|
|
Michel Novak and Patrick Buchanan as Major Representatives of Contemporary American Political Catholicism
Míčka, Roman ; Barša, Pavel (advisor) ; Balík, Stanislav (referee) ; Hanuš, Jiří (referee)
This dissertation Michael Novak and Patrick Buchanan as Major Representatives of Contemporary American Political Catholicism compares the political thought of two faces of contemporary American political Catholicism represented by the neoconservative Michael Novak and the paleoconservative Patrick J. Buchanan. The first part deals with the context of contemporary political Catholicism and its historical background. The comparison thematizes five problem fields: the issue of democracy and American political system, economic problems, question of foreign policy, the issue of religion and Catholicism and, finally, the conflict over the basis of conservatism. To accomplish the given objective, I analyse the work of both authors, compare their respective ideological positions and set them in the context of other major authors in the given areas and in the context of established political theories. The comparison shows that they both emphasize the significance of the religious and moral aspect of democracy, especially in the American context, however, they do not agree on the universal reach of democratic ideals. In the field of economics, they stand for different views: Novak is an economic neoliberal, while Buchanan a radical economic nationalist. Similarly in relation to foreign policy, Novak...
|
|
|
Michael Novak and his Project of Theology of Democratic Capitalism
MÍČKA, Roman
This dissertation deals with the American Catholic theologian and social thinker Michael Novak, as well as his work, which is a principal and influential contribution to Catholic social teaching. Novak is the main representative of American Catholic Neoconservatism, a stream in Catholic thought, which springs from the specific context of the experience of the American political, economical and cultural arrangement and which started to develop in the USA in connection with the American conservative revolution. Catholic Neoconservatism aims to connect Christian and liberal traditions, and it also tries to rehabilitate the system of Democratic Capitalism newly based on Christian values. Its goal is to influence all areas of Catholic social thought, which, according to Novak, needs to be developed and enriched by non-Europeans, especially from the American experience. He claims that Catholic social thought is inspired too much by Socialism and the one-hundredyear-old tradition of Papal Encyclicas has been significantly marked by a limited Eurocontinental horizon. This dissertation aims to contribute, at least partly, to the Catholic historical revision of values of classical liberalism in light of this American experience. Also Novak´s usage of theological doctrines on behalf of the democratic capitalism is interesting and not forgetable experiment in the area of the theology of terrestrial realities, despite some of its exceptions. Novak is not a great theologian, but he is especially a political scientist and economist. Therefore his theology of Democratic Capitalism should be further developed and enriched by other theologians.
|
guest ::
RSS feed.