Thomistic Philosophy Research Articles

The Thomistic Philosophy of the Angels by James Collins (review)

214BOOK REVIEWS and the way for preaching the Gospel to the Chinese. Juan Gonzalez de Mendoza was appointed ambassador. With two confreres he sailed to Mexico, but there he was retained and met with such serious obstacles that he returned to Spain personally to inform the king. But even there he no longer found sufficient assistance so that the idea of an embassy was soon abandoned. Nevertheless, he kept interested in China, and, encouraged by friends, notably Don Antonio de Padilla y Meneses, President of the Indies, and Pope Gregory XIII, he published in 1585 the results of his studies. The success of the book was phenomenal. Within 16 years it went through no less than 38 editions , and appeared in Spanish, Italian, French, English, Latin, Dutch, and German. Gonzalez's book is considered the first book of importance in the field of Sinology. Though its author was never in China and held opinions which have since proved false, he gives an honest and scientific account of that empire, treats its geography, its climate, its natural wealth, its religions and customs, its political institutions, as well as some new missionary journeys to China and other oriental countries. As sources he used besides older books like Marco Polo, written reports of travelers to China and their oral information. Though the book has its importance in the field of Sinology, it is primarily a mission book. Juan Gonzalez's principal aim was to tell the Christian world of a large, unknown country which was still faraway from Christ and untouched by the work of the missionary. Today the book is not only a classic of the Spanish language, but an important historic document. We must be very grateful to Father Garcia for this new edition. He has not only annotated the text, but also given us a careful and exhaustive introduction to the author and his work, and has illustrated his edition with numerous old and interesting maps. The book is a worthwhile addition to our mission literature, and takes an honored place in the collection España Misionera. Bernward H. Willeke, O.F.M. Franciscan Institute, St. Bonaventure, N. Y. The Thomistic Philosophy of the Angels. By James Collins. (Catholic University of America Philosophical Series, LXXXIX) Washington, D. C: The Catholic University of America Press, 1947. Pp. xv, 383. In this dissertation, written several years earlier, but only recently appearing in print, Dr. Collins, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at BOOK REVIEWS215 St. Louis University, has given us a valuable and interesting study on Thomistic angelology. Though modestly assuring us he attempts no exhaustive treatise, but presents only the principal problems and these in broad outline, Dr. Collins does much more than merely sketch St. Thomas' philosophy of the angels. He has made a wise choice of topics, dealing as he does with the angelic principles of being, essence and existence, potency and act, as well as with angelic cognition, volition, power, influence upon other angels, the celestial spheres, and the sublunary world. But more than this, Dr. Collins has recognized the importance of the historical background, and studies the conceptions of Aquinas as high-lighted against the teachings of predecessors and contemporaries. Aristotle, Proclus, Avicebron , Avicenna, Averroes, the Summa* of Alexander, St. Bonaventure , St. Albert, and Siger of Brabant are dealt with in a way that brines to the fore the author's wide knowledge of recent literature in this field. Some might think the title, Thomistic Theology of the Angels, more appropriate for this study in view of the fact, that with the decline of Aristotelian astrophysical theories, the discussion of the angels was pushed back into purely theological circles. For this reason, Dr. Collins wisely devotes a lengthy introductory chapter on the science and existence of the angels, indicating how St. Thomas could incorporate oneumatology into a realistic metaphysics on the basis of the causality, substantiality, and immateriality of the añoréis. Though rejecting; the Avicennian interpretation that God must necessarilv create through the mediation of angels, St. Thomas claimed that reason could establish their existence as the most probable cause of the physical effects observed by the naturalist, even though their existence could not be rigidly demonstrated...

A Critique of the Philosophy of Being of Alfred North Whitehead in the Light of Thomistic Philosophy.

A Critique of the Philosophy of Being of Alfred North Whitehead