Acton Lecture Series

The conventional wisdom on C.S. Lewis was that he really didn’t care much for politics, or for law, and so he wouldn’t have spent much time or energy on liberty either. But the conventional wisdom is mistaken. The truth is Lewis was deeply interested in the political, properly understood, as well as natural law, the human person, and genuine liberty. In this session we will explore Lewis’ thoughts on these matters by considering his biography, his keen interest in criminal justice reform, what he believed about the purpose of government, and how his views on natural law and human liberty connect to his Christian convictions. Micah Watson is associate professor and PPE program director at Calvin University. He is also the executive director of the Paul Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics. His research interests include John Locke and the political thought of C.S. Lewis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Myths about economics die hard. What’s worse, such fallacies are destructive to human cooperation and flourishing. Join us for a discussion of six economic lies you’ve been taught and probably believe.    Caleb Fuller is an assistant professor of economics at Grove City College and a faculty affiliate of the Program on Economics and Privacy at the George Mason University Scalia Law School. He received his BA in economics from Grove City College and PhD in economics from George Mason University. He has published in journals such as ‘Public Choice,’ the ‘International Review of Law and Economics,’ the ‘Review of Austrian Economics’ and others. Subscribe to our podcasts  No Free Lunch | Amazon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Few questions loom as large for parents and students these days as the question of how to afford a college education. College costs have been rising for decades, and all too often, students rely heavily on student loans and graduate with significant debt loads that they spend years paying off. Alex Chediak, professor of engineering and physics at California Baptist University, has tackled this question and provided parents and students with an invaluable guide in his book Beating the College Debt Trap. Subscribe to our podcasts About Alex Chediak  Beating the College Debt Trap | Amazon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Around the world, discouragement erodes the vitality of Christian organizations. Visionaries often succumb to cynicism. Zealous advocates give up. Leaders coast as their passion for the cause grows cold.   Grounded in deep research, The Gift of Disillusionment: Enduring Hope for Leaders After Idealism Fades invites followers of Jesus to sustain hope in long-term service. It’s about moving past the false hope of idealism and the faint hope of disillusionment to discover true Christian hope. Peter Greer is the president and CEO of HOPE International, a global Christ-centered economic development organization serving throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Subscribe to our podcasts The Gift of Disillusionment | Amazon Peter Greer Author Page | Amazon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we go back in time to October 9, 2014, and the Acton Institute’s 24th annual dinner for this speech from Daniel Hannan. Hannan is a British writer, journalist, and politician. He served as a Member of the European Parliament representing South East England from 1999 through 2020, standing down from the EU Parliament upon in the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU in 20202, for which Hannan was a lead campaigner. Hannan first rose to international prominence in 2009 when a video of a short speech he delivered to the EU Parliament when viral. In the speech, Hannan strongly criticized then British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his response to the 2008 global financial crisis, calling him the “the devalued Prime Minister of a devalued government.” In his address to our 2014 Annual Dinner, Hannan stressed the importance of not taking for granted the sublime inheritance of our liberal democratic systems of governance, and the importance of defending that heritage with a sense of optimism and confidence i

Christ calls us to spiritual poverty. In today's prosperous society, that call frequently goes unheard or misinterpreted. In this lecture from 2011, Acton's President Emeritus, Rev. Robert. Sirico discusses how one can live out Christ's call in the middle of a prosperous society. Subscribe to our podcasts Christian Poverty in the Age of Prosperity (Rev. Robert A. Sirico - Acton Institute) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1783 George Washington said that “we have a national character to establish.” 110 Years later Frederick Jackson Turner published “The Significance of the Frontier in American History” and wrote these words: “to the frontier the American intellect owes its striking characteristics… coarseness and strength combined with acuteness and inquisitiveness; that practical, inventive turn of mind…, that dominant individualism, working for good and for evil, and withal that buoyancy and exuberance which comes with freedom…” Turner identified the closing of the frontier as a watershed for national character. In the 110 years since, we have observed that Washington’s project could not be contained in limned geographic descriptions. Have we, then, a national character? And if we do, is it a friend to liberty? Professor William B. Allen is a professor of political philosophy at Michigan State University, and at the time of this recording was the Senior Visiting Fellow at the Matthew J. Ryan Center for the Study of Fre

Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse describes how the socialist ideal of equality has played an independent role in the breakdown of the family, arguing that socialism has attacked the family directly and has adopted policies that have led to demographic collapse. Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse is the founder of the Ruth Institute, an interfaith international coalition to defend the family and build a Civilization of Love. She earned her Ph.D. at the University of Rochester and taught economics at Yale and George Mason Universities. The lecture was presented in Grand Rapids, Michigan on January 3, 2008. Subscribe to our podcasts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On April 14, 2015, The Acton Institute and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy jointly hosted Timothy Carney for a lecture on the topic "Is Big Business a Danger to Economic Liberty?" Timothy P. Carney is the senior political columnist at the Washington Examiner, a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and the author of three books. Tim was a 2012 Pulliam Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Hillsdale College and he sits on the board of visitors for the Institute for Political Journalism. A protégé of the late columnist Robert Novak, Tim was senior reporter at the Evans-Novak Political Report and became editor when Novak retired in 2008. His work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, New York Post, and many other publications. He is author of Obamanomics (2009) and The Big Ripoff (2006), which won the Templeton Enterprise Award from the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and the 2006 Lysander Spooner Award for the "best book on liberty." Tim is a native of Greenwich Village and an alumnus of

