released 8/5/2024
At an Anselm House event in 2015, William T. Cavanaugh argues for a richer conception of freedom, one that takes into account human flourishing and ends. The most common description of free markets, promoted by economist Milton Friedman, avoids any discussion over what the good is or which desires lead to flourishing. What often results is an unjust power dynamic and disordered desires. Cavanaugh contrasts this reductionist concept of freedom with St. Augustine’s understanding of freedom as the capacity to achieve a good end and not to be a slave to one’s desires. He shows the human and environmental degradation that results from the power dynamics at play in “free markets” and encourages churches to take an active role in promoting practices that maintain close connections between capital, labor, communities, and the environment.
Dr. Cavanaugh is Professor of Catholic Studies and Director of the Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural Theology, DePaul University.
This lecture is provided courtesy of Anselm House.
44 minutes
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