Leonardus Lessius

Lenaert Leys, better known as Leonardus Lessius (1 October 1554 in Brecht - 15 January 1623, in Leuven) was a Brabant jurist, theologian, economist from the Jesuit order.

[2] After a year of study in Liège,[3] he was sent in 1583 in the Roman College to pursue his theological learning under Robert Bellarmine and Francisco Suarez, who thought him the renewal of scholastic by the School of Salamanca.

Despite significant persecution and censorship that he received as a result, Lessius supported the view of free will and predestination developed by Luis de Molina, which was seen by many theologians at the time as too little conservative position.

[12] Fervent supporter of contractual consensualism, he conceded however the possibility for the authorities to restrain it in order to protect vulnerable population, guarantee public interest or assure salvation.

[16] Lessius renewed the concept of just price based on Thomas Aquinas' works, and perceived it like the other members of the School of Salamanca as a result of human estimation : it then depends on multiple factors like offer and demand, monetary market, type of transaction,...[17] Recognized as a "master of economic analysis"[18] for his reflexions, namely for his prefiguration of liquidity preference, Lessius was one of the most supportive thinkers about new merchant's practices, sometimes against traditional moral and theological thoughts.