Posts Tagged ‘religion and economics’


Michael McBride on Religious Free-Riding and the Mormon Church

While the staff at RoR takes a short break to catch up with other work, we run this “Best of…” show with Michael McBride on how religious organizations attempt to counter the inherent problem of “free-riding” in any voluntary group. Joiin us on our Facebook Fan Page for updates on what is happening in the coming weeks. Search Facebook using “Research on Religion with Anthony Gill.”

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Religious Liberty & Economic Prosperity: A Panel Discussion

On October 10, 2013, a distinguished panel of scholars gathered at Georgetown University to discuss the relationship between religious liberty and economic prosperity. Sponsored by the Religious Freedom Project of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs and moderated by Prof. William Inboden, the panelists included Ilan Alon (Rollins College), Timur Kuran (Duke), Ian Linden (Tony Blair Faith Foundation), and Rebecca Shah (Religious Freedom Project). They discuss the various causal (and sometimes non-causal) pathways wherein greater religious toleration and freedom promotes an environment conducive to entrepreneurship, immigration, and the institutional expansion of othe civil liberties.

Give the gift of knowledge during the holiday season and tell your friends about this free podcast series using the social media links below.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Mike McBride on the Economics of Religious Leadership

Why is religious leadership so important? And what do rituals have to do with establishing authority and leadership? Prof. Michael McBride of UC-Irvine discusses the underlying economic logic of religious leadership, particularly as it relates to coordinating group activity. Central to any leadership position is the issue of coordinating expectations among followers. Mike shows how various rituals, normative values, and sacrifices can assist in make leadership effective. We also discuss the implications of his theory with some surprising extensions to secularization theory.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Mark Koyama on the Economics of Jewish Expulsions

Prof. Mark Koyama of George Mason University explains why King Edward I expelled the Jews from England in July of 1290, giving them only three months to leave. Rather than focusing on anti-semitism or explanations based upon “greed,” Prof. Koyama shows how changes in feudal revenue collection during the 13th century led to a devaluation of the moneylending role that Jews played in the English economy and how expulsion represented a credible signal to the ever-rebellious lower nobility. He generalizes this explanation to help us understand why further expulsions of Jews occured in continental Europe in the subsequent centuries.

Use this podcast as a basis for book club discussions with your friends. A great podcast for understanding medieval history!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Anthony Gill on the Political Origins of Religious Liberty

For the past two and a half years, Tony Gill has interviewed over 135 guests on this podcast. Today, Prof. Steve Pfaff takes over as guest host and interviews Tony about his recent book, “The Political Origins of Religious Liberty.” We discuss what religious liberty is and why a government would ever want to allow religious groups to have greater freedom. Tony emphasizes the political and economic motivations behind “deregulating the religious marketplace”, including the need to attract immigrants, promote free trade, and generate economic growth and tax revenue. We focus attention on colonial American history, but also discuss religious freedom in Russia, China, Mexico, Chile and a few other places. This interview is a great complement to other podcasts we have had on the topic of religious liberty, and an opportunity to see what your weekly host is really thinking about!

Join us on our Facebook Fan Page for regular updates. Subscribe for free on iTunes. And please tell your friends using our social network links below!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Chris Beneke on Religion, Markets, and the Founding Era

To what extent is the term “market” useful in describing or understanding religion, particularly during the era of America’s founding in the late 18th century? We take up this discussion with Prof. Chris Beneke of Bentley University who recently wrote a paper about the use of the “free market” metaphor. We talk about the use of economics to study religion as well as whether the Founding Fathers intended to create a laissez faire landscape for religious competition.

Start your new year right by subscribing to our free podcast series on iTunes or via our RSS feed.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Jared Rubin on Christian and Islamic Economic History

Did religion or church-state institutions have anything to do with the great economic divergence between Christian Europe and the Islamic world beginning in the 11th century? Prof. Jared Rubin of Chapman University reviews the economic history of these two civilizations, covers the dominant explanations for the observed divergence, and then discusses his own research showing that the relationship between religious and political authorities in each region of the world had a great deal to do with why Europe surged ahead economically. We focus primarily on the role of usury laws and financial interest, but Prof. Rubin gives us a taste of some of his work relating to the economic importance of the printing press.

Never miss an action-packed episode. Subscribe to Research on Religion on iTunes or use our RSS feed. See the links on the right hand side of our webpage.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Larry Witham on the Economics of Religion

Author Larry Witham takes an outsider’s look at the “economics of religion,” a relatively new academic perspective on understanding religious behavior and institutions. We trace the history of this academic school from Adam Smith to contemporary times and investigate how the logic of economics can help explain behavior at the level of the household, organization and market. The economics of religion is not just about financial concerns, but deals with how religiously-motivated individuals achieve their goals (including evangelization) in a world of scarcity. The basic assumptions and premises of the approach are examined, as are the critiques of the approach.

Subscribe to our podcast via iTunes or Zune!

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Michael McBride on Religious Free-Riding and the Mormon Church

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has exhibited remarkable growth and its members show remarkable commitment and satisfaction with their church. Prof. Michael McBride (UC-Irvine) talks about LDS organization and how Mormons overcome the free-riding problem that is common in many other denominations.

You can now subscribe to our podcast by entering http://www.researchonreligion.org/podcast on iTunes or Zune.

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Marc von der Ruhr on Megachurch Recruitment and Retention

Economist Marc von der Ruhr (St. Norbert’s College) explains how megachurches attract and retain members, becoming one of the fastest growing segments of the American religious landscape. (To download, right click on the download button and select “save target as…”).

[ READ THE FULL ARTICLE ]
Search The Podcast
To search the podcast, type a term and click the Search button.

Connect With Us