Broetje Orchards For this fall edition of Religion & Liberty, the cover story focuses heavily on an autumn staple: the apple. Over the summer I observed an Acton-sponsored event for pastors in Walla Walla, Washington. During this event, several Acton staff and event attendees had a chance to tour Broetje Orchards in Prescott, Washington, and meet several members of the Broetje family. This family not only runs one of the biggest fruit providers in the nation but also constantly finds...

Your Thanksgiving dinner this year may cost less than a meal at your local fast food restaurant. According to an informal price survey conducted by theAmerican Farm Bureau Federation(AFBF), the average cost of this year’s Thanksgiving meal for ten people is $49.12—less than $5 per person. “For the second consecutive year, the overall cost of Thanksgiving dinner has declined,” says AFBF Director of Market Intelligence John Newton. “The cost of the dinner is the lowest since 2013 and second-lowest since...

In the immediate aftermath of the vote forBrexit, conservatives were quick to cheer Britain’s decision, hailing it as a win for freedom, democracy, and subsidiarity. Others, however, were just as eager to claim it was a move driven by fear and protectionism. Standing in the midst was Daniel Hannan, the British Conservative MEP, who insisted that the causes of national sovereignty and free exchange needn’t conflict. “Being a nation means that we are not just a random set of individuals...

In a survey of local charities and nonprofits in the West Michigan region, WZZM TV found that the Acton Institute topped 45 other organizations. David Bailey, an investigative reporter for the Grand Rapids, Michigan-based ABC affiliate, used data from the Charity Navigator nonprofit watchdog organization pile his ranking. You can see a full list of the West Michigan charities and nonprofits at the WZZM website. Here’s a transcript from Bailey’s report: At the top of our rankings is the Acton...

European Parliament President Antonio Tajani has called for Europe to provide an ambitious “Marshall Plan for Africa,” something they have debatedfor more than a decade. The proposed $47 billion aid package would emulate the U.S. plan that purportedly saved much of Europe from embracing Marxism after World War II – but Religion & Liberty Transatlanticauthor Ángel Carmona warns that historical and economic reality may put a damper on the e. The efficacy and operation of the Marshall Plan, implemented under...

Note: This is post #57 in a weekly video series on basic microeconomics. If you had to choose, would you rather be a sewer inspector spending your days underground or a lifeguard on the beach? Most would say that being a lifeguard is a more fun job, but a sewer inspector has higher wages pensate for the less-fun aspects of the job. In this video, Marginal Revolution University discusses the tradeoff between fun and wages and show how this illustrates...

On this episode of Radio Free Acton, Bruce Edward Walker talks with Ray Nothstine, Opinion Editor of the the North State Journal and Editor at the Civitas Institute, on the alternative country music genre. Then, Caroline Roberts interviews Jordan Ballor, Senior Research Fellow and Director of Publishing at the Acton Institute, on the link between Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Abraham Kuyper, and Thanksgiving. Check out these additional resources on this week’s podcast topics: John Mellencamp official site Carlene Carter official site Lillie...

Free market economics is a subject worth repeatedly visiting, to examine its merits and question its possible drawbacks. The idea of free markets has e under fire by some conservative thinkers, including editor of First Things magazine, R. R. Reno, prompting a response in defense of free markets from Rev. Robert Sirico, co-founder and president of the Acton Institute. On November 7 and 8, Reno and Sirico were given the chance to discuss and defend their position on free markets....

Today’s Religion & Liberty Transatlantic features a biography of the forgotten architect of perestroika, Alexander Yakovlev (1923-2005). Born to Communist parents, rising to e the head of propaganda in the Soviet Union, Yakovlev came to embrace freedom and expose the horrors of Marxist-Leninist rule – not least, the persecution of people of faith. In the pantheon of late figures who contributed to the fall of Communism, Yakovlev deserves more notoriety than he receives, argues Kaetana Leontjeva-Numaviciene in her essay. Although...

What just happened? Yesterday the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a draft of the ‘Restoring Internet Freedom Order,’ a plan to roll back some of the ‘net neutrality’ regulations implemented by the Obama administration. What is net neutrality? Net neutrality (short for “network neutrality”) refers to both a design principle and laws that attempt to regulate and enforce that principle. Thenet neutrality principleis the idea that a public information network should aspire to treat all content, sites, and platforms equally....