Year: 2008

September 29, 2008

Pols behaving badly

Last week an email newsletter from Sojourners featured a quote from U2 rock star and activist Bono (courtesy the American Prospect blog): It’s extraordinary to me that the United States can find $700 billion to save Wall Street and the entire G8 can’t find $25 billion dollars to saved 25,000 children who die every day from preventable diseases. Continue Reading...
September 29, 2008

Personal responsibility and self-possession

There is an old expression, “Talk is cheap.” Coupled with another old expression, “Actions speak louder than words,” we are introduced to a profound philosophical insight brought by Karol Wojtyla (Pope John Paul II) in his The Acting Person. Continue Reading...
September 26, 2008

FREE’s Baden at Calvin College

Next Tuesday Calvin College will be hosting two lectures by Dr. John Baden, president of the Foundation for Research on Economics & the Environment (FREE). The first lecture from Dr. Baden is titled, “Revelations and Institutions: The Theology and Political Economy of Hutterite and Mormon Experiments with Intentional Communities,” Tuesday, September 30, 3:30 pm, Calvin College North Hall B78. Continue Reading...
September 24, 2008

The ‘new’ ownership society

I don’t think government ownership is what President Bush had in mind when he talked about his vision for an “ownership society,” which had ostensibly included a plank focused on “expanding homeownership.” Continue Reading...
September 24, 2008

Marriage movie

Opening this weekend in many markets is an enjoyable movie with a meaningful message, Fireproof. My wife and I had the opportunity to screen it a few weeks ago, and came away impressed. Continue Reading...
September 23, 2008

Review: Upstream by Alfred Regnery

Shaped by the conservative movement since childhood, publisher Alfred S. Regnery offers an insider’s take on the influence of conservatives in Upstream: The Ascendance of American Conservatism (2008). Regnery’s father Henry started the company in 1947 and published conservative classics such as God and Man at Yale by William F. Continue Reading...
September 23, 2008

GBC 08: Conversation and culture

In addition to the GodBlogCon coverage here by Jordan, I’d like to point readers to two speakers who gave thought provoking talks on the careful use of language. That is, the careful use of language in a time where language is often treated as an ephemeral or disposable thing in the service of the latest Web-enabled communications widget. Continue Reading...
September 22, 2008

Birth of Freedom Shorts series: Poverty in medieval europe

“If medieval Europe was so great, why were most medievals poor?” This is something you might wonder after viewing Acton Media’s new documentary, The Birth of Freedom. However, in this new video short, expert Sam Gregg reminds viewers that in order to make meaningful comparisons regarding the living standards of peasants in Medieval Europe, we must be mindful of historical context and technological progress to that point. Continue Reading...
September 21, 2008

GBC 08: The Birth of Freedom

This morning we opened the final day of GodblogCon 2008 with an exclusive premiere of the Acton Institute’s new documentary, The Birth of Freedom. I had occasion to think about one of the more compelling parts of the film when I came across this blog post from Justin Taylor. Continue Reading...