The Libertarian Christian Podcast

In this episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast, host Doug Stuart interviews Jon Carlson, the lead pastor of Forest Hills Mennonite Church in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. They discuss Carlson's recent class on Christian nationalism, which was part of a larger effort by his church to engage in thoughtful and deliberative conversations about politics and faith.  Carlson begins by defining Christian nationalism as "the belief that the United States is a Christian nation and that Christian values should be the foundation of our government." He then goes on to discuss the history of Christian nationalism in the United States, as well as its current manifestations. Carlson provided a taxonomy that he finds helpful and memorable when evaluating the different manifestations of nationalism: Classic Christian nationalism is the belief that Christian faith is central to American identity and that public policy should be shaped exclusively by Christian leaders' interpretation of biblical ideals. Diet Christian nationalism is similar to classic Christian nationalism, but it recognizes that not everyone in the United States is Christian and that the government should be pluralistic. Original Recipe Christian nationalism is the most extreme form of Christian nationalism. It is characterized by violence, white supremacy, and a willingness to use any means necessary to control state power. In the second half of the episode, Carlson discusses how Christians can respond to Christian nationalism. He argues that Christians should resist the temptation to see themselves as "insiders" or "patriots" and should instead embrace their role as "strangers" and "aliens" in this world. He also encourages Christians to work for justice and peace, regardless of their political beliefs. This episode is essential listening for anyone who wants to understand the threat of Christian nationalism and how Christians can respond to it.  Additional Resources YouTube link to Jon's first class on Christian Nationalism Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

Imagine a world where consent, innovation, and community drive progress, where we respect diverse beliefs and embrace self-determination. It’s time for a Jeffersonian Revolution, building a future based on living, serving, and lifting one another up. #Underthrow Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

