Religion | Religious News - www.mreligion.com

　　Commentary on Todays Verse 　　Complete Concise 　　Chapter Contents 　　Exhortations to obedience and faith. 1-6 To piety, and to improve afflictions. 7-12 To gain wisdom. 13-20 Guidance of Wisdom. 21-26 The wicked and the upright. 27-35 　　Commentary on Proverbs 3:1-6 　　Read Proverbs 3:1-6 　　In the way of believing obedience to God#39s commandments health and peace may commonly be enjoyed and though...

Verse of the Day

　　1 John 4:20 In-Context 　　18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 　　19 We love because he first loved us. 　　20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does...

Verse of the Day

　　Commentary on Todays Verse 　　Commentary on Psalm 90:12-17 　　Read Psalm 90:12-17 　　Those who would learn true wisdom, must pray for Divine instruction, must beg to be taught by the Holy Spirit and for comfort and joy in the returns of God#39s favour. They pray for the mercy of God, for they pretend not to plead any merit of their own....

Verse of the Day

　　Commentary on Todays Verse 　　Commentary on Psalm 37:1-6 　　Read Psalm 37:1-6 　　When we look abroad we see the world full of evil-doers, that flourish and live in ease. So it was seen of old, therefore let us not marvel at the matter. We are tempted to fret at this, to think them the only happy people, and so we are...

Verse of the Day

　　Hebrews 11:6 In-Context 　　4 By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead. 　　5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: He could not be...

Verse of the Day

　　Isaiah 61:7 In-Context 　　5 Strangers will shepherd your flocks foreigners will work your fields and vineyards. 　　6 And you will be called priests of the Lord, you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast. 　　7 Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion,...

Verse of the Day

　　Commentary on Todays Verse 　　Commentary on Proverbs 15:4 　　Read Proverbs 15:4 　　A good tongue is healing to wounded consciences, by comforting them to sin-sick souls, by convincing them and it reconciles parties at variance. 　　Proverbs 15:4 In-Context 　　2 The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly. 　　3 The eyes of the Lord are...

RELIGION & LIBERTY

Common grace in ivory towers and tractor companies

Excerpted from “Getting the trophies ready: serving God in the business world,” an essay which first appeared in the Journal of Markets and Morality, Spring 2015 issue. In this essay, Mouw discusses three “Kuyperian spheres” of service: academia, business, and the church. Most of the time, most of us make the linguistic transitions in our daily lives quite smoothly. We work alongside our colleagues, stop at the grocery store to make a purchase, go home to a family meal...

Apr 7, 2026

Steward or squander: Religion and environmentalism in the United States

A Review of Inherit the Holy Mountain: Religion and the Rise of American Environmentalism by Mark Stoll (Oxford University Press, May 2015). In his new book, Mark L. Stoll challenges the conventional green view that Christianity provides the western world a philosophy justifying anti-ecological behavior on personal, economic and political dimensions. He is a historian and the director of Environmental Studies at Texas Tech University. Two of the most influential articles defining the culture and logic of contemporary environmentalism...

Apr 7, 2026

Russell H. Conwell

Greatness consists not in the holding of some future office, but really consists in doing great deeds with little means and the plishment of vast purposes from the private ranks of life. To be great at all, one must be great here, now. Most famous for founding Temple University (just about single-handedly), Russell Herman Conwell was an plished minister, orator, philanthropist, soldier, lawyer, entrepreneur, writer and more. When he was 18, he enrolled at Yale University but didn’t stay...

Apr 7, 2026

After the culture wars

Review of Onward: Engaging the Culture without Losing the Gospel by Russell Moore (B&H Books, August 2015). For much of its existence, America has been defined as an extension of the conservative Protestant values of its first settlers. That worldview is rapidly vanishing in America, and Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the policy arm of the Southern Baptist Church, says now is the time for the church to reclaim its mission. “We were never...

Apr 7, 2026

Hannah More

From 1745 to 1833. Genius without religion is only a lamp on the outer gate of a palace; it may serve to cast a gleam of light on those that are without, while the inhabitant sits in darkness. Talented poet, playwright, convicted moral writer and philanthropist Hannah More was arguably the most influential woman of her time. Witty and quick, she is best known for her writings on abolition and for encouraging women to get involved with the anti-slavery...

Apr 7, 2026

Land of milk and honey: Innovation, entrepreneurship and Silicon Valley | An interview with Rev. Bruce Baker

What is it about Silicon Valley? Why did this agriculturally gifted valley give birth to so many of the world’s leading technology firms while simultaneously ing the cultural landmark of the entrepreneurial spirit? Someone who not only has studied the Valley extensively but also was part of several Silicon Valley giants shares some insights with Religion & Liberty’s associate editor, Sarah Stanley. Rev. Bruce Baker began his career interested in entrepreneurship and technology but was called to the ministry...

Apr 7, 2026

The power of liberty

Now that the last dish and utensil for the Acton Annual Dinner has been cleared, washed and put away, we find ourselves preparing for Thanksgiving Day and Christmas. This is a special season often set aside for two cornerstones of our modern civilization: worship and family, which have intersected often in literature. In James Joyce’s classic novel Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, readers witness the tensions between the public life of those engaged in religious vocations...

Apr 7, 2026

What is the “One and Indivisible” conference series?

In order to discuss and promote an understanding of the relationship between religious liberty and economic freedom among present and future leaders around the world, the Acton Institute has held four sessions out of a five-part international conference series titled, “One and Indivisible? The Relationship Between Religious and Economic Freedom.” The Roman Catholic conception of religious liberty as specified in the Second Vatican Council’s Declaration on Religious Freedom, Dignitatis Humanae, is one of the most significant developments in Catholic...

Apr 7, 2026

There is no such thing as ‘the poor’

With the news this week that Angus Deaton of Princeton University had won the economics Nobel, the question of how best to help the poor in developing nations takes on a greater level of urgency. Honoring him with the The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences also highlights the value of economics as a moral science. Born in Scotland in 1945, Deaton earned his Ph.D. from Cambridge University in 1974, and has served on the faculty at Princeton University...

Apr 7, 2026

Diversity of minds and subjects

The Acton Institute has recently crossed the quarter-century threshold, and I’m very encouraged that we’re even more invigorated now by bined missions and the programs and publications initiated to support them. Much of this invigoration derives from the many wonderful people who have shared their wisdom and experiences with us, while other inspiration e from the worlds of religion, culture, politics, business and academia. With such a panoply of intellectual, experiential and spiritual ideas constantly spinning and cohering in...

Apr 7, 2026