El mandato moral de la libertad
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"El Profesor Rocco Buttiglione señala que la encíclica Centesimus Annus destaca el comienzo de una "primavera en la doctrina social cristiana" por reconocer la importancia de la libertad económica. Ésta no es sólo importante como algo práctico: es además una obligación moral. Los mercados libres tienen éxito porque permiten la interacción adecuada del capital humano (creatividad, inteligencia y virtud) con el capital natural (tierra, recursos naturales y maquinarias). El aprovechamiento de ambos tipos de capital resulta naturalmente en un mercado libre, el cual, desarrollándose dentro de un marco moral y jurídico debidamente establecido, resulta el medio más humano y eficaz para alcanzar necesidades humanas básicas. Además de producir riqueza de manera eficiente, el mercado libre es, también, el sistema económico más humano posible, ya que respeta la libertad y la dignidad humana. Una economía digna del hombre sólo puede alcanzarse cuando las estructuras económicas otorgan a hombres y mujeres caminos para el ejercicio de su libertad en relación con la verdad de su ser". -De la Introducción. Rocco Buttiglione es rector de la Academia Internacional de Filosofía de Liechtenstein, dónde también es profesor de filosofía política. Es miembro de la Academia pontífica de Ciencias sociales y del consejo asesor del Centro para el Personalismo Económico (Center for Economic Personalism) en el Acton Institute.

Hacia una sociedad libre y virtuosa
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"Hoy día, tanto la libertad como la virtud están amenazadas. El Gobierno retiene y gasta casi la mitad del ingreso de una nación. Las regulaciones extienden el poder del Estado a todos los ámbitos de la vida de la gente. Cada vez más decisiones personales importantes están sujetas a algunos funcionarios públicos. Parecería también que la virtud está perdiendo terreno día a día. La caída de la moralidad es evidente en toda la sociedad norteamericana." "Sin embargo, sería erróneo suponer que se debe sacrificar uno en aras del otro. Más bien, la libertad y la moralidad son complementarias. Es decir, la libertad-- el derecho de ejercer la elección, libre de la regulación coercitiva del estado-- es una condición previa para la virtud. Y la virtud es necesaria para la supervivencia de la libertad. Cualquiera que esté interesado en construir una sociedad buena desea vivir en una comunidad que aprecie ambos valores. Como el Padre Robert A. Sirico señala, 'a toda persona en su sano juicio, el sentido común le dice que una sociedad libre y virtuosa es el lugar donde él o ella desearían vivir.'" -De la Introducción. Robert A. Sirico, sacerdote católico, es el confundador y Presidente del Acton Institute para el Estudio de la religión y la Libertad.

La verdad como fundamento de la libertad: Un tema de Juan Pablo II
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En nuestros días, existe una tentación de divorciar la libertad de la verdad. Toda afirmación de verdad, especialmente en el reino de la moralidad es objeto de acusación de tendencias tiránicas e imposiciones injustas. Desdichadamente, hemos pagado caro por este subjetivismo: La decadencia moral ha degenerado en el delito creciente, la ruptura de la familia y un aumento en la pobreza y otros males sociales. Muchos han convenido en que el corazón de los problemas sociales del Occidente es un problema moral. La corrección a esta decadencia moral sólo puede encontrarse en la voluntad de asumir el realismo una vez más, un realismo sobre el mundo, sobre Dios y sobre nosotros mismos. Implícita en este realismo está una apertura hacia la verdad y la verdad significa la correspondencia correcta entre nuestros juicios sobre la realidad y la realidad misma. Semejante preocupación por la verdad es la única forma de superar las visiones divisivas y carentes de realismo de la naturaleza humana y del mundo de los que preconizan el multiculturalismo, el feminismo radical y el relativismo ético. Sólo mediante la unión de la verdad y la libertad y el ejercicio del valor para ejercer nuestra libertad en relación con la verdad, las vidas individuales se reordenarán y se restaurará la sociedad. - De la Introducción. Avery Dulles, S.J., es titular del escaño Laurence J. McGinley en Religion and Society en la Universidad Fordham. Autor de 18 libros y más de 600 artículos, el Reverendo Dulles es ex Presidente de la Sociedad Teológica católica de Estados Unidos y la Sociedad Teológica de Estados Unidos. El Padre Dulles es consultor del Comité de Doctrina de la Conferencia nacional de Obispos católicos. Hijo del fallecido John Foster Dulles, Secretario de Estado del Presidente Dwight D. Eisenhower, el Padre Dulles se convirtió al catolicismo en 1940, mientras asistía a la Facultad de Derecho de la Universidad de Harvard.

