The Drama of Politics and the Question of the Common Good according to Gaston Fessard

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https://doi.org/10.54937/vt.2023.22.2.102-117

Autor/ Author: Jiří Baroš

In: Verba Theologica

ISSN: 1336-1635 (Print)

ISSN: 2644-4844 (Online)

Ročník/ Volume: XXII.

Číslo/ Issue: 2

Strany/ Page Range: 102-117

Rok vydania/ Publication Year: 2023

Jazyk/ Language: Czech

Vydavateľ/ Publisher: VERBUM – vydavateľstvo Katolíckej univerzity v Ružomberku

Abstrakt/ Abstract: Recent years have witnessed a growing interest in the category of common good. This has led many scholars to reappropriate the paradigmatic conceptualizations of common good in the long history of this concept. This paper deals with a sophisticated analysis of common good proposed by the French theologian Gaston Fessard, whose ideas strongly influenced not only the French debates about this concept, but also Jorge Maria Bergoglio´s thought. These two authors share an emphasis on the dynamic character of common good, which can only be ultimately achieved by relating it to the Infinite. Their vision of (political) reality is dialectical; they emphasize antinomies and tensions omnipresent in human life. In the first part of my article, I focus on Fessard’s thematization of the dramatic character of political life and the dynamics of the emergence of political authority, whose main aim is to mediate the common good. The second part is dedicated to a thorough analysis of Fessard’s distinction between the content and form of the common good. Particularly, I pay attention to his understanding of liberalism and human rights. In the end, I show the uniqueness as well as the relevance of his philosophical analysis to contemporary issues.

Kľúčové slová/ Keywords:  Authority, The common good, Church, Gaston Fessard, Human rights, State

Citácia/ How to cite:

BAROŠ, Jiří, 2023. Drama politiky a otázka společného dobra podle Gastona Fessarda. Verba Theologica. Online. Roč. XXII., č. 2, s. 102-117. ISSN 1336-1635 (Print). ISSN 2644-4844 (Online). Dostupné na: https://doi.org/10.54937/vt.2023.22.2.102-117

Toto dielo je publikované pod/ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.