The Libertarian Christian Podcast

On this episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast, we respond to questions from you: the listener. Does a Christian's view of libertarianism differ from that of a secular libertarian, or from the philosophy of Ayn Rand? What should we think about ever-recurring issues such as abortion and gay marriage? And how about the much-discussed Great Wall of America? The gold standard, libertarian movies, and even ROADS: we discuss them all and more! Question: What was the best part about this episode for us? Response: The listeners wrote the script so we didn't have to. ★ Support this podcast ★

On this episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast, we dive into yet another contentious topic. Libertarians (particularly of the anarchist variety) are very much divided on the issue of whether or not it is ethically acceptable to vote in government elections, while the resounding consensus amongst Christians seems to be that voting is at least a civic right, if not a divine command. But how much of this thinking actually comes from American culture rather than Christian theology? Should libertarian Christians see voting as an act of defense or Christian social responsibility, or is it perhaps the unacceptable endorsement of a statist system? Join us on this episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast as we discuss. Afterwards, you can e-mail us your vote on whether you loved or hated this episode; you can then decide for yourself if you think your vote counts. DISCLAIMER: The Libertarian Christian Institute is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, and as such we cannot and will not advocate for or against specific candidates or legislation. We can't —and we won't — tell you who and what to vote for, or whether to vote at all. ★ Support this podcast ★

On today's episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast, we welcome our first guest: Dr. Jamin Hübner. Jamin is a professional theologian from South Dakota, where he currently serves as founding Chair of Christian Studies at John Witherspoon College. No stranger to controversy, he is quickly becoming one of the leading scholarly voices for Christian libertarianism. In this interview, you'll hear Jamin's fascinating intellectual journey towards Christian libertarianism, his take on the relation of the Church to the academy, and what he believes the future holds for libertarian Christian scholars. You'll also hear the official announcement of LCI's newest major program: the Christian Libertarian Review, with Jamin serving as our General Editor. This episode is somewhat longer than normal, but unlike the hollow promises of the state, it does not disappoint. ★ Support this podcast ★

Welcome to the third episode of The Libertarian Christian Podcast. Today, we explore another volatile topic: violence, self-defense, and pacifism. The overwhelming majority of both Christians (at least in the West) and libertarians are not pacifists, and would at minimum favor a right of retaliatory or defensive force against aggressors. In fact, most libertarians tend to be even stronger advocates of gun ownership and self-defense than the typical conservative. At the same time, many professed pacifists are advocates of gun control, high taxes, and other leftist public policies (which, of course, are always enforced by the state with violence). Despite copious examples from earlier in church history, finding consistent Christian pacifists in the West today is exceedingly rare. The Non-Aggression Principle --- the baseline of all libertarianism --- holds that it is unethical to initiate force against anyone, except in response to an attack on person or property by an aggressor. The Non-Aggression Principle leaves open the door for violent self-defense, so long as one does not initiate an attack. However, libertarianism is not a comprehensive worldview that addresses every ethical situation, and it's possible that the Bible calls Christians to an even higher standard of behavior than what baseline libertarianism would permit. Are Christians ever permitted to use violence, even in self-defense or the defense of others? Should we encourage gun ownership? What about Christians serving in the military or as police officers? Tune in to Episode 3 of The Libertarian Christian Podcast! We'll even cover the type of cliché hypothetical scenarios that anyone involved in this debate can expect to hear in every conversation on the subject; maybe we'll even succeed in 'blowing away' a few of them... ★ Support this podcast ★

Welcome to the second episode of The Libertarian Christian Podcast, and the first episode in which we'll start to dive into some serious analysis. The mainline marketing gurus advise to ease into things without rocking the boat, so we thought it would be good to jump in with a non-controversial topic, like 'Should civil government even exist?' The liberty movement spans a broad range of thought on this issue, but most libertarians would roughly be classified as either advocates of a very small, limited civil government (minarchy) or advocates of some form of stateless society with no civil government (anarchy). What should libertarians think of this issue, and how does Christian theology come into play? Find out, in Episode 2 of The Libertarian Christian Podcast. ★ Support this podcast ★

Welcome to the inaugural episode of The Libertarian Christian Podcast! We at LCI are very enthusiastic about this project. Not only have our supporters been asking for it; it's also a blast for us to record. But most importantly, we hope and expect it to be a valuable resource for the Church to think through our political philosophy and be better equipped for the Lord's work. But before we get into some of the heavy lifting that you'll encounter in later episodes, we thought we'd start off by introducing ourselves to you; it's probably a good idea for you to know what you're getting into (cf. Luke 14:28-30) . So join us as we explore faith, freedom, and talk pretty much exclusively about 'religion and politics.' Resources we discuss in this episode Robert Murphy's Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism Thomas Sowell's Basic Economics Ron Paul's Revolution: A Manifesto N.T. Wright's Surprised by Hope Greg Boyd's Myth of a Christian Nation Ludwig von Mises Middle-of-the-Road Policy Leads to Socialism ★ Support this podcast ★