Summary
The Summa Theologica is divided into
three parts, and each of these three parts contains numerous subdivisions.
Part 1 deals primarily with God and comprises discussions of 119
questions concerning the existence and nature of God, the Creation,
angels, the work of the six days of Creation, the essence and nature
of man, and divine government. Part 2 deals with man and includes
discussions of 303 questions concerning the purpose of man, habits,
types of law, vices and virtues, prudence and justice, fortitude
and temperance, graces, and the religious versus the secular life.
Part 3 deals with Christ and comprises discussions of 90 questions
concerning the Incarnation, the Sacraments, and the Resurrection.
Some editions of the Summa Theologica include a
Supplement comprising discussions of an additional 99 questions
concerning a wide variety of loosely related issues such as excommunication,
indulgences, confession, marriage, purgatory, and the relations
of the saints toward the damned. Scholars believe that Rainaldo
da Piperno, a friend of Aquinas, probably gathered the material
in this supplement from a work that Aquinas had completed before
he began working on the Summa Theologica.
The Summa Theologica, as its title indicates,
is a “theological summary.” It seeks to describe the relationship
between God and man and to explain how man’s reconciliation with
the Divine is made possible at all through Christ. To this end,
Aquinas cites proofs for the existence of God and outlines the activities
and nature of God. Approximately one-half of the Summa Theologica then examines
the nature and purpose of man. Finally, Aquinas devotes his attention
to the nature of Christ and the role of the Sacraments in effecting
a bridge between God and man. Within these broad topical boundaries,
though, Aquinas examines the nature of God and man in exquisite
detail. His examination includes questions of how angels act on
bodies, the union of body and soul, the cause and remedies of anger,
cursing, and the comparison of one sin with another. Aquinas is
attempting to offer a truly universal and rational view of all existence.
Analysis
Adopting Aristotelian principles and concepts, Aquinas
attempts to explain the origin, operation, and purpose of the entire
universe and the role that everything in the universe plays in the
attainment of that purpose. Aquinas never doubts the truth of the
tenets of his faith. Rather, he employs techniques of argument that
he learned in the disputatios to state, defend,
and elaborate those tenets. The grandiose scope of the Summa
Theologica derives from Aquinas’s belief that a very significant
portion of theology can be expressed and codified in a comprehensive
and rational system.
Aquinas writes not only as a philosopher who is intellectually interested
in the pursuit of truth, he writes primarily as a Catholic who is
convinced that the salvation of humanity itself is at stake. This
conviction propels him toward a rational exegesis of topics the truth
of which is ultimately derived and founded on divine revelation.
When a specific topic so allows, Aquinas uses philosophical concepts
and vocabulary to examine that topic. The primary topics admitting
of such philosophical examination are the existence of God, the
nature and limits of human knowledge, and the purpose of man. For
most other topics, Aquinas articulates a decidedly Catholic position
on issues of Christian interest, such as the Holy Trinity, original
sin, and the like.
At first glance, it would seem astonishing and even counterintuitive
that Aquinas reframes much of Catholic theology in terms of Aristotle’s
pre-Christian philosophy. The pursuit of philosophy traditionally
requires one to enter into debates with an open mind and to identify
and re-examine one’s own core assumptions about a given issue, yet
Aquinas enlists Aristotle not for his aid in the unbiased critical
examination of the tenets of Catholic belief but rather for the
explication and defense of those tenets. At the same time, though,
Aquinas’s enlistment of Aristotle reveals Aquinas to be a remarkably
fair, open minded, and indeed tolerant medieval thinker. He apparently
believes that the fruits of the exercise of reason are not necessarily
corrupt if the thinker is a non-Christian. This suggests that Aquinas
believes that every human being, regardless of his or her beliefs,
shares in humanity through the possession and use of reason. In
this, Aquinas again reveals his indebtedness and allegiance to Aristotle,
who had maintained that reason is the essential quality of humanity:
it is that without which man cannot be man.
