Edward A. David

Sometime earlier this year, two colleagues and I began a conversation. We noted our shared interests around the topic of corporate religious freedom — that is, the freedom of organisations to practice their religious beliefs. And, recognising our distinct disciplinary strengths (ethics, law, and theology), we decided to jointly author a monograph together.

After shopping our book idea around, we are delighted to share that Routledge has agreed to publish our short monograph. A Christian Ethic of Corporate Religious Freedom: from Individual Right to Group Protection is due to be published in late 2025. Below, I’ve copied the tentative abstract and table of contents.

Abstract

Religious freedom is both an individual and group right. But how does an individual right—the moral bedrock of legal protections in the West—translate into a group protection? This book offers three explanations from a Christian ethical perspective. The first explanation, following Saint Thomas Aquinas, views groups as the coordinated activities of individuals. It endorses group protections based on the moral character of the group act. The second explanation draws upon the corpus mysticum tradition. It aligns group protections with the distinctly sacramental activities of the Church’s head—i.e., Christ. A third explanation is more radical still: drawing upon Karl Barth’s actualistic ontology, according to which all individuals are beings-in-action, it views group protections as necessary for a dynamic response to the command of God. Although theologically informed, each explanation brings ethical wisdom to a contentious issue in U.S. religious freedom—including the nature of judicial review, the character of church autonomy, and the normative aims of the establishment clause. Written in a non-technical style, this book will be of interest to scholars of law and religion.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1. The Challenge of Corporate Religious Freedom

A Question of Logic and Limits
Why and Which Christian Ethics?
Methodology and the Task Ahead

Chapter 2. Aquinas, Free Exercise, and Group Action

Why We Struggle to Understand Groups
Groups as Social Action
How to Protect “Essential” Public Services

Chapter 3. The Corpus Mysticum and Church Autonomy

Why We Worship at Locke’s True Church
The Corpus Mysticum Tradition
How to Protect Church Autonomy

Chapter 4. Barth, Establishment, and Being-in-Act

Why We Think in Terms of “Things,” Not Actions
An Ethics of Being-in-Act
How to Protect (Against) Establishment

Chapter 5. The Future of Corporate Religious Freedom

Ethical Foundations
Global Challenges
An Invitation