Acton Line
Dedicated to the promotion of a free and virtuous society, Acton Line brings together writers, economists, religious leaders, and more to bridge the gap between good intentions and sound economics.
Episodes
December 3, 2025 • 54 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Stephanie Slade, senior editor at Reason magazine and a fellow in liberal studies at the Acton Institute, about the “New Right.” Who comprises the New Right, and what is their approach to politics? Has the old conservative movement failed? How does the New Right’s rhetoric relate to their larger political project? Who were the forerunners of the New Right? What are the religious currents of t...
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December 1, 2025 • 9 mins
This month on the Acton Rundown Dan & Mark chat about upcoming Acton events and new video content.
Essays:
Fall 2025 Religion & Liberty
American Religion by the Numbers by Miles Smith
A Pope for the 21st Century
Video content:
Anne Bradley Interrogates Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson’s Abundance
Yasir Qadhi on LEAVING Salafism and Rejecting Sectarianism
Peter Lipsett Is Podcasting to Answer the Question, "What Is the Rig...
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November 26, 2025 • 39 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Andrew Abela, founding dean of the Busch School of Business at the Catholic University of America and affiliate faculty member at Harvard University’s Human Flourishing Program, about his book Superhabits: The Universal System for a Successful Life. How do we best popularize virtues? How does the positive psychology account of the virtues differ from St. Thomas Aquinas’s theological account? ...
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November 19, 2025 • 57 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with John Wilsey, professor of church history and chair of the Department of Church History and Historical Theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, about his new book, Religious Freedom: A Conservative Primer. How have the spirit of religion and the spirit of liberty existed harmoniously in the American tradition? What contrasts between French and American society did Alexis de Tocquevil...
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November 12, 2025 • 59 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Peter Lipsett, vice president at DonorsTrust, about the recently concluded 11-part series “What Is the Right?” for the Giving Ventures podcast. What is “the Right”? What are its largest and most influential factions? Does it share a common intellectual culture or merely political interests? How does the bottom-up nature of populism complicate the story we tell about intellectuals’ influence o...
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November 5, 2025 • 55 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Anne Bradley, vice president of academic affairs at The Fund for American Studies and professor of economics at The Institute of World Politics, about Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson’s book Abundance, which she reviewed for Religion & Liberty Online. What is the concept of “abundance,” and who comprises the book’s audience? How do Klein and Thompson think through regulatory obstacles to materia...
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November 3, 2025 • 14 mins
This month on the Acton Rundown, Dan & Dylan chat about upcoming Acton events and new video content.
Essays and Books:The Kingdom of God and the Common Good: Orthodox Christian Social Thought
God at Work: Loving God and Neighbor Through the Book of Exodus
Super Habits: The Universal System for a Successful Life | Andrew Abela
Can Nigeria’s Church Survive the Storm | Kelechi L. Nwannunu
Are Americans Too Political? | Thomas Dia...
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October 29, 2025 • 57 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with John Pinheiro, director of research at the Acton Institute, about his feature essay in the latest issue of Religion & Liberty: “Thomas Jefferson ant the Virtue of Limited Government.” What is Jefferson’s status today relative to the other Founding Fathers? What was Jefferson’s agrarian republican vision for America? How did that vision clash with those of the other Founders? What is Jefferson...
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October 22, 2025 • 59 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Dylan Pahman, research fellow at the Acton Institute and founder and president of the St. Nicholas Cabasilas Institute for Orthodoxy & Liberty, about his new book, The Kingdom of God & the Common Good: Orthodox Christian Social Thought. What is the state of contemporary Orthodox Social Thought? What is the “social question,” and how have churches sought to answer it? Why turn to the Bible to ...
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October 15, 2025 • 57 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Anthony Bradley, Distinguished Research Fellow at the Acton Institute and research professor of Interdisciplinary and Theological Studies at Kuyper College. They discuss Anthony’s new book, God at Work: Loving God and Neighbor Through the Book of Exodus. Why is Exodus such a great evangelistic conversation starter? What human emotions drive the narrative of Exodus? How do thinkers like Gerard...
