Creation and the Perpetuity of the Universe

Abstract

The formulation which left a tremendous imprint on the philosophical understanding of the Christian thinkers’ idea of creation, and subsequently on the entire theological concept of creation, was the doctrine of St. Thomas Aquinas. This was of course an outcome of the enormous authority he enjoyed, and later of the fact that for a long time the Thomist philosophy was treated as well-nigh the Church’s official philosophy. As regards the creation issue, St. Thomas was not an original thinker. Nearly all the components of his doctrine de creatione had already appeared in the thought of the Fathers of the Church and the theologians. What he accomplished was significant because he developed and systematised what had been achieved before him, and because he adapted the traditional doctrine to the needs of the times. This kind of updating of philosophical (and theological) ideas is extremely important for their continuation.