THOMAS AQUINAS(c. 1224, Rocca Secca, Italy - 1274, Fossanova, Italy) - medieval theologian and philosopher, Dominican monk (from 1244). He studied at the University of Naples, in Paris, and from 1248 with Albertus Magnus in Cologne. In 1252–59 he taught in Paris. He spent the rest of his life in Italy, only in 1268–72 he was in Paris, conducting polemics with the Parisian Averroists regarding the interpretation Aristotelian teaching about the immortality of the active mind-intellect ( noosa ). The works of Thomas Aquinas include "Summa Theologica" And "Summa against the Gentiles" (“Summa Philosophy”), discussions on theological and philosophical problems(“Debatable Questions” and “Questions on Various Topics”), detailed comments on several books of the Bible, on 12 treatises of Aristotle, on “Sentences” Peter of Lombardy , on the treatises of Boethius, Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, anonymous "The Book of Reasons" and others. “Debatable Questions” and “Comments” were largely the fruit of his teaching activities which, according to the tradition of that time, included debates and reading of authoritative texts. The greatest influence on the philosophy of Thomas was exerted by Aristotle, who was largely rethought by him.
The system of Thomas Aquinas is based on the idea of a fundamental agreement between two truths - those based on Revelation and those deduced by human reason. Theology starts from the truths given in Revelation and uses philosophical means to reveal them; philosophy moves from the rational understanding of what is given in sensory experience to the justification of the supersensible, for example. the existence of God, His unity, etc. (In Boethium De Trinitate, II 3).
Thomas identifies several types of knowledge: 1) absolute knowledge of all things (including individual, material, random), carried out in a single act by the highest mind-intellect; 2) knowledge without reference to the material world, carried out by created immaterial intelligentsia and 3) discursive knowledge, carried out by the human intellect. The theory of “human” knowledge (S. th. I, 79–85; De Ver. I, 11) is formed in polemics with the Platonic doctrine of ideas as objects of knowledge: Thomas rejects the independent existence of ideas (they can only exist in the divine intellect as prototypes of things, in individual things and in the human intellect as a result of the knowledge of things - “before a thing, in a thing, after a thing”), and the presence of “innate ideas” in the human intellect. Sensory cognition material world- the only source of intellectual knowledge that uses “self-evident grounds” (the main one is the law of identity), which also do not exist in the intellect before knowledge, but are manifested in its process. The result of the activity of the five external senses and internal senses (“general sense”, which synthesizes the data of external senses, imagination, which preserves phantasmatic images, sensory assessment – the ability to make specific judgments inherent not only in humans, but also in animals, and memory, which preserves the assessment of the image) are “sensible species”, from which, under the influence of the active intellect (which is part of man, and not an independent “active intelligentsia”, as the Averroists believed), “intelligible species”, completely cleared of material elements, are abstracted, perceived by the “possible intellect” (intellectus possibilis ). The final phase of cognition of a specific thing is a return to the sensory images of material things stored in fantasy.
Knowledge of non-material objects (truth, angels, God, etc.) is possible only on the basis of knowledge of the material world: thus, we can deduce the existence of God based on the analysis of certain aspects of material things (movement ascending to a motionless prime mover; cause-and-effect relationship , ascending to the root cause; various degrees of perfection, ascending to absolute perfection; the randomness of the existence of natural things, requiring the existence of an absolutely necessary being in the natural world, indicating its rational management (S. p. I, 13; S. th . I, 2, 3; “Compendium of Theology” I, 3; “On Divine Power” III, 5). the first cause, but only about what it is. Knowledge of God is first of all. negative character, however, Thomas strives to overcome the limitations apophatic theology : “to be existing” in relation to God is a definition not only of the act of existence, but also of essence, since in God essence and existence coincide (being different in all created things): God is being itself and the source of being for all that exists. God as a being can also be predicated transcendentals – such as “one”, “true” (existent in relation to the intellect), “good” (existent in relation to desire), etc. The opposition “existence-essence”, actively used by Thomas, covers traditional oppositions act and potency And form and matter : form, which gives existence to matter as pure potency and is the source of activity, becomes potency in relation to a pure act - God, who gives existence to form. Based on the concept of the difference between essence and existence in all created things, Thomas argues with the widespread concept of the total hylemorphism Ibn Gebirol, denying that the higher intelligentsia (angels) consist of form and matter (De ente et essentia, 4).
God creates numerous kinds and kinds of things required for the completeness of the universe (which has a hierarchical structure) and endowed with varying degrees of perfection. A special place in creation is occupied by man, who is the unity of the material body and soul as a form of the body (in contrast to the Augustinian understanding of man as a “soul using the body,” Thomas emphasizes the psychophysical integrity of man). Although the soul is not subject to destruction when the body is destroyed due to the fact that it is simple and can exist separately from the body, it acquires its perfect existence only in connection with the body: in this Thomas sees an argument in favor of the dogma of resurrection in the flesh (“On the Soul” , 14).
Man differs from the animal world in his ability to cognize and, therefore, make free, conscious choice, which lies at the basis of truly human – ethical – actions. In the relationship between the intellect and the will, the advantage belongs to the intellect (a position that caused controversy between the Thomists and the Scotists), since it is the intellect that represents this or that being as good for the will; however, when an action is performed in specific circumstances and with the help of certain means, it comes to the fore volitional effort(De malo, 6). To perform good actions, along with a person’s own efforts, divine grace is also required, which does not eliminate originality. human nature, but improving it. Divine control of the world and the prediction of all (including random) events do not exclude freedom of choice: God allows independent actions of secondary causes, incl. and entailing negative moral consequences, since God is able to turn to good the evil created by independent agents.
Being the first cause of all things, God is at the same time the ultimate goal of their aspirations; the ultimate goal of human action is the achievement of bliss, which consists in the contemplation of God (impossible, according to Thomas, within the limits real life), all other goals are assessed depending on their focus on final goal, the evasion of which is an evil (De malo, 1). At the same time, Thomas paid tribute to activities aimed at achieving earthly forms of bliss.
The beginnings of actual moral acts on the internal side are virtues, and on the external side – laws and grace. Thomas analyzes the virtues (skills that allow people to consistently use their abilities for good - S. th. I–II, 59–67) and their opposing vices (S. th. I–II, 71–89), following the Aristotelian tradition, however he believes that in order to achieve eternal happiness, in addition to virtues, there is a need for the gifts, beatitudes and fruits of the Holy Spirit (S. th. I–II, 68–70). Thomas does not think of moral life without the presence of theological virtues - faith, hope and love (S. th. II-II, 1-45). Following the theological ones are four “cardinal” (fundamental) virtues - prudence and justice (S. th. II–II, 47–80), courage and moderation (S. th. II–II, 123–170), which are associated with other virtues.
Law (S. th. I–II, 90–108) is defined as “any command of reason which is proclaimed for the common good by those who care for the public” (S. th. I–II, 90, 4). The eternal law (S. th. I-II, 93), by means of which divine providence governs the world, does not make superfluous other types of law flowing from it: natural law (S. th. I-II, 94), the principle of which is the fundamental the postulate of Thomistic ethics - “one should strive for good and do good, but evil should be avoided”; human law (S. th. I–II, 95), which specifies the postulates of natural law (defining, for example, the specific form of punishment for evil committed) and the power of which Thomas limits to the conscience that opposes the unjust law. Historically established positive legislation - a product of human institutions - can be changed. The good of the individual, society and the universe is determined by the divine plan, and a person’s violation of divine laws is an action directed against his own good (S. p. G. III, 121).
Following Aristotle, Thomas considered it natural for man social life and identified six forms of government: fair - monarchy, aristocracy and "polity" and unjust - tyranny, oligarchy and democracy. Best form government - monarchy, the worst - tyranny, the fight against which Thomas justified, especially if the tyrant’s regulations clearly contradict divine regulations (for example, forcing idolatry). The unity of a just monarch must take into account the interests of various groups of the population and does not exclude elements of the aristocracy and polity. Thomas placed ecclesiastical authority above secular authority.
The teachings of Thomas Aquinas have had big influence on Catholic theology and philosophy, which was facilitated by the canonization of Thomas in 1323 and his recognition as the most authoritative Catholic theologian in the encyclical Aeterni patris of Pope Leo XIII (1879). Cm. Thomism , Neo-Thomism .
Essays:
1. Full collection op. – “Piana” in 16 volumes. Rome, 1570;
2. Parma edition in 25 volumes, 1852–1873, reprint. in New York, 1948–50;
3. Opera Omnia Vives, in 34 volumes. Paris, 1871–82;
4. "Leonina". Rome, since 1882 (since 1987 - republication of previous volumes); published by Marietti, Turin;
5. edition of R. Bus Thomae Aquinatis Opera omnia, ut sunt in indice thomistico, Stuttg. – Bad Cannstatt, 1980;
6. in Russian trans.: Discussion questions about truth (question 1, ch. 4–9), On the unity of the intellect against the Averroists. – In the book: Goodness and truth: classical and non-classical regulators. M., 1998;
7. Commentary on Aristotle’s Physics (Book I. Introduction, Sent. 7–11). – In the book: Philosophy of nature in Antiquity and the Middle Ages, part 1. M., 1998;
8. About mixing elements. – Ibid., part 2. M., 1999;
9. About the attack of demons. – “Man”, 1999, No. 5;
10. About existence and essence. – In the book: Historical and Philosophical Yearbook – 88. M., 1988;
11. About the rule of sovereigns. - In the book: Political structures era of feudalism Western Europe 6th – 17th centuries L., 1990;
12. About the principles of nature. – In the book: Time, truth, substance. M., 1991;
13. Summa of Theology (Part I, Question 76, Art. 4). – “Logos” (M.), 1991, No. 2;
14. Summa Theologija I–II (question 18). – “VF”, 1997, No. 9;
15. Proofs of the existence of God in the “Summa against the pagans” and “Summa Theologica”. M., 2000.
Literature:
1. Bronzov A. Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas in relation to their teaching on morality. St. Petersburg, 1884;
