PHILOSOPHERS - ST. THOMAS AQUINAS

<BODY> <CENTER><FONT SIZE=5><B><FONT SIZE=6>ST. THOMAS AQUINAS</FONT> <BR> (1225 - 1274)</B></FONT></CENTER><P> <BLOCKQUOTE>"To take something away from the perfection of the creature is to abstract from the perfection of the creative power itself."</BLOCKQUOTE> A Christian philosopher and theologian Aquinas' two masterpieces, the "Summa Theologiae" and "Summa contra gentiles", were responsible for the classical systemization of Latin theology.<P> At the age of 5, Thomas Aquinas was sent to receive an education at the Benedictine monastery of Monte Cassino. He continued his studies at the University of Naples, where he made the decision to join the new religious order of Dominicans, a move which so angered his family that they had him abducted and held him captive for a year. Finally liberated, Thomas went to study at the University of Paris, where he read and eventually lectured on the works of <A HREF="../05/05f01.html" TARGET="_top">Aristotle</A>. In 1256, having attained his licence to teach, he taught theology in one of the Dominican schools at the University of Paris, before returning to Italy in 1259, to serve as theological advisor and lecturer to the papal Curia. He was sent to Paris in 1269 and in 1272 was recalled to Italy and given the task of establishing a Dominican school at the University of Naples. In 1274, having been summoned by Pope Gregory X to the Council of Lyons, Thomas was taken ill and died shortly after at the Cistercian abbey of Fossanova.<P> He was canonized a saint in 1323. Thomas Aquinas was responsible for incorporating the doctrines of Aristotle into Christian philosophy, using Aristolelian distinctions between form and matter, substance and accident to develop an elaborate <A HREF="../t03/g032.html" TARGET="_top">metaphysics</A> of being that recognized both human knowledge derived from reason, and divine revelation. Reasoning from human experience, Thomas argued for the necessary existence of God, thus demonstrating that faith and reason could be used to arrive at the same knowledge. <BR clear=left><BR> <HR width=100%> <A HREF="http://www.creatorix.com.au"><IMG SRC="../creatorix.gif" WIDTH="85" HEIGHT="40" BORDER="0" ALT="Creatorix" align=right></A> </BODY>