Faith in Action

Via RCP, the guru of "compassionate conservatism" Marvin Olasky, gives us a back to basics message:

This year, as Washington's spending spree has continued, several conservative pundits have sat in air-conditioned offices and written about the death of compassionate conservatism, which they say has become a euphemism for big government spending.

If that's true, that's a shame, because the concept originally captured the excitement of thousands of small groups, often Christian, dedicated to fighting material and spiritual poverty. Their faith-based initiatives began without governmental help and are likely to continue regardless of what happens inside the Beltway.

Olasky highlights the Samaritan awards, given annually by Michigan-based Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty to groups doing the hard work of helping their neighbors most in need.

I've been a supporter of the Acton Institute for over 10 years. Its founder, the Rev. Robert Sirico, will be speaking at a Chicago luncheon on Sept. 14th. I'd encourage you to come.

The Acton blog is one of their newest efforts, added to my blogroll.