Abstract In a 2021 contribution to Politics and Religion , Jesse Russell wrote that St. Thomas Aquinas “had decidedly illiberal view of government.” He says “advocates government in which the people are not given public liberty” did “prepare way for mixed monarchy English constitution.” But places rule moral law above politics, endorses participatory government, prioritizes reciprocal duties ra...

The concept of just war rises on a "just war" doctrine, which has important historical moments, developed the "justification potential" war. A better understanding theory is possible by examining these intellectual foundations. For this purpose, study starts from ideas Cicero, who accepted as one most premises theory, St. Augustine and Thomas Aquinas, then views Vitoria Grotius, represent trans...

In recognition of the fifteenth anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Veritatis splendor, this issue of the Josephinum Journal of Theology opens with five essays touching upon the theme of moral action, which was perhaps the central concern of the encyclical. In particular, Veritatis splendor responded to a post conciliar situation in which traditional moral doctrines, such as the teach...

Darwin thought that the moral sense was among most challenging aspects of human life to account for through evolutionary explanations. This article seeks probe question about uniqueness primarily from a theological perspective by focusing in depth on one distinctive sentiment, gratitude, particularly Thomas Aquinas. It uses example as case study how consider validity arguments within broader co...

This study arises from the context of current debates in the Catholic Church on the place of rule and law in moral reasoning. I suggest that ethics may be best served by approaches that place the human subject in a teleogical context and that recognise the need for interpretation of circumstances surrounding actions to be evaluated. This is in contrast to normative rule approaches. The insights...