2. Borgosh Yu. Thomas Aquinas. M., 1966, 2nd ed. M., 1975;
3. Dzikevich E.A. Philosophical and aesthetic views of Thomas Aquinas. M., 1986;
4. Gretsky S.V. Problems of anthropology in philosophical systems Ibn Sina and Thomas Aquinas. Dushanbe, 1990;
5. Chesterton G. Saint Thomas Aquinas. - In the book: It's him. Eternal man. M., 1991;
6. Gertykh V. Freedom and moral law in Thomas Aquinas. – “VF”, 1994, No. 1;
7. Maritain J. Philosopher in the world. M., 1994;
8. Gilson E. Philosopher and theology. M., 1995;
9. Swierzawski S. Saint Thomas read anew. – “Symbol” (Paris) 1995, No. 33;
10. Copleston F.C. Aquinas. Introduction to the philosophy of the great medieval thinker. Dolgoprudny, 1999;
11. Gilson E. Saint Thomas d'Aquin. P., 1925;
12. Idem. Moral Values and Moral Life. St. Louis – L., 1931;
13. Grabmann M. Thomas von Aquin. Münch., 1949;
14. Sertillanger A.D. Der heilige Thomas von Aquin. Köln–Olten, 1954;
15. Aquinas: A collection of Critical Essays. L. - Melbourne, 1970;
16. Thomas von Aquin. Interpretation und Rezeption: Studien und Texte, hrsg. von W. P. Eckert. Mainz, 1974;
17. Aquinas and Problems of his Time, ed. by G.Verbeke. Leuven – The Hague, 1976;
18. Weisheipl J. Friar Thomas Aquinas. His Life, Thought, and Works. Wash., 1983;
19. Copleston F.C. Aquinas. L., 1988;
20. The Cambridge Companion to Aquinas, ed. by N. Kretzmann and E. Stump. Cambr., 1993.
K.V.Bandurovsky
(1223 - 1274) - son of Count Aquinas, born in central Italy (Lazio), raised in the Abbey of Monte Cassino. At the University of Naples he studied liberal arts. At the age of 17 he entered the University of Paris, where Albertus Magnus became his teacher. Main works: "Summa Theology", "Summa against the Pagans" ("summa" is a fundamental work), commentaries on the works of Aristotle, polemical notes, treatises on Christian dogmatics, in the field of law, state, society. In the XIV century. Thomas Aquinas was declared a saint, and in 1879 the Catholic Church established the teachings of Thomas as binding on the church. This is how Thomism arose - the basis of today's neo-Thomism.
The philosophy of Thomas finally becomes the handmaiden of theology. In philosophy, a special place is given to ontology, where Thomas continues Aristotelian traditional ideas about form and matter. The world is presented by Thomas as an ordered system, divided into hierarchical stages: inanimate nature is the foundation creative being, the plant world, the animal world and the human world, which is a transition to the supernatural spiritual world - absolute being God.
God exists form of all forms- non-corporeal intelligent activity. God is a simple being, absolute; a thing is a complex being, creative. Everything that exists (divine and material) includes essence (essentia) and existence (existentia). But only with God the essence and existence coincide and are identical. The essence of a thing does not coincide with its existence, since essence it contains the general, generic, and existence things are exclusively individual. Therefore, only God is absolute, things are relative, random. God is necessary and necessity is contained in his essence.
The Aristotelian concept of active form and passive matter determines the nature of the divine creation of the world and its development and change. Things represent spiritual form and material content. Spiritual there is only form. In accordance with the doctrine of form, the question of universals is resolved. Universals exist: firstly, in things, as an essential (general) form; secondly, in the human mind in general concepts; thirdly, in the divine mind, as a pre-image (matrix) for a thing.
Thomas offers five proofs of the existence of God: from movement, from reason, from necessity, from the existence of the highest perfection, from the purposiveness of existence.
Thomism in the doctrine of the soul comes from the Aristotelian concept of the human soul, rationalistically explaining all its abilities and properties. The source of knowledge is sensuality. The mind perceives the essence.
Thomistic ethics starts from the premise of free will person. The central part of the doctrine of virtues is rationalistic. Man's mind is his nature. Intelligence must manage by will for the purpose of knowing God. Reason must lead a person to moral order.
In the socio-political teaching of Thomas, the state must pose moral problems and take care of the common good, although it considered social differences to be eternal, determined by God, and therefore fair. In the field of society, knowledge, politics and law, Aquinas determined the priority of the church over the state and civil society.
After Thomas Aquinas, scholastic philosophy still continues to strengthen the position of Christian theology, but signs of stagnation and decline of medieval mentality are already appearing. Coming
Thomas Aquinas (Aquinas)
(1225 – 1274)
Real name: Tommaso d'Aquino. Medieval theologian and scholastic philosopher. Major works: "Summa against the pagans"; "Summa Theologica".
According to the theologians themselves, Thomas Aquinas (another name is Aquinas) was the first independent philosopher of the Christian West. He began a tradition that was continued by modern philosophers, in particular Descartes and Leibniz. The problem for Thomas, as for the entire church, was the need to adapt the dominant philosophy of Aristotle at that time in the West and East to Catholic orthodoxy, in order to eliminate the danger of its distortion and deviation from religious dogmas. The scholastic of the Dominican Order, Thomas Aquinas, solved this problem brilliantly. He became the founder of the leading movement in Catholic philosophy, called Thomism. This direction was gradually recognized as the official doctrine of the church.
Tommaso d'Aquino was born at the beginning of 1225 in the family castle of Rocca Secca ("Dry Rock") into a rich and influential aristocratic family. He was the youngest of seven sons of Count Landulf of Aquinas, lord of the city of Aquino near Naples. Thomas's family was related to noble European families: the German Emperor Barbarossa was the future thinker's great-uncle, and the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II was his second cousin.
According to family tradition, Thomas, who was raised in the Benedictine monastery of Monte Cassino from the age of five to fourteen, was supposed, as the youngest son of a local lord, to devote himself to a spiritual career and become an abbot, then, perhaps, a bishop and even a cardinal. To prepare for this career, young Thomas took a course of science in Naples, where, under the guidance of the prominent theologian Peter of Ireland, he studied Aristotle. However, after the death of his father in 1243, Aquinas, completely unexpectedly for his relatives, joined the newly created order of mendicant monastic preachers, founded by St. Dominic.
Having taken monastic vows, Thomas decided to walk from Naples to Paris, which was then the center of Catholicism. But on the way, an emergency happened: the young monk was attacked by several horsemen, who tied him up and took him away. It turned out that these were not robbers at all, but Thomas’s brothers, who decided to return the “prodigal son” to his father’s roof. Thomas was imprisoned in the castle, trying in every possible way to persuade him to abandon his decision. One day, even a beautiful courtesan was brought to his cell so that the newly minted Dominican, succumbing to carnal temptation, would compromise himself and his spiritual title. But it was not there. Foma, who fell into a rage, grabbed a smoldering brand and began to threaten to set the castle on fire. After this incident, he was left alone, and the mother, convinced of her son’s inflexibility, submitted to his will. Tradition tells that in the fall of 1245, Thomas, having climbed out of the tower using a rope to which loving sisters had tied a basket, nevertheless went to Paris to study theology.
