Church History, Theology, History, Christianity, Essays, Renaissance, Philosophy, Medieval Thought, Religious, Specialty Boutique, Churches & Church Leadership 

Penguin Classics 

In his reflections on Christianity, Saint Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225-74) forged a unique synthesis of ancient philosophy and medieval theology. Preoccupied with the relationship between faith and reason, he was influenced both by Aristotle's rational world view and by the powerful belief that wisdom and truth can ultimately only be reached through divine revelation. Thomas's writings, which contain highly influential statements of fundamental Christian doctrine, as well as observations on topics as diverse as political science, anti-Semitism and heresy, fully demonstrate the range of his intellect and place him firmly among the greatest medieval philosophers.

In this selection, arranged chronologically to reveal the development and sheer scope of Thomas's ideas, Ralph McInerny brings together Thomas's sermons, commentaries and responses to criticism, and extracts from the principal works: the Summa theologiae and Summa contra Gentiles.