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'''Thomas Aquinas''' (1225-1274) was an Italian [[Roman Catholic]] philosopher and [[theologian ]] in the scholastic tradition. He gave birth to the Thomistic school of philosophy, which was long the primary philosophical approach of the Roman Catholic Church. He is considered by the Catholic Church to be its greatest theologian and one of the thirty-three Doctors of the Church.
==Biography==
===Early years===
The life of Thomas Aquinas offers many interesting insights into the world of the High Middle Ages. He was born into a family of the south Italian nobility and was through his mother Countess Theadora of Theate related to the Hohenstaufen dynasty of Holy Roman emperors. He was born early in 1225 at his father Count Landulf's castle of Roccasecca in the kingdom of Naples. Landulf's brother, Sinibald, was [[abbot ]] of the original [[Rule of St. Benedict|Benedictine ]] [[monastery ]] at [[Monte Cassino]], and the family intended Thomas to follow his uncle into that position; this would have been a normal career-path for a younger son of the nobility.
In his fifth year he was sent for his early education to the monastery. However, after studying at the University of Naples, Thomas joined the Dominican order, which along with the Franciscan order represented a revolutionary challenge to the well-established clerical systems of early medieval Europe. This change of heart did not please the family; on the way to Rome, Thomas was seized by his brothers and brought back to his parents at the castle of San Giovanni, where he was held a captive for a year or two to make him relinquish his purpose. According to his earliest biographers, the family even brought a prostitute to tempt him, but he drove her away.
In 1252 Aquinas went to Paris for the master's degree, but met with some difficulty owing to attacks on the mendicant orders by the professoriate of the University. Ultimately, however, he received the degree and entered upon his office of teaching in 1257; he taught in Paris for several years and there wrote some of his works and began others. In 1259 he was present at an important chapter of his order at Valenciennes. At the solicitation of Pope Urban IV (therefore not before the latter part of 1261), he took up his residence in Rome. In 1269-71 he was again active in Paris. In 1272 the provincial chapter at Florence empowered him to found a new ''studium generale'' at such place as he should choose, and he selected Naples.
Aquinas had a mystical experience while celebrating [[Mass ]] on [[December 6]], 1273, after which he stopped writing, leaving his great work, the ''Summa Theologiae'', unfinished. When asked why he had stopped writing, Aquinas replied, "I cannot go on...All that I have written seems to me like so much straw compared to what I have seen and what has been revealed to me." He died on March 7, 1274.
Contemporaries described Thomas as a big man, corpulent and dark-complexioned, with a large head and receding hairline. His manners showed his breeding; he is described as refined, affable, and lovable. In argument he maintained self-control and won over opponents by his personality and great learning. His tastes were simple. His associates were specially impressed by his power of memory. When absorbed in thought, he often forgot his surroundings. The ideas he developed by such strenuous absorption he was able to express for others systematically, clearly and simply. Because of the keen grasp he had of his materials, in his writings Thomas does not, like Duns Scotus, make the reader his associate in the search for truth, but teaches it authoritatively. On the other hand, the consciousness of the insufficiency of his works in view of the revelation which he believed he had received was a cause of dissatisfaction for him.
===Death and canonization===
Early in 1274 the Pope directed him to attend the Second Council of Lyons and, though far from well, he undertook the journey. On the way he stopped at the castle of a niece and there became seriously ill. He wished to end his days in a monastery and not being able to reach a house of the Dominicans he was taken to the Cistercians. He died at the monastery of Fossanova, one mile from Sonnino, on [[March 7]], 1274.
Aquinas had made a remarkable impression on all who knew him. He was placed on a level with the [[Paul|The Apostle Paul]] and [[Augustine of Hippo|Augustine]], receiving the title titles ''doctor angelicus'' ('''''Angelic Doctor) and ''doctor communis'''(Common Doctor).
In 1319, the Roman Catholic Church began investigations preliminary to Aquinas's canonization; on [[July 18]], 1323, he was pronounced a [[saint ]] by Pope John XXII at Avignon. At the [[Council of Trent]] only two books were placed on the Altar, the Bible and St. Thomas Aquinas's ''Summa TheologicaTheologiae''.
==Writings==
*''Summa contra Gentiles'', 1258-1264
*''On Kingship: To the King of Cyprus'', 1265-1266
*''Summa TheologicaTheologiae'', 1265-1272
*''On Spiritual Creatures'', 1266-1269
*''De Perfectione Vitae Spiritualis'', 1269
Modern readers might also find the method frequently used to reconcile Christian and Aristotelian doctrine rather strenuous. In some cases, the conflict is resolved by showing that a certain term actually has two meanings, the Christian doctrine referring to one meaning, the Aristotelian to the second. Thus, both doctrines can be said to be true. Indeed, noting distinctions is a necessary part of true philosophical inquiry. In most cases, Aquinas finds a reading of the Aristotelian text which might not always satisfy modern scholars of Aristotle but which is a plausible rendering of the Philosopher's meaning and thoroughly Christian.
Many biographies of Aquinas have been written over the centuries, perhaps the most notable is that by [[G. K. Chesterton]].
== References ==