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October 10, 2025 • 68 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with John Pinheiro, director of research at the Acton Institute, and Caleb Whitmer, project manager at the Center for Social Flourishing, about Pope Leo XIV’s first apostolic exhortation, Dilexi Te. This exhortation to all Christians encourages us to see Christ in the poor among us. How does Pope Leo use scripture to show us Christ in the poor? Which of the church fathers argue that charity is a m...
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October 8, 2025 • 62 mins
On today’s episode, Acton’s director of research and programs, Dan Churchwell, talks to CEO and founder of Permanent Equity Brent Beshore.
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Permanent Equity
Brent Beshore | Permanent Equity
If you’d like to support this podcast, you can help by leaving a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. If you have questions or suggestions for a future episode, you can email us at podcast@acton....
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October 6, 2025 • 13 mins
This month on the Acton Rundown, Dan and Dylan chat about upcoming Acton events and new video content.
Essays and Books:Universal Basic Community Now! | Acton Institute
The Evidence of Things Not Seen: Reflections on Faith, Science, and Economics | Vernon L. Smith
Video Content:
What Is the Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage?
Upcoming Events:
2025 Pittsburgh Dinner | Acton Institute
Orthodox Christian Social Though...
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October 1, 2025 • 52 mins
On this episode, Acton’s director of program and education, Dan Churchwell, interviews Dr. Jeffery Degner following his participation in an Acton Lecture Series panel discussion.
They talk about themes such as the importance of family as an ideal for community health, the overlooked importance of fatherhood, and how economic factors such as inflation shape the incentive families face.
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September 24, 2025 • 52 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Noah Gould, Alumni and Student Programs manager at the Acton Institute. They discuss two recent pieces Noah has written on corporate social responsibility (CSR). First off, what is it? Why do some oppose CSR initiatives? Is there a relationship between CSR and fraud? How are religious people particularly attracted to CSR? What should be the role of business in society, and does that role chan...
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September 17, 2025 • 48 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Bradley J. Birzer, Russell Amos Kirk Chair in American Studies and professor of history at Hillsdale College, about Russell Kirk and the American conservative movement. What role did Kirk play in the conservative intellectual ferment of the early 1950s? How does the biographical framing of the Conservative Mind point to its humanistic nature? Who entered and left The Conservative Mind during ...
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September 10, 2025 • 47 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Stephen Barrows, chief operating officer at the Acton Institute, about the relationship between Catholic Social Teaching and economics. In what sense is economics a science? How does Catholic Social Teaching relate to social science? How well has the Catholic Church integrated the insights of economics into its social teaching? What can economists learn from Catholic Social Teaching? How does...
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September 8, 2025 • 16 mins
This month on the Acton Rundown Dan, Mark, and Nathan chat about upcoming Acton events and new video content.
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Acton On-Demand
Nathan Mech on Interfaith Dialogue at the Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage
DEBATE: Carl Trueman & Vincent Phillip Muñoz | Christianity and Liberalism
Is There a Future for the Family? | Acton Institute
Acton Experience Brasil | Acton Institute
20...
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September 3, 2025 • 60 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Nathan Mech, Founding Director of the Collins Center for Abrahamic Heritage at the Acton Institute. They discuss the history and work of the Collins Center. What makes up the Abrahamic heritage? Why is dialogue between Christians, Jews, and Muslims important? How does interreligious dialogue enrich participants from different faith traditions? What contributions have different faiths made to ...
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August 27, 2025 • 51 mins
In this episode, Dan Hugger speaks with Clara Piano, visiting assistant professor of economics at the University of Mississippi and an affiliate scholar at the Acton Institute. Clara tells the story of how Fr. Robert Sirico, along with Pope St. John Paul II and Michael Novak, inspired her to start thinking through the moral case for the free economy as an undergraduate as well as her trajectory as a scholar. How is the idea that ma...
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