Occasional Papers
Occasional Papers (OP) are short publications usually based on a lecture or presentation given at the CIS. Our annual John Bonython and Acton Lectures are part of the OP series.
Categories
What Kind of Religion Is Free in the Public Square? A Warning from the United States
In the 14th Acton Lecture, Dr Ryan Messmore, President of Campion College, asks what kind of religion is free in the public square and whether we have a strong, public expression of religious belief or... Read More
Moral Wisdom and the Recovery of Virtue
What are the moral skills we need to cultivate to live effectively in the social media world of the twenty-first century public square? In an address given at Consilium in 2012, Peter Kurti proposes the... Read More
The Kingdom of God is Forcefully Advancing and Forceful Men Lay Hold of It
In the CIS’s annual Acton Lecture on Religion and Freedom, Senator David Coltart discusses the application of biblical standards to foreign policy in terms of moral values: forsaking violence as means... Read More
Must Religion be a Threat to Liberty?
Does Christianity destroy or defend freedom? Answering this question, Fr Robert A. Sirico turns to the foundations of Christianity. Read More
Do Secular Societies Promote Religious Extremism?
In the Annual Acton Lecture Tom Frame looks at secularism in society. He concludes that in a genuinely secular society all must recognise and respect the opinions of those with whom they disagree. They... Read More
Religion and Politics: Contemporary Tensions
Religion has always been important but the decline in Christian practice in recent decades led to a widespread assumption of religion’s decline in civic and political life. However, according to Paul... Read More
Rendering Unto Caesar: New Challenges for Church and State
In considering contemporary church-state relations, Gregg argues that religious communities need to reassess their role, and suggests that the future focus of faith communities in pluralist societies should... Read More
Christian Morality and Market Capitalism: Friends or Foes?
In the 5th Annual CIS Acton Lecture on Religion & Freedom, Ian Harper explores the moral basis of market capitalism––its strengths and weaknesses––and defends the view that there is nothing... Read More
Islam in Pluralist Indonesia
In this, The Acton Lecture on Religion and Freedom for 2002, noted Indonesian academic Mohammad Fajrul Falaakh discusses the importance and interpretations of Shariah (Islamic law) and asks whether Islam... Read More
Dangerous Protections: How Some Ways of Protecting the Freedom of Religion May Actually Diminish Religious Freedom.
The 2001 Acton Lecture on Religion and Freedom delivered by Robert Forsyth. Sometimes efforts to achieve good can backfire, especially where government legislation is concerned. Read More
The Moral Foundations of Freedom: Lessons from the Religious Encounter with Democracy
What happens when a society loses it moral capital? Can democracy thrive in a value-neutral environment? These are just some of the questions asked by one of America’s most respected theologians and... Read More
Religion and Liberty: Western Experiences, Asian Possibilities
In this CIS Occasional Paper, Samuel Gregg examines religion and its effects upon liberty in the West, before speculating on what such experiences suggest about religion’s potential impact upon the growth... Read More
Catholicism and the Architecture of Freedom
The nature of freedom is a question that has puzzled western societies from their very beginnings. In the Centre for Independent Studies’ inaugural Acton Lecture on Religion and Freedom, George Pell... Read More
The Political Economy of Freedom
The Political Economy of Freedom is an eloquent discussion of the importance of a diffusion of power in maintaining freedom. Read More
Economics, Faith and Moral Responsibility
In this CIS Occasional Paper, Robert Sirico defends the institutions of the free and open society from a Christian standpoint. Read More
