Jordan J. Ballor (Dr. theol., University of Zurich; Ph.D., Calvin Theological Seminary) is director of research at the Center for Religion, Culture & Democracy, an initiative of the First Liberty Institute. He has previously held research positions at the Acton Institute and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and has authored multiple books, including a forthcoming introduction to the public theology of Abraham Kuyper. Working with Lexham Press, he served as a general editor for the 12 volume Abraham Kuyper Collected Works in Public Theology series, and his research can be found in publications including Journal of Markets & Morality, Journal of Religion, Scottish Journal of Theology, Reformation & Renaissance Review, Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Faith & Economics, and Calvin Theological Journal. He is also associate director of the Junius Institute for Digital Reformation Research at Calvin Theological Seminary and the Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity & Politics at Calvin University.

Posts by Jordan J. Ballor

April 21, 2014

Marx Redivivus?

Ross Douthat (a scheduled plenary speaker at this year’s Acton University) has a noteworthy piece this week about the revival of sorts of Karl Marx: “Marxist ideas are having an intellectual moment, and attention must be paid.” Continue Reading...
March 24, 2014

Lorde, Poverty, and Envy

At Reason Thaddeus Russell argues that Macklemore and Lorde embody a kind of progressive cultural critique of capitalism, captured in the attack on “conspicuous consumption” made famous by Thorstein Veblen. Russell traces the “progressive lineage” of this critique: “Their songs continue a long tradition, rooted in progressivism, of protests against the pleasures of the poor.” Continue Reading...
March 14, 2014

Whose Higher Ed Bubble Will Burst?

Consider the following (emphasis added): “Higher education is an industry in danger,” says Clayton Christensen, the Harvard Business School guru and a senior advisor (unpaid) at Academic Partnerships. “It’s very plausible to say that 15 years from now half of the universities that exist will be bankrupt and in some fundamental way facing extinction and the need to totally change themselves.” Continue Reading...
March 13, 2014

Jesus Christ, a Small Businessman at Work

Mark Tooley of IRD highlights a talk by Michael Novak, “Jesus Was a Small Businessman.” Speaking to students at the Catholic University of America, Novak observed: When he was the age of most of you in this room, then, Jesus was helping run a small business. Continue Reading...
March 12, 2014

Everyone is Awesome

In today’s Acton Commentary, “Everything Really is Awesome,” I make a connection between the LEGO movie and the latest film release by the Acton Institute, “For the Life of the World: Letters to the Exiles.” Continue Reading...
February 27, 2014

Thidwick the Big-Hearted and Slow-Witted

Dr. Seuss is renowned for his insights into human nature and development, along with an ability to communicate these insights in a way that is so straightforwardly simple that children can grasp the lesson immediately and intuitively. Continue Reading...
February 14, 2014

House of Cards and Politics without Romance

Over at The American Culture, I have some thoughts about the first season of House of Cards ahead of the premiere of the second season today. As many have noted, the drop of the Netflix exclusive today coincides with Valentine’s Day, and there have been some serious considerations about how to plan for the contingency that only one of the partners in a couple enjoys the show. Continue Reading...
February 13, 2014

Liberating Our Labor

At Slate Miya Tokumitsu writes that the motto “Do What You Love” really functions as a kind of capitalism-supporting opiate: “In masking the very exploitative mechanisms of labor that it fuels, DWYL is, in fact, the most perfect ideological tool of capitalism.” Continue Reading...
February 10, 2014

Swedish Researcher Says Culture Matters for Innovation

West Michigan is welcoming a new researcher to the area, and Dr. Stefan Jovinge says that culture matters a great deal for incubating innovation. Jovinge, previously of Lund University in Sweden, is one of the world’s foremost scientists investigating the ability of cardiac cells to repair themselves, and he’s joining the Van Andel Institute and at the Spectrum Health Frederik Meijer Heart & Vascular Institute in Grand Rapids. Continue Reading...