Steven Smith’s recent book, Pagans as well as Christians inwards the City, is a marvelous written report of the scrap betwixt ancient Roman paganism as well as early on Christianity. In its in conclusion chapters, however, Smith claims that today’s civilization wars are a renewal of that zero-sum struggle. It is a misdiagnosis that repeatedly leads him astray. He misunderstands the civilization wars, he misunderstands antidiscrimination law; he misunderstands the recent resistance to terra firma Religious Freedom Restoration Acts; he misunderstands the contraception mandate; he misunderstands the footing of religious liberty; as well as he misunderstands the possibilities for achieving the Rawlsian ideal today. Torn from their master context, the categories of “pagan” as well as “Christian” are likewise unsmooth to offering whatever diagnostic help. Similarly amongst immanence as well as transcendence, the primal sectionalization on which Smith builds his analysis. Each is opened upwards to such a huge multifariousness of specifications that neither has whatever definite practical or political entailments. Rome is fascinating, only it does non order us much near contemporary America.
I elaborate inwards a novel article inwards the San Diego Law Review, here.
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