You’ve probably heard the phrase “America isn’t a democracy—it’s a republic.” This is typically trotted out to make a salient point about the type of government we have in fact, but is it a distinction the Founding Fathers would have recognized and made themselves? Yes and no, says Jay Cost, the Gerald R. Ford nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and author of the new book “Democracy or Republic: The People and the Constitution.” How is the system crafted by the Founders holding up in the 21st century? Is a government of the people still one for the people?
Democracy or Republic? The People and the Constitution | AEI Press
Jay Cost | AEI

A Consensus for the People

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In 2022, the Acton Institute launched The Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage to advance research and education from Jewish, Christian, and Islamic perspectives on economics, liberty, and human flourishing.
As part of its mission, the Collins Center earlier this year launched a debate series on the relationship between government and religion, featuring robust dialogue between scholars and leaders of different faiths. 
On today’s episode, we present the first of these debates: dean of the Islamic Seminary of America Yasir Qadhi and Cato senior fellow Mustafa Akyol exchange a wide range of ideas on Islam and the state. The dialogue is moderated by Collins Center manager Nathan Mech.
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The Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage
DEBATE: Yasir Qadhi vs. Mustafa Akyol | Islam and the State

DEBATE: Islam and the State

The modern world is a busy and complicated place for Christians. Obligations to jobs, friends, and family, along with personal interests, frequently overshadow our relationship with Christ. 
In spite of all this, John Michael Talbot shows there are many ways to deepen a connection to Christ with a busy life. He's written 28 books, produced 59 music albums, and still maintains an active ministry from Little Portion Hermitage in Arkansas, where he teaches the importance of community living and finding inspiration in the Scriptures.
In this episode, Acton's director of research, John Pinheiro, speaks to John Michael about converting to Christianity, the choice to live the monastic life, and the challenges of following Christ in today’s world.
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John Michael Talbot
Late Have I Loved You | Troubadour

Finding Christ in a Busy World

When celebrated American novelist and short story writer Flannery O’Connor died at the age of 39 in 1964, she left behind an unfinished third novel titled, “Why Do the Heathen Rage?” Scholarly experts uncovered and studied the material, deeming it unpublishable. It stayed that way for 40 years. Until now.
For the past 10-plus years, award-winning author Jessica Hooten Wilson has explored the 378 pages of typed and handwritten material of the novel—transcribing pages, organizing them into scenes, and collating everything to provide a glimpse into what O’Connor might have planned to publish. “Flannery O’Connor’s Why Do the Heathen Rage: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a Work in Progress” is the result.  
In this episode, Acton alumni and student programs manager Noah Gould speaks to Jessica Hooten Wilson about introducing O’Connor’s unfinished novel to the public for the first time.
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Why Do the Heathen Rage | Jessica Hooten Wilson
How Racist Was Flannery O'Connor? | The New Yorker
There the Story Stops: Flannery O’Connor’s Why Do the Heathen Rage? | Sally Thomas, RLO

Progress on a Work in Progress

There is no question today that new technology is changing the way we think about and experience work. Speculation abounds about how the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence and other disruptive technologies will affect the workplace. Worries about machines replacing humans on the job are common. Others, however, are optimistic about the way AI is changing how we work—they see AI as an important tool to promote better efficiency and productivity in the workplace. How will AI change the way work is done? How will it affect the workforce? How will it affect the economy? 
To answer some of these questions and more, we bring you a panel discussion from our February Business Matters Conference. Acton’s director of programs and education, Dan Churchwell, leads Brent Orrell, Mark Johnson, and Máté Csak in a conversation looking to the future of work and the role disruptive technology will play in it.
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Business Matters 2024: Hope for Work and Enterprise | Acton On-Demand

AI, Disruptive Technology, and the Future of Work

Gertrude Himmelfarb was one of the foremost historians of Victorian life. She produced page-turning biographies of some of the age’s most intriguing and influential figures, including Lord Acton, Charles Darwin, John Stuart Mill, and George Eliot. She also produced social histories of the period and brought a Victorian sensibility to American politics as a leading conservative public intellectual.
In this episode, Acton librarian and research associate Dan Hugger speaks with Nicole Penn, author of an essay just published in National Affairs entitled “The Historian’s Craft,” which deftly explores the life and legacy of one of the conservative movement’s most accomplished women.
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The Historian's Craft | National Affairs
Middlemarch | George Eliot
The Roads to Modernity: The British, French, and American Enlightenments | Gertrude Himmelfarb
The Moral Imagination: From Adam Smith to Lionel Trilling: Gertrude Himmelfarb
Write like a Man: Jewish Masculinity and the New York Intellectuals: Ronnie Grinberg
Lord Acton: A Study in Conscience and Politics | Gertrude Himmelfarb
The Idea of Poverty: England in the Early Industrial Age | Gertrude Himmelfarb
The New History and the Old: Critical Essays and Reappraisals, Rev. Ed. | Gertrude Himmelfarb
Glad to the Brink of Fear | Nicole Penn
A House Full of Females: Plural Marriage and Women's Rights in Early Mormonism, 1835-1870 | Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
The Forgotten Greatness of PV Narasimha Rao | The Seen and the Unseen
Historian of the Liberal Paradox | Gertrude Himmelfarb
Remembering Gertrude Himmelfarb with Yuval Levin | Acton Line
Learning from Victorian Virtues | Interview with Gertrude Himmelfarb

A Consensus for the People

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