Religion & Liberty Online Archives

Individual Liberty

February 14, 2013

Morality and the Origins of the Second Amendment

Some politicians are calling for new regulation and restrictions on firearms, but why and how does the Second Amendment strengthen liberty? In a thoughtful post at the Carolina Journal today, Troy Kickler offers this historical assessment: What did early jurists and constitutional commentators say regarding the Second Amendment? Continue Reading...
February 07, 2013

HHS Mandate: Where Do Things Stand?

According to the Becket Fund, there are currently 44 active cases against the Obama administration’s HHS mandate requiring employers to include abortion, sterilization and abortifacients as “health care”. There have been 14 for-profit companies that have filed suit; 11 of those have received temporary injunctions against implementing the mandate. Continue Reading...
February 05, 2013

The Moral Case for Conservatism

Lee Habeeb and Mike Leven explain why it’s essential to make the moral case for conservatism: If there is a single reason why conservatives continue to lose the battle of ideas, it’s because we don’t make the moral case for freedom and free markets. Continue Reading...
February 04, 2013

Belief Without Action: Becoming a Shell of Who You Are

“The Constitution protects your right to believe and worship, not force your beliefs on others.” That’s a response Acton received via Twitter regarding a blog post on the HHS Mandate. This type of statement is a typical one in our society: you can believe whatever you want, but don’t force your beliefs on anyone else. Continue Reading...
February 01, 2013

Celebrating Liberty During Black History Month

Since the 1970s, Black History Month has been a time to focus on some of the highlights of the black experience in America. In 2009, Jonathan Bean put together a wonderful book recounting the vital role liberty played in the American black experience. Continue Reading...
February 01, 2013

The Edict of Milan in the History of Liberty

This month marks the 1,700th anniversary of the Edict of Milan. While much debate surrounds the relationship of Church and state in Christian Rome, even key figures like the Emperor Constantine (traditionally considered a saint by both East and West), the Edict of Milan is something that anyone who values liberty, religious liberty in particular, ought to commemorate as a monumental achievement. Continue Reading...
January 31, 2013

Bums, Anarchy, and Homicidal Fictions

It may not be very pious (although there is a very memorable apocryphal quote from Ezekiel 25:17), but Pulp Fiction is perhaps my favorite movie. There’s a scene where Vincent (John Travolta) and Jules (Samuel L. Continue Reading...
January 25, 2013

Questioning Obama’s Hand On The Bible

Just after the Presidential inauguration several leaders raised questions about whether or not President Obama should have sworn the oath of office by placing his hand on the Bible. Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church—a Protestant mega-church in Seattle—after seeing Obama sworn in said, “Praying for our president, who today will place his hand on a Bible he does not believe to take an oath to a God he likely does not know.” Continue Reading...