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Aquinas II
Treatise on Habits
Treatise on Law
Treatise on Grace
Treatise on Faith, Hope and Charity
Treatise on Active and Contemplative Life
Treatise on the States of Life
Treatise on the Incarnation
Treatise on the Sacraments
Treatise on the Resurrection
Treatise on the Last Things
Treatise on Law
Treatise on Grace
Treatise on Faith, Hope and Charity
Treatise on Active and Contemplative Life
Treatise on the States of Life
Treatise on the Incarnation
Treatise on the Sacraments
Treatise on the Resurrection
Treatise on the Last Things
1085 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1952
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80 people want to read
About the author
Thomas Aquinas
2,546 books1,127 followersPhilosophy of Saint Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican friar and theologian of Italy and the most influential thinker of the medieval period, combined doctrine of Aristotle and elements of Neoplatonism, a system that Plotinus and his successors developed and based on that of Plato, within a context of Christian thought; his works include the
Summa contra gentiles
(1259-1264) and the
Summa theologiae
or theologica (1266-1273).
Saint Albertus Magnus taught Saint Thomas Aquinas.
People ably note this priest, sometimes styled of Aquin or Aquino, as a scholastic. The Roman Catholic tradition honors him as a "doctor of the Church."
Aquinas lived at a critical juncture of western culture when the arrival of the Aristotelian corpus in Latin translation reopened the question of the relation between faith and reason, calling into question the modus vivendi that obtained for centuries. This crisis flared just as people founded universities. Thomas after early studies at Montecassino moved to the University of Naples, where he met members of the new Dominican order. At Naples too, Thomas first extended contact with the new learning. He joined the Dominican order and then went north to study with Albertus Magnus, author of a paraphrase of the Aristotelian corpus. Thomas completed his studies at the University of Paris, formed out the monastic schools on the left bank and the cathedral school at Notre Dame. In two stints as a regent master, Thomas defended the mendicant orders and of greater historical importance countered both the interpretations of Averroës of Aristotle and the Franciscan tendency to reject Greek philosophy. The result, a new modus vivendi between faith and philosophy, survived until the rise of the new physics. The Catholic Church over the centuries regularly and consistently reaffirmed the central importance of work of Thomas for understanding its teachings concerning the Christian revelation, and his close textual commentaries on Aristotle represent a cultural resource, now receiving increased recognition.
Saint Albertus Magnus taught Saint Thomas Aquinas.
People ably note this priest, sometimes styled of Aquin or Aquino, as a scholastic. The Roman Catholic tradition honors him as a "doctor of the Church."
Aquinas lived at a critical juncture of western culture when the arrival of the Aristotelian corpus in Latin translation reopened the question of the relation between faith and reason, calling into question the modus vivendi that obtained for centuries. This crisis flared just as people founded universities. Thomas after early studies at Montecassino moved to the University of Naples, where he met members of the new Dominican order. At Naples too, Thomas first extended contact with the new learning. He joined the Dominican order and then went north to study with Albertus Magnus, author of a paraphrase of the Aristotelian corpus. Thomas completed his studies at the University of Paris, formed out the monastic schools on the left bank and the cathedral school at Notre Dame. In two stints as a regent master, Thomas defended the mendicant orders and of greater historical importance countered both the interpretations of Averroës of Aristotle and the Franciscan tendency to reject Greek philosophy. The result, a new modus vivendi between faith and philosophy, survived until the rise of the new physics. The Catholic Church over the centuries regularly and consistently reaffirmed the central importance of work of Thomas for understanding its teachings concerning the Christian revelation, and his close textual commentaries on Aristotle represent a cultural resource, now receiving increased recognition.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 31, 2024
Written by an Aristotelian whose logic at times is very specious. I saw some evidence of leaping to conclusions, preferring associations over causes, and theorizing based upon fallacious (medieval) "facts." Not surprising, coming from a man whose thinking could be altered by the "wetness" of his brain, or whose mood could be induced by the "heat" of his liver, or whose behavior could be affected by the "influence of the heavenly bodies." Were he thinking and writing today, most of what he wrote would be revised and condensed.
Summa Theologica could be a one-volume work, were Aquinas to abandon the scope (horizontal breadth of categories) and sequence (vertical heirarchy of all the sub-categories) that make up his scholastic theology. It's overkill. Moreover, condensing would be helped were Aquinas to rely more on the Bible and less on the Magesterium of the Roman Catholic Church, as well as the philosophy of the Greeks. Serious Biblical scholars (though not necessarily Christian theologians) know that Hell and even Heaven (not to mention Limbo and Purgatory) are false teachings, not found in a proper understanding of both Old and New Testaments. On these subjects, he tends to write at great length, as they are, thus, difficult to defend.
One thing I greatly appreciate: Thomas provides the contrary point of view first, each time he makes an argument about something. This style doubtless has led to the way that European students are taught to write essays. They proceed with an organic and chronological unrolling of the case in question, giving due attention to the con of their argument, before proceeding on to the pro. I find this superior to the way American students are taught to write five-paragraph essays: introductory paragraph; first fact or argument paragraph; second fact or argument paragraph; third fact or argument paragraph; conclusion paragraph. The European way requires more thought.
Summa Theologica could be a one-volume work, were Aquinas to abandon the scope (horizontal breadth of categories) and sequence (vertical heirarchy of all the sub-categories) that make up his scholastic theology. It's overkill. Moreover, condensing would be helped were Aquinas to rely more on the Bible and less on the Magesterium of the Roman Catholic Church, as well as the philosophy of the Greeks. Serious Biblical scholars (though not necessarily Christian theologians) know that Hell and even Heaven (not to mention Limbo and Purgatory) are false teachings, not found in a proper understanding of both Old and New Testaments. On these subjects, he tends to write at great length, as they are, thus, difficult to defend.
One thing I greatly appreciate: Thomas provides the contrary point of view first, each time he makes an argument about something. This style doubtless has led to the way that European students are taught to write essays. They proceed with an organic and chronological unrolling of the case in question, giving due attention to the con of their argument, before proceeding on to the pro. I find this superior to the way American students are taught to write five-paragraph essays: introductory paragraph; first fact or argument paragraph; second fact or argument paragraph; third fact or argument paragraph; conclusion paragraph. The European way requires more thought.
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February 28, 2020This guy reminds me of Aristotle with all of his meticulous obsessiveness and point-by-point arguments, objections and replies.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews