Article Releases

Edmund Opitz and the Chastening of Secular Libertarianism

Now available in CLR Volume 4: “Edmund Opitz and the Chastening of Secular Libertarianism” by Vic McCracken.

Abstract: Edmund Opitz (1914-2006) was a major figure in 20th-century Christian libertarianism who advanced libertarian ideals in the face of widespread dismissal and opposition from Christian leaders. Beyond his correspondence with Christian leaders, Opitz pursued more sympathetic exchanges with secular thinkers in the libertarian movement. The common purpose Opitz shared with secular libertarians, however, did not dissuade him from challenging his collaborators to reconsider the metaphysical basis for the libertarian message. Drawing from previously unpublished correspondence between Opitz and Ludwig von Mises, this paper explores Opitz’s own efforts to “chasten” his secular libertarian allies. Opitz was a Christian thinker uniquely positioned to critique both mainstream Christian collectivists, whom he faulted for eschewing the moral consequences of Christian faith, and secular libertarians, whom he challenged to embrace the metaphysical foundations essential to libertarian ethics.

Download the full paper here. See more from Volume 4 here.

Vic McCracken (Ph.D. Ethics and Society, Emory University) is Professor of Ethics and Theology at Abilene Christian University.

Christian Ducats and Jewish Scales: Religious Currency in the Merchant of Venice

Now available in CLR Volume 4: “Christian Ducats and Jewish Scales: Religious Currency in The Merchant of Venice“ by Joshua Fullman.

Abstract: A significant amount of contemporary scholarship of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice has read the text strictly in Marxist economic terms. One disadvantage to this approach is that it treats religion as merely a support to Venetian society rather than as its base, presuming a cynical, and consequently tragic, view of the text. This paper reverses that analysis, viewing the conflict between religions as foundational to understanding the play. Interpreting Merchant through the genre of romance, the text becomes less a problem play and more a moral exemplum in how to live rightly. Through the tripartite tests of casket, court, and ring, Shakespeare emphasizes not the inequities and oppressive structure of a market economy but how the freedom inherent in such a system promotes love and redemption at all levels of society.

Download the full paper here. See more from Volume 4 here.

Joshua S. Fullman (Ph.D. English, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale) is the Director of the University Writing Center at California Baptist University.

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