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Mystrx
Guest
I’ve been thinking of picking this up. What’s your opinion of it?
ignatius.com/Products/SOS-P/summa-of-the-summa.aspx
ignatius.com/Products/SOS-P/summa-of-the-summa.aspx
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L
Larry1700
Guest
I read it several years ago, and enjoyed it. I have yet to tackle the full Summa Theologica, but it’s on my bucket list!
J
JW55
Guest
Solid information. Pretty heavy duty and not light reading.
C
commenter
Guest
Good book. Peter Kreeft has a way of breaking down complex topics into manageable form. It won’t make you an Aquinas expert but gives you some insight. As he says, it is always better to explain an author by building around the author’s work, rather than in a separate book which only quotes from the author. Much of what I gleaned about Thomas is from reading his style of thinking/argument, some of which comes through in Kreeft’s book.
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Mystrx
Guest
Interesting. So definitely not a substitute for the actual summa then, but more of a synopsis of it?
G
Ghosty
Guest
Kreeft’s work is more of a primer on how to read and understand the Summa. It doesn’t cover nearly enough of the Summa to be called a synopsis, in my opinion, but if you let Kreeft coach you through some of the tough bits of Aquinas’ work you may find that the actual Summa becomes much, much easier to follow and comprehend.
One thing to remember is that the Summa was not originally intended to be a spiritual treatise per se, but rather a textbook for advanced philosophy students moving on to theology. It stands alone because it is brilliant and written by a living Saint, but it was never written with the notion that a regular person off the street could read it easily. It would be like jumping from multiplication tables to calculus.
Kreefts work is excellent, but it helps to have a solid foundation in Catholic theology, and some familiarity Aristotle and Plato. Another point to remember is that Aquinas didnt sit down and write the Summa; his handwriting was illegible and he had a faithful scribe sit and listen to him work through ideas and then write them down in a Scholastic format. A good portion of it (the supplement) was written after his death by students of his. Aquinas didnt live to see the Summa completed, so his faithful students finished it to the best of their ability based on his previous lectures and notes.
The very best thing you can do to understand the Summa is ask the nearest Dominican priory for help. You may find that there are free near-college level courses available on the matter. I know there were at the Dominican Parish near me. If you do a search online for Fr. Bernhard Blankenhorn you will find a lot of great resources explaining Aquinas’ thinking, including audio and video lectures. He is the one that personally helped me read it.
Hope that helps!
Peace and God bless!
Hope that
One thing to remember is that the Summa was not originally intended to be a spiritual treatise per se, but rather a textbook for advanced philosophy students moving on to theology. It stands alone because it is brilliant and written by a living Saint, but it was never written with the notion that a regular person off the street could read it easily. It would be like jumping from multiplication tables to calculus.
Kreefts work is excellent, but it helps to have a solid foundation in Catholic theology, and some familiarity Aristotle and Plato. Another point to remember is that Aquinas didnt sit down and write the Summa; his handwriting was illegible and he had a faithful scribe sit and listen to him work through ideas and then write them down in a Scholastic format. A good portion of it (the supplement) was written after his death by students of his. Aquinas didnt live to see the Summa completed, so his faithful students finished it to the best of their ability based on his previous lectures and notes.
The very best thing you can do to understand the Summa is ask the nearest Dominican priory for help. You may find that there are free near-college level courses available on the matter. I know there were at the Dominican Parish near me. If you do a search online for Fr. Bernhard Blankenhorn you will find a lot of great resources explaining Aquinas’ thinking, including audio and video lectures. He is the one that personally helped me read it.
Hope that helps!
Peace and God bless!
Hope that
G
Ghosty
Guest
One additional tip: read the Summa in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Many people forget that Aquinas was a mendicant mystic first, philosopher second. He would pray for hours in front of the Eucharist before going on hours long lecture-binges, sometimes with multiple scribes writing down multiple trains of thought. While one was catching up he would start dictating to another one.
Trying to read the Summa without first immersing yourself in Grace just plain isn’t gonna work right, IMO. The Summa is a profound work that could only be accomplished by a great mind letting God work through it. It isn’t (name removed by moderator)ired per se, but it is first and foremost a work of Grace.
Peace and God bless!
Trying to read the Summa without first immersing yourself in Grace just plain isn’t gonna work right, IMO. The Summa is a profound work that could only be accomplished by a great mind letting God work through it. It isn’t (name removed by moderator)ired per se, but it is first and foremost a work of Grace.
Peace and God bless!
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