His first teacher was the outstanding theologian Albertus Magnus. In 1248, he took a student with him to Cologne am Rhein, where he planned to organize a school for the study of theology. For four years Thomas was under the tutelage of Albert, showing considerable ability in the study of philosophy. Outwardly, he was a very slow, meek and generous young man, enormous in stature, incredibly fat and clumsy, completely alien to any love interests. Thomas preferred philosophical reflection and reading books to human passions, mainly, of course, the works of Aristotle.
In 1252, the order, on the recommendation of Albert, sent Thomas as a bachelor of liberal arts to Paris to teach at the department founded by the Dominicans. For four years Aquinas commented to students Holy Bible and “Sentences” of the theologian Peter of Lombardy. The last commentary constituted Thomas's first great work. In 1256, having completed all the steps necessary to obtain the degree of Master of Theology, Thomas received the right to be called a teacher with the opportunity to teach theology, which he did until 1259.
The general course given by Thomas Aquinas was called “Summa against the Gentiles.” In this work, the philosopher acted as the founder of Thomism, the main direction of orthodox scholasticism. Thanks to the work of Thomas, the church found in the interpreter of Aristotle’s works not an enemy, but a strong ally. According to Aquinas, the world has greatness and dignity insofar as it was created by an omnipotent and all-good God. Not by blind chance, not by elemental force, not by evolution, thanks to which the lower creates the higher, but by the omniscient Mind, Love as such. God is the most perfect Creator, and therefore all his creations must be perfect. The thinker distinguished two ways of knowledge. The theological leads down from God to creation, from cause to effect. And the path of rational, natural knowledge leads upward, from feelings to the spiritual world, from consequences to cause, from creation to God. Thus, philosophy for Aquinas is an ascension. It was Aristotle, in the eyes of Thomas, who started from the lower and went to the higher, as befits rational philosophy.
For Thomas, Aristotelian philosophy turned out to be the most suitable tool to build a rational foundation for theology. The ending of the first volume of “Summa against the Pagans” is noteworthy, as if summing up his research: “False, earthly happiness is only a shadow of the most perfect happiness. It, according to Boethius, is composed of five elements: pleasure, wealth, power, rank and fame. And God receives incomparable joy from himself, from all the good that is in the Universe. Instead of wealth, he has all kinds of satisfaction with goods in himself. Instead of power, he has endless power. Instead of ranks - primacy and kingdom over all things. Instead of fame, there is admiration for every mind that could, at least to some extent, know him.”
In 1259, Pope Urban IV invited Thomas to Rome to teach in the papal curia. There was also a deeper meaning to this invitation. The Curia saw in Aquinas a thinker who was able to interpret the philosophy of Aristotle in the spirit of Catholicism. Eleven years of teaching culminated in another major work of Thomas, the Summa Theologica, which continued the development of Catholic dogmatics and became the main work of all scholastic theology. In sum, the philosopher clearly defined the areas of science and faith. The task of science, in his opinion, comes down to explaining the laws of the world. Above the kingdom of knowledge stands the kingdom that theology deals with and which cannot be penetrated by the power of thinking alone. This area of mystery Christian faith remains for Thomas outside of philosophical reason and knowledge. And although Christian truth stands above reason, it does not contradict it, for it comes from God. The existence of God can be proven by reason, which is what Thomas Aquinas did, identifying five principles of such proof. All of them are based on understanding God through his creations.
The first proof is that if everything in the world moves, then there is a First Principle of this movement. The second proof comes from the essence of causes. It is impossible for something that happens to cause itself, because then it must be before itself, which is absurd. Therefore, any reason comes from God. The third proof follows from the relationship between the accidental and the necessary. As a result, it turns out that the accidental depends on the necessary, and the very first necessity, again, is God. The fourth proof is the degrees of quality following each other. Only God can be the highest degree of perfection. And finally, the fifth proof is teleological. It is based on the utility inherent in all nature. Therefore, in all this there is a certain purpose, which is comprehended through God.
As for the virtues, Thomas added three more Christian virtues to the traditional four ancient Greek ones (wisdom, courage, moderation, justice) - faith, hope and love. The philosopher saw the meaning of life in happiness, which, in the spirit of his worldview, he understood as knowledge and contemplation of God.
The external concern of a person, according to Thomas, is the achievement of heavenly bliss. Each living person is led to it not by the state, but by the church, represented by priests and the vicar of God on earth - the Pope. Secular power, of course, must be subordinate to spiritual power, and comprehensive power belongs only to the church.
In 1268, at the suggestion of the Roman Curia, Thomas Aquinas returned to the University of Paris, where disputes between the extreme currents of Catholicism had reached extreme tension. For four years he worked in Paris, conducting discussions with theologians of various persuasions. At the same time, he completed the second part of the Summa Theologica and commentaries on the works of Aristotle. In general, over the 49 years of his life, Thomas Aquinas wrote a fantastic amount. In addition to three systematic works, Thomas wrote many commentaries on individual books and epistles of the Old and New Testaments, on liturgical texts, theological and philosophical works. Important part his legacy consists of discussion “Questions”, combined into thematic collections. In addition, Thomas Aquinas left many special theological and polemical treatises, sermons, letters and poems.
The breadth of Aquinas's erudition was astonishing. As a theologian and philosopher, he spent his life studying the Holy Scriptures and Aristotle, studying logic, physics, natural sciences, mathematics, astronomy, architecture, music and zoology. As Count d'Aquino, he was always aware of European politics, and he himself actively participated in religious and church politics. The only thing that Thomas did not like was the social receptions for which Paris was already famous then. Tradition tells of one funny incident that happened to Thomas at the time of writing the Summa against the Gentiles. The Dominican Order recommended that Thomas accept the invitation of King Louis the Saint to the court, which was considered a great mercy towards the mendicant monk. At the reception, Foma sat silently, plunged into deep thought and not paying attention to anyone. Those around him saw in his behavior obvious signs bad manners. Suddenly the philosopher, hitting the table with his fist, exclaimed: “This is what will bring the Manichaeans to their senses,” and fell silent again. The most amazing thing is that the king did not get angry, but quietly ordered the courtiers to sit closer to Thomas and write down what he meant by his exclamation. Even for kings, Aquinas' thoughts had lasting value.
