During the 20th century, scholars of the American founding generally believed that it was liberal. Specifically, they saw the founding as rooted in the political thought of 17th-century

From very nearly the beginning, Christianity has wrestled with the question of the body. Heretics from gnostics to docetists devalued physical reality and the body, while orthodox

Whether we like it or not, Americans, in one way or another, have all been indelibly shaped by dispensationalism. Such is the subtext of Daniel Hummel’s provocative telling of the rise and

Perhaps it is because America is the land of liberty and opportunity that debates about poverty are especially intense in the United States. Americans and would-be Americans have long been

The poor have been the main subject of concern in the whole tradition of Catholic Social Teaching. The Catholic Church talks often about a “preferential option for the poor.” In recent years

Adam Smith did not seem to think that riches were requisite to happiness: “the beggar, who suns himself by the side of the highway, possesses that security which kings are fighting for” (

Charles Spurgeon was a young, zealous 15-year-old boy when he came to faith in Christ. A letter to his mother at the time captures the enthusiasm of his newfound Christian faith: “Oh, how I

In the West, we live in prosperity but are often unaware of the sources of that prosperity. We even think we have some special insight into the causes of prosperity because we’re wealthy. At

It has long been virtually an article of faith among the most respected students of American Protestantism—not to mention those who are not students per se but who nevertheless feel

When it comes to poverty alleviation in our most struggling communities, both our public and our private efforts can let our suffering neighbors down. Public efforts are by their very nature

All cultures are intertextual. Our media, music, art, and literature are shaped by, well, older media, music, art, and literature. Consider this: Indiana Jones is simply a rehash of H. Rider

For this special “poverty” issue of Religion & Liberty, I was asked to revisit two of my books, The Tragedy of American Compassion (written in 1990) and Compassionate Conservatism (1999). My