About the Author

Jacques Maritain, a highly regarded French philosopher, teacher and writer in the 20th century, was one of the principal exponents of Thomism and an influential interpreter of the thought of St Thomas Aquinas. He lived for many years in the United States, and taught at Princeton University and Columbia University. After WWII, he served as the French ambassador to the Vatican. He also helped draft the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948).

Reviews

"Maritain was one of the pioneers of the Catholic human rights revolution, which changed the course of 20th century politics. While helping the Church through a genuine development of social doctrine, Maritain helped forge some of the tools that eventually broke through the Berlin Wall."
-George Weigel, Ethics and Public Policy Center p>"In these passionate words one encounters the mind of Maritain in all its vigor and variety. His reflections on the challenges facing the world's democratic experiments-starkly realistic yet infused with Christian hope-are as timely today as they were seventy years ago."
-Mary Ann Glendon, Harvard University p>"This has been one of my all-time favorite 'David books' - those little books that take down Goliaths. Almost single-handedly, Maritain launched an hypothesis on the Christian (and Jewish) origins of the foundational axioms of democracy, of which many atheists are now coming to admit the truth. The sheer power of his hypothesis is more evident with every passing year. The republication of this classic is therefore bound to kindle longing for a deeper, more just reevaluation."
-Michael Novak, American Enterprise Institute"Maritain's achievement as a political thinker was to show that rightly understood, democratic liberty depends on faith, and that to lose God is to lose Man himself. Maritain's argument is needed today more than ever."
-J. Budziszewski, University of Texas p>"The decision to reissue the single-volume edition of Maritain's classic works could not have come at a more urgent time, a time when, perhaps as never before, the future of democracy hangs in the balance."
- Raymond Dennehy, University of San Francisco