Acton Line

How should you allocate your personal wealth? How do the decisions you make regarding personal wealth impact your character? In his Acton Lecture Series talk, Kenneth Elzinga discussed Christian stewardship and proposed a new way to think about the relationship between “donor” and “receiver.”  Before his lecture, Professor Elzinga sat down with Acton Alumni and Student Programs Manager Noah Gould for a preview. They discussed the professor’s journey to faith, his finding a calling in economics, the importance of the NCAA Supreme Court case he testified in, and Christian philanthropy.  Subscribe to our podcasts   Ken Elzinga Giving Is Not God’s Way of Raising Money  Acton On-Demand

Capitalism didn’t fail—it was ruined, says Ruchir Sharma.   In his new book, “What Went Wrong with Capitalism,” Sharma takes you back to the 19th century to illustrate how the reflexes of government have changed. From hands-off to hands-on, from doing too little to help in hard times to trying to prevent anyone from suffering economic pain ever.   The result? Expensive state guarantees for everyone: bailouts for the rich, entitlements for the middle class, and welfare for the poor. Sharma says this constant government intervention and relentless spread of bailout culture has build an even bigger state, one that’s surely going to double down on what ruined capitalism in the first place.   Subscribe to our podcasts   What Went Wrong with Capitalism | Simon & Schuster

Too much of the conversation about poverty, whether in government, among social service providers, or in churches, is animated by highly emotional conventions, trite melodramatic comparisons, and comfortable ideological clichés, says Ismael Hernandez.   But how can we change this? How can we do better? In his new book, “Rethinking Charity: Restoring Dignity to Poverty Relief,” Ismael looks at the practical work of authentic poverty relief. The point is to see the poor not as nameless victims but as free, responsible, and creative image-bearers who possess a value far greater than their need.   On today’s episode, Caleb Whitmer, the Acton Center for Social Flourishing project manager, talks to Ismael about his new book, the current state of global charity, and the value of every person.   Subscribe to our podcasts   Rethinking Charity: Restoring Dignity to Poverty Relief

For this episode of Acton Line, we’re bringing you one of the plenary talks from Acton University 2024. In this talk, Dr. Umi Waheeda, co-founder of the Al Ashriyyah Nurul Iman Islamic boarding school in West Java, Indonesia, shares her journey of transforming lives through education and entrepreneurship. Founded in 1998 during the Indonesian riots, the school provides free education, meals, accommodation, and health services to over 15,000 children, supported by 65 student-run business units. Dr. Waheeda discusses the challenges she faced after her husband's death, her innovative approach to self-sustainability, and her vision of creating entrepreneurs who are job creators rather than job seekers. Her story is a powerful testament to the impact of combining principled entrepreneurship with a commitment to the social good.   Acton University is the Acton Institute’s flagship conference, focused on building the foundations of human freedom and exploring the intersection of faith and free markets. To learn more

In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Daniel Silliman, historian and news editor for Christianity Today, about his new book, One Lost Soul: Richard Nixon’s Search for Salvation. Silliman argues that Nixon’s life was framed by a fundamentally theological struggle: He wanted to be loved by God but couldn’t figure out how. From an idiosyncratic Quaker childhood, to an explicitly modernist youth and final embrace of a Cold War Christianity, did the president ever find the grace he craved? Subscribe to our podcasts One Lost Soul | Daniel Silliman He Told Richard Nixon to Confess | Daniel Silliman, Christianity Today How Christian fiction shaped a culture and a faith | Acton Line

In this episode, Acton’s director of research, John Pinheiro, speaks to Jeremy Beer from Acton University 2024 about the definition of philanthropy, the importance of philanthropy today, and why finding a way to connect identities is the key to success.  Subscribe to our podcasts   Jeremy Beer | AmPhil   Acton University   Acton On-Demand

In this episode, Acton director of marketing and communications Eric Kohn talks to Kevin Vallier about his book “All the Kingdoms of the World,” the conversations he’s had with young college students interested in ideas like Catholic integralism and post-liberalism, and where he thinks movements rooted in those ideas are at today.   Subscribe to our podcasts     Acton University   Kevin Vallier   All the Kingdoms of the World    The Rise and Fall of American Integralism | The Dispatch

