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Robert Barron | – How Do We Best Understand St. Thomas Aquinas? — Bishop Barron on Vatican II
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Friends, ever since I was a young man and throughout my academic career, my touchstone has always been the great St. Thomas Aquinas. I hold to an “open Thomism,” one that welcomes Augustinianism, Bonaventurian thought, and contemporary thinkers like Newman, Balthasar, and Ratzinger. To incorporate these frameworks together is to follow a very integrated Catholic spirit.
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Thomism as touchstone.
… by re-reading him many times before we understand him? I enjoy his words, however it’s so profound and dense at times it is definitely something you have to both study and upon which you must .meditate
I’m a little surprised that Bp Barron seems unaffected by ‘Anscombe and Geach’ and the Aristotle / Aquinas / Wittgenstein analytic tradition. From an aspiring ‘theology wonk’ to a great one.
What the Book of Genesis is actually telling, may be summed up as follow:
"Do not invite death by the error of your life,
or bring on destruction by the works of your hands;
because God did not make death,
and he does not delight in the death of the living.
For he created all things so that they might exist;
the generative forces of the world are wholesome,
and there is no destructive poison in them,
and the dominion of Hades is not on earth.
For righteousness is immortal."
~ Wisdom 1 :12-15 ~
Logos Rising
Another excellent video, Bishop!!
Honest question: How many of you have read at least one full question (i.e. all the articles contained in that question) of the Summa Theologia?
I highly doubt that Aquinas himself would say this his work was the end all be all of Catholic theology and I don't think we should treat is a such either. There's absolutely room for acknowledging the profound insight of Aquinas and the unbelievable debt we owe him for showing how faith and classical reason could work in harmony. And he's still extremely relevant today. But it's silly to think his methods are the only reliable way of gaining theological insight.
Timeo hominem unius libri
What I love about the Catholic institution is that virtue is not singularly focussed on charity and courage, but has another locus of interest in developing human excellence of intellect.
I love that Catholicism is a smart religion!
I believe that St. Thomas is the Church's philosophical touchstone. In this regard, Pope St. Pius X taught the following:
"Further let Professors remember that they cannot set St. Thomas aside, especially in metaphysical questions, without grave detriment" (Pascendi Dominici Gregis, no. 45).
Thomistic metaphysics is both necessary and indispensable to our defense of God's existence and attributes, the possibility of miracles, human nature, and the natural law. Ite ad Thomam.
We must not be wise or prudent according to the flesh, but simple, humble, and pure. More than this, we must despise our bodies, because, on account of our sins, we are all of us miserable and corrupt. – Saint Francis of Assisi
This something I cannot get behind. I’m not trying to be a contrarian, but our bodies our a gift from our Heavenly Father. No we shouldn’t be vain but we should be good stewards of our vehicles.
I would say this is the core of Taylor Marshall's problem – rigid Thomism, which cannot be supported even by Thomas himself. The Church does not teach "Thomism only", but rather is informed by expressions of truth from many views and perspectives. Taylor was enamored with Aquinas upon his conversion from Anglicanism, and rightly so. But Taylor even still lacks that wider Catholic wisdom that sees truth not only in Thomas, but beyond Thomas who said of his own writing, after his vision from Christ: "everything I have written seems to me like straw". Let us pray for Taylor that he stops leading people away from the FULLNESS of the Catholic Faith.
Thomism is Catholicism. It validates all other Catholic thought. You can take a new Philosophy, run it through a Thomistic lens, it will point out if and where the new thinking is flawed. It's not about thomistic rigidity. It's what other things are measured against to see if they concur with the truth.
What someone like Scotus who daringly, I think, suggests the incarnation is not a response to the fall, but always in the will of God from eternity?
St. Thomas Aquinas subscribed to the Biblical creation account including the reality of Adam and Eve. "St Thomas, in describing the perfection of our first parents, bases himself on the obvious sense of Holy Scripture, read in particular in the light of the fathers of the Church. The importance which he attributes to the subject can be seen from the copious treatment which he gives it in the Summa Theologiae. No less than forty articles are dedicated to the state of man before the fall, and to the hypothetical condition of the human race had sin not entered into our world." Source: https://kolbecenter.org/perfection-first-parents-aquinas/
When belief in completed Creation in six days is set aside, it puts doubt on the reliability of the entire Bible and can lead to departures from the faith and increases in the "Nones".
Will those academic classes about Thomas be available on the internet? Can we watch them?
