Visiting Speaker Explores ‘The Catholic Case for Free Markets’

Author and visiting speaker Jeffrey Tucker will explain how Catholic social thought is related to economics, in particular as it pertains to the competing moral claims of socialists and free-market advocates, at Peace on Earth: The Catholic Case for Free Markets on Friday, Jan. 18, at 7 p.m., in Mellon Hall’s Laura Falk Lecture Hall.

According to Dr. Antony Davies, associate professor of economics, Catholic social thought, as it pertains to free markets, recognizes the centrality of free will and free will’s role in moral action. Davies pointed out that Tucker—the executive editor of Laissez Faire Books, an online bookseller devoted to works that espouse a free-market perspective, as well as an economist, author and convert to the Catholic faith—has the proper credentials to probe the subject.

“As you might imagine, the number of people who are experts in both economics and Catholic social thought are very few,” Davies said. “Jeffrey Tucker has an intellectual background in both areas and so was a natural choice to lead this discussion.”

The lecture is co-hosted by the Department of Economics and the Institute for Humane Studies at George Mason University, a multidisciplinary group of scholars whose thinking explores fundamental issues of human nature as related to the interrelated obligations of individuals, institutions and societies.

The lecture will include a question-and-answer segment, and a reception will follow at 8:30 p.m.

Though not required, registering online before Monday, Jan. 14, will ensure a seat at the event. Peace on Earth is free and open to the public.