Economist and author Art Carden is certainly no stranger to the Libertarian Christian Podcast, with this episode marking his seventh appearance on the show. This time, he joins Doug Stuart to discuss his latest book, Strangers With Candy: Observations from the Ordinary Business of Life, in which Art highlights a simple economic fact: buying candy from strangers is commonplace in any modern economy. Before diving into the book, Art and Doug spend some time discussing economics more broadly. Art walks us through the story of how he first became interested in economics, going on to explain and clarify a number of misconceptions surrounding the discipline. Drawing from his book, Art suggests that economists are to blame for many of these misconceptions, as they often do a bad job explaining the economics of how the world works. In Strangers With Candy, Art intends to rectify this issue, offering an accessible and easily digestible analysis of how economics impacts and shapes our day-to-day lives. This episode gives listeners a taste of Art’s analysis, as well as discussion on a variety of related and intriguing topics, such as municipal development policy, economic growth vs economic progress, and Art’s argument for why business is a public service. If you’re interested in anything mentioned above, tune in now! Art Carden is a professor of economics at Samford University’s Brock School of Business. He has worked with and contributed to a number of other organizations, including the American Institute for Economic Research, the Institute for Faith, Work, and Economics, the Beacon Center of Tennessee, the Independent Institute, and the Foundation for Economic Education. He received his PhD from Washington University in Saint Louis. More information can be found in the additional resources section below. Main Points of Discussion: 00:00    Introduction     02:13    How did Art get into economics?     05:14    Misconceptions about economists     15:05    Christians for Liberty Network     15:47    Why do economists struggle to explain the world?     19:15    Explaining the title “Strangers With Candy”      23:20    Economic growth vs economic progress     27:15    How not to help strangers     28:37    Municipal development: what are the tradeoffs?     34:05    Is business a public service?     41:46    Lightning round with Art Additional Resources: - Buy Stranger's With Candy today: ---  https://strangerswithcandybook.com/ --- https://www.amazon.com/Strangers-Candy-Observations-Ordinary-Business-ebook/dp/B0C7RG5CXX  - Art's website: https://artcarden.com/ - Follow Art on Twitter: @ArtCarden - More from Art: --- https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=508839  --- https://www.aier.org/people/art-carden/  Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast, our guest is Matt Whitman, who hosts the 10-Minute Bible Hour and the Ironwood Rhino podcasts. He is a classical liberal, an ordained minister, and a committed husband and father. He's a student of History and the Humanities. He's also the co-host of No Dumb Questions, where he and Destin Sanlon, the other host and creator of the Smarter Every Day YouTube channel, discuss their different views on a wide range of topics, from science and engineering to our current connection with history. They begin by discussing the history of the relationship between the individual and the collective in different nations. Matt talks about how ancient civilizations built upon one another but ultimately had oppressive regimes, while the Persians realized that citizens’ devotion was expedient for the service of the great king and therefore stressed the importance of tolerance. The Romans introduced a legal standard to ensure tolerance where they thought possible and the authority of the state where desired to keep control. However, Whitman argues that Persia has been misunderstood as an Eastern power when it was a forward-thinking culture that had a significant impact when it came into contact with Greece. The two then address the Bible's passages, such as Romans 13, that seem to advocate for submitting to the government's authority, arguing that a negative hermeneutic should be used to understand these passages in context with the rest of the Bible. They also discuss Paul's letter to the Roman church and how he cleverly wrote about the ideal government. The idea of Christian nationalism is discussed, as well as the dangers of mingling state power with faith. Both Matts believe in a more voluntary role for the state in promoting justice. They also discuss the dangers of using authoritarian tactics to combat authoritarianism, citing historical and biblical lessons. Whitman shares his personal journey from Christianity to atheism and back to Christianity, explaining that it was based on philosophical and epistemological reasons, rather than anger towards God or others. He then emphasizes the importance of patience and tolerance in one's personal life and in politics as a libertarian. The discussion concludes with a discussion of Whitman's work visiting churches and attempting to bring people together. Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode, Doug Stuart welcomes Jack Lloyd onto the show to talk about his recent book “A Vision for a Libertarian Future.” Drawing from his book, Jack provides an outline for how a libertarian voluntaryist society might operate. Before diving into the details of specific policy choices, Doug and Jack speak to the role of incrementalism. Despite its controversial status in libertarian circles, incrementalism, according to Jack, is necessary to ensure a stable and realistic transition towards a libertarian future. Given this, Doug and Jack dedicate a great deal of time discussing how incrementalism applies to specific political topics, such as taxation, federal asset holdings, national parks, prisons, and borders. As Jack explains, each of these issues can be addressed incrementally by emphasizing the importance of voluntarism—when choices are voluntary, the government becomes more accountable to the people. Whether you’re already on board with libertarianism or if you think it’s too unrealistic, this episode will have you walking away with a lot to think about. Jack Lloyd is a multimedia content producer for liberty. His work spans both fiction and nonfiction with educational videos, music, music videos, skits, a comic book series, and his nonfiction books. His ongoing production projects include Voluntaryist – The Comic Series, The Pholosopher, The Honest Teacher, and Red Flag Reality. Before he became a producer full time, he worked as a criminal defense lawyer, government school teacher, and tutoring company owner. He brings his insights from those roles to help people understand the importance of human freedom. Check the "additional resources" section for more information about Jack. Main Points of Discussion: 00:00    Introduction 01:50    What's Jack's book about? 03:15    Why incrementalism? 04:11    Jack's major influences 05:28    Research surprises 07:27    How have views on taxes shifted over time? 10:38    What is the role of entrepreneurship? 12:41    Jack's vision for taxation 15:44    Wouldn't people lose their jobs? 17:15    Privatizing federal asset holdings 20:00    What about Yosemite?!? 22:49    Jack's vision for justice 26:28    Private prisons 30:51 Jack's vision for borders (and citizenship) 38:40    How do we get there? Additional Resources: - Read A Vision for a Libertarian Future: https://www.amazon.com/Vision-Libertarian-Future-Voluntaryist-Philosophy/dp/B0C1J1XMQQ  - Read The Definitive Guide to Libertarian Voluntaryism: https://www.amazon.com/Definitive-Guide-Libertarian-Voluntaryism/dp/B09S6NLGP9?ref_=ast_author_dp  - Jack's website: https://jackvlloyd.com/  - Ep 291: Jack Lloyd on Consent, Trauma, & Voluntaryism: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/jack-lloyd-consent-trauma-voluntaryism/  Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode, Doug Stuart welcomes Patrick Miller to the show to talk about his book Truth Over Tribe: Pledging Allegiance to the Lamb, Not the Donkey or the Elephant. As the subtitle would suggest, Truth Over Tribe has immense relevance to contemporary political discussions. Patrick believes that much of the polarization we see today can be attributed to tribalism, which we should reject by instead turning to the Kingdom of God and showing people love regardless of their political affiliations.  Unfortunately, polarization's saddening impact on the Church means many Christians are unwilling to abandon their tribal mentalities. As Patrick points out, however, this is not a modern phenomenon: dating back to (at least) the time of Paul, tribalism has long posed a significant roadblock towards church unification, but Christ's sacrifice tore down said roadblock. Just as the Gospel tore down the tribal wall between Jews and Gentiles, so too can it overpower the tribal divisions of today.  Outside the realm of politics and religion, Doug and Patrick discuss a number of other effects of tribalism, such as how it increases anxiety, how it corresponds with the "my truth" movement, and how it seems to diminish in the face of (free market) social justice initiatives. If you find any of these topics interesting, tune in to this episode today! Patrick Miller is a pastor and cultural commentator who writes about politics, culture, and technology. His writing contributions can be found in Christianity Today, Newsweek, The Gospel Coalition, and other publications. His podcast, "Truth Over Tribe," is one of Apple's top news commentary podcasts, featuring interviews with leading Christian thinkers, writers, and scholars. Patrick is the Co-Director of Digital Relationships and a pastor at his Church "The Crossing" in Columbia, Missouri, where he lives with his wife and two kids. He received a Master of Divinity from Covenant Theology Seminary. Main Points of Discussion: 00:00    Introduction     01:39    What is tribalism?     03:00    Is tribalism natural?     06:55    Can tribalism be good?     07:43    The origin of tribes     11:01    What warrants tribalism?     15:16    Does tribalism increase anxiety?     21:06    Tribalism & the "my truth" movement     29:56    Tribalism & the Gospel     32:55    What about those outside the church?     36:54    Practical applications     40:57    Tribalism vs social justice Additional Resources: - Patrick's Linktree: https://linktr.ee/patrickmiller  - Find him on Twitter: @PatrickKMiller_ - Truth Over Tribe: Pledging Allegiance to the Lamb, Not the Donkey or the Elephant: https://www.amazon.com/Truth-Over-Tribe-Pledging-Allegiance-ebook/dp/B09XWQQH5X/  - Study on oxytocin and ethnocentrism: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3029708/  - Jonathan Haidt's "Elephant and the Rider" analogy: https://www.creativehuddle.co.uk/post/the-elephant-and-the-rider  Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

In this episode, Doug Stuart sits down with Jeff Deist, welcoming him as he makes his first (but hopefully not last) appearance on the Libertarian Christian Podcast. Having served as president of the Mises Institute for ten years, Jeff Deist has grown to become one of the most well-known names of the modern liberty movement, and today he's here to talk to Doug about decentralization. In his recent book "A Strange Liberty: Politics Drops Its Pretenses," Jeff claims that a "relentless pursuit of decentralization" is the best—and perhaps only—way to fight back against the tyranny resulting from federalism and democracy. After clarifying his skeptical outlook on democracy, Jeff begins his pitch for decentralization through an analysis of localism; what exactly is it? Is local policy truly better than central policy? Jeff believes that it absolutely is, arguing that centralized policy—wherein a single set of rules is universally applied to everyone—is unable to accommodate the wide array of policy preferences in the same way that local policy can. This notion of policy variance leads Doug and Jeff into a discussion on self-determination as well as liberalism, both of which are at odds with the universalist rhetoric that dominates politics today. Indeed, Jeff suggests that even libertarians fall into the trap of universalism when they advocate for their conception of freedom to be applied everywhere, because people don't always agree on what freedom even means. In line with this critique, Jeff brings up the topic of immigration and explains that decentralization, although it precludes the involvement of the Federal government, open borders are not necessarily the conclusion that libertarians should come to. According to Jeff, private property owners should be able to set their own immigration restrictions, but public ownership of land complicates this reality. To hear his solution and to get more insight into the previous topics, tune into this episode today! Jeff Deist is a writer, public speaker, and passionate advocate of libertarianism, having served as president of the Mises Institute from 2013 until 2023. After stepping down in April, Jeff now works as the general council for Monetary Metals, a company with a mission to "Unlock the Productivity of Gold®." Jeff has also worked as a private equity attorney, as well as on the congressional staff of Congressman Ron Paul. Links to his recent book "A Strange Liberty: Politics Drops Its Pretenses," can be found in the additional resources section below.  Main Points of Discussion: 00:00    Introduction     01:17    What is the status of democracy in the U.S.?     03:28    Are the left and right equally bad?     08:07    Is more local better?     10:52    What is self-determination?     15:01    What is liberalism?     18:34    What's wrong with universalism?     22:49    Borders: who gets to decide? 26:35    Can immigration restrictions be consistent with free markets?     28:20    Should immigration be a state or federal issue?     31:09    Is immigration a threat to Christianity in the U.S.? Additional Resources: - Find Jeff on Twitter: @JeffDeist - Read Jeff's book "A Strange Liberty: Politics Drops Its Pretenses." - Mises Institute: https://mises.org/library/strange-liberty-politics-drops-its-pretenses  - Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Strange-Liberty-Politics-Drops-Pretenses/dp/1610167643  - Jeff's "Immigration Roundtable" series: https://mises.org/library/immigration-roundtable  - Learn more about Monetary Metals: https://monetary-metals.com/monetary-metals/the-monetary-metals-story/  Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

Should Christians use guns against other humans? Tune in to this episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast and listen as Dick Clark and Jerry Robinson debate the ethics of violence and whether it's ever right for a Christian to own firearms. Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

As both a devout Christian and Chair of the National Libertarian Party, Angela McArdle perfectly embodies the values of the Libertarian Christian Institute, existing at the intersection of Faith and politics. In this episode, Doug Stuart welcomes Angela as she walks us through her political and theological journey. Growing up in a Christian Missionary Alliance church, Angela shares how her upbringing not only shaped her spiritual beliefs but also her understanding of government and the state. Throughout her life, this Christian libertarian understanding persisted throughout Angela's life, informing her decisions as a litigator and as a political candidate. Today, they continue to inform her decisions in the Libertarian Party, which, as Angela explains, hasn't always been so welcoming to Christians. Following their discussion on Christianity in the LP, Doug and Angela move on to cover a range of topics, including Christian nationalism, the claim that "Jesus wasn't political," and the"remnant" from the book of Isaiah and its implications for modern Christians. Whether you're interested in any of these topics or just want more insight into the current state of the Libertarian Party, this episode is for you. Main Points of Discussion: 00:00    Introduction     02:26    Angela's libertarian youth     04:58    Church missions and government     07:58    Angela's journey from apologetics to partisan politics     13:42    The Libertarian Party & Christianity     20:04    Sharing the Gospel     23:22    Was Jesus political?     26:38    Angela's response to Christian nationalism     28:47    What is the remnant?     30:45    Lightning round: Secession, single-issue voting, Joe Exotic, & the LP Twitter account. Additional Resources: - Follow Angela on Twitter: @angela4LNCChair - Subscribe to Angela's Patreon Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★

What if the book of Revelation wasn't just about predicting the future, but rather a guide for living faithfully in the present? In this episode, Doug sits down with acclaimed theologian Scott McKnight to discuss his intriguing new book, Revelation for the Rest of Us: A Prophetic Call to Follow Jesus as a Dissident Disciple. Together we explored how modern Christians misunderstand the book of Revelation. In our conversation, Scott and I delve into the dual critique of empire and Church presented in Revelation chapters two and three, exploring how 'Babylon creep' has influenced the Church and shifted its focus from living the way of the Lamb to living the way of Rome. We also discuss the importance of imagination in understanding Revelation's rich imagery and symbolism. Scot also reviews the 'Play Bill' of characters and events for readers to engage with. Most importantly, we examine the practical applications of Revelation using a 'Babylonian Hermeneutic,' identifying Babylon in our current world and its influence on the Church today. We discuss the dangers of partisanship, placing allegiance to America above Jesus, and the critique of economic exploitation. Don't miss this fascinating discussion as we explore the timely wisdom found in Scott McKnight's Revelation for the Rest of Us. Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com  ★ Support this podcast ★