OUR LADY OF FATIMA
CATHOLIC CHURCH
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OUR LADY OF FATIMA CATHOLIC CHURCH |
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The Experts on St Thomas Aquinas
September 25th, 2005
The temptation that pervades modernity is to think that what is tried and trusted is now to be rejected since it no longer meets the needs or aspirations of modern man. The following quotations (for the most part) from successive Popes show the constant and unanimous insistence of the Church that Aquinas is the Doctor of the Church and that at our own peril we stray from the path he forged in philosophy and theology.
John Henry Cardinal Newman
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Cardinal Newman is often cited by neo-modernists as being a forerunner to the Second Vatican Council as though he would be the first to reject Thomism in favor of a new vision for philosophy and theology. In fact the English convert was very far from this caricature as the following extracts demonstrate: "All good Catholics
must feel it a first necessity that (their) intellectual exercises ... should be
grafted on the Catholic Tradition of philosophy, and should not start from a
novel and simply original tradition, but should be substantially one with
the teachings of St. Athanasius, St. Augustine, St. Anselm and St.
Thomas..." Collins, James, ed., Philosophical
Readings in Cardinal Newman, "I have no suspicion and do not anticipate, that I
shall be found in substance to disagree with St. Thomas." Ibid., p.422 |
Leo
XIII
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“But, furthermore, Our predecessors in the Roman pontificate have celebrated the wisdom of Thomas Aquinas by exceptional tributes of praise and the most ample testimonials. Clement VI in the bull "In Ordine;" Nicholas V in his brief to the friars of the Order of Preachers, 1451; Benedict XIII in the bull "Pretiosus," and others bear witness that the universal Church borrows luster from his admirable teaching; while St. Pius V declares in the bull "Mirabilis" that heresies, confounded and convicted by the same teaching, were dissipated, and the whole world daily freed from fatal errors; others, such as Clement XII in the bull "Verbo Dei," affirm that most fruitful blessings have spread abroad from his writings over the whole Church, and that he is worthy of the honor which is bestowed on the greatest Doctors of the Church, on Gregory and Ambrose, Augustine and Jerome; while others have not hesitated to propose St. Thomas for the exemplar and master of the universities and great centers of learning whom they may follow with unfaltering feet. On which point the words of Blessed Urban V to the University of Toulouse are worthy of recall: "It is our will, which We hereby enjoin upon you, that ye follow the teaching of Blessed Thomas as the true and Catholic doctrine and that ye labor with all your force to profit by the same." Innocent XII, followed the example of Urban in the case of the University of Louvain, in the letter in the form of a brief addressed to that university on February 6, 1694, and Benedict XIV in the letter in the form of a brief addressed on August 26, 1752, to the Dionysian College in Granada; while to these judgments of great Pontiffs on Thomas Aquinas comes the crowning testimony of Innocent VI: "His teaching above that of others, the canonical writings alone excepted, enjoys such a precision of language, an order of matters, a truth of conclusions, that those who hold to it are never found swerving from the path of truth, and he who dare assail it will always be suspected of error."” Aeterni Patris
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“We renew our condemnation of those teachings of philosophy which have merely the name, and which by striking at the very foundation of human knowledge lead logically to universal skepticism and to irreligion. We are profoundly grieved to learn that for some years past some Catholics have felt at liberty to follow in the wake of a philosophy which under the specious pretext of freeing human reason from all ideas and from all illusions, denies it the right of affirming anything beyond its own operations, thus sacrificing to a radical subjectivism all the certainties which traditional metaphysics, consecrated by the authority of the strongest thinkers, laid down as the necessary and unshakable foundations for the demonstration of the existence of God, the spirituality and immortality of the soul, and the objective reality of the exterior world. It is to be deeply regretted that this doctrinal skepticism, of foreign importation and Protestant origin, should have been received with so much favor in a country so justly celebrated for its love of clearness of thought and expression. We know, Venerable Brothers, how far you share our well-grounded anxiety on this subject, and we reckon on you to redouble your solicitude and vigilance in shutting out this fallacious and dangerous philosophy from the teaching in your seminaries, and to honor more than ever the methods we recommended in the above-quoted Encyclical of August 4, 1879.”
Depuis le Jour
St Pius X
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"But we warn teachers to bear in mind that a slight departure from the teaching of Aquinas, especially in metaphysics, is very detrimental. As Aquinas himself says, 'a slight error in the beginning is a great error in the end.' " Pascendi et Sacrorum Antistitum
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Benedict XV
1917 Code of Canon Law "Let professors handle the studies of rational philosophy and of theology and the education of students in these disciplines utterly according to the conceptualization, doctrine and principles of the Angelic Doctor, and religiously cleave thereto" (Canon 1366, n. 2).
