On August 17, Jaqueline Isaacs, coauthor of Called to Freedom: Why You Can Be Christian and Libertarian, spoke to over 70 attendees at Acton on Tap, hosted in The Knickerbocker brewery in Grand Rapids.
Isaacs explained how she and the other authors of Called to Freedom were motivated to write the book after observing that many people perceived libertarians to be nonreligious or believed that ideas associated with libertarianism could not be compatible with Christianity.
She stressed that Christians should be held accountable to their faith first, as it is “more important to be a Christian than a libertarian, because being a libertarian is a subset of our worldview.” She presented the tensions commonly believed to exist between Christianity and libertarianism and tackled each.
The key to understanding how libertarianism and Christianity can be reconciled is in the message of the gospel. The “four-chapter gospel” is made up of creation, fall, redemption and consummation. Understanding that man is born in sin as a result of the fall is the very reason that libertarian Christians should support the resistance of tyranny. No man is perfect, and this is the very reason Christians should be “cautious” to give others authority.
Although many Christians espouse liberty, few would align themselves with a libertarian ideology. Isaacs helpfully parses the issues revolving around the dichotomy and encourages Libertarian Christians to share their faith with other Libertarians in hopes of opening up conversation.
The next Acton on Tap will also be held at The Knickerbocker on November 16. Matt Kibbe will be speaking on the perils of political cronyism. Kibbe is the founder of FreedomWorks and a distinguished senior fellow at the Austrian Economic Center in Vienna, Austria.
For information about upcoming events or to sign up, be sure to visit acton.org and click on the event calendar. Upcoming events will be held in multiple cities throughout the United States.
