Exiit qui seminat
"Philosophy is the handmaid of theology"
"Philosophy is the handmaid of theology." This was the motto of Medieval Scholasticism, which from 1100 to 1700 dominated the life of the Church by taking the critical method of philosophy and wedded it to theology. Scholasticism's greatest champion and perhaps the greatest theologian the Church has ever seen, the Dominican St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), celebrated his feast day this week. I know I have written about him before in this column, but St. Thomas' contribution to the life of the Church cannot be understated as his theology has been the forefront of Christian life for centuries, even until today. Aquinas rediscovered the works of the Greek philosopher Aristotle and "baptized" them, integrating them into the life of faith, most notably in Aquinas' five proofs for the existence of God. St. Thomas' understanding of theology and philosophy, morality and virtue, even the life and nature of angels, have become the backbone of who we are and what we believe as Catholic Christians. Over 6000 commentaries have been written about his life and works, especially his opus work, the Summa Theologica. As great as Aquinas' theological mind was, it was the fruit of his own spirituality and faith. For Aquinas, Christ was and is the guide to our salvation and even more important the way to have a relationship with God. St. Thomas stated that Christ was not just the example we have to follow to get to heaven, but the way to know Him, love Him and serve Him. So as honor the life of this great, let us continue to strive in God's grace in our pursuit of the Source of all Truth and Goodness and as much as we pursue him with our heads, let us pray to him with our hearts!
Sincerely Yours in Christ,
Fr. Rob Sinatra