Pius XI
| "After this slight sketch of the great virtues of Thomas, it is easy to understand the preeminence of his doctrine and the marvelous authority it enjoys in the Church. Our Predecessors, indeed, have always unanimously extolled it. Even during the lifetime of the saint, Alexander IV had no hesitation in addressing him in these terms: "To Our beloved son, Thomas Aquinas, distinguished alike for nobility of blood and integrity of character, who has acquired by the grace of God the treasure of divine and human learning." After his death, again, John XXII seemed to consecrate both his virtues and his doctrine when, addressing the Cardinals, he uttered in full Consistory the memorable sentence:
"He alone enlightened the Church more than all other doctors; a man can derive more profit in a year from his books than from pondering all his life the teaching of
others." He enjoyed a more than human reputation for intellect and learning and Pius V was therefore moved to enroll him officially among the holy Doctors with the title of Angelic. Again, could there be any more manifest indication of the very high esteem in which this Doctor is held by the Church than the fact that the Fathers of Trent resolved that two volumes only, Holy Scripture and the Summa Theologica, should be reverently laid open on the altar during their deliberations? And in this order of ideas, to avoid recapitulating the innumerable testimonies of the Apostolic See, We are happy to recall that the philosophy of Aquinas was revived by the authority and at the instance of Leo XIII; the merit of Our illustrious Predecessor in so doing is such, as We have said elsewhere, that if he had not been the author of many acts and decrees of surpassing wisdom, this alone would be sufficient to establish his undying glory. Pope Pius X of saintly memory followed shortly afterwards in his footsteps, more particularly in his Motu Proprio Doctoris Angelici, in which this memorable phrase occurs: "For ever since the happy death of the Doctor, the Church has not held a single Council but he has been present at it with all the wealth of his doctrine." Closer to Us, Our greatly regretted Predecessor Benedict XV repeatedly declared that he was entirely of the same opinion and he is to be praised for having promulgated the Code of Canon Law in which "the system, philosophy and principles of the Angelic Doctor" are unreservedly sanctioned. We so heartily approve the magnificent tribute of praise bestowed upon this most divine genius that We consider that Thomas should be called not only the Angelic, but also the Common or Universal Doctor of the Church; for the Church has adopted his philosophy for her own, as innumerable documents of every kind attest. It would be an endless task to explain here all the reasons which moved Our Predecessors in this respect, and it will be sufficient perhaps to point out that Thomas wrote under the inspiration of the supernatural spirit which animated his life and that his writings, which contain the principles of, and the laws governing, all sacred studies, must be said to possess a universal character. |
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(...)The metaphysical philosophy of St. Thomas, although exposed to this day to the bitter onslaughts of prejudiced critics, yet still retains, like gold which no acid can dissolve, its full force and splendor unimpaired. Our Predecessor therefore rightly observed: "To deviate from Aquinas, in metaphysics especially, is to run grave risk" (Encycl.Pascendi of the 8th September, 1907).
(...)Again, if we are to avoid the errors which are the source and fountain-head of all the miseries of our time, the teaching of Aquinas must be adhered to more religiously than ever. For Thomas refutes the theories propounded by Modernists in every sphere, in philosophy, by protecting, as We have reminded you, the force and power of the human mind and by demonstrating the existence of God by the most cogent arguments; in dogmatic theology, by distinguishing the supernatural from the natural order and explaining the reasons for belief and the dogmas themselves; in theology, by showing that the articles of faith are not based upon mere opinion but upon truth and therefore cannot possibly change; in exegesis, by transmitting the true conception of divine inspiration; in the science of morals, in sociology and law, by laying down sound principles of legal and social, commutative and distributive, justice and explaining the relations between justice and charity; in the theory of asceticism, by his precepts concerning the perfection of the Christian life and his confutation of the enemies of the religious orders in his own day. Lastly, against the much vaunted liberty of the human reason and its independence in regard to God he asserts the rights of primary Truth and the authority over us of the Supreme Master. It is therefore clear why Modernists are so amply justified in fearing no Doctor of the Church so much as Thomas Aquinas.
We desire those especially who are engaged in teaching the higher studies in seminaries sedulously to observe and inviolably to maintain the decrees of Our Predecessors, more particularly those of Leo XIII (the Encyclical Aeterni Patris), and Pius X (the Motu Proprio Doctoris Angelici) and the instructions We Ourselves issued last year. Let them be persuaded that they will discharge their duty and fulfill Our expectation when, after long and diligent perusal of his writings, they begin to feel an intense devotion for the Doctor Aquinas and by their exposition of him succeed in inspiring their pupils with like fervor and train them to kindle a similar zeal in others.
Studiorem Ducem
Pius XI directed that Pontifical universities impart to their students "the full and coherent synthesis of philosophy according to the method and the principles of St. Thomas Aquinas; in the light of his teaching, furthermore, the different systems of the other philosophers are to be examined and judged."
