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Power and corruption in Catholic Boston
Lord Acton’s quotation concerning the corrupting effect of power is widely known. Less so is the fact that the target of his criticism on that particular occasion was the power possessed not by government but by church officials. Acton’s understanding of ecclesiastical authority (as distinct from power) is debatable, but his insight into human nature is not. A case study—not that we need another to file away in the vast archives of the history of human frailty—is the collapse of the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston.Why did The Acton Institute develop the 'Effective Stewardship Curriculum'?
One of the best ways to reach people of faith is in their places of worship and church communities. Church and lay leaders of many different Christian traditions are often looking for quality and affordable curriculum materials that can equip their own members to act and think biblically about important social issues such as care of creation, poverty relief, financial stewardship, and giving.Eliot, Kirk and the moral imagination
The following is adapted from a speech on the occasion of the republication of Russell Kirk's Eliot and His Age, given to the Intercollegiate Studies Institute student group at Central Michigan University in September 2008.Double-edged sword: Psalm 94:14,15
For the LORD will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance. But judgment shall return unto righteousness: and all the upright in heart shall follow it.Alexander Solzhenitsyn
One word of truth shall outweigh the whole world.Debating the depression: An interview with Amity Shlaes
Your book, The Forgotten Man, has played a major role in challenging the consensus about the New Deal that prevails in the acad- emy and in popular culture. I'm interested in what motivated you to write the book.
Why is the Acton Institute partnering with the Stewardship Council?
Following the successful production of Acton Institute’s Effective Stewardshipcurriculum, and with an eye to the launch of Zondervan’s NIV Stewardship Biblein the fall of 2009, we have formed a close partnership with the Stewardship Council, a five-year-old nonprofit that was established as an outreach to the broader evangelical community. The Stewardship Council is a natural partner for the work that Acton has been doing now for almost twenty years.'Money, Greed, and God'
The belief that the essence of capitalism is greed is perhaps the biggest myth Jay W. Richards tackles in his new book, Money, Greed, and God: Why Capitalism is the Solution and not the Problem. One reason for confronting this challenge is that many freemarket advocates subscribe to the thought that capitalism produces greed, and for them that’s not necessarily a negative. But for those with a faith perspective, greed and covetousness are, of course, serious moral flaws.Editor's note
Our lead interview with author Amity Shlaes about the Great Depression and its various interpreters has obvious parallels to the often heated debate about what has caused the financial crisis of 2008-09. In The Forgotten Man, a superb examination of the history of the Depression and the mythologies that have grown up around it, Shlaes makes important connections for us. In speaking of the “forgotten man” she says, “Our own children and grandchildren are forgotten men because they will pay the taxes in the future that will result from our over expansion today.”How the Byzantines saved Europe
Ask the average college student to identify the 1,100 year old empire that was, at various points in its history, the political, commercial, artistic, and ecclesiastical center of Europe and, indeed, was responsible for the very survival and flourishing of what we know today as Europe, and you’re not likely to get the correct answer: Byzantium.Lester DeKoster
“God is a free enterpriser because he expects a return on His investments.”Doing justice - Benedict's way
As the squabbling continues over various policy suggestions contained in Benedict XVI’s Caritas in veritate, there’s a risk that the deeper theological themes of the text will be overlooked. It’s also possible some of the wider implications for the Catholic Church’s own self-understanding and the way it consequently approaches questions of justice will be neglected.