In this week’s Acton Commentary, we take a short excerpt from the latest volume in the Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology, the second volume of the trilogy mon grace. In this section, excerpted from chapter 68, “Finding the Means,” Kuyper is exploring the question of how the fruit mon es to expression in the world. In the standard Reformed understanding, baptism munion are confessed to be the “means” of special grace. But what are the “means” mon grace?...

Ninety years ago Benito Mussolini, the founder of Italian fascism, stood at the pinnacle of power and prestige. In February 1929, he struck an unprecedented agreement with the Catholic Church on its role in the Italian society, the Lateran Treaty. Yet Mussolini, always remembered as bloodthirsty dictator associated with Hitler, diplomatically settled a dispute of more than 50 years between the Kingdom of Italy and Holy See that dated to the 19th century era of Italian unification. To the horror...

Note:This article is part of the ‘Principles Project,’ a list of principles, axioms, and beliefs that undergirda Christian view of economics, liberty, and virtue. Clickhereto read the introduction and other posts in this series. The Principle:#2C —Scripture is not an encyclopedia of social science. The Explanation: There’s an old preacher’s tale of a young man who turned to the Bible for guidance on making decisions. Using the text as a divining rod he would flick through Scripture and let his...

On this episode of Acton Line, Caroline Roberts is joined by the founder and president of the Center for American Entrepreneurship, John Dearie, to discuss the state of entrepreneurship in America. Dearie explains why start up innovation and small businesses sustain the economy and alerts us to the danger of declining entrepreneurship in America. Afterwards, occasional host and award winning news anchor, Anne Marie Schieber, speaks with several people about their work ethic, proving that sometimes satisfaction in the workplace...

Polarizing figures throughout history – from doomsday cults to political extremists – have advised their followers not to have children. mentators and a groundbreaking new study show that this, when mixed with government pressure, has led countless mothers to lifelong remorse and deprived nations of a better standard of living. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined this chorus over the weekend when she asked, given an impending climate apocalypse, “Is it OK to still have children?” The carbon footprint of children may...

Few things are more abundant – and durable — than human stupidity. In the universe of the feelings that govern the behavior of men and women only fear has a greater rootedness in the collective psyche. Seeing so many engaged in the debate on confiscatory tax rates proposed by leftists to finance the latest liberal programs that they believe will save the world, what strikes me most are those on the right trying to refute this policy according to economic...

Taking inspiration from a recent CNN town hall which featured Bernie Sanders, Alejandro Chafuen, Acton’s Managing Director, International, offers some pointers inForbes on how to argue against socialism. Such arguments can’t be reduced to slogans or simple black-and-white characterizations, and we should be wary of underestimating our opponents or demonizing their motives. Political campaigns, especially nowadays, are not conducive to intellectual arguments, but it is part of our task to elevate the level of public debate. I recently watched a...

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is currently scheduled to exit the European Union on 29 March 2019 at11 pm GMT, however, no formal deal has yet been struck between the EU and Britain, leaving issues such as trade, immigration policy and border control unresolved. Delays in drawing up a withdrawal treaty are due to a host of problems. “As in the lead-up to the referendum, gloom-and-doom is being voiced from across the political spectrum at Westminster,”...

Now that I am full-time at the Acton Institute (I had been associated since the beginning, but on the governing board) I am trying to read most of its output. Not an easy task giving the numerous books, articles, academic papers and blog posts it publishes each year. Acton has an outstanding Journal of Markets and Morality, which has already reached 21 volumes. I browsed the contents of the most recent edition and saw that it devoted 40 of its...

When asked in a Reddit forum how much he should personally pay in taxes, Microsoft founder Bill Gates said he’s paid about $10 billion in taxes but that he should have paid more on his capital gains. Gates also said, “As far as I know most billionaires (and other ply with tax laws.” This is certainly true in America. Most of our citizens seem to follow Jesus’s admonition to “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s” (Mark 12:17). But why...