Read more
This book contributes to the 'new view' reading of Adam Smith, providing a historically and contextually rich interpretation of Smith's thought. Smith built a moral philosophy on the foundations of a natural theology of human sociality. Examination of his life, relationship with David Hume and use of divine names shows that he retained a progressive form of Christian theism. The book interrogates the metaphor of the 'invisible hand' and highlights the importance of the religious dimension of Adam Smith's thought for his moral philosophy, his jurisprudence and his economics. It reflects on the contemporary relevance of a theological reading of Smith and lays the ground for further inquiry between economic and religious perspectives.
List of contents
1. Searching for the real Smith; 2. A synopsis of the corpus; 3. Situating Smith: personal and intellectual influences; 4. Smith's Christian faith?; 5. Smith's natural theology of society; 6. The invisible hand; 7. Smith's Christian God; 8. Why Smith's theism matters today; Appendix 1; Appendix 2; Appendix 3; References
About the author
Brendan Long has a PhD from the University of Cambridge, UK, and is a Senior Research Fellow at the Australian Institute for Christianity and Culture at Charles Sturt University. For many years, he has worked as a public policy professional, political adviser and in leadership for the not-for-profit sector.
Summary
This book contributes to the ‘new view’ reading of Adam Smith, providing a historically and contextually rich interpretation of Smith’s thought.
Report
"The strengths of the book are several [...] What the book very usefully provides is a compelling synthetic statement of the best available arguments for the significance of theism in Smith's thought. [...] It will be of great use to both the skeptical and the already converted in its lucid distillation of the key poles in the debate and its clear delineation of the most contested points within the debate." - Ryan Hanley, Journal of Economics, Theology and Religion
