Religious Freedom and Human Flourishing
IFWE SELECTS KOTTER TO JOIN TEMPLETON PROJECT ON RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
The Institute for Faith, Work & Economics (IFWE) is pleased to announce that David Kotter has been selected to join the “Moral Foundations of Freedom and Human Flourishing” book project, an IFWE initiative that is funded in part by the John Templeton Foundation. As one of thirteen contributing scholars, Kotter will provide a chapter to a book that will explore the biblical roots and history of religious freedom and how Christians can become more engaged in preserving it, not just for Christians but for people of all faiths. The book will also explore the relationship between religious freedom, economic freedom, and political freedom. It is scheduled for release in the fall of 2019 by Abilene Christian University Press.
David Kotter serves as dean of the School of Theology at Colorado Christian University. Kotter earned a B.S. in engineering and an MBA from the University of Illinois. He began his first career at Ford Motor Company as a financial analyst and eventually as a plant controller in Europe. After graduating from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, he served on a church-planting team for CrossWay Community Church and was pastor for seven years. Kotter also earned a Ph.D. in New Testament from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His primary research is in the intersection between theology and economics and he has lectured on this topic in the U.S., Asia, Europe, and Scandinavia. David has contributed to three books and published numerous journal articles and book reviews. With Dr. Ken Magnuson, he co-founded and serves as research director for the Commonweal Project on Faith, Work and Human Flourishing, which trains future pastors in the principles of economics.
Kotter’s contribution to the IFWE book on religious freedom will target the next generation through Christian colleges and universities, as well as current thought leaders and policy makers.
IFWE executive director Hugh Whelchel indicated that more educational material and marketing will be needed to help the IFWE project reach a larger audience of Christians in schools, churches, and in the marketplace. “Please keep this religious freedom project in prayer and consider joining us in this effort financially. Our prayer is that Christians would grasp the biblical roots of religious freedom and see how religious freedom is a prerequisite for human flourishing; where it doesn’t exist or is threatened, economic and political progress and freedoms have difficulty taking root.”
Please prayerfully consider making an end-of-year contribution toward the work of IFWE and this religious freedom project today.