Thomas Aquinas: A very brief history

In: Very Brief Histories

Abstract

Intro -- Thomas Aquinas -- Contents -- Preface -- Chronology -- Part 1 THE HISTORY -- 1 Who was Aquinas? -- Aquinas's life -- Aquinas's writings -- The Summa Contra Gentiles and the Summa Theologiae -- Aquinas as a thinker -- 2 Some basic words and concepts -- Substance -- Essence, form, nature and accidents -- Form and matter -- Act and potency -- 3 Why believe in God? -- Aquinas's approach to arguing that God exists -- Nominal definitions and real definitions -- These nominal definitions and the question 'Does God exist?' -- Why is there something rather than nothing? -- Change and direction -- 4 What is God? -- Divine simplicity -- Divine attributes -- 5 The Christian God -- Aquinas on Christian doctrine: the basic picture -- The Trinity -- The Incarnation -- Why did God become incarnate? -- Satisfaction -- 6 Human beings -- Aquinas's philosophy of human nature -- Aquinas on people in the light of revelation -- Part 2 THE LEGACY -- 7 From the time of Aquinas to the twenty-first century -- Aquinas condemned -- Aquinas canonized -- From 1323 to 1879 -- From 1879 to 2016 -- 8 Thinking about Aquinas today -- Aquinas and science -- Aquinas and Christian faith -- Aquinas as readable -- The God of the philosophers and the God of Christianity -- Glossary of key terms -- Notes -- Further reading -- Index.