So what did Adam Smith have to say about religion? Find out at visiting scholar’s lecture

Robert Mochrie, Ph.D., a senior lecturer in economics at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, and the executive director of the Association for the Study of Religion, Economics and Culture (ASREC), will give a free lectured titled “What Adam Smith said about Religion and Why it Still Matters,” at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, June 28, in the Athenaeum in Argyros Forum 310.

Mochrie is currently a visiting scholar at Chapman University’s new Institute for Religion, Economics and Society.  He has also worked closely with the Church of Scotland, serving on its World Mission Council and its Church and Society Council.L

Like other Scottish intellectuals of his era, Smith was deeply affected by Europe’s last religious war – the Jacobite rebellion of 1745.  For Smith, the ideal religious market was open, competitive, and free of government regulation.  But doubting the feasibility of this ideal, Smith defended a system of checks and balances aimed at motivating ministers while not threatening the state.  Smith’s insights have special relevance today, as nations struggle to curb religious violence in places like Afghanistan and Iraq and debate continues regarding the rights and roles of religions in Europe and the United States.

Admission is free but seat reservations are requested and may be emailed to hofeldt@chapman.edu.