The Easy Chair

Gary Mose recounts his two trips behind the Iron Curtain, particularly to Romania, to support persecuted Christians and observe the reality of life under Communist rule. He describes Romania as devastated—materially, spiritually, and socially—with extreme poverty, shortages of basic goods, oppressive surveillance, and a stark divide between the ruling elite and ordinary citizens. Despite these har...

Laurie Eck discusses the Christian Conciliation Service, a ministry designed to resolve disputes among Christians according to biblical principles rather than secular courts. Inspired by his own marital and professional struggles, Eck emphasizes reconciliation, restoration of relationships, and applying God’s law to conflicts. The service trains local church members—often elders or spiritually mat...

In Easy Chair 150 (July 14, 1987), R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott interview Gary and Carlinda Mose about two years in Sweden, portraying a society that looks peaceful and prosperous yet functions as a “new totalitarianism” built not on terror but on education, conformity, and cradle‑to‑grave dependency. The Moses describe a nation where the state effectively replaces God, families are weakened by h...

In *Easy Chair 149* (July 9, 1987), R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott warn that money and debt are not merely “economic” topics but **religious and moral realities**—because a culture’s view of money reveals where its faith rests. Scott argues the modern world has entered an unprecedented situation: *“money”* as true wealth has largely disappeared, replaced by **paper claims backed by nothing—worse th...

In *Easy Chair 148* (June 4, 1987), R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott argue that the French Revolution didn’t merely “happen” in history—it **still shapes the modern world**, and its errors keep replaying wherever elites try to seize man’s destiny. They trace the revolution’s logic back to Enlightenment assumptions (especially Locke’s belief in morally “neutral” man who can be remade by education), pr...

In Easy Chair No. 147, R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott host Dr. Philip Wayne Powell to discuss his book The Tree of Hate, which exposes the historical myths and prejudices surrounding the Hispanic world, especially the Spanish Empire and Latin America. Powell explains how Northern European propaganda, dating from the 15th and 16th centuries, fostered widespread misconceptions about Spain’s colonizat...

In Easy Chair 146 (May 14, 1987), R.J. Rushdoony argues that a culture survives only when it honors both past and future: despising the past makes a people rootless, while losing a God-given vision for the future leaves only nostalgia—relics without meaning and prosperity without purpose. He warns that this same past-orientation infects churchmen who cling to “security” instead of obeying Scriptur...

In Easy Chair No. 145, R.J. Rushdoony and Joseph McAuliffe examine the state of Christian fundraising, highlighting widespread concern over unethical practices, misuse of funds, and the public’s declining trust in TV ministries. McAuliffe cites polls showing that both Christians and non-Christians view many fundraising methods as manipulative, commercialized, and spiritually dishonest. He contrast...

In this broadcast, R.J. Rushdoony, Otto Scott, and R.E. McMaster discuss the moral and religious collapse of the Western world and its profound impact on economics, politics, and society. McMaster emphasizes that government and economics are extensions of religious ethics, noting stark contrasts between Protestant-influenced North America and Catholic/Latin cultures, particularly in terms of produ...

R.J. Rushdoony reviews books illustrating moral, cultural, and societal trends. He highlights John Morgan’s Prince of Crime on Catholic dominance in urban politics and crime, A. Craig Copetas’ Metal Men on large-scale corporate corruption, and Major Henry Darley’s Slaves and Ivory on Africa’s moral and social challenges. He also notes cultural degeneration in 19th-century France, historical insigh...

R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott discuss Christian Reconstruction as the biblical mandate to establish God’s justice and righteousness in every sphere of society. They emphasize that the Early Church became influential far beyond its numbers by helping one another, serving the community, resolving disputes, and creating a moral, functional order amid a corrupt world. Christianity historically transfo...

R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott discuss history, its meaning, and how it is recorded, emphasizing that true history reflects God’s hand, not merely human actions. They critique modern historiography, which often interprets events naturalistically, humanistically, or through myths, ignoring divine providence and the unpredictable factors that shape outcomes, such as weather, disease, or unexpected de...

In this 1987 Easy Chair discussion, R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott argue that the “future” isn’t an unreadable mystery so much as the present worked out—and that modern decadence shows itself in a culture that can’t defend itself, won’t think past the moment, and replaces realistic planning with fantasy. They critique celebrity “futurecasting” as shallow, insular, and godless—whether rosy or grim—b...

