Thomas Aquinas

A Concise Encyclopedia of the Philosophy of Religion
by Anthony C. Thiselton, M.Th., Ph.D., D.D.

(Page 4 of 9)

Aquinas, Thomas (1225-74)

Born into an aristocratic family in the region of Naples, Thomas was educated first in a Benedictine monastery and then at the University of Naples (1239-44). He then became a Dominican friar, and from 1248 to 1254 studied under Albert the Great.

At the University of Naples and under Albert, AQUINAS was exposed to the full range of philosophical and logical problems formulated and explored by Aristotle, but as a Dominican monk he remained above all a philosophical theologian.

Thomas AQUINAS's greatest achievement was his Summa Theologiae, begun in 1266. It ranks as one of the greatest theological classics of all time. In the English and Latin edition of the Dominican Blackfriars, commended by Pope Paul VI (1963) it runs to sixty volumes. 'By official appointment the Summa provides the framework for Catholic studies in systematic theology and for a classical Christian philosophy' (Preface, vol. 1, xi).

Thomas not only adapted Aristotelian philosophy to the service of Christian theology in the thirteenth century. Building on the earlier work of Islamic philosophers (see ISLAMIC PHILOSOPHY) and Albert the Great, he did more than any other single writer to ensure the revival of Aristotle for the medieval period and beyond. He is generally regarded as the leading figure in SCHOLASTIC PHILOSOPHY.

It is unnecessary to include in this entry a detailed account of Thomas's main philosophical themes, since these are described and evaluated in several more specialist entries (see ANALOGY; COSMOLOGICAL ARGUMENT for the existence of God; FIVE WAYS OF THOMAS AQUINAS; GOD, ARGUMENTS FOR THE EXISTENCE OF; LANGUAGE IN RELIGION).

Prior to the commendation of Pope Paul (1963), Pope Leo XIII (1879) urged that Thomist philosophy be made the basis for education in Roman Catholic schools, and Pope Pius XII (1950) identified it as the surest guide to Roman Catholic theology. Thomas's influence, however, spreads far beyond the Catholic tradition, and touches on a multitude of philosophical, theological and ethical questions.

In addition to his magisterial Summa Theologiae (1265-72) AQUINAS produced On Being and Essence (1242-3), On truth (1256-9), Summa contra Gentiles (1260) ('Gentiles' in the sense of 'unbelievers'), On Evil (1263-8), On Separate Substances (1271) and up to eighty other works. It would be misleading to emphasize his role as theologian at the expense of recognizing his genuine stature as a philosopher; but equally, he remains a theologian grounded in the Bible and Christian doctrine, alongside his respect for Aristotle and other Greek, Jewish and Islamic philosophers.

SOME LEADING THEMES (DEVELOPED
FURTHER IN SEPARATE ENTRIES)

(1) Since for Thomas, Christian revelation and human reason complement each other, any working distinction between theology and philosophy is not clear-cut. For some, knowledge of the existence of God may come in part through drawing reasonable influences A POSTERIORI from the created order. For others, revelation is essential. However, reason can never reach through to grasp such distinctively Christian truths as that of the Incarnation, the Trinity, or the nature of salvation. These demand faith and revealed truth.

(2) Language in religion operates largely through the use of analogy, although the VIA NEGATIONIS, while inadequate on its own, nevertheless helps to prevent analogy drifting into ANTHROPOMORPHISM.

(3) Aristotelian philosophy provides an impressive and constructive range of logical and conceptual resources for religion and for life. AQUINAS sides with Aristotle against Plato on several issues, including Plato's notion of Forms. Only 'beings' exist. AQUINAS respected the logical and conceptual insights of Arabic and Islamic philosophers as well as those of the Jewish philosopher MAIMONIDES. In effect, in spite of their differences of attitude towards Christian scripture, all shared the same fundamental task, he believed, of formulating a coherent philosophical theology.

(4) In particular AQUINAS drew on Aristotle's concepts of potentiality, possibility and movement in his exposition of his Five Ways, as well as the contrast between the CONTINGENT and the NECESSARY. The notions of efficient and final cause also constituted a constructive resource for Thomas.

(5) AQUINAS also developed the Aristotelian notions of individual substances, of definition by class and subcategory or distinction (genus et differentia) and the notion of a hierarchy, or levels, of being. These provide a background for his view of creation, of the nature of good and evil, and of ethics and virtue. The traditional Greek cardinal virtues are supplemented by the 'theological' virtues of faith, hope and love (Summa Theologiae, IIa, Qu. 1-35, on the theological virtues; ibid., Qu. 36-43, on providence, justice, courage, temperance and socio-political virtues).

(6) AQUINAS is often said to have taken over the Stoic and Aristotelian notion of natural law. All types of law derive from the Divine law (ius divinum, ibid., Ia/IIae, Qu. 90-105). However, it may be less misleading to ascribe to him a wider notion of the 'orderedness' of creation and of civil states as that which builds upon, and reflects, the orderedness of the mind of God. (7) Although Thomas's masterpiece includes most of the topics discussed in a philosophy of religion, AQUINAS goes further than this in the scope of his work. His first main part includes such topics as God, language, creation, humankind, will and intelligent mind, providence and the world. The second main part includes issues of ethics and virtue, as we have noted.

Part III includes more distinctively theological doctrines, notably the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the sacraments. Yet philosophy is not left behind. His work on the Eucharist or Lord's Supper appeals to the Aristotelian categories of substance and ACCIDENT for what became, from the thirteenth century onwards, the doctrine of transubstantiation (ibid., III, Qu. 75, art. 5, accidentia ... substantia). The range of thought is magisterial and monumental, whether or not some sections remain more controversial than others.

© 2002 Oneworld Publications All rights reserved.

About the Author

Anthony Thiselton is Emeritus Professor of Christian Theology at the University of Nottingham, and Canon Theologian of Leicester Cathedral and Southwell Minster, UK. His academic career has involved fellowships in both the UK and the US, he has lectured around the world, and has published seven books and over 50 papers.