Mary Keys

Mary Keys is a Professor at the University of Notre Dame, where she holds an office in Jenkins Nanovic Halls. Her academic background includes a BA from Boston College and MA/PhD from the University of Toronto. Her research bridges political theory with Christian ethics and Augustinian thought, focusing on humility, civic integrity, and the common good. Key works include Pride, Politics, and Humility in Augustine's City of God (Cambridge, forthcoming) and Aquinas, Aristotle, and the Promise of the Common Good (Cambridge).

• Education:
  • BA in Political Science, Boston College
  • MA in Political Theory, University of Toronto
  • PhD in Political Theory, University of Toronto

Her research interests explore interdisciplinary connections between Christianity, ethics, and political thought. Notable themes include Augustine’s critique of political pride, Aquinas’s moral philosophy, and the application of classical ethical frameworks to modern politics. She has held a National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Fellowship for her project on humility in political modernity and served as a visiting scholar at Harvard University and the University of Chicago.

Keys’ scholarship emphasizes the role of humility in civic life, drawing on Augustine’s City of God to analyze contemporary issues like truth-telling in politics and the tension between secularism and religious ethics. Her articles address topics such as the common good, interdependence in imago Dei, and the philosophical rivalry between elite and popular political discourse.

• Awards:
  • NEH Fellowship (2022–2023)
• Grants/Projects:
  • Research on “Humility, Modernity, and the Science of Politics”
  • Visiting Scholarships at Harvard (2020) and Chicago (2021)
• Labs/Teams:
  • Associated with the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture