Book Review: Aquinas by Edward Feser
One of the greatest, if not the greatest, intellectual heavyweights of the medieval period is St. Thomas Aquinas. Recently, there has been a revival of interest in Thomistic thought as many philosophers are not only beginning to notice and appreciate the value of Aquinas’s works, but also that much of Aquinas’s works offer an important insight into many of the contemporary philosophical issues. Because Aquinas’s main work, the Summa Theologiae, is too long and dense for most individuals to sit through and read, Edward Feser in his book Aquinas offers an introduction to Aquinas’s thought which presents readers with a goldmine of information covering Aquinas’s metaphysics, natural theology, psychology, and ethics. In each section, Feser sets the foundation for understanding the gist of Aquinas’s thought, with most of the book devoted to metaphysics and natural theology. What follows is a sketch of the main points covered in every chapter, with a heavy emphasis on the metaphysics chapter since this is where the foundation of the book stands.
The material cause or underlying stuff the ball is made out of is rubber; its formal cause, or the form, pattern, or structure it exhibits, comprises such features as its sphericity, solidity, and bounciness. In other words, the material and formal causes of a thing are just its matter and form, considered as two aspects of a complete explanation of it. Next we have the efficient cause, that which actualizes a potency and thereby brings it into being … Lastly we have the final cause or the end, goal, or purpose of a thing, which in this case of the ball might be to provide amusement to a child. [16]
Apologetics 315 Book Reviewer David Rodriguez is a student at San Diego State University and is majoring in philosophy with a minor in biology. His primary philosophical interests include ethics, philosophy of religion, epistemology and medieval philosophy. In addition to philosophy, David has a keen interest in theology and medieval history. He is currently concerned with pursuing a career in bioethics. His webpages are www.walkingchristian.com and Ad Dei Gloriam.