Deus Scientiarum Dominus, May 24, 1931
"a learning adequate to the requirements of the age ... there is required both instruction and education in scholastic philosophy 'according to the conceptualization, doctrine and principles of the Angelic Doctor,' "
Ad Catholici
Sacerdotii
Pius XII
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"It is not surprising that the Church will have her future priests brought up on a philosophy which 'derives its conceptualization, doctrine and basic principles from the Angelic Doctor' (C.I.C., Canon 1366, n. 2). One thing is clearly established by the long experience of the ages - that St. Thomas' philosophical system is an unrivalled method, whether for conducting the beginner through his early steps, or for the investigation of the most recondite truths; moreover, that his teaching seems to chime in, by a kind of pre-established harmony, with divine revelation - no surer way to safeguard the first principles of the faith, and turn the results of later healthy developments to good advantage. Deplorable, that a philosophy thus recognized and received by the Church, should, in our day, be treated by some minds with contempt." Humani Generis "The greatest stress must be laid on philosophy and theology 'according to the conceptualization of the Angelic Doctor,' (C.I.C., Canon 1366, n. 2), with such additional matter as the needs and errors of the day require. These subjects are of the greatest consequence and advantage both to priests and people." Menti nostrae
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Blessed John XXIII
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"But if all the things we desire so ardently are to come about the first thing necessary is to study the work of St. Thomas Aquinas carefully." Allocution, September 18, 1960 |
John Paul II
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"The immortal Pontiff recalled that the method, the principles and the teaching of Aquinas had, down the centuries, been specially favored not only by learned men but by the supreme teaching authority of the Church... If today also, he insisted, philosophical and theological reflection is not to rest on an 'unstable foundation' which would make it 'wavering and superficial'... it will have to draw inspiration from the 'golden wisdom' of St. Thomas... Now that a hundred years of the history of thought have passed we are able to appreciate how balanced and wise were these appraisals. With good reason, therefore, the Supreme Pontiffs who succeeded Leo XIII, and the Code of Canon Law itself ...have repeated them and made them their own." (…)The words of the Council are clear: the Fathers saw that it is fundamental for the adequate formation of the clergy and of Christian youth that it preserve a close link with the cultural heritage of the past, and in particular with the thought of St. Thomas; and that this in the long run, is a necessary condition for the longed-for renewal of the Church." (…)The reason why the
philosophy of St. Thomas is pre-eminent is to be found in its realism and its
objectivity: it is a philosophy of what is, not of what appears. What makes the
philosophy of the Angelic Doctor so wonderfully apt to be the handmaid of faith
is that it has gained possession of truths of the natural order, which have
their origin in God the Creator, just as truths of the divine order, which have
their source in God as revealing. This does not lessen the value of
philosophy or unduly restrict its field of research; on the contrary, it allows
it to develop in ways that human reason alone could not have discovered. Hence
the Supreme Pontiff Pius XI... did not hesitate to declare: 'In honoring St.
Thomas something greater is involved than the reputation of St. Thomas, and that
is the authority of the teaching Church'" (…)The philosophy of St. Thomas deserves to be attentively studied and accepted with conviction by the youth of our day by reason of its spirit of openness and of universalism, characteristics which are hard to find in many trends of contemporary thought. What is meant is an openness to the whole of reality in all its parts and dimensions, without either reducing reality or confining thought to particular forms or aspects (and without turning singular aspects into absolutes)...The basis and source of this openness lie in the fact that the philosophy of St. Thomas is a philosophy of being, that is, of the "act of existing" whose transcendental value paves the most direct way to rise to the knowledge of subsisting Being and pure Act, namely to God. On account of this we can even call this philosophy: the philosophy of the proclamation of being, a chant in praise of what exists...St. Thomas puts philosophy moving along lines set by this intuition, showing at the same time that only in this way does the intellect feel at ease (as it were "at home") and that, therefore, it can never abandon this way without abandoning itself." |
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(…)Is it to be feared that by favoring the philosophy of St. Thomas one will undermine the right to exist that is enjoyed by different cultures or hinder the progress of human thought? Such a fear would clearly be groundless because the methodological principle invoked above implies that whatever is real has its source in the "act of existing;" and because the perennial philosophy, by reason of that principle, can claim in advance, so to speak, all that is true in regard to reality."
John Paul II, allocution Perennial Philosophy of St. Thomas for the Youth of Our Times, LOR, Dec. 17, 1979, pp.6-8, no.5 - 7
"The recommendation of Leo is still valid: 'those who to the study of philosophy unite obedience to the Christian faith are philosophers indeed; for the splendor of the divine truth, received into the mind, helps the understanding and not only detracts in no wise from its dignity, but adds greatly to its nobility, keenness, and stability.'"
John Paul II, allocution The Method and Doctrine of St. Thomas in Dialogue with Modern Culture, LOR, Oct. 20, 1980, pp.9-11, no.4
1983 Code of Canon Law: “There are to be classes in dogmatic theology, always grounded in the written word of God together with sacred tradition; through these, students are to learn to penetrate more intimately the mysteries of salvation, especially with St. Thomas as a teacher. There are also to be classes in moral and pastoral theology, canon law, liturgy, ecclesiastical history, and other auxiliary and special disciplines, according to the norm of the prescripts of the program of priestly formation.”
(Canon 252 § 3).
  
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