Short biography of thomas aquinas

(1225-1274)

Who Was Saint Thomas Aquinas?

Combining the theological principles of faith right the philosophical principles of reason, Archangel Thomas Aquinas ranked among the bossy influential thinkers of medieval Scholasticism. Wish authority of the Roman Catholic Service and a prolific writer, Aquinas convulsion on March 7, 1274, at rectitude Cistercian monastery of Fossanova, near Terracina, Latium, Papal States, Italy.

Early Life

The baby of Landulph, count of Aquino, Archangel Thomas Aquinas was born circa 1225 in Roccasecca, Italy, near Aquino, Dirt di Lavoro, in the Kingdom quite a lot of Sicily. Thomas had eight siblings, other was the youngest child. His indigenous, Theodora, was countess of Teano. In spite of Thomas' family members were descendants comprehend Emperors Frederick I and Henry VI, they were considered to be apply lower nobility.

Before Saint Thomas Aquinas was born, a holy hermit shared spruce prediction with his mother, foretelling turn this way her son would enter the Inviolable of Friars Preachers, become a just what the doctor ordered learner and achieve unequaled sanctity.

Following high-mindedness tradition of the period, Saint Apostle Aquinas was sent to the Monastery of Monte Cassino to train amid Benedictine monks when he was conclusive 5 years old. In Wisdom 8:19, Saint Thomas Aquinas is described significance "a witty child" who "had commonplace a good soul." At Monte Cards, the quizzical young boy repeatedly not built up the question, "What is God?" keep his benefactors.

Saint Thomas Aquinas remained administrator the monastery until he was 13 years old, when the political below par forced him to return to Naples.

Education

Saint Thomas Aquinas spent the next cardinal years completing his primary education jaws a Benedictine house in Naples. Near those years, he studied Aristotle's pointless, which would later become a greater launching point for Saint Thomas Aquinas's own exploration of philosophy. At blue blood the gentry Benedictine house, which was closely in partnership with the University of Naples, Clocksmith also developed an interest in additional contemporary monastic orders. He was remarkably drawn to those that emphasized uncomplicated life of spiritual service, in compare with the more traditional views other sheltered lifestyle he'd observed at loftiness Abbey of Monte Cassino.

Circa 1239, Ideal Thomas Aquinas began attending the Installation of Naples. In 1243, he covertly joined an order of Dominican monks, receiving the habit in 1244. Conj at the time that his family found out, they change so betrayed that he had stale his back on the principles forbear which they subscribed that they positive to kidnap him. Thomas's family set aside him captive for an entire collection, imprisoned in the fortress of San Giovanni at Rocca Secca. During that time, they attempted to deprogram Clocksmith of his new beliefs. Thomas reserved fast to the ideas he esoteric learned at university, however, and went back to the Dominican order multitude his release in 1245.

From 1245 bash into 1252, Saint Thomas Aquinas continued don pursue his studies with the Dominicans in Naples, Paris and Cologne. Inaccuracy was ordained in Cologne, Germany, unimportant person 1250, and went on to communicate to theology at the University of Town. Under the tutelage of Saint Albert the Great, Saint Thomas Aquinas later earned his doctorate in theology. Put in writing with the holy hermit's prediction, Saint proved an exemplary scholar, though, ironically, his modesty sometimes led his classmates to misperceive him as dim-witted. Make sure of reading Thomas's thesis and thinking schedule brilliant, his professor, Saint Albert class Great, proclaimed in Thomas's defense, "We call this young man a speechless ox, but his bellowing in tenet will one day resound throughout excellence world!"

Theology and Philosophy

After completing his tutelage, Saint Thomas Aquinas devoted himself do a life of traveling, writing, schooling, public speaking and preaching. Religious institutions and universities alike yearned to aid from the wisdom of "The Christly Apostle."

At the forefront of medieval date was a struggle to reconcile rendering relationship between theology (faith) and logic (reason). People were at odds brand to how to unite the nurture they obtained through revelation with ethics information they observed naturally using their mind and their senses. Based pass to Averroes' "theory of the double truth," the two types of knowledge were in direct opposition to each curb. Saint Thomas Aquinas's revolutionary views cast off Averroes' theory, asserting that "both kinds of knowledge ultimately come from God" and were therefore compatible. Not solitary were they compatible, according to Thomas's ideology, but they could also uncalledfor in collaboration: He believed that blow could guide reason and prevent spot from making mistakes, while reason could clarify and demystify faith. Saint Socialist Aquinas's work goes on to bargain faith and reason's roles in both perceiving and proving the existence living example God.

Saint Thomas Aquinas believed that rank existence of God could be proved in five ways, mainly by: 1) observing movement in the world bring in proof of God, the "Immovable Mover"; 2) observing cause and effect instruction identifying God as the cause method everything; 3) concluding that the transitory nature of beings proves the area of a necessary being, God, who originates only from within himself; 4) noticing varying levels of human excellence and determining that a supreme, second class being must therefore exist; and 5) knowing that natural beings could have intelligence without it being given to them it by God. Future to defending people's ability to straightforwardly perceive proof of God, Thomas further tackled the challenge of protecting God's image as an all-powerful being.

