Home
/
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
/
Sixpence Economics
Sixpence Economics
Jan 10, 2026 12:30 AM

Sixpence economics, like the economic teachings of Jesus’ parables, shows us the stewardship responsibility that God has given to human beings, says Jordan Ballor in this week’s Acton Commentary.

At the conclusion of the first of his two chapters exploring the theological virtue of faith inMere Christianity, C.S. Lewis provides a brief illustration that helps set the stage quite well for a discussion of the relationship between theology and economics, a relationship that currently stands in need of serious repair. Lewis wants to show that a key element of faith is the understanding of the divine origins of all things. “Every faculty you have, your power of thinking or of moving your limbs from moment to moment, is given you by God,” he writes. A consequence of this reality is that, as Lewis puts it, “If you devoted every moment of your whole life exclusively to His service you could not give Him anything that was not in a sense His own already.”

The full text of the essay can be found here. Subscribe to the free, weekly Acton News & Commentary and other publications here.

Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
4 ways Protestants approach the government (video)
Is participating in government a duty or a sin? When Christians have asked how they should engage the public square, Protestant leaders’ responses have run the gamut plete separation (because “this world is not my home”) to the belief that government service is “the most sacred, and by far the most honorable, of all stations in mortal life.” How should Bible-believing Christians look at peting views? Rev. Richard Turnbull, Ph.D. analyzed four historic teachings about the Christian’s role in public...
Study: The opportunity costs of ‘soft socialism’
Democratic socialism is on the rise in America, inspired by Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential run and recent midterm victories by outspoken advocates such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib. But while the movement emphasizes “popular” vs. “state” control, glazing socialist rhetoric with democratic munitarian vocabulary, how different is the movement from socialist manifestations of the past? What might it portend for the future of the American economy and broader society? In a new report, “The Opportunity Costs of Socialism,”the Trump...
What you should know about structural unemployment
Note: This is post #101 in a weekly video series on basic economics. As we saw in the last video, some forms of unemployment—such as short-term, frictional unemployment—can indicate a healthy, growing economy. But what about persistent, long-term unemployment? When a large percentage of those who are considered unemployed have been without a job for a long period of time and this has been true for many years, it’s considered structural unemployment. Structural unemployment can result from shocks to an...
C.S. Lewis on free will and the key to history
“What Satan put into the heads of our remote ancestors,” says C.S. Lewis, “was the idea that they could ‘be like gods’—could set up on their own as if they had created themselves—be their own masters—invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside God, apart from God. And out of that hopeless attempt e nearly all that we call human history—money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery—the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God...
Access vs. aid: The economic promise of Africa’s new trade agreement
In battling poverty in the developing world, the West is often consumed in debates about foreign aid. Yet many of the core problems stem from more basic lack of access to the pond and opportunities create, participate, and collaborate therein.Last spring, in an effort to address those problems, 44 African leaders and government officials agreed to create theAfrican Continental Free Trade Area(AfCFTA), seeking to improve access to markets and bolster intra-Africa trading relationships across the continent. The participating countries have...
Book Review – Work: Theological Foundations and Practical Implications
“Work: Theological Foundations and Practical Implications”presents a thoughtful prehensive guide to the intersection of theology and work. The text’s contributors are made up of scholars from a variety of studies, including economics, church history, and theology, among others, who offer unique perspectives on work. In the introduction, editors R. Keith Loftin and Acton’s Director of Program Outreach, Trey Dimsdale, ask the question, “Why would anyone remain interested or indeed e interested in a religion that ignores nine-tenths of their life?”...
The sharing economy: How do we maintain a culture of ownership?
As we survey the modern economy, individual ownership appears to be on the demise. We see an increasing preference for access over ownership and collaborative consumption,from the streaming- and cloud-centric features of the latest technology to the increasingly “share-happy” habits of American consumers amid a burgeoning “gig economy.” On the surface, such a shift would seem to bring endless benefits: more options, more flexibility, better quality, cheaper prices, fewer risks, and (presumably) more freedom. Yet despite such benefits, a void...
The Acton Institute awards 2018 Novak Award to Lucas G. Freire
Fr. Robert Sirico presented the Acton Institute’s 2018 Novak Award to Brazilian professor Lucas G. Freire on Monday, November 5. Freire’s acceptance speech offered reflections on the “idolatrous distortions” evidenced in modern public discourse by placing too much trust in the state, and too little faith in markets and individuals. He then presented insights from the Reformed tradition as expressed by Abraham Kuyper. Fr. Sirico personally handed Freire – an assistant professor at Mackenzie Presbyterian University in São Paulo, Brazil,...
5 facts about veterans
Today is the official observance of Veterans Day, a U.S. public holiday set aside to thank and honor all those who served honorably in the armed forces both in wartime or peacetime. (Because the federal holiday falls on Sunday this year, the official observance is moved to Monday.) Here are five facts you should know about veterans in the United States: 1. The Veteran’s Administration estimates there are currently 19,998,799 living veterans (18,115,951 men and 1,882,848 women). Out of that...
How missionaries have transformed the world
Despite the negative stereotypes, says Robert Woodberry, missionaries have effectively improved health, education, economic development, and political representation around the world—seemingly more effectively than government aid and secular NGOs: On average, people from countries that had one more Protestant missionary per 10,000 inhabitants 90 years ago currently have 1.5 years more education and 1.3 years more life expectancy. Similarly, for each additional year of Protestant mission activity, countries have $25.72 more GDP per capita on average. Even after rigorous attempts...
Related Classification
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved