The Role of Conflict in a Political Account of Common Goods

The fourth lecture in The D’Arcy Lectures series, exploring the concept of Common Good through the three lenses of Aristotle’s philosophy, Catholic teaching, and contemporary political liberalism.

SYNOPSIS
‘Politics’ and ‘political’ are widely used as labels in speaking of social situations in which there is conflict. A more precise understanding of politics will be defended in which it appears as just one form of rule. Following Aristotle’s usage, it is argued that not all forms of rule of states are political in the full sense. This approach entails a challenge whether Catholic Social Thought can accommodate an adequate account of conflict.

This year’s D’Arcy Lectures are delivered by Revd Dr Patrick Riordan.