In today’s episode, we bring you one of the plenary talks from Acton University 2024. Here Dr. John Tomasi, a distinguished political philosopher and president of Heterodox Academy, delves into the critical role played by universities in supporting a free society.    Subscribe to our podcasts   Acton University   Acton On-Demand   Heterodox Academy 

Each summer, the Acton Institute welcomes a cohort of students to Grand Rapids, Michigan, as part of our Emerging Leaders Program. This leadership-development program is not your typical internship. Students from across the United States and around the globe get to participate in eight weeks of seminars, networking, and Acton events to develop professional experience, grow their network, and go deeper into the ideas of a free and virtuous society.   In this episode, Noah Gould, Acton alumni and student programs manager, talks to three Emerging Leaders about how they found Acton, how they’ve spent their summer, and how they’ll take what they’ve learned into their future vocations.   Emerging Leaders Program

Common ground is hard to find in today’s politics. In a society teeming with irreconcilable political perspectives, many people have grown frustrated under a system of government that constantly demands compromise. More and more Americans on both the right and the left have come to blame the Constitution for the resulting discord.    But the Constitution is not the problem; it’s the solution, says Yuval Levin in his new book, American Covenant: How the Constitution Unified Our Nation—And Could Again.    In today’s episode, Acton director of marketing and communications Eric Kohn talks to Yuval about his new book, the constitution, and how a proper understanding of our system of government can heal our broken politics. Subscribe to our podcasts   American Covenant | Basic Books   Yuval Levin | American Enterprise Institute

In this episode, Eric Kohn, Acton’s director of marketing and communications, sits down with financial expert David Bahnsen to discuss the current state of the American and global economies, where inflation is at, and the role of the Federal Reserve. Subscribe to our podcasts   Acton University   Acton On-Demand   Full-Time: Work and the Meaning of Life | David Bahnsen

In the 34-year history of the Acton Institute, never have we had an opportunity to combine Ludwig Von Mises and the Austrian school of economics with mixed martial arts. That is, until Renato Moicano presented us with just that opportunity at Acton University 2024.   Hailing from Brazil, Renato has been a professional MMA fighter since 2010 and currently competes in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Rather than boasting about himself after a match in April, he took the opportunity to express his enthusiasm for the U.S. Constitution, private property, the Second Amendment—and then gave a shout-out to Ludwig Von Mises and the Austrian school of economics.    After this viral clip caught our attention, we welcomed Renato to Acton University 2024 for a conversation with Acton’s co-founder and president emeritus, Fr. Robert Sirico. In this episode, we bring you that conversation.   Subscribe to our podcasts   Watch the video here   Acton University   Acton On-Demand   Renato Moicano

Gurcharan Das was born in Lyallpur, Punjab, during World War II. His mother noted in her diary that he was a restless child, and by age 3 was a “troublemaker.” He discovered one day, however, that he could also run—and he’s been running ever since. Gurcharan set out to become an engineer but wound up with a philosophy degree from Harvard instead. From there he abandoned a promising academic career to become a salesman for Vicks VapoRub in India’s colorful bazaars, eventually leading him to become CEO of Procter & Gamble India. Then, at the peak of his professional life, he walked away from his corporate identity to become a celebrated writer and public intellectual.  He’s written on the classical Indian goals of the ideal life, political reforms around the world, and most recently a memoir entitled Another Sort of Freedom. In this episode, Acton librarian and research fellow Dan Hugger speaks with Gurcharan from Acton University 2024 about his writing, politics in India, and pursuing a life of action. Subscri

For four days each summer, Acton University brings together from around the developing and the developed worlds leaders in business, academia, and the church, as well as students of all ages, for a four-day exploration of theology, philosophy, entrepreneurship, international development, and market-based economics. Hundreds of attendees from more than 75 different countries pack our venue in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to listen to dozens of experts bring thought-provoking presentations on the intellectual and practical foundations of a free society.  As you can imagine, a lot goes into putting on a conference of this scale. Most of this work is done by Acton’s programs team under the leadership of Dan Churchwell, director of programs and education. In this episode of Acton Line, Acton’s director of marketing and communications, Eric Kohn, talks to Dan about Acton University—what makes it unique and why you should attend.  Subscribe to our podcasts Acton Institute Acton University Contact the Acton Programs Team