In 1274, Thomas left Naples, where he spent two years after his stay at the University of Paris, and, at the invitation of Pope Gregory X, went to Lyon to participate in the Council. On the way, Thomas suffered a heart attack and was transported to one of the nearby monasteries. There the philosopher confessed, took communion, and died on March 7, 1274. In 1323, during the pontificate of Pope John XXII, Thomas Aquinas was canonized, and in 1368 his remains were transported to Toulouse.
On August 4, 1879, Pope Leo XIII, in his encyclical, declared the teaching of Thomas Aquinas mandatory for all catholic church. But his philosophical works were not forgotten. In the same XIX century. based on the doctrines of Aquinas arose philosophical direction, called “neo-Thomism”, which is an equally significant fact of recognition of the merits of the great theologian and thinker.
The future famous scholastic (1225/1226-1274) was born in the Kingdom of Naples into the noble family of Count Aquinas. This is where Thomas' nickname came from - Aquinas, or, in Latin, - Aquinas. WITH In early childhood, he was brought up in the Benedictine monastery of Monte Cassino, then studied at the University of Neopolitan. Here he met monks from the Dominican order and, despite the strong protests of his family, took monastic vows in 1244.
The young monk, distinguished not only by his silent and reserved disposition (for which Thomas was nicknamed the “mute buffalo”), but above all by his high education and depth of thought, was sent for further studies to Cologne with the famous Christian theologian Albert the Great. In 1252, Thomas Aquinas became a teacher at the University of Paris, where he worked until the end of the 50s.
Teaching and literary and philosophical creativity became Aquinas' main occupations. In 1259, Pope Urban IV recalled him to Rome, and for almost ten years he taught at Dominican educational institutions in Italy.
At the end of the 60s. he was again called to Paris, where he had to defend the interests of the Roman Catholic Church in ideological and theological disputes with various opinions spreading among teachers and students of European universities. It was during this period that he wrote his main works, in which, using the Aristotelian system, he developed a new systematic presentation of the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.
From 1272 to 1274, Thomas Aquinas taught at his home university of Naples. Shortly before his death, on the instructions of Pope Gregory X, he was summoned to participate in the Lyon Council. However, on the way to Lyon, Thomas Aquinas became seriously ill and died on March 7, 1274.
After his death, he was given the title of “angelic doctor,” and in 1323, for his great services to the Roman Church, Thomas Aquinas was recognized as a saint.
Thomas Aquinas owns a huge number of works on theological and philosophical topics, which he wrote throughout his life. He did not stop in his literary work for a minute, because he saw the vanity of everything worldly, including the transitory significance of his own activity. It constantly seemed to him that he still did not understand something, did not know something, and therefore tried to have time to lift the veil over the incomprehensible divine secrets. It is not for nothing that he once responded to admonitions to stop such intense work: “I can’t, because everything that I wrote seems to me like dust from the point of view of what I saw and what was revealed to me.”
The most important of the works created by Aquinas are considered his famous “Summas” - “The Summa of the Truth of the Catholic Faith Against the Pagans” (1259-1264) and the “Summa Theology” (1265-1274), which he never managed to finally complete it. These works set out the main theological and philosophical views of the great scholastic of the West.
In general, the interest that Thomas Aquinas showed in the philosophical teachings of Aristotle was not accidental. The fact is that the Dominican order, of which Aquinas was a monk, became in the XII-XIII centuries. one of the main weapons of the Roman Catholic Church in the fight against heresy, which is why the Dominicans themselves called themselves “dogs of the Lord.” They showed particular zeal in establishing spiritual control over the areas of theoretical theology and education, striving to head the theological departments of the most important European universities and other educational institutions.
It was the Dominicans who were among the first among official Catholic theologians to understand that the very teaching of Catholicism, based at that time on the ideas of Aurelius Augustine, required certain reforms. Albertus Magnus, Aquinas's teacher, specially studied the works of Aristotle and began work on a new systematization of Catholic doctrine, which was completed by his student.
Thomas Aquinas gave a clear and clear answer for his time to the question that worried Christian theologians throughout the previous time - about the relationship between science
and faith. In the works of Thomas Aquinas, the important and relatively independent role of science and, first of all, philosophy was finally recognized - according to Aquinas, philosophy has its own sphere of activity, limited by the knowledge of what is accessible to the human mind. Philosophy, using its own rational methods of cognition, capable of studyingproperties of the surrounding world.
Moreover, the tenets of faith, proven with the help of reasonable, philosophical arguments, become more accessible to a person and thereby strengthen him in faith. And in this sense, scientific and philosophical knowledge is a serious support in the justification Christian doctrine and refuting criticism of faith.
Thomas Aquinas believed that with the help of scientific and philosophical arguments it is possible to prove the truth of some Christian dogmas, for example, dogma about the existence of God. At the same time, other dogmas are scientifically unprovable, since they show the supernatural, miraculous qualities of God. And that means they are a matter of faith, not science. Thus, in his opinion, reason is powerless in substantiating most Christian dogmas - the emergence of the world “out of nothing”, original sin, the incarnation of Christ, the resurrection from the dead, the inevitability of the Last Judgment and the continued existence of human souls in bliss or in torment.
Therefore, true higher knowledge is not subject to science, for the human mind is not capable of comprehending the Divine plan in full. God is the destiny of super-rational knowledge, and, therefore, the subject of theology. Theology- this is the totalthe existence of human ideas about God, partly proven through science, partly based on faith. Theology, in the understanding of Thomas Aquinas, is the highest form of human knowledge precisely because it is based on faith. In other words, theology is also knowledge, only superintelligentknowledge.
