The Common Good and Catholic Political Philosophy: Between Trinity and Science
| Autoři | |
|---|---|
| Rok publikování | 2024 |
| Druh | Další prezentace na konferencích |
| Fakulta / Pracoviště MU | |
| Citace | |
| Popis | The aim of the paper is twofold: to synthesize the contemporary discourse on the common good (CG) among Christian political philosophers, and to point out two possible directions to follow. First, it argues for a greater engagement with the project of Trinitarian ontology. Second, this deepening of this discourse should, at the same time, lead to a greater connection with empirical science. In the first part, I will briefly address the two main waves of philosophical interest in the CG in recent decades. The first wave was triggered by the polemics of Ch. De Koninck against personalism; leading Thomists of the time contributed to it (Maritain or Eschmann). A closer connection of this important category with other notions of political thought was offered above all by Y. Simon and today especially by R. Hittinger. The second considerable controversy has been provoked by Finnis' instrumentalist conception of the CG. Several alternatives have been offered against it, most notably aggregative (Murphy) and distinctive (Duke) conceptions of the CG. It can be argued that both debates on the CG are, to some extent, at the level of the so-called ideal theory (Rawls). This ignores the darker part of human existence as well as the dynamics of history. Far more sensitive to these factors is the so-called non-ideal theory, which is now gaining prominence. Ideal theory speaks of lofty aspirations but is very far from reality. It offers us an extremely harmonizing vision of the CG, whereas we can only achieve moderate harmony. The interest in non-ideal theories in political philosophy coincides with some of Pope Francis' impulses for Catholic thought. This should be sensitive to all the tensions that occur in political life and focus its attention on the conflicts that constantly arise in the world of politics. I believe that these harmony and tension-oriented approaches need not be in conflict, but rather that a properly Catholic vision of the CG must embrace both poles. To achieve this goal, there must be an integration of the two approaches: (1) In keeping with the project of Trinitarian ontology, Catholic philosophers should emphasize the dramas and tensions of human life to bring out the sense in which the Trinitarian mystery offers an answer. Hence, we need to connect with history – a dramatic narrative in which reconciliation is ultimately achieved in a universal communion of love. (2) To make this vision convincing to contemporary people, it is necessary to offer empirical examples of when this reconciliation occurs. The role of the empirical sciences in this context will be, first, to analyse the virtuous practices that lead to the (partial) resolution of these tensions; but secondly, it is necessary to focus on all the tensions that arise on the way to the ideal. Although spiritual literature offers various reflections (Varden), Catholic political thought can lose nothing when it draws from the scientific explanation of the mechanisms at play (Elster, Sunstein etc.). |
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