Is there something akin to Summa for Dummies?

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Little_One0307

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Morning All,

Guys I really need help. I have tried to read the Summa over and over again. I am finding it difficult. As I stated in another post, I feel like there’s a lot of goodies in there, and well I am outside and can’t get in.

Are there any books or resources that dumb down the Summa so that I can get a handle on what is being said?

I have the “A Tour of the Summa by Msgr. Paul J. Glenn” but I am finding it a bit too sparse for my liking.

Thanks for taking your time to look for me and God Bless.
 
Little_One0307 said:
Morning All,

Guys I really need help. I have tried to read the Summa over and over again. I am finding it difficult. As I stated in another post, I feel like there’s a lot of goodies in there, and well I am outside and can’t get in.

Are there any books or resources that dumb down the Summa so that I can get a handle on what is being said?

I have the “A Tour of the Summa by Msgr. Paul J. Glenn” but I am finding it a bit too sparse for my liking.

Thanks for taking your time to look for me and God Bless.
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One way, and there are many ways, to approach the Summa is to start off very casually with a topic that really interests you. Research the topic in the Summa. Read it over prayerfully and ponder the wisdom.

I guarantee you that you will be “flipping the pages” going from topic to topic in due time.

Just start off very slowly. I’ve been at it for over fifty years and am still a neophyte.
 
In addition to Kreeft’s Summa of the Summa that Prophesy linked to above, Kreeft also has A Shorter Summa, which is sort of a Summa of the Summa of the Summa. 😛
 
Hi,

Thanks guys for your time and answers. I will definetly check those out.

Catholic Dude
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I am actually reading the CCC lectio divina right now, and it is a wonderful thing.  Bless Blessed John Paul III for giving this to the Church.
You got me to thinking, and I am also looking through the Roman Catechism.

I will definetly check out the Kreeft books. I love him as a write.

God Bless.
 
Little_One0307 said:
Morning All,

Guys I really need help. I have tried to read the Summa over and over again. I am finding it difficult. As I stated in another post, I feel like there’s a lot of goodies in there, and well I am outside and can’t get in.

Are there any books or resources that dumb down the Summa so that I can get a handle on what is being said?

I have the “A Tour of the Summa by Msgr. Paul J. Glenn” but I am finding it a bit too sparse for my liking.

Thanks for taking your time to look for me and God Bless.
Click to expand...
  1. “Catechism of the Summa Theologica” - R.P. Thomas Pegues O.P. (This one is 4 star. I would suggest starting here.)
  2. “Thomas Aquinas - Selected Writings” - edited by Rev. M.C. D’Arcy
  3. “Aquinas - On Reasons for our Faith Against the Muslims, Greeks and Armenians” - translation by Fr. Peter Damian Fehlner
  4. “The Catechetical Instructions of St. Thomas Aquinas”
  5. “A Companion to the Summa” - 4 vols., by Walter Farrell OP
  6. “Meditations for Lent - from St. Thomas Aquinas” - translated by Fr. Philip Hughes
Additional publications for background information:

“Aeterni Patris” - Pope Leo XIII

“Hooked on Philosophy - Thomas Aquinas made Easy” - Robert A. O’Donnell

“Philosophia Perennis” - Brother Francis Maluf M.I.G.M.

“St. Thomas Aquinas - The Dumb Ox” - G.K. Chesterton

Hope this helps! :tiphat:
 
Tomster,

Thanks so much for taking the time in looking up all these resources.

I will definelty start out with the catechism for the Summa. I am excited. The Summa is in my reach to finally start unloading those goodies.

I got so frustrated because I guess I was trying to read it cover to cover. I guess the Summa is one of those works that you cannot do that.

God Bless.
 
Little_One0307 said:
Tomster,

Thanks so much for taking the time in looking up all these resources.

I will definelty start out with the catechism for the Summa. I am excited. The Summa is in my reach to finally start unloading those goodies.

I got so frustrated because I guess I was trying to read it cover to cover. I guess the Summa is one of those works that you cannot do that.

God Bless.
Click to expand...
You’re welcome.

The Summa is a lifetime work for most of us. Leave the frustration to those who dismiss St. Thomas’ work as outdated. The Summa is timeless.

Just dive in and rejoice. 👋

May Our Lord bless you abundantly in your quest for Catholic truth.

Tomster
 
I’d highly recommend “Aquinas” by Edward Feser, who is a professor of philosophy in Pasadena. Not unduly dumbed down, but an excellent explanation of Aquinas’ Summa and other works for beginners. Feser’s “The Last Superstition” is an excellent apologetic work that responds to the “New Atheist” writers by using Thomist philosophy. Both books are available from Amazon, you can get both as a set from Amazon at a discount. Feser, who has a traditional Catholic perspective, has a blog at edwardfeser.blogspot.com if you’d like to sample some of his work in the articles on the site.
 
Little_One0307 said:
Morning All,

Guys I really need help. I have tried to read the Summa over and over again. I am finding it difficult. As I stated in another post, I feel like there’s a lot of goodies in there, and well I am outside and can’t get in.

Are there any books or resources that dumb down the Summa so that I can get a handle on what is being said?

I have the “A Tour of the Summa by Msgr. Paul J. Glenn” but I am finding it a bit too sparse for my liking. .
Click to expand...
The best work of this nature that I have found is “A Shorter Summa” presents The Essential Philosophical Passages of St. Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica Edited and Explained by Prof. Peter Kreeft. It is thorough but, so far, I find it very readable so far.
 
If you are still looking for a Summa for Dummies. Try “Aquinas 101” by Francis Selman.
  • It is very readable.
  • Unlike Kreeft’s Summa of the Summa, it is not just a few selections from the raw Summa with footnotes.
  • Unlike Feser’s Aquinas (which is also good if you want a mental workout deep diving into Aquinas’s concepts), it is quite easy going.
 
“Theology and Sanity” by Frank Sheed

This is not strictly speaking St. Thomas’ Summa, but it is based on St. Thomas. And it is a good primer to St. Thomas’ thinking.
 
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