There is no contradiction between philosophy and theology, for philosophy, as a “natural cognitive ability” of a person, ultimately leads the person himself to the truths of faith. If this does not happen, then the narrow-mindedness of people themselves, who do not know how to use their minds correctly, is to blame. Therefore, in the view of Thomas Aquinas, when studying things and natural phenomena, a true scientist is right only when he reveals the dependence of nature
words from God when it shows how the Divine plan is embodied in nature.
Aquinas's point of view on the relationship between science and faith differed significantly from both the ideas of Augustine and the then popular views of Pierre Abelard. Augustine asserted the irrationality of faith, believed that the truths of faith are completely inaccessible to reason and science only reveals to people the content of dogmas to the smallest extent. Pierre Abelard, on the contrary, propagated the idea that faith is absolutely impossible without science and subjected all the postulates of Christian doctrine to critical scientific analysis.
Thomas Aquinas takes a sort of middle position between them, which is why his teaching was ultimately so quickly accepted by the Roman Catholic Church. The development of scientific knowledge in the 13th century had already reached a certain high level and therefore, without taking into account the achievements of science, the official teaching of Catholicism simply could not exist.
The philosophical teaching of Aristotle, in which, with the help of scientific arguments, the existence of a certain unique universal ideal essence (Mind) is ultimately proven, became for Thomas Aquinas the main philosophical basis in substantiating the Christian faith.
In full accordance with Aristotle, he recognized that things are unity of form and matter, each thing has some entity. The essence of every thing and all things taken together appears due to the fact that there is a certain the essence of all essences, the form of all forms (or the idea of all ideas). If Aristotle called this highest essence Mind, then from a Christian point of view it is God. And in this sense, the Aristotelian system of evidence fit perfectly into the foundation of Christianity, because with its help it was possible to prove the immateriality, limitlessness, immortality and omnipotence of God.
Moreover, Thomas Aquinas used Aristotelian logic in developing proof of the existence of God. Aquinas worked out five such evidence, which has since been considered irrefutable in the Roman Catholic Church.
First the proof comes from the Aristotelian understanding essence of movement.“Everything that moves,” writes Thomas Aquinas, “must have the source of its movement from something else.” Therefore, “it is necessary to reach a certain
the prime mover, which itself is not moved by anything else; and by him everyone understands God.”
Second the proof is based on the Aristotelian principle producing cause as a necessary component of every thing. If every thing has an efficient cause, then there must be a final efficient cause of everything. Only God can be such a final cause.
Third the proof follows from how Aristotle understood categories of necessary and accidental. Among the entities there are those that may or may not exist, i.e. they are random. However, there cannot be only random entities in the world; “there must be something necessary,” writes Aquinas. And since it is impossible for a series of necessary essences to go into infinity, therefore, there is a certain essence that is necessary in itself. This necessary entity can only be God.
Fourth proof is related to confession ageexisting degrees of perfection, characteristic of the essences of all things. According to Thomas Aquinas, there must be something that has perfection and nobility to the utmost degree. Therefore, “there is a certain essence that is for all essences the cause of good and all perfection.” “And we call her God,” Aquinas concludes this proof.
Fifth Aquinas gives the proof based on Aristotle's determination of feasibility. All objects of existence are directed in their existence towards some goal. At the same time, “they achieve their goal not by chance, but by being guided by conscious will.” Since objects themselves are “devoid of intelligence,” therefore, “there is a rational being who posits a goal for everything that happens in nature.” Naturally, only God can be such a rational being.
As we see, Thomas Aquinas fully Christianized and adapted the philosophy of Aristotle to Christian teaching. In Aquinas's understanding, Aristotle's system turned out to be a very convenient means of solving most of the problems that arose before Catholic theology in the 12th-13th centuries. Thomas Aquinas used not only Aristotelian logic, but also the very system of Aristotelian metaphysics, when at the basis of being a certain final, or rather primary, cause of everything is always sought. This metaphysical worldview, stemming from the works of Aristotle, was perfectly combined with
a Christian worldview that considers God to be the beginning and end of everything.
However, Thomas Aquinas not only Christianized philosophy, but also rationalized Christianity. In fact, he, so to speak, put faith on a scientific basis. To believers, and above all to his fellow theologians, he argued for the need to use scientific arguments in substantiating the tenets of faith. And he showed scientists that their scientific discoveries are inexplicable without sincere faith in the Almighty.
The teaching of Thomas Aquinas became the highest stage in the development of Western European scholasticism. After the death of the outstanding philosopher-theologian, his ideas were gradually recognized as fundamental, first among the Dominican monks, and then throughout the Roman Catholic Church. With time That-mism(from the Latin reading of the name Thomas - Tom) it's getting narrower official teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, which it still is.
Aristotelian argumentation was used by Thomas Aquinas to substantiate Christian cosmology, Christian epistemology, Christian ethics, psychology, etc. In other words, Thomas Aquinas, like Aristotle, created a comprehensive system of Catholic dogma that explains almost all the problems of the surrounding world and man. And in this sense, it seemed to complete a centuries-long period in the development of Christianity among the peoples of Western Europe professing Catholicism.
Like any system of knowledge recognized as official and irrefutable, the teaching of Thomas Aquinas over time began to tend to ossify and lose its creative potential. The general focus of this teaching on the rationalization of Catholicism caused many objections, because, in the opinion of many thinkers, it excluded other ways of comprehending God.
Already at the end of the 13th and beginning of the 14th centuries. many Christian theologians began to criticize this teaching for excessively exalting the role of scientific knowledge, emphasizing the religious and mystical properties of the Christian faith. On the other hand, Thomism is beginning to be criticized by secular thinkers who believe that it downplays the importance of science. This criticism manifested itself especially clearly in the next period of development of the countries of Western Europe, which went down in history under the name of the Renaissance.