Occasional Papers Set
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Acton Institutes complete set of Occasional Papers. (A $8.00 savings over individually purchased occasional papers). Set includes No. 1 - "Quest for Liberty: America in Acton's Thought" by Stephen Tonsor with an Introduction by James C. Holland; No. 2 - "Solzhenitsyn & the Modern World" by Edward E. Ericson, Jr. with an Introduction by Russell Kirk; No. 3 - "Lord Acton on Revolution" by Russell Kirk with an Introduction by Dermot Quinn; No. 4 - "Truth as the Ground of Freedom: A Theme from John Paul II" by Avery Dulles with an Introduction by Gregory M.A. Gronbacher, S.J.; No. 5 - "The Sin Tax: Economic & Moral Considerations" by Robert A. Sirico; No. 6 - "Has Democracy Had Its Day?" by Carl F.H. Henry with an Introduction by Charles Colson; No. 7 - "Lord Acton on the Historian" by Josef L. Altholz with an Introduction by Ralph Raico; No. 8 - "The Moral Mandate for Freedom: Reflections on Centesimus Annus" by Rocco Buttiglione with an Introduction by Gregory M.A. Gronbacher; No. 9 - "Toward a Free and Virtuous Society" by Robert Sirico with an Introduction by Doug Bandow; No. 11 - "The Legacy of an Education" by James C. Holland with an Introduction by Stephen J. Tonsor; No. 12 - "Public Life in the Shadowlands: What C.S. Lewis Can Teach Us About Politics" by John G. West, Jr. with an Introduction by George Weigel.

Public Life in the Shadowlands: What C. S. Lewis Can Teach Us About Politics
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How should Christians approach the public square? In this Acton Institute Occasional Paper, John G. West, Jr. (assistant professor of political science at Seattle Pacific University) explores C. S. Lewis's proposed answer to this question on three points: natural law, prudence, and limited government. With an introduction by George Weigel and an annotated biography on C. S. Lewis and public life.

Quest for Liberty
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From a lecture delivered at Lord Acton Lecture Series in January of 1993 on Acton's view of America. This occasional paper presents an important background of Lord Acton. It demonstrates that his English ancestry (although he was not born in England) led him to adopt an Americanized view of liberty and freedom. This paper focuses on Acton's strong commitment to liberty, and how Lord Acton believed that America was an appropriate example of a free society.

Toward A Free And Virtuous Society
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Occasional Paper No. 9. With an Introduction by Doug Bandow. A foundational description of the complementary relationship of freedom and morality. "Both freedom and virtue are under serious assault today...At this critical time, some supporters of either liberty or virtue are setting the two against each other, treating them as frequent antagonists, if not permanent opponents. At the very least, the competing advocates suggest, you cannot maximize both values, but instead have to choose which to promote and which to restrict." "However, it would be a mistake to assume that one must be sacrificed for the other. Rather, freedom and morality are complementary. That is, liberty - the right to exercise choice, free from coercive state regulation - is a necessary precondition for virtue. And virtue is ultimately necessary for the survival of liberty. Anyone interested in building a good society should desire to live in a community that cherishes both values. As the Rev. Robert A. Sirico points out, 'common sense tells any sane person that a society that is both free and virtuous is the place in which he or she would most want to live.'" - from the Introduction

The Sin Tax: Economic and Moral Considerations
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Robert Sirico writes about the downfalls of a "sin tax." He discusses how a sin tax promotes the behavior in question and several ways a sin tax is harmful to all involved. He also contends that by allowing the government the ability to determine what acts are objectionable and taxable, citizens are putting themselves in the position to have the government involved in every area of life, including religious matters.

