The «Solidarity-State». Università Cattolica, a Post-World War II Think Tank on Social Thought

Among the development models drawn up by the Italian Catholic world in the mid-twentieth century, we should consider that designed in one of the nerve centres of Italian Catholic culture, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. This essay analyses the contribution made by groups of professors and assistant professors, at first clandestinely, and later in political and institutional bodies, to the reconstruction of Italy, significantly influencing social thought in the postwar period. Their contribution stemmed from their reflections during the period between the 1930s and the 1950s, which were compared both with corporatism as well as AngloSaxon models and the New Deal, opting for the creation of a «SolidarityState», which was an alternative to individualism and collectivism. This essay uses analyses of journals, books and debates, which have also been pieced together thanks to unpublished documentation.