Philosophical Foundations of Aquinas and Augustine
St. Thomas Aquinas: Life and Philosophical Origins
St. Thomas Aquinas was born in 1224 in Roccasecca, near Aquino. In 1234, he was sent to study at the University of Naples and was ordained in 1250. In 1256, he was appointed master, and in 1257, he took his position.
Aquinian Sources of Philosophy
It can be said that his philosophy arises from the main currents of thought which crossed the ancient world, including Platonic and Hebrew philosophy. The basic framework of his philosophy is Aristotelian in origin.
The Philosophy of Being
To St. Thomas, the basic feature of being is that it exists but can be otherwise; it exists but could not exist, or does not exist but could exist. Secondly, experience shows that things change. Human intelligence discovers two principles: act and potency. Raw power (potency) cannot exist on its own; however, pure act is unlimited (God). Thirdly, the same consideration of change shows that the torque of power facilitates change.
Substance and accident are secondary qualities and are not decisive. Fourthly, the two power levels are known as the act predicamental order. The order in which the forms are powers is the transcendental order.
The Philosophy of Knowing
The immediate principle of human knowledge is the faculty of the soul we call intelligence, rather than divine illumination as the Augustinians suggested. He said the participation of the intellect is a divine light within us, in the sense that our intelligence is involved in the ability to know, which is God's essence. In the action of knowing, the whole person and all potencies are involved. He also highlighted the function of the four inner senses.
The Philosophy of Doing
The analysis of human action falls within the general Thomistic conception of the created universe. Freedom is a faculty of both reason and will. Morality is a prolongation of creation and is framed in the context of divine government. Two issues are at the forefront of Thomistic ethics: the notions of order and eternal law. The eternal law is the supreme law of morality. Everything God wants done is denominated as eternal law because things are what God has willed them to be. The two supports of Aquinian ethics were the end and the eternal law.
St. Augustine: Faith, Reason, and Truth
St. Augustine was born in Tagaste in 354 to a Christian mother and a pagan father.
The Integration of Faith and Reason
At age 19, he took a step toward the rejection of rationalism and faith in the name of reason. Gradually, he discovered that reason and faith are not opposed but work in collaboration. Faith is a way of thinking; if there is no thought, there is no faith. Intelligence is the reward of faith. This position sits between rationalism and fideism. He told rationalists to understand so they may believe and told fideists that it is impossible to believe without reason.
The Theory of Truth
He had two primary interests: a passion for truth and a concern for the growing source of evil in the world. Seeking the truth was the beginning of discovering God. He identified two ways of understanding: 1. He had two fundamental moments of skepticism—dismantling arguments and determining where one should seek the truth. 2.