Lord Acton on Revolution
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With an introduction by Dermot Quinn, this essay is based on a lecture given by former Acton Institute Advisory Board member Russell Kirk, explaining Acton's view on the American and French Revolutions. Although he did not exactly approve of revolution, he was able to tolerate it because he believed it increased freedom. This essay demonstrates that Acton's views on revolution changed over time.

The Legacy of an Education
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This concise and compelling description of Lord Acton's education is invaluable to our understanding of Acton and his century, as well as a demonstration of both the formation of a mind and the effective means by which that mind was formed.

Has Democracy Had its Day?
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With a foreword by Rev. Robert A. Sirico and an introduction by Charles Colson. This paper focuses on criticisms of democracy as a useful political system. It cites several arguments against democracy. However, Carl F.H. Henry writes in favor of democracy. He acknowledges that democracy is not perfect, but notes that it works best when people have Christian values. Henry warns that if democracy is rejected, one must be careful of what takes its place

Solzhenitsyn & the Modern World
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With an introduction by Russell Kirk. An essay based on a lecture and book of the same title, discussing Solzhenitsyn's often misunderstood views on the West, democracy and Christianity.

Truth as the Ground of Freedom: A Theme from John Paul II
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Occasional Paper No. 4. With an introduction by Gregory M. A. Gronbacher. The temptation of our age is to divorce freedom from truth. Any assertion of truth, especially in the realm of morality, is accused of tyrannical leanings and unfair impositions. Unfortunately we have paid dearly for this subjectivism - moral decay witnessed in rampant crime, the breakdown of the family, and the increase in poverty and other social ills. Many have agreed that at the heart of the West's social problems is a moral problem. The corrective to this moral decay can be found only through a willingness to embrace realism once again - a realism about the world, God, and ourselves. Implied in the realism is an openness to the truth. By truth is meant the proper correspondence between our judgments about reality and reality itself. Such a concern with truth is the only way to overcome the divisive and highly unrealistic views of human nature and the world advocated by those who propound multiculturalism, radical feminism, and ethichal relativism. Only through wedding truth to freedom, and then having the courage to exercise our freedom in relation to the truth, will individual lives be reordered and society restored.

The Moral Mandate for Freedom: Reflections on Centesimus Annus
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Occasional Paper No. 8. With an introduction by Gregory Gronbacher. "Professor Buttiglione notes that the encyclical _Centesimus Annus_ marks the beginning of a 'springtime in Christian social doctrine' for recognizing the importance of economic freedom. Not only is it practically important to promote economic liberty - it is also a moral obligation. Free markets succeed because they permit the proper interaction of human capital (creativity, intelligence, and virtue) with natural capital (land, resources, and machinery). The harnessing of these two types of capital naturally results in a free market, which, left to develop within a properly defined juridical and moral framework, proves to be the most effective and humane means of meeting basic human needs. Besides effectively producing wealth, the free market is also the most humane economic system possible, for it respects human dignity and freedom. A humane economy can only be achieved when economic structures are ordered to provide avenues for men and women to exercise their freedom in relation to the truth about who they are." - from the Introduction

Lord Acton on the Historian
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With an introduction by Ralph Riaco. In this essay Dr. Josef L. Altholz, a leading Acton scholar, describes Acton's rigorous approach to the historian's vocation, especially focusing on his view of the historical project in relation to religion and liberty. Altholz examines Lord Acton's views on truth and truthfulness, as well as Acton's differing opinions and eventual departure from his mentor, Ignaz von Dollinger.