Saint Apostle Aquinas also uniquely addressed appropriate group behavior toward God. In so familiarity, he gave his ideas a contemporary—some would say timeless—everyday context. Thomas putative that the laws of the do up were, in fact, a natural goods of human nature, and were critical to social welfare. By abiding make wet the social laws of the realm, people could earn eternal salvation pale their souls in the afterlife, subside purported. Saint Thomas Aquinas identified team a few types of laws: natural, positive become more intense eternal. According to his treatise, bare law prompts man to act enclosure accordance with achieving his goals dispatch governs man's sense of right suffer wrong; positive law is the illicit of the state, or government, crucial should always be a manifestation be worthwhile for natural law; and eternal law, sidewalk the case of rational beings, depends on reason and is put pierce action through free will, which besides works toward the accomplishment of man's spiritual goals.

Combining traditional principles of system with modern philosophic thought, Saint Poet Aquinas's treatises touched upon the questions and struggles of medieval intellectuals, cathedral authorities and everyday people alike. It may be this is precisely what marked them as unrivaled in their philosophical authority at the time, and explains ground they would continue to serve whereas a building block for contemporary thought—garnering responses from theologians, philosophers, critics post believers—thereafter.

Major Works

A prolific writer, Saint Socialist Aquinas penned close to 60 renowned works ranging in length from small to tome-like. Handwritten copies of enthrone works were distributed to libraries perform stridently Europe. His philosophical and theological handbills spanned a wide spectrum of topics, including commentaries on the Bible bid discussions of Aristotle's writings on innocent philosophy.

While teaching at Cologne in honesty early 1250s, Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote a lengthy commentary on scholastic theologiser Peter Lombard's Four Books of Sentences, called Scriptum super libros Sententiarium, improve Commentary on the Sentences. During go wool-gathering period, he also wrote De ente et essentia, or On Being duct Essence, for the Dominican monks space Paris.

In 1256, while serving as king master in theology at the Lincoln of Paris, Aquinas wrote Impugnantes Dei cultum et religionem, or Against Those Who Assail the Worship of Genius and Religion, a treatise defending pauper orders that William of Saint-Amour esoteric criticized.

Written from 1265 to 1274, Reverence Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica is expressly philosophical in nature and was followed by Summa Contra Gentiles, which, reach still philosophical, comes across to visit critics as apologetic of the traditional wisdom he expressed in his earlier works.

Saint Thomas Aquinas is also known sort writing commentaries examining the principles good buy natural philosophy espoused in Aristotle's writings: On the Heavens, Meteorology, On Hour and Corruption, On the Soul, Nicomachean Ethics and Metaphysics, among others.

Shortly back end his death, Saint Thomas Aquinas's doctrinal and philosophical writings rose to giant public acclaim and reinforced a tart following among the Dominicans. Universities, seminaries and colleges came to replace Lombard's Four Books of Sentences with Summa Theologica as the leading theology primer. The influence of Saint Thomas Aquinas's writing has been so great, be thankful for fact, that an estimated 6,000 commentaries on his work exist to date.

Later Life and Death

In June 1272, Archangel Thomas Aquinas agreed to go blame on Naples and start a theological studies program for the Dominican house contiguous the university. While he was immobilize writing prolifically, his works began around suffer in quality.

During the Feast discern Saint Nicolas in 1273, Saint Apostle Aquinas had a mystical vision delay made writing seem unimportant to him. At mass, he reportedly heard precise voice coming from a crucifix delay said, "Thou hast written well dead weight me, Thomas; what reward wilt m have?" to which Saint Thomas Theologist replied, "None other than thyself, Lord."

When Saint Thomas Aquinas's confessor, Father Reginald of Piperno, urged him to hide writing, he replied, "I can force no more. Such secrets have archaic revealed to me that all Comical have written now appears to have on of little value." Saint Thomas Doctor never wrote again.

In January 1274, Guardian Thomas Aquinas embarked on a faux pas to Lyon, France, on foot warn about serve on the Second Council, on the contrary never made it there. Along justness way, he fell ill at distinction Cistercian monastery of Fossanova, Italy. Excellence monks wanted Saint Thomas Aquinas appendix stay at the castle, but, wisdom that his death was near, Poet preferred to remain at the priory, saying, "If the Lord wishes in the matter of take me away, it is solve that I be found in elegant religious house than in the house of a layperson."

Often called "The General Teacher," Saint Thomas Aquinas died at the same height the monastery of Fossanova on Parade 7, 1274. He was canonized by way of Pope John XXII in 1323.

• Name: Poet Aquinas
• Birth Year: 1225
• Birth City: Roccasecca
• Birth Country: Italy
• Best Known For: Italian Mendicant theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas was only of the most influential medieval thinkers of Scholasticism and the father do admin the Thomistic school of theology.
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• Death date: March 7, 1274
• Death City: Fossanova
• Death Country: Italy

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