What It Takes to Be Free Religion and the Roots of Democracy

by Nash-Marshall, Siobhan; Sugrue, Seana

• ISBN13: 9780824519940
• ISBN10: 0824519949
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-08-01
• Publisher: Herder & Herder

Summary

This book about America, and its strengths and vulnerabilities, is quite properly a meditation on freedom. No other value is more closely associated with what it means to be American than this. From the quest of the Puritans for religious freedom to the American Revolution, from the Civil War to the War against Terrorism, it is freedom that has been at stake.

Author Biography

Siobhan Nash-Marshall teaches philosophy at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. 9
Why Freedom?	p. 13
Why We Need to Understand Freedom	p. 17
The Conditions of Freedom	p. 23
Our Love of Freedom	p. 26
Freedom and Nations	p. 31
What It Takes to Be Free	p. 35
Why We Are Not a Theocracy: The Root of Our Love of Freedom	p. 36
God's Rights and Human Rights	p. 38
The Hazards of Theocracies	p. 42
Why a Theocracy Will Not Work	p. 45
Faith and Human Inviolability	p. 48
Faith and Freedom	p. 51
American Faith and Freedom	p. 54
The Responsibility of Freedom	p. 55
Freedom and Laws	p. 57
Building a Community of Believers	p. 59
Freedom and Democracy	p. 63
The Perils of Democracy	p. 66
The Responsibility of Democracy	p. 70
The Limits of Freedom	p. 72
Beliefs and the Freedom of Thinkers	p. 75
Freedom and society	p. 78
Beliefs and the Foundations of Communities	p. 82
Common Beliefs and American Values	p. 85
Common Beliefs and Freedom	p. 89
Necessity and Freedom	p. 93
Necessary Thoughts and Free Thinkers	p. 95
Basic Beliefs, Freedom, and America	p. 101
Opinions and the Rights of White Men	p. 103
The Rights of Other White Men to Their Opinions	p. 106
Opinions and the Death of the Union	p. 110
The Rights of Thinkers, Our Morality, and Our Unity	p. 111
The Rights of Thinkers and Our Democracy	p. 114
The Limits of Freedom	p. 117
The Promise of Freedom	p. 120
Faith, Science, and Dreams of Perfect Worlds	p. 124
The Faith of the Founding Fathers	p. 130
Faith and Reason	p. 136
Americans and Their Independence	p. 139
American Practicality	p. 142
What It Takes to Be Free	p. 148
The American Legacy	p. 151
Notes	p. 155
Acknowledgments	p. 165
About the Author	p. 167
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