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Jay W. Richards, Ph.D takes a look at 10 principles that ought to guide our policy choices.
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What action is not enough to correct the problems in America because the issues go far deeper -- who occupies Capitol Hill or the White House.
Economic social issues and religion are all intertwined but how.
He joins me now from Seattle welcome -- Thanks -- good to be with you let's -- to have you here you know you wrote this book along with.
Jay Robinson is that his name.
Yeah James Provost James Evans yes and as he's -- -- with your Catholic why is it important for you to do to this sort of you know combine your efforts to write this book.
Well it's funny because one of the things that we call for in this book -- the -- -- for people of faith actually come together.
We argued that he has a lot of concerns that are concerned to Protestants Catholics and Jews.
But we actually share a lot of the same fundamental principles and so we argue that -- -- -- -- -- -- to come together around those principles is also fighting over the things that.
We disagree with -- so it's funny because James and I have positive -- Catholic working together -- sort of illustrating what it is that we're calling for believers do in general.
May your say that -- the -- said there are well -- idea isn't destructive policies out there what are they.
Well certainly you know that tendency from what we -- progressive philosophy to just politicize everything so that.
Every responsibility ends up in the hands of the federal government James and I both believe.
The government has a proper role to play especially in defending us from danger and and -- in the rule of law.
-- -- don't think everything should be in the hands of the state we think -- lot of the things.
Dealing with of the poverty and underprivileged that ought to be properly -- part of church and of the private sector and so.
That's one of the things that we -- we really disagree with you also disagree.
I would go with some of the the social issues were debating right now like -- health and human services -- in which.
As fundamental issues of conscience -- -- believers and others.
Are now being overridden by a particular federal policy and so you frankly than the fact that evangelicals and Catholics have come together.
To to fight against his health and human services mandate in particular is an illustration I think of what can happen when people of faith come together around some common -- -- -- -- in an election -- sort of has.
This month drug that America is worse off than it's ever been before I mean is it really that bad or is it this is just sort of the election cycle Matra.
Well you're exactly right about that happens every four years of and we could sort of piece together some videos of people saying that.
I I do think this is an unusual year not just some sort of for political reasons but.
Everyone certainly everyone in Washington every staff member of congress understands the fiscal plight -- and and that with entitlement spending and -- -- budget where and I fundamentally unsustainable.
-- -- we're gonna have to do something drastic everyone knows that in Washington DC the problem is whether you're Republican or Democrat.
In congress there's no political incentive to actually speak the truth of the American people and so James are hoping.
With this book -- to took -- reveals some things that are that you people have to deal with in the budget so that.
Politicians can tell us the truth and will be rewarded for a rather than -- to develop.
-- thank you were talking about how religion economic socialist is they're all intertwined give me example how all of this trial of is intertwined you can't separate them from one another.
Absolutely and that's that this sort of point of the title indivisible.
One example would be child poverty and we think of childhood poverty as a key economic issue but what we discover is that the number one predictor of childhood poverty.
In the United States.
Is whether there's a father in the home -- -- and -- towards an economic issue childhood poverty is directly connected.
To an issue having to do what the -- from the fan when there's a lot of examples we give like that in the book.
And we actually argue that this idea that there should be sort of social issues and economic issues it's -- kind of artificial way of dividing up the world the dividing up the electorate pundits speak that way.
The when I'm talking to people you know and an ordinary settings in churches in colleges most people don't think of themselves is just social conservatives are economic conservatives they tend to -- these.
Ideas together and that's what we try to do in the book is to say why these issues have to go together.
You know you also write about eight -- Christians believe about the free market one of those eight minutes.
Well -- much on one would be if somebody gets read somebody else has to get more of you often hear this that you know somebody's got more than their fair share of the pie.
That's a really insidious myth because it misses the fact that people create wealth so.
It was the late Steve Jobs for instance he didn't steal ipads and iphones from homeless people he.
Was part of -- process that created those things he created wealth.
That wasn't there before both for himself and for others and so somebody you get fabulously wealthy in a market economy -- like taking wealth from someone else would like creating an and that's a really important.
