In nearly every era prior to our own, the links between sex, marriage, and children were considered a given, not a state of affairs to be questioned, let alone altered. Not so today, as the wides...
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/125419-making-the-world-safe-for-children-lots-of-them.html
In a classic 1976 episode of All in the Family, the TV character Archie Bunker took it upon himself to baptize his grandson at his local church. He did this secretly, as he explained to God, beca...
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/123261-the-kids-are-all-right-but-better-with-religion.html
Charles Schulz believed that life was hard and lonesome. That is why he believed that life was best experienced with others. Only through the sharing of burdens and triumphs and fears and joys co...
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/123080-charles-schulz-peanuts-and-the-power-of-community.html
My Christmas movies series has hitherto considered church (The Bishop’s Wife), work (The Shop Around the Corner), and family (Christmas in Connecticut), the communities that constitute America....
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/122810-the-american-family-needs-a-miracle-on-34th-street-now.html
I try to write every year on old Christmas movies, and this year I’m doing an entire series on ’40s movies remade in the ’90s, which suggests we can bring back some of those heartwarming st...
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/122735-finding-a-community-of-faith-in-the-bishops-wife.html
The recent announcement that China had tested something akin to a Fractional Orbital Bombardment System, which is launched into space and then orbits the globe before discharging a missile at its...
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/122625-despite-displays-of-strength-china-has-key-weaknesses.html
Only 47% of Americans belong to a church of any faith. This matters, especially for families and children, as well as our communities, as church attendance and religious adherence not only benefi...
Families and free market economies: On the surface, they seem unrelated. We associate family with game nights, holiday traditions, and cute baby photos, while the economy is associated with the s...
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/122320-strong-families-are-good-for-the-economy-and-vice-versa.html
What do you want? Or, better yet, what do you want from what you want? It turns out, more than money or praise, humans yearn for a purpose. And new data indicate Americans are lacking that meanin...
https://rlo.acton.org/archives/121933-the-antidote-to-americans-crisis-of-meaning.html
America is facing a crisis of community. The prevalence of social media is threatening human relationships. Religious detachment is leading to declining civic participation. Politicians and centr...