This is thinking in public, a program dedicated to intelligent conversation about

front-line theological and cultural issues with the people who are shaping them.

I'm Albert Molo, your host and president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville,

Kentucky.

Daniel Mahoney is Professor Emeritus at Assumption University, where he serves as the

Augustinian chair and professor of political science.

Professor Mahoney earned his PhD from the Catholic University of America, and he has contributed

important academic work, mostly exploring the intersection of religion and politics and history.

He's the author or editor of 12 books. His most recent book, The Statesman, as Thinker thinker is the topic of our conversation today

professor Mahoney welcome to thinking in public well thank you dr molar very happy to be here

you have written his most recent book the The Statesman as Thinker, Portraits of Greatness, Courage, and Moderation.

You've got a couple of controversial words there in the first part of your title, The Statesman as Thinker.

So I'm going to just kind of throw something at you and that is what exactly is a statesman and why would you dare to write about statesmanship in the 21st century?

Well, you know statesmanship, I think it's a in the

relationship.

but it's also not one that's but it's also not one that's regularly used

to contemporary political discourse.

Unfortunately, we reduce of political leadership to the word leader.

And you know, the leader has some very unfortunate connotations in the

20th century you know the fewer the duche right Stalin was the vogue and leadership can suggest tyrannical command and that kind of thing.

So we're often very promiscuous with our language, not thinking through the implications or the

connotations of certain words. But the statesmen, certainly in English, has always connoted an outstanding form of political rule or political leadership.

...