From one of the nation's preeminent experts on economic policy a major reassessment of the
foundations of modern economic thinking that explores the profound influence of an until-now
unrecognized force—religion. Friedman has given us an original and brilliant new perspective on
the terrifying divisions of our own times. No book could be more important.” —George A. Akerlof
Nobel Laureate in Economics Critics of contemporary economics complain that belief in free
markets—among economists as well as many ordinary citizens—is a form of religion. And it turns
out that in a deeper more historically grounded sense there is something to that idea.
Contrary to the conventional historical view of economics as an entirely secular product of the
Enlightenment Benjamin M. Friedman demonstrates that religion exerted a powerful influence
from the outset. Friedman makes clear how the foundational transition in thinking about what we
now call economics beginning in the eighteenth century was decisively shaped by the hotly
contended lines of religious thought within the English-speaking Protestant world. Beliefs
about God-given human character about the after-life and about the purpose of our existence
were all under scrutiny in the world in which Adam Smith and his contemporaries lived. Friedman
explores how those debates go far in explaining the puzzling behavior of so many of our fellow
citizens whose views about economic policies—and whose voting behavior—seems sharply at odds
with what would be to their own economic benefit. Illuminating the origins of the relationship
between religious thinking and economic thinking together with its ongoing consequences
Friedman provides invaluable insights into our current economic policy debates and demonstrates
ways to shape more functional policies for all citizens.
