following widespread support of reform within Transylvanian christian communities regarding clerical representation of its members, Bărnuțiu advocates for the abolition of unilateral administrative power in the church, on the side of a democratic structure electing its leaders, able of directly participating in the social conditions of Romanians.

[6] On 24 March 1848, Bărnuțiu issued one in a series of appeals by various authors, calling for self-determination of Romanians inside Transylvania, viewing it as a necessary step in matching Magyar success in obtaining rights from Emperor Ferdinand I, and professing that Romanians should reject the projected union of the region with the Kingdom of Hungary until ensured proportional representation and the official condemnation of serfdom.

[10] Just before the Second Assembly in May, he agreed to moderate his tone further, taking in view the points made by Bariț in regard to the fragile situation facing Romanians in the region, and partly reformulated his program on self-determination.

[16] Junimea, a conservative literary society created during that period, criticized him along with other Transylvanian intellectuals (such as Timotei Cipariu, Gheorghe Șincai, and August Treboniu Laurian) for having supported a Romanian grammar and alphabet based on Latin etymologies instead of one reflecting the spoken language (at the time, "Latinist" influences following Transylvanian guidelines had come to be favoured by the Romanian Academy).