Molnár Tamás, Thomas Molnar or Molnar, Thomas Steven (July 26, 1921, Budapest, Hungary

Budapest

Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...

 – July 20, 2010, Richmond, Virginia

Richmond, Virginia

Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...

) was a Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 philosopher, historian

Historian

A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...

 and political theorist.

Life

Molnar completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Brussels in Belgium and received his Ph.D. in philosophy and history from Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

 in New York City.

He was visiting professor of philosophy of religion at the University of Budapest

University of Budapest

The Eötvös Loránd University or ELTE, founded in 1635, is the largest university in Hungary, located in Budapest.-History:The university was founded in 1635 in Nagyszombat by the archbishop and theologian Péter Pázmány. Leadership was given over to the Jesuits...

. As author of over forty books in French and English he published on a variety of subjects including religion, politics, and education. He emigrated to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, where he taught for many years at Brooklyn College

Brooklyn College

Brooklyn College is a senior college of the City University of New York, located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.Established in 1930 by the New York City Board of Higher Education, the College had its beginnings as the Downtown Brooklyn branches of Hunter College and the City College of New...

. Molnar said he was inspired by Russell Kirk

Russell Kirk

Russell Kirk was an American political theorist, moralist, historian, social critic, literary critic, and fiction author known for his influence on 20th century American conservatism. His 1953 book, The Conservative Mind, gave shape to the amorphous post–World War II conservative movement...

's The Conservative Mind. Like Kirk, he wrote a good deal for the magazine National Review

National Review

National Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...

.

Molner wrote glowingly of Charles Maurras. Maurras was a collaborator in Vichy France famous for calling the Nazi victory over the Third Republic a "divine surprise". Maurras was jailed by the French government after World War II; Maurras, an unrepentent antisemite, regarded his conviction as the "revenge of Dreyfus". Molner wrote that French failure to honor Maurras' conservative values was a component of the "agony of France". (See Thomas Molnar essay, Charles Maurras, Shaper of an Age)

Molnar was married with Ildiko and has one son, Eric. He died at the age of 89 on Tuesday, July 20, 2010.

Among the awards Molnar received was the Széchenyi Prize

Széchenyi Prize

The Széchenyi Prize , named after István Széchenyi, is a prize given in Hungary by the state, replacing the former State Prize in 1990 in recognition of those who have made an outstanding contribution to academic life in Hungary.-External links:*...

, from the President of the Republic of Hungary.

Works

• Bernanos: his political thought and prophecy. 1960.
• The decline of the intellectual. 1961.
• The future of education. Foreword by Russell Kirk
  Russell Kirk
  Russell Kirk was an American political theorist, moralist, historian, social critic, literary critic, and fiction author known for his influence on 20th century American conservatism. His 1953 book, The Conservative Mind, gave shape to the amorphous post–World War II conservative movement...
  
  . 1961.
• The two faces of American foreign policy. 1962.
• Africa; a political travelogue, by Thomas Molnar. 1965.
• L'Afrique du Sud. 1966.
• South West Africa; the last pioneer country. 1966.
• Spotlight on South West Africa. 1966.
• Utopia, the perennial heresy. 1967.
• Ecumenism or new reformation? 1968.
• Sartre: ideologue of our time. 1968.
• The counter-revolution. 1969.
• La gauche vue d'en face. 1970.
• The American dilemma, a consideration of United States leadership in world. 1971.
• Nationalism in the space age; five lectures given by Thomas Molnar.1971.
• God and the knowledge of reality. 1973.
• L'Animal politique : essai. 1974.
• Authority and its enemies.1976.
• Le socialisme sans visage : l'avènement du tiers modèle. 1976.
• Dialogues and ideologues.1977.
• Christian humanism : a critique of the secular city and its ideology. 1978.
• Le modèle défiguré : l'Amèrique de Tocqueville á Carter. 1978.
• Politics and the state : the Catholic view. 1980.
• Theists and atheists : a typology of non-belief. 1980.
• Le Dieu immanent : la grande tentation de la pensée allemande. 1982.
• Tiers-Monde : idéologie, réalité. 1982.
• L'éclipse du sacré : discours et réponses. 1986. avec Alain de Benoist
  Alain de Benoist
  Alain de Benoist is a French academic, philosopher, a founder of the Nouvelle Droite and head of the French think tank GRECE. Benoist is a critic of liberalism, free markets and egalitarianism.-Biography:...
  
  
• The pagan temptation. 1987.
• Twin powers : politics and the sacred. 1988.
• The Church, pilgrim of centuries. 1990.
• L'Europe entre parenthèses. 1990.
• Philosophical grounds. 1991.
• The emerging Atlantic culture. 1994.
• Archetypes of thought. 1996.
• Filozófusok istene. 1996.
• Return to philosophy. 1996.
• A Magyar Szent Korona és a szentkorona-tan az ezredfordulón (edited by Tóth Zoltán József)
• Századvégi mérleg : válogatott írások. 1999.
• A pogány kísértés. 2000.
• Igazság és történelem 2000.
• Bennünk lakik-e az Isten? 2002.
• Válogatás a Magyar Nemzet
  Magyar Nemzet
  Magyar Nemzet is a major Hungarian newspaper. Its name literally means "Hungarian nation".-History:The original, moderate conservative daily was founded by Sándor Petheő in 1937. It fused with the other conservative daily Napi Magyarország in April 2000.The current newspaper is considered to be...
  
  nek és az asztalfióknak írt publicisztikákból . 2002.
• A beszélő Isten. 2003.
• A jobb és a bal : tanulmányok. 2004.