"The study of philosophy is not that we may know what men have thought, but what the truth of things is." – St. Thomas Aquinas. I worry that an openness to various 'systems' and traditions merely brackets one from the truth of things. Phenomenology is fine as a method, but some systems proposed even by towering Catholic thinkers have been harmful. I'm thinking of Ockham's nominalism.
Though heretics (Protestants) must not be tolerated because they deserve it, we must bear with them till, by the second admonition, they may be brought back to the faith of the (RCC) church. But those who after a second admonition, remain obstinate to their errors, must not only be excommunicated but they must be delivered to the secular power to be "exterminated."
Saint Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologica of Thomas Aquinas, vol iv, page 90.
Aquinas sounds a whole lot like the Pharisees who delivered Jesus to the Romans to be Crucified. And He was no different from any other Catholic prelate back in the day. Now, what kind of church promotes that??? No church at all.
I have a request for anyone reading the response please pray the next prayer.
If we all pray this prayer every day I am sure it will help with the corona crisis
“O Mary,
You shine continuously on our journey
as a sign of salvation and hope.
We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick,
who, at the foot of the cross,
were united with Jesus’ suffering,
and persevered in your faith.
“Protectress of the Roman people”,
you know our needs,
and we know that you will provide,
so that, as at Cana in Galilee,
joy and celebration may return
after this time of trial.
Help us, Mother of Divine Love,
to conform ourselves to the will of the Father
and to do what Jesus tells us.
For he took upon himself our suffering,
and burdened himself with our sorrows
to bring us, through the cross,
to the joy of the Resurrection.
Amen.”
We fly to your protection,
O Holy Mother of God;
Do not despise our petitions
in our necessities,
but deliver us always
from every danger,
O Glorious and Blessed Virgin.
2)
Second Prayer to Mary :
“We fly to your protection, O Holy Mother of God”.
In the present tragic situation, when the whole world is prey to suffering and anxiety, we fly to you, Mother of God and our Mother, and seek refuge under your protection.
Virgin Mary, turn your merciful eyes towards us amid this coronavirus pandemic. Comfort those who are distraught and mourn their loved ones who have died, and at times are buried in a way that grieves them deeply. Be close to those who are concerned for their loved ones who are sick and who, in order to prevent the spread of the disease, cannot be close to them. Fill with hope those who are troubled by the uncertainty of the future and the consequences for the economy and employment.
Mother of God and our Mother, pray for us to God, the Father of mercies, that this great suffering may end and that hope and peace may dawn anew. Plead with your divine Son, as you did at Cana, so that the families of the sick and the victims be comforted, and their hearts be opened to confidence and trust.
Protect those doctors, nurses, health workers and volunteers who are on the frontline of this emergency, and are risking their lives to save others. Support their heroic effort and grant them strength, generosity and continued health.
Be close to those who assist the sick night and day, and to priests who, in their pastoral concern and fidelity to the Gospel, are trying to help and support everyone.
Blessed Virgin, illumine the minds of men and women engaged in scientific research, that they may find effective solutions to overcome this virus.
Support national leaders, that with wisdom, solicitude and generosity they may come to the aid of those lacking the basic necessities of life and may devise social and economic solutions inspired by farsightedness and solidarity.
Mary Most Holy, stir our consciences, so that the enormous funds invested in developing and stockpiling arms will instead be spent on promoting effective research on how to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future.
Beloved Mother, help us realize that we are all members of one great family and to recognize the bond that unites us, so that, in a spirit of fraternity and solidarity, we can help to alleviate countless situations of poverty and need. Make us strong in faith, persevering in service, constant in prayer.
Mary, Consolation of the afflicted, embrace all your children in distress and pray that God will stretch out his all-powerful hand and free us from this terrible pandemic, so that life can serenely resume its normal course.
To you, who shine on our journey as a sign of salvation and hope, do we entrust ourselves, O Clement, O Loving, O Sweet Virgin Mary. Amen."
Thanks bishop.
Please make a video on the importance of wearing masks. Your word here would help make a difference. I hear so many people argue that they will not wear a mask and they mention how they will not "Fear". Please talk about "fear" as defined by Aquinas and that wearing a mask is in accordance to the teachings of Aquinas and the church.
I agree with this. I did a video on the Place of St. Thomas Aquinas in Theology. I think he is indispensable, but so are others. His contemporary, St. Bonaventure, the Seraphic Doctor, comes to mind. The many great Eastern Fathers as well as the Western Fathers. One of the things that made St. Thomas so great was his commitment to reading the breadth of the Tradition and incorporating it into his own Theology. As Aeterni Patris says, we should follow that method as well. Being a great Thomist requires looking at other great Catholic thinkers as well: St. Thomas did and would if he were here today.