Friedrich Hayek and Reinhold Niebuhr on the Moral Persistence of Liberal Society

Abstract

Attempts by Christian social theorists to harmonize Austrian liberalism and Christian tradition ignore serious contradictions in their respective moral systems. Friedrich Hayek's conception of the "spontaneous order" portends potentially harmful consequences for corporate religion by elevating the subjective individual as the singular source of value in human culture. Thus, Hayek's ideas on cultural evolution may provide insight into the perceived loss of moral voice among American religious institutions, Reinhold Niebuhr's economic realism is more conducive to exploring the moral persistence of liberal society recognizing the need for balance between subjective and collective expressions of the good. Key concepts in Niebuhr's economic thought are a unique value theory, a holistic conception of the individual and society, an understanding of the moral ambiguities associated with technological innovation, and recognition that balances of power are necessary to preserve social organicism and the Christian conception of personality.