In this episode (Feb. 12, 1987), R.J. Rushdoony dismantles the modern “brainwashing” narrative by drawing on suppressed Korean War research: the most resilient POWs were those with **governing convictions**—a living Christian faith and a clear belief in the free market—who were recognized as natural leaders, resisted manipulation, and even attempted escape, while the faithless majority proved trag...

R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott examine the cultural and philosophical climate of the 20th century, focusing on existentialism and its pervasive influence. Existential philosophy, originating with Kierkegaard and popularized in the U.S. through Emerson, emphasizes living for the moment, personal experience, and the negation of objective truth or moral absolutes. Rushdoony notes that modern man incre...

R.J. Rushdoony critiques the lionization of Thoreau, highlighting that his retreat to Walden Pond was less a philosophical act than a gesture of personal alienation from Concord. While often portrayed as a nature idealist, Thoreau frequently returned to town for meals and socializing, demonstrating a divergence between myth and reality. Rushdoony also critiques modern conservatism through Russell...

R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott discuss revolution, linking it to Romanticism and the Enlightenment. They argue that the Enlightenment’s exaltation of reason cultivated “rootlessness,” which Romanticism transferred to emotions. Revolution, therefore, seeks to destroy tradition, Christianity, and past institutions to create a “brave new world.” All revolutionary regimes whether National Socialist, Ma...

R.J. Rushdoony examines fame and its cultural impact, drawing on Leo Braudy’s The Frenzy of Renown. He contrasts the Christian era, where men lived accountable to God, with the Renaissance and modern times, where public image dominates. From Alexander the Great to modern actors and politicians, people perform for attention, often sacrificing substance, morality, and reality. This obsession with im...

R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott examine Romanticism as a cultural and intellectual movement rooted in a departure from a Christian worldview. Emerging after the Enlightenment, Romanticism replaced reason with emotion and imagination, leading to the elevation of individual feeling over moral and societal responsibility. Rushdoony highlights the descent into moral and artistic chaos, from decadent lit...

In this episode (Sept. 1, 1986), R.J. Rushdoony sits down with Michigan listeners Gene and Robin Newman and traces God’s unmistakable providence in their journey from nominal backgrounds into a conviction-filled Christian life: Gene (Israeli-born, raised culturally Jewish) shares how his search for truth led him through Marxism, Zen macrobiotics, communal living, and restless striving—until Script...

R.J. Rushdoony examines the foundation of Western civilization through law, religion, and culture, drawing on Harold Berman’s Law and Revolution and Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy. He emphasizes the papal revolution of Hildebrand (Pope Gregory VII), which freed the Church from feudal and monarchical control, establishing the inseparable connection between law and religion. This connection, reinforced by...

In this broadcast, R.J. Rushdoony, with Dan Harris and James Flanagan, explores the U.S. economy, financial markets, and speculation trends in 1986. They begin by discussing high-profile cases, such as the Hunt brothers’ legal battles with banks, highlighting what they describe as the “cannibalization” of strong companies by lenders and the broader economy. The conversation emphasizes the shift of...

In this broadcast, R.J. Rushdoony and Otto Scott discuss the geopolitical and economic crisis in South Africa in the mid-1980s. They emphasize that external pressures, particularly Western sanctions and disinvestment campaigns, threaten to destabilize the country, creating suffering for both white and black South Africans. Scott highlights the strategic importance of South African minerals to West...

R.J. Rushdoony examines the impact of sin on political leadership through the life of Oliver Cromwell. Thrust into a crisis between King Charles I, Parliament, and the people, Cromwell discovered that human sin undermines all institutions: the king was untrustworthy, Parliament petty and factional, the people utopian and irrational, and even the army divided. Forced to rule alone, Cromwell’s exper...

Romantic Movement; Thomas Chatterton; Education; Bad Historiography; Mature Criticism; Supreme Court Cases; Cindy Rocker; St. Vincent de Paul Society; Salvation Army; Privatization; Effects of Homosexuality; English Countryside; Murderers; Anne Hutchinson; Sir John Bowring; Water Supply; Rutherford Institute