ST. THOMAS AQUINAS: Summa Theologica [Part I, QQ 1-13]

In Part I, Questions 1-13 of Summa Theologica, Aquinas propounds five arguments for the existence of God and then discusses the essence of God.

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS: Summa Theologica [Part I, QQ 75-76, 78-79]

75 – In Question 75, Aquinas argues that the human soul is incorporeal because corporeal bodies are not the principle of life, else all bodies would be alive. We see that only bodies imbued with an incorporeal soul have life. This argument presupposes that a certain arrangement of well-functioning physical bodies cannot animate a body.

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS: Summa Theologica [Part I, QQ 16-17, 84-88]

I last read from Aquinas’ Summa Theologica in May of 2014. As I stated in my previous post, I enjoy reading the works of Aquinas. His writing style is concise and logical. He begins by asking a question, then he proposes several possible answers, and finally he forms his own conclusion and provides counterarguments to each of the other answers that he considered. Other philosophical writers, such as Kant, present their arguments in a convoluted fashion, which frustrates the reader rather than elucidates the concepts that the writer wishes to convey. Aquinas’s writing style does not suffer any of these defects. It allows the reader to easily comprehend the arguments and form conclusions of his own.

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS: Summa Theologica [Part I-II, QQ 90-97]

Question 90 – Of the Essence of Law (Four Articles)

• Is law something pertaining to reason?

o   “Law is a rule and measure of acts, whereby man is induced to act or is restrained from acting.”