One of the conclusions from last mentary was that the government shouldn’t be in the business of promoting a particular vision of the good life in America. That’s not to say that the government doesn’t have some role in promoting mon good or making some normative judgments about the good life. But it shouldn’t get anywhere near the level of specificity of promising a family, home, college education, and retirement for all. In part this is because while moral good...

After 50-plus years of social unraveling, many reformers still see the “therapeutic model” as a cure for what ails American society. Or would a return to the classical virtues, as a means of healing first the person and then the culture, be the way of renewal? Rev. Gregory Jensen offers some thoughts in this week’s Acton Commentary (published Feb. 22), spurred by the reading of Charles Murray’s new book, Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960–2010. The full text...

Matthew Schmitz over onFirst Thoughtsposted a great article by Peter Berger sharing Peter’s thoughts on the recent HHS controversy. Peter gets at what is really the heart issue here. Though there is fierce debate ensuing about contraception, religious freedom is at the heart of the matter. Peter Berger, the eminent sociologist of religion at Boston University and longtime friend of First Things, offers his readers at the American Interest some background on the HHS controversy, the cobelligerence of Catholics and...

On Thursday, March 1 at 7pm, Acton Institute president Rev. Robert Siricowill speak about the implications of the recent mandate for religious organizations handed down by the Health and Human Services Department of the federalgovernmentunder the Affordable Care Act of 2010. Rev. Sirico will explain the mandate and the February 2012 revision of that mandate, as well as the Constitutional protections for religion and conscience in the United States. The implications for Catholic hospitals, Christian schools, and all faith-based organizations...

How much is a homemaker worth? Financial pany Investopedia recently added up what it would cost to hire someone to do cooking, cleaning, child care, driving, laundry, and lawn service equivalent to a full-time homemaker. The pensation would total $96,261. Studies like this one are perennial, as Greg Forster notes, and have been around since at least the 1950s. But whilethe intentions are well-meaning, such studieshave a tendency to reinforce materialistic assumptions about the nature of human relationships in both...

Rev. Sirico on why we shouldn’t have a bleak outlook on the future: Many people I know are rather despairing about our future. This is contributing to a real and growing pessimism throughout society. I can understand all of these feelings but there is a potential mistake here. I’ve begun to think that those who are too attached to the day’s headline news develop a bias toward thinking that the world is on a permanent downhill slide. The mistake is...

Beroud, Louis (1852–1930) Central Dome of the World Fair in Paris 1889The newest edition of the Journal of Markets & Morality is now available online to subscribers. This issue of the journal (14.2) is actually a theme issue on Modern Christian Social Thought. Accordingly, all ten articles engage the history and substance of various approaches to Modern Christian Social Thought, with special emphasis on the Reformed and Roman Catholic traditions. There is also another installment of our Controversy section, featuring...

Indivisible, a new book co-written by former Acton research fellow Jay Richards, has e a best-seller. From the book’s description: In Indivisible, James Robison, the founder and president of LIFE Outreach International, partners with Jay Richards, Ph.D., a writer who has appeared in both theNew York TimesandThe Washington Post. Together, they tackle tough, controversial political issues facing conservative Christians today, including abortion, stem cell research, education, economics, health care, the environment, judicial activism, marriage, and others. Written to appeal to...

[Note: This is the second in an occasional series ongleaner technology.] The Global Village Construction Setis a collection of 40 machines needed to “create a small civilization with forts…like a life-size Lego set.” ...

From websites promoting help with Monday morning atheism, to an ever present ‘TGIF,’ a place of honor toward work seems to do nothing but diminish within our culture. The mere suggestion that work is not a curse of the fall is unfortunately quite foreign in many circles. Joseph Sunde at Remnant Culture has written a blog based on his reading of Booker T. Washington’s biography entitled Up From Slavery in which he highlights the high ethic and dignity Washington placed...