corporate religious liberty – Edward A. David

Church Autonomy and the Corpus Mysticum Tradition

By Edward A. David McDonald Postdoctoral Fellow in Christian Ethics and Public Life, University of Oxford 24 February 2023. A short paper for the Centre for Theology, Law, and Culture at Pusey House, Oxford Churches can be forgiven for describing themselves, like any other civil society organization, as “voluntary.” This Lockean portrayal, after all, dominatesContinue reading “Church Autonomy and the Corpus Mysticum Tradition”

Religious Liberty and Corporate Metaphysics

By Edward A. David McDonald Postdoctoral Fellow in Christian Ethics and Public Life, University of Oxford 23 February 2023, Recollection Lecture, Pusey House, Oxford Introduction Thank you to the Centre for Theology, Law, and Culture for the kind invitation to speak today, ahead of a symposium dedicated to the topic of corporate persons. The aimContinue reading “Religious Liberty and Corporate Metaphysics”

Church, State, and Virtue in Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo (2020)

To curb the spread of COVID-19, houses of worship in the State of New York were legally required to limit attendance at religious ceremonies. Two religious communities—the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and the Orthodox Jewish organization, Agudath Israel of America—asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene. This article provides a theological interpretation of theContinue reading “Church, State, and Virtue in Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo (2020)”

Dissertation Prize 2022: Academy of Catholic Theology

During the 2022 annual conference of the Academy of Catholic Theology, my DPhil thesis on corporate religious liberty received an honourable mention for the Academy’s Dissertation Prize, awarded to early career academics. We are pleased to announce that Prof. Rachel Coleman won the ACT Dissertation Prize, and Fr. Joseph Van House, O.Cist., and Dr. EdwardContinue reading “Dissertation Prize 2022: Academy of Catholic Theology”

More reviews of A Christian Approach to Corporate Religious Liberty

Reviews of my book can now be found in Studies in Christian Ethics and the Journal of Religion & Spirituality in Social Work: Social Theory. My sincere thanks to Allen Calhoun and David Hodge for their generous words and insights. Their reviews can be found through the links above—though, journal subscriptions may be necessary. TheContinue reading “More reviews of A Christian Approach to Corporate Religious Liberty”

Essay: Corporate personhood is a moral distraction

For hundreds and even thousands of years, legal concepts like corporate personhood have contributed positively to the economic and political organisation of our lives, allowing us (for example) to contract with hundreds of individuals simultaneously should they coordinate together under one corporate entity. A reduction in transaction costs and an increase in efficiency are butContinue reading “Essay: Corporate personhood is a moral distraction”

Video: What is corporate religious liberty? And writing updates

In early December, Blackfriars Oxford hosted a panel event to discuss my book on corporate religious liberty. You can find the full recording below. In the first 20 minutes or so, I discuss questions and themes raised in the book. Afterward, Professor Robert J. Matava (Christendom College) and Brett Bertucio (Wisconsin-Madison) share their thoughts. It’sContinue reading “Video: What is corporate religious liberty? And writing updates”

Book launch at Blackfriars Oxford

Recently, Blackfriars Hall — one of the Permanent Private Halls of the University and my college home in Oxford — hosted a book event for my thesis-turned-monograph, A Christian Approach to Corporate Religious Liberty. I’m most grateful to Blackfriars (especially Dr Clare Broome Saunders, Fr Bruno Clifton and Kinga Róna-Gabnai) for their encouragement and logisticalContinue reading “Book launch at Blackfriars Oxford”