Resources on Catholic and Protestant social thought abound, but where are the resources for answers to the social question to be found in Eastern Orthodoxy? Dylan Pahman, executive editor of the Journal of Markets & Morality and research fellow at the Acton Institute, has spent his career tracking them down. In this interview, he and Acton’s librarian and research associate, Dan Hugger, explore the nature and unique approach of Orthodox Christian social thought. Then they drill down into the history of Orthodox communities in the Middle East and their creative responses to invasion, conquest, and flux that allowed them to flourish until the 20th century. The example of these communities demonstrates that the universal call to holiness can be embraced even in the most trying circumstances. Subscribe to our podcasts   Notes on Arab Orthodoxy Samuel Noble and Alexander Treiger, The Orthodox Church in the Arab World, 700–1700 Constantin Alexandrovich Panchenko, Arab Orthodox Christians Under the Ottomans 1516–183

That America has a weight problem is no surprise. According to the most recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 70% of Americans are overweight or obese.  A wide variety of so-called solutions are on offer from diet gurus, traditional healthcare practitioners, and social media fitness influencers. One need only browse the shelves of bookstores or an Instagram feed to find details of all different kinds of diets promising how “this one weird trick” will help you lose weight quickly, keep it off, and live a healthier life. And yet Americans’ obesity problem persists. How can those in the church find the narrow gate of healthy living and avoid the wide road of bodily destruction without judgment and shame? On this episode, Acton director of marketing and communications Eric Kohn talks to Acton distinguished research fellow Anthony Bradley and Dr. Michael Jones about their coauthored essay in the Spring 2024 issue of Religion & Liberty entitled “A C.L.E.A.N. Diet for the Overwe

In 2022, the Acton Institute launched The Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage. The mission is to advance research and education on economics, liberty, and human flourishing from Jewish, Christian, and Islamic perspectives. As part of this mission, earlier this year the Collins Center launched a debate series on the relationship between government and religion, featuring robust dialogue between scholars and leaders of different faiths.  On today’s episode, we present to you the second of these debates. Moderated by Acton’s director of research, John Pinheiro, senior editor of The European Conservative Sebastian Morello and professor of philosophy at Bowling Green State University Kevin Vallier discuss whether government and religion really should be separate.  Subscribe to our podcasts The Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage DEBATE: Sebastian Morello vs. Kevin Vallier | Christianity and the State

During times of extreme divisiveness, civility can help us transcend important differences and flourish amid them. It is through true civility, the recognition of the innate dignity of others, that we can bridge social, cultural, and political disagreements. In this episode, Alexandra Hudson discusses her new book, “The Soul of Civility: Timeless Principles to Heal Society and Ourselves,” with Acton’s director of programs and education, Dan Churchwell.  How can we empower people to live tolerantly with others? How should our shared humanity inform the respect that we have for others with different lives and opinions? We can’t change others, but if enough of us choose civility, we might be able to change the world. Subscribe to our podcasts The Soul of Civility: Timeless Principles to Heal Society and Ourselves | Alexandra Hudson Acton Lecture Series

On today’s episode, Acton librarian and research associate Dan Hugger sits down with Acton research director John Pinheiro to talk about the state of higher education in America and contrast it with the philosophy of liberal learning advanced by the late Fr. James V. Schall, S.J.  Has philosophy fled the academy? How does the crisis in higher education compromise the teaching and learning of the liberal arts? What are the perils and promises of liberal learning outside the university? Are the “Great Books” the solution to the crisis? What role should the Christian faith play in higher education? What practical steps can students and teachers take to advance liberal learning in institutions uncongenial to the cultivation of wisdom and virtue? Subscribe to our podcasts   Education for a Free Society | Acton Line Podcast Rumble in the Christian College Jungle | Acton Unwind Podcast On Christians and Prosperity | James V. Schall The Great Books: Enemies of Wisdom? | Frederick Wilhelmsen A Student's Guide to Liber

In 2022, the Acton Institute launched The Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage to advance research and education from Jewish, Christian, and Islamic perspectives on economics, liberty, and human flourishing. As part of its mission, the Collins Center earlier this year launched a debate series on the relationship between government and religion, featuring robust dialogue between scholars and leaders of different faiths.  On today’s episode, we present the first of these debates: dean of the Islamic Seminary of America Yasir Qadhi and Cato senior fellow Mustafa Akyol exchange a wide range of ideas on Islam and the state. The dialogue is moderated by Collins Center manager Nathan Mech. Subscribe to our podcasts The Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage DEBATE: Yasir Qadhi vs. Mustafa Akyol | Islam and the State