Is free market capitalism moral or immoral? If it’s based on greed and selfishness, should it be rejected for an alternative economic system? And if capitalism is moral, what makes it so? Walter Williams, a economist at George Mason University, answers these questions and explains why the free market is morally superior to any other approaches to organizing economic behavior. ...

In 1942, economist Joseph Schumpeter coined the term “creative destruction” for the process of incessant product and process innovation mechanism by which new production units (jobs, businesses, industries) replace outdated ones. Schumpeter said this process was the “essential fact about capitalism.” This essential fact is also one of the essential reasons people oppose capitalism. Creative destruction sounds wonderful when it’s replacing things like rotary phones with iPhones and typewriters with puters. Unless, that is, you’re in business of making typewriters...

Originally written in 1982, Lester DeKoster’s small book, Work: The Meaning of Your Life, has had a tremendousimpact on the hearts and minds of many, reorienting our attitudes and amplifying our visions about all that,at first, might seem mundane. More recently, the book’s corethesis was put on display in Acton’s film series, For the Life of the World,particularly in the episode on creative service. Christian’s Library Press has now re-issued the plete with new cover art and a hearty new...

What isthe main source of violent conflict in the world? If you judged solely by media reports you might assume that religion would be at the top of the list. Today, for example, there is news that Islamic State—a terrorist group that wants to create an Islamic caliphate—set off two car bombs in Syria. But as Johannes Vüllers, Alexander De Juan and Jan H. Pierskalla explain, parison of religious with other forms of violence shows that the religious violenceis not...

As we prepare to kick off the fall portion of the 2015 Acton Lecture Series tomorrow (featuring Don Devine speaking about how America can find its way back to a harmony between freedom and tradition), we take a look back at thefinal lecture of the spring series, which was delivered on May 21 by Jonathan Witt, who aside from being aformer English professor, a Research and Media Fellow at the Acton Institute, and Managing Editor of The Stream, is also...

In today’s American Spectator, Acton’s director of research Samuel Gregg discusses the ousting of former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott and what that means for the Australian economy and beyond. Gregg points out that the Australian economy “is on the brink of substantial economic regression.” What’s especially worrying is the across-the-board decline in Australia’s economic productivity: something long masked by the resources boom but now more visible than ever. The basic problem, however, that lies at the root of what...

Acton Institute President Rev. Robert A. Sirico was interviewed recently for a story on WHYY FM in Philadelphia discussing the Pope’s ing trip to the city, and focusing on the impact of his encyclical Laudato Si’ within the Catholic Church. Sirico points out that while the Pope is correct to urge Christians tobe responsible stewards of God’s creation, the inclusion of specific policy proposals on climate may prove to be unwise in the long run. You can listen to the...

Few industries have evolved quite as quickly and fundamentally in the last few years as publishing. Leading the way in this changing landscape is Bob Pritchett, CEO of Faithlife Corporation. This summer issue of Religion & Libertybegins with an interview with Pritchett, who discusses how Faithlife sets trends in the publishing industry rather than simply responding to them. It’s the 35th anniversary of the “Miracle on Ice” this year, and while Americans look back fondly on the 4-3 victory of...

Recently a number of religious groups—including some connected to the World Council of Churches and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops—have urged the U.S. government to resettle 100,000 Syrian refugees ing fiscal year, in addition to increasing the total U.S. mitment to 100,000 refugees from other parts of the world. Although President Obama has not agreed to increase the amount nearly that much, last week he ordered his administration to increase the number of Syrian refugees admitted to the United...

What is the Syria refugee crisis? For the past four years, Syria has been in a civil war that has forced 11 million people— half the country’s pre-crisis population—to flee their homes. About 7.6 million Syrians have been internally displaced within the country and 4 million have fled Syria for other countries. The result is one of the largest forced migrations since World War Two. If this has been going on for years, why is this now in the news?...