Back to want to keep in mind we're thinking about questions like equality and fairness and social justice it's not just a matter slicing up a finite pie.
When in -- you can actually make the pie girl bigger and slice it up differently that's that's a really important thing people fail to remember.
-- also and another -- it's another important thing that it just because.
People on.
You know are wealthy that doesn't mean they're -- I think that's a really -- point to make the same time how do you guard against the people who do.
Do you know immoral things things are not ethical even in a free market.
Plays.
Well it's important realize that a real free market only -- where you have the rule loss of the free market -- -- -- anarchy -- the law of the jungle where there.
The powerful just steal from them from the week.
-- -- free market with the rule while we can't steal from each other killer -- each other and so when we do things even if it's a business person next -- In order to really make a profit succeed as of as many probably -- to provide something that people freely by.
When he defraud someone he's justly punished and so we have of course a handful of examples of corporations like Enron that did unscrupulous and immoral things what's funny is that the market over time it tends to judge those kind of companies.
Quite partially it is the companies that think of other customers of what they needed actually succeed in the long run.
You know what is really the most important thing of your of your ten principles.
-- right downtown principles that ought to guide our policy -- -- what's really the top.
Three of those.
We'll look at the very most important one -- -- the idea that -- every human individual has intrinsic value indignities in other words where you're from productive ever smarter -- dumber.
Young or old you have value your creature made the image of god and so that if you just stable recognize that by the second most important would be.
That marriage and family are fundamental social institutions are based on human nature we see them every culture and every religion and every time and place.
The institution a real of marriage exists and so we argued that a limited government.
Rather than trying to redefine what marriage is actually should recognize the -- political.
Reality of marriage and its laws and its institutions.
May finally economic truth is that when we're free when we're free and protected by the rule of law.
Human beings can create wealth that wasn't there before that's really important economic point it's an interesting philosophical theological point to that we create wealth.
We were freeing -- transform the world around us.
You also humans and so as the role of social issues that have been -- hot button issues.
-- in the country today and you know.
The question is how do you get not get stuck on one of these issues let me just bring marriage for instance.
Here is that your marriage in the belly of the fundamental social institutions but -- we're fighting over how to define that.
So here you've got a situation wary even though it is.
This may be one of the issues surrounding why America it isn't strong you've got another issue driving -- which is how do you define it.
Well that's right and so I think that's why it's so important in this case.
That we say what is marriage does the word marriage actually referred to a reality that exist prior to society prior to the state.
Course it does it also is a conventional word that can we we can redefine we argue that.
Just like the individual who exists with his -- prior to government prior to -- social contracts -- institution of marriage because it exists everywhere in particular ways.
Pre exists any kind of social or legal system and so limiting government can't.
Redefine how we say what is it actually in the real world.
Throughout history and then we we sort of adjust our cultures and our laws and customs accordingly but it is a difficult.
Issue and we think James Robinson and -- are both Christians but we think you you need to make public arguments that are.
Accessible and available to people -- -- or not people of faith when you're talking about these issues and not just.
Simply -- outside a Bible verse or something like -- out which of course is not going to be significant someone who doesn't.
-- share of their conviction and you have the -- scriptures all the arguments in the book that we make.
We're we're we speak is certainly as Christians ourselves and try to articulate how we think.
-- Christians ought to think about this issue but we also present.
Public arguments the arguments from economics or from the natural law that we think should be persuasive to open minded people whatever faith -- -- -- They see your point is you know whether or not you believe it McChrystal standpoint it's got to be able to be translated into.
A language that can be presented in the -- public square.
Exactly I think it's very important maybe -- most important points in our book is that we -- -- people of faith.
Fail in this regard we had -- here in Seattle where I am in the recent debate on marriages that many people of faith felt like getting involved in the debate.
That -- -- -- -- translate their views into something that would be accessible to people that didn't -- there.
Religious faith and of course that the people faith -- through argued against the redefinition of marriage.
It's state of Washington ended up losing I think in part because we don't necessarily know how to translate these things well for a fellow Americans -- -- whom we disagree.
Well I thank you very much.
Family and freedom before it is too late I want to thank you so much I'm more being on a spirited debate on foxnews.com life.
