Questions about what makes a good or a bad leader dominate many conversations as we approach the 2016 presidential election. Real leadership happens all around us, not just in the Oval Office. As we pulled together the various pieces for this Summer 2016 issue of Religion & Liberty, the informal theme of leadership seemed to connect all the content. For the interview, I was able to sit down with the CEO of Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Cheryl Bachelder, to discuss...

The following essay is excerpted from Samuel Gregg’s new bookFor God and Profit: How Banking and Finance Can Serve the Common Good(Crossroad, 2016). No one ideal financial system is immediately derived from either Christian faith or natural reason. That’s not just because of sin and its effects. It’s also a reflection of a truth that has already been stated but that cannot be repeated enough: while Christianity teaches that one can never choose evil, there are often many ways...

A Review ofFor God and Profit: How Banking and Finance Can Serve the Common Good(Crossroad, 2016). The Jesuits control the Federal Reserve.This conspiratorial New York subway graffito is perhaps a small sign that the church’s relationship to financial markets remains misunderstood. Financial judgment and moral judgment are different, but not unrelated, skills. Both must be learned and disciplined. Graham and Dodd managed 770 pages on security analysis, yet Aquinas left an unfinished summa with more than 3000 pages. A...

For this Religion & Liberty interview, we’ve rounded up data about unemployment, the economy, free trade, talking points from the 2016 presidential election and more. We’re interested in getting different viewpoints from Acton writers and lecturers on what the data show. In a March column titled “The view from the rustbelt,” the Economist writer Lexington began with these lines: “America feels sick at heart this year. Can conventional politics cure that malaise, or will voters turn to those peddling...

The snow has finally melted in West Michigan, which means it’s time for the year’s second issue of Religion & Liberty. Recent news cycles have been plagued with images of angry Americans, students protesting and populist discontent. The 2016 presidential election has really brought to light that the American people are angry—specifically with American leadership. Here at the Acton Institute, we’re interested in looking more deeply at these issues, particularly if there is a cure for this great discontent....

If I have brought any message today, it is this: Have the courage to have your wisdom regarded as stupidity. Be fools for Christ. And have the courage to suffer the contempt of the sophisticated world. He was famous for his unyielding opinions, scathing dissents and witticisms, but Justice Antonin Scalia was much more than a brilliant lawyer and steadfast Supreme Court justice. He was a devout Roman Catholic, a family man and a great friend even to his...

Not all construction projects involve bricks and mortar. The Acton Institute has been engaged in a major technical upgrade and redesign of its main site, Acton.org. The drivers for this project begin with our record web traffic of 2 million visitors in 2015. Beyond that, upgrading the web publishing system— the actual tool that allows us to publish articles, videos and event registration—provides the latest data security for users. What’s more, Acton has seen its mobile traffic outpace even...

The past century has been witness to many villainous mitted against the Christian faith in the name of hostile, and often secular, ideologies. Many of these horrors are portrayed in literature and film and with varying degrees of success. However, each in its own way presents a snapshot of the dystopias created when religious freedoms are abrogated. These books and films provide instructive reminders today as organized spiritual faith is attacked in our country by government sanction and abroad...