The Contemporary Augustinian “Minor Chorus” in Catholic Social Theory

Against the backdrop of the new pontificate of the Augustinian Leo XIV, this paper offers a survey of the ideas of the leading Catholic Augustinian political theorists of the past half century who have shared an opposition to the project of synthesizing the Thomist and Liberal political traditions. The paper is not asserting that Pope Leo XIV himself holds such positions, merely that given his Augustinian affinities, and given the contemporary interest in post-liberal political thought, it may be timely to consider the Augustinian “minor voice” in Catholic and high church Anglican social theory. The paper also highlights the work of little-known or overlooked contemporary thinkers from Central Europe. Key themes are the foundations of human rights and the socio-political order.