FRAGMENTS FROM ESSAYS
Reprinted from: Borgosh Y. Thomas Aquinas. - M., 1975. Appendix. pp. 143-148, 155, 175-176. Translation by S. SAverintsev.
Four mnemonic rules, five proofs that God exists, the tasks of theology, the superiority of oral speech over written language, the reasons why the activities of the Dominicans make sense, and other important discoveries, as well as facts about the biography of the Sicilian Bull
Prepared by Svetlana Yatsyk
Saint Thomas Aquinas. Fresco by Fra Bartolomeo. Around 1510-1511 Museo di San Marco dell"Angelico, Florence, Italy / Bridgeman Images
1. On origin and unfavorable kinship
Thomas Aquinas (or Aquinas; 1225-1274) was the son of Count Landolfo d'Aquino and nephew of Count Tommaso d'Acerra, Grand Justiciar of the Kingdom of Sicily (that is, the first of the royal councilors in charge of justice and finance), and also the second cousin of Frederick II of Staufen . Relationship with the emperor, who, trying to subjugate all of Italy to his influence, constantly fought with the popes, could not but do a disservice to the young theologian - despite Aquinas’s open and even demonstrative conflict with his family and the fact that he joined the Dominican Order, loyal to the papacy . In 1277, part of Thomas's theses was condemned by the bishop of Paris and the church - apparently mainly for political reasons. Subsequently, these theses became generally accepted.
2. About the school nickname
Thomas Aquinas was distinguished by his tall stature, bulkiness and clumsiness. It is also believed that he was characterized by meekness, excessive even for monastic humility. During discussions with his mentor, the theologian and Dominican Albertus Magnus, Thomas spoke rarely, and other students laughed at him, calling him the Bull of Sicily (even though he was from Naples, not Sicily). Albertus Magnus is credited with a prophetic remark, allegedly uttered to pacify the students who were teasing Thomas: “Do you call him a bull? I tell you, this bull will roar so loudly that his roar will deafen the world.”
Posthumously, Aquinas was awarded many other, more flattering nicknames: he is called the "angelic mentor", "universal mentor" and "prince of philosophers".
3. About mnemonic devices
Early biographers of Thomas Aquinas claim that he had an amazing memory. Also in school years he remembered everything that the teacher said, and later, in Cologne, he developed his memory under the guidance of the same Albertus Magnus. The collection of sayings of the church fathers on the four Gospels that he prepared for Pope Urban was compiled from what he remembered by looking through, but not copying, manuscripts in various monasteries. His memory, according to his contemporaries, had such strength and tenacity that everything he ever read was preserved in it.
Memory for Thomas Aquinas, as for Albertus Magnus, was part of the virtue of prudence, which should be nurtured and developed. To do this, Thomas formulated a number of mnemonic rules, which he described in the commentary to Aristotle’s treatise “On Memory and Recollection” and in the “Summa Theology”:
- The ability to remember is located in the “sensitive” part of the soul and is connected with the body. Therefore, “sensible things are more accessible to human knowledge.” Knowledge that is not associated “with any bodily resemblance” is easily forgotten. Therefore, one should look for “symbols inherent in those things that need to be remembered. They should not be too famous, since we are more interested in unusual things, they are more deeply and clearly imprinted on the soul.<…>Following this, it is necessary to come up with similarities and images." Summa Theologiae, II, II, quaestio XLVIII, De partibus Prudentiae..
“Memory is controlled by reason, so Thomas’s second mnemonic principle is “to arrange things [in memory] in a certain order, so that, having remembered one feature, one can easily move on to the next.”
- Memory is connected with attention, so you need to “feel attached to what you need to remember, because what is strongly imprinted on the soul does not escape from it so easily.”
— And finally, the last rule is to regularly reflect on what you need to remember.
4. On the relationship between theology and philosophy
Aquinas identified three types of wisdom, each of which is endowed with its own “light of truth”: the wisdom of Grace, theological wisdom (the wisdom of revelation, using reason) and metaphysical wisdom (the wisdom of reason, comprehending the essence of being). Based on this, he believed that the subject of science is “the truths of reason,” and the subject of theology is “the truths of revelation.”
Philosophy, using its rational methods of cognition, is able to study the properties of the surrounding world. Tenets of faith, proven with the help of rationalized philosophical arguments (for example, the dogma of the existence of God), become more understandable to a person and thereby strengthen him in faith. And in this sense, scientific and philosophical knowledge is a serious support in substantiating Christian doctrine and refuting criticism of faith.
But many dogmas (for example, the idea of the created nature of the world, the concept of original sin, the incarnation of Christ, the resurrection from the dead, the inevitability Last Judgment etc.) are not amenable to rational justification, since they reflect the supernatural, miraculous qualities of God. Human mind is not able to comprehend the divine plan in full, therefore true, highest knowledge is beyond the reach of science. God is the domain of supramental knowledge and, therefore, the subject of theology.
However, for Thomas there is no contradiction between philosophy and theology (just as there is no contradiction between the “truths of reason” and the “truths of revelation”), since philosophy and knowledge of the world lead a person to the truths of faith. Therefore, in the view of Thomas Aquinas, when studying things and natural phenomena, a true scientist is right only when he reveals the dependence of nature on God, when he shows how the divine plan is embodied in nature.
Saint Thomas Aquinas. Fresco by Fra Bartolomeo. 1512 Museo di San Marco dell'Angelico 5. About Aristotle
Albertus Magnus, the teacher of Thomas Aquinas, was the author of the first commentary on Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics written in Western Europe. It was he who introduced into use Catholic theology the works of Aristotle, previously known in the West mainly as presented by the Arab philosopher Averroes. Albert showed the absence of contradictions between the teachings of Aristotle and Christianity.
Thanks to this, Thomas Aquinas was able to Christianize ancient philosophy, first of all, the works of Aristotle: striving for a synthesis of faith and knowledge, he supplemented the doctrinal dogmas and religious and philosophical speculations of Christianity with social, theoretical and scientific reflection based on the logic and metaphysics of Aristotle.
