Rev. Sirico: When politicians want your money

In the Detroit News, Rev. Robert A. Sirico, co-founder and president of the Acton Institute, offers a commentary on the two-year battle with the city of Grand Rapids over the institute’s exempt status under state property tax law (see the March 15 Acton news release, “Acton Institute Prevails in Property Tax Dispute with City of Grand Rapids” for background). Continue Reading...

Video & Audio: Todd Huizinga On The New Totalitarian Temptation

Acton’s Director of International Outreach Todd Huizinga has been quite busy since the release of his book The New Totalitarian Temptation: Global Governance and the Crisis of Democracy in Europe. Last week Thursday, he continued to talk about this topic in an Acton Lecture Series address that we’re pleased to share with you today on the PowerBlog. Continue Reading...

Anti-GMO Activists: ‘Heartless, Callous and Cruel’

If it seems your writer is obsessing over genetically modified organisms in this space, it’s only because the progressive side of the equation won’t let it go. Team Anti-GMO includes the radicalized religious shareholder activists of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility and As You Sow. Continue Reading...

From Bard to Barber: Jars of Clay’s Stephen Mason on Vocation

For most musicians, the prospect of a long and stable career in the arts is a lifelong dream. For those who actually “make it,” aspirations can shift in surprising ways. For Jars of Clay, a popular rock band who achieved success in the 1990s — and wrote the music for Acton’s film series, For the Life of the World — that vocational reckoning came late in their careers. Continue Reading...

Explainer: What is Holy Week?

What is Holy Week? Holy Week is the week before Easter, a period which includes the religious holidays of Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. Holy week does not include Easter Sunday. Continue Reading...

A Conservative’s Plea: Let’s Work Together

Conservatives and liberals both tend to believe that they alone are motivated by love while their opponents are motivated by hate. How can we solve problems with so much polarization? In a recent TED talk, AEI president Arthur Brooks shares ideas for what we can each do as individuals to break the gridlock. Continue Reading...