We go back in time to April 2011, when Samuel Gregg, current senior research fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, discussed the social teaching of Benedict XVI, illustrating how much the pope changed the focus of Christian engagement with political, social, and economic questions. Whether the subject was Islam, ecumenism, the rise and decline of the West, or simply "Who is Jesus Christ?,” Benedict opened up discussions once considered taboo and caused even hardened secularists to rethink some of their positions. Two years after Gregg’s lecture, Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation, and Jorge Bergoglio was elected his successor, assuming the name Pope Francis.   Subscribe to our podcasts   About Samuel Gregg | AIER    'The Modern Papacy' by Samuel Gregg Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kenneth G. Elzinga, the Robert C. Taylor Professor of Economics at the University of Virginia, delivered a plenary address as part of Acton University 2018. His topic for the evening was “C.S. Lewis and Freedom: Christianity's Most Famous Apologist Meets Adam Smith.”   Subscribe to our podcasts   About Kenneth G. Elzinga    “To Think Christianly: A History of L'Abri, Regent College, and the Christian Study Center Movement” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why does federal aid seem to have a reverse Midas touch? Drawing on examples from the nation's past and present—from the fur trade and railroads, to cars and chemicals, to aviation and Solyndra—"Uncle Sam Can't Count” is a sweeping work of economic history that explains why the federal government cannot and should not pick winners and losers in the private sector.   In this episode, we bring you a presentation that was delivered as part of the 2015 Acton Lecture Series, featuring American historian Burton W. Folsom speaking on his book (co-written with Anita Folsom) “Uncle Sam Can’t Count.”   Subscribe to our podcasts   Uncle Sam Can't Count: A History of Failed Government Investments, from Beaver Pelts to Green Energy   About Burton W. Folsom    Biden's 'stimulus' for a growing economy is all about central control | Acton Institute    America's public debt: Crisis or the cost of civilization? | Acton Institute    Emanuel Cleaver: People get 'saved' through government spending | Acton Institute  Hosted on Ac

In this episode, we bring you an address given by the late Charles Colson, former Special Counsel to President Richard Nixon, at the Acton Institute’s Third Anniversary Dinner, on the topic of the decline of American values.    Subscribe to our podcasts   'Still the Best Hope: Why the World Needs American Values to Triumph' | Acton Institute    What are transatlantic values? | Acton Institute    Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis | Acton Institute    Liberty and the Good Life | Acton Institute  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rev. Robert A. Sirico, president emeritus of the Acton Institute, gave this plenary address during Acton University 2017. He spoke on the importance of virtue in society and that the most influential institution in any society is the family. If we truly believe in human flourishing, then change starts at home and in our local communities. That is how we gradually transform the world.    Subscribe to our podcasts   "The Economics of the Parables" Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we bring you a plenary address delivered by L. Gregory Jones, president of Belmont University, featured at Acton University, 2022.  For too many people, the future isn’t what it used to be. In the midst of dealing with multiple pandemics, people have gotten stuck in old patterns and become increasingly fearful. How do we rediscover a hopeful future? Dr. Jones argues that we need to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset, linked to virtuous character and purpose, that will refocus on cultivating life that really is life.  How can we navigate toward a future of human flourishing, one of rediscovered virtue, entrepreneurship, and devotion to God? Dr. Jones offers an inspiring way forward. Subscribe to our podcasts   About L. Gregory Jones Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Dutch theologian, journalist, and statesman Abraham Kuyper toured the Mediterranean world and directly encountered Islam for the first time. His observations and insights from this trip were published as “On Islam,” a nuanced and substantive examination of the faith and culture of the Muslim world, as well as the effects of European colonialism, all anchored in an informed Christian point of view.   In this episode, we bring you a panel discussion that was delivered as part of the Acton Institute’s 2018 book launch for a new English-language edition of “On Islam.”    Subscribe to our podcasts   On Islam (Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hans-Martien ten Napel of Leiden University delivered an address entitled "Constitutionalism, Democracy, and Religious Freedom: To Be Fully Human" at the Acton Institute "Reclaiming the West: Public Spirit and Public Virtue" conference in Washington, D.C., on December 6, 2017.   Subscribe to our podcasts   About Hans-Martien ten Napel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we bring you a presentation that was delivered as part of the 2013 Acton Lecture Series, featuring Samuel Gregg, Acton’s director of research, speaking on his book Becoming Europe: Economic Decline, Culture, and How America Can Avoid a European Future.    In Becoming Europe, Gregg explains how European economic life has drifted in the direction of what Alexis de Tocqueville called “soft despotism” and ways in which similar trends are discernible in the United States. The good news is that economic decline is not inevitable and that the path to recovery lies in the distinctiveness of American economic culture. Yet there are ominous signs that some of the cultural foundations of America’s historically unparalleled economic success are being eroded in ways not easily reversible, and so the European experience should serve as the proverbial canary in the coal mine.   Subscribe to our podcasts   About Samuel Gregg, D.Phil. (Oxon.)    Becoming Europe: Economic Decline, Culture, and How America Can

What can we do to live happier lives? How can we help others find the secret to true, lasting happiness? What is the connection between free enterprise and happiness? Prolific author and social scientist Arthur C. Brooks discusses the confluence of work, happiness, and human flourishing.   Subscribe to our podcasts   About Arthur Brooks   From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life | Arthur C. Brooks   Your Professional Decline Is Coming (Much) Sooner Than You Think | Arthur C. Brooks    AEI's President on Measuring the Impact of Ideas | Arthur C. Brooks  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Acton Vault, Dr. Jordan Ballor, director of research at the Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy, delivered a plenary lecture at Acton’s first annual academic colloquium entitled “Is Homo Economicus Sovereign in His Own Sphere? A Challenge from Neo-Calvinism for the Neoclassical Model.” Ballor is also the series editor of the Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology.    Subscribe to our podcasts   Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology | Lexham Press    About Jordan Ballor, D.theol., Ph.D.    The Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy    How does human work further human dignity? | Acton Institute    Entrepreneurship in theological perspective: Creative and innovative | Acton Institute Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.