Thomas was not the only theologian who tried to appeal to the works of Aristotle. This was done, for example, by his contemporary Siger of Brabant. However, Seeger's Aristotelianism was considered "Averroist", retaining some of the ideas introduced into the works of Aristotle by his Arab and Jewish translators and interpreters. Thomas’s “Christian Aristotelianism,” based on the “pure” teaching of the ancient Greek philosopher, which does not contradict Christianity, won - and Siger of Brabant was put on trial by the Inquisition and killed for his beliefs.
6. About the conversational genre
Answering the question why Christ preached but did not write down the postulates of his teaching, Thomas Aquinas noted: “Christ, turning to hearts, put the word above scripture.” Summa Theologiae, III, quaestio XXXII, articulus 4.. This principle was generally popular in the 13th century: even the system of scholastic university teaching was based on quaestio disputata, discussion on a given problem. Aquinas wrote most of his works in the genre of “summa” - a dialogue consisting of questions and answers, which seemed to him most accessible to theological students. The Summa Theologica, for example, a treatise he wrote in Rome, Paris and Naples between 1265 and 1273, consists of article chapters, the title of which includes a controversial issue. To each, Thomas gives several arguments that give different, sometimes opposite, answers, and at the end he provides counterarguments and the correct solution, from his point of view.
7. Evidence of the existence of God
In the first part of the Summa Theologica, Aquinas substantiates the need for theology as a science with its own purpose, subject and method of research. He considers its subject to be the root cause and ultimate goal of all things, that is, God. That is why the treatise begins with five proofs of the existence of God. It is thanks to them that the Summa Theologica is primarily known, despite the fact that out of the 3,500 pages that this treatise occupies, only one and a half are devoted to the existence of God.
First proof the existence of God is based on the Aristotelian understanding of movement. Thomas states that "whatever moves must be moved by something else" Here and further: Summa Theologiae, I, quaestio II, De Deo, an Deus sit.. Trying to imagine a series of objects, each of which causes the previous one to move, but at the same time sets the next one in motion, leads to infinity. An attempt to imagine this must inevitably lead us to the understanding that there was a certain prime mover, “who is not moved by anything, and by whom everyone understands God.”
Second proof is a little reminiscent of the first and also relies on Aristotle, this time on his doctrine of four causes. According to Aristotle, everything that exists must have an efficient (or generating) cause, something from which the existence of a thing begins. Since nothing can produce itself, there must be some first cause, the beginning of all beginnings. This is God.
Third proof the existence of God is proof “from necessity and chance.” Thomas explains that among the entities there are those that can either exist or not, that is, their existence is accidental. There are also necessary entities. “But everything necessary either has a reason for its necessity in something else, or it does not. However, it is impossible for [a series of] necessary [beings], having a reason for their necessity [in something else], to go into infinity.” Therefore, there is a certain essence that is necessary in itself. This necessary entity can only be God.
Fourth proof“comes from the degrees [of perfection] found in things. Among things, more and less good, true, noble, and so on are discovered.” However, the degree of goodness, truth and nobility can only be judged in comparison with something “the truest, the best and the noblest.” God has these properties.
In the fifth proof Aquinas again relies on Aristotle's doctrine of causes. Based on the Aristotelian definition of expediency, Thomas states that all objects of existence are directed in their existence towards some goal. At the same time, “they achieve their goal not by accident, but intentionally.” Since objects themselves are “devoid of understanding,” therefore, “there is something thinking by which all natural things are directed to [their] goal. And this we call God.”
8. About the social system
Following Aristotle, who developed these issues in Politics, Thomas Aquinas reflected on the nature and character of the ruler’s sole power. He compared royal power with other forms of government and, in accordance with the traditions of Christian political thought, clearly spoke out in favor of the monarchy. From his point of view, monarchy is the fairest form of government, certainly superior to aristocracy (the power of the best) and polity (the power of the majority in the interests of the common good).
Thomas considered the most reliable type of monarchy to be elective, not hereditary, since electivity can prevent the ruler from turning into a tyrant. The theologian believed that a certain number of people (he probably meant bishops and part of the secular nobility participating in the election of secular sovereigns, primarily the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope) should have the legal opportunity not only to give the king power over themselves, but and deprive him of this power if it begins to acquire the characteristics of tyranny. In Aquinas's view, this "multitude" should have the right to deprive the ruler of power, even if they had "previously subjected themselves to him forever," because the bad ruler "exceeds the bounds" of his office, thereby violating the terms of the original contract. This thought of Thomas Aquinas subsequently formed the basis of the concept of “social contract”, very significant in modern times.
Another way to combat tyranny, which Aquinas proposed, makes it possible to understand which side he was on in the conflict between the empire and the papacy: against the excesses of a tyrant, he believed, the intervention of someone higher than this ruler could help - which could easily be interpreted contemporaries as an approval of the pope's intervention in the affairs of “bad” secular rulers.
9. About indulgences
Thomas Aquinas resolved a number of doubts associated with the practice of granting (and purchasing) indulgences. He shared the concept of the “treasury of the church” - a kind of “excessive” supply of virtues, replenished by Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary and the saints, from which other Christians can draw. The Pope can dispose of this “treasury” by issuing special acts that are legal in nature—indulgences. Indulgences work only because the holiness of some members of the Christian community outweighs the sinfulness of others.
10. About the Dominican mission and preaching
Although the Dominican Order was founded by Saint Dominic in 1214, even before the birth of Aquinas, it was Thomas who formulated the principles that became the rationale for their activities. In the Summa against the Pagans, the theologian wrote that the path to salvation is open to everyone, and the role of the missionary is to give a particular person the knowledge necessary for his salvation. Even a wild pagan (whose soul strives for good) can be saved if the missionary manages to convey to him the saving divine truth.
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