Liberty: God’s Gift to Humanityis a defense of liberalism, the political philosophy which holds that governments should be established for the protection of individual liberty. By means of revisiting the thinking of the men who created liberal theory over the past three centuries, author Chana Cox has demonstrated that historically the bond between liberalism and religion has been strong, and that liberals have embraced virtue, encouraged social control, and increased the common good.
Editorial Reviews
Review
Proponents of liberalism will welcome a book that argues effectively for the liberal framework that emerged in early modern history and has developed and sustains the democratic frameworks of a number of polities. . . . This book impressively brings together the merits of political liberty, religious liberty, and economic liberty, which few books even attempt because of the complex relationship among them. But this book does it and does it well. . . . The author understands the connections among these three dimensions of the human social enterprise and expresses them in a proactive and engaging way.–Derek H. Davis, Baylor University
This is an outstanding work, full of subtle wit and insight. Cox has written a historically rich defense of America’s liberal heritage, which she regards as rooted in its Puritan past. This is a much needed corrective at a time when the Christian Right is leading an assault on liberalism as if it were an alien or secular tradition that undermines Christianity. In Cox’s view, all the enemies of liberalism, past and present, are in quest of a chimerical unity that is incompatible with either peace or prosperity. The book is a wonderful pedagogical tool because it is simultaneously informative and intellectually provocative.–Shadia Drury, University of Regina
…this book is an important text and I would recommend it to anyone looking for more insights into the way we have come to understand ‘liberty’.–Political Studies Review
About the Author
Chana B. Cox is a Senior Lecturer in the Humanities at Lewis and Clark College.
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