The Law of Liberty

by Carl Milsted Jr.

Posted May 31, 2006

There are those within the libertarian movement who believe that the cause of liberty requires first that the world be taught some overarching, comprehensive philosophy, such as Objectivism. Such philosophical programs usually involve debunking religion, or at least putting religion in its place. If these people are right, then the prospects for liberty are bleak for several reasons:

1. The axioms of Objectivism are rough approximations at best, and lead to many theorems at odds with casual observation.
2. It is rational to be religious. The death rate stands at 100%, and will continue to be so until the Second Law of Thermodynamics is repealed or someone discovers a loophole. Ergo, rational self-interest dictates concern with the afterlife.
3. While religion does involve faith, there is some scientific evidence in the historical record.
4. As Pascal famously stated, some evidence is all that is necessary to justify action, given the stakes involved.

Fortunately for those of us in the United States, the dominant religion is Christianity, and Christianity is fundamentally libertarian (albeit, not libertine).

This is not to say that most Christians are libertarians. Far from it! Many Christians, especially many Christian leaders, are authoritarians on quite a few issues, calling for the forcible imposition of Christian standards of behavior using the might of the state.

Note that I said Christianity is fundamentally libertarian. That is, the basis of Christianity, the New Testament, is a libertarian work. All too often, Christians lose sight of the foundations of their religion, deferring instead to authorities and traditions.

This country has libertarian roots because it has Christian fundamentalist roots. The early waves of immigration were heavy with religious refugees of sects which were taking a fresh look at the Bible, and trying to apply its teachings. The early Quakers were particularly libertarian.

At the time of the Revolution, Biblical ideas permeated society. Even those who were not clearly Christians, such as Thomas Jefferson, were well versed on the Bible – more so than most modern Christians. (This tradition extended in modern times to people such as libertarian science fiction writer Robert Heinlein, who borrowed Biblical ideas in many of his stories while at the same time being very critical of religion.)

For these reasons, I think that the best tool for persuading Christians of the value of liberty is the Bible. I realize that this is not obvious, since the Old Testament calls for some very non-libertarian mandates, such as having a death penalty for idol worship, sorcery, homosexuality and working on Saturday – within the Holy Land. The case for tolerating other religions does not appear explicitly until the New Testament.

However, there are many libertarian ideas even within the Old Testament. In fact, the earliest documented case I know of a civilized society governed by something resembling anarcho-capitalism can be found in the book of Judges. And unlike the case of medieval Iceland, the early Israelites did without taxes, standing army, or police while being surrounded by hostile governments.

Click here for an in depth study of the libertarian aspects of Old Testament law. It is directed at Christians, not libertarians, so some of you may be uncomfortable with it. But, it has information worth knowing if you are trying to market liberty to a Christian audience.

Then, please return here for rating and comments.

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