Abstract
Examines the work of Protestant ethicist Reinhold Niebuhr & Catholic theologian John Courtney Murray, S.J. to argue that Niebuhr's Christian realism & Murray's natural law are closer than they seem. A synopsis of the views of each man is followed by an assessment of their critiques of each other, noting that they were on cordial personal terms, & frequently interacted on scholarly panels. In spite of conflicts between natural law theory & Christian realism, both men were dedicated to bringing Christian ethics to bear on American public life. Ways in which Niebuhr was more of a natural-law theorist than he admitted are pointed out, along with elements of "ethical naturalism" in Christian realism, & consideration of the limits of human nature in Murray's natural-law theory approach to political principles. It is contended that natural law & Christian realism share enough common ground to be combined in Christian moral analysis in a manner that is valuable for bringing Christian ethics to bear on questions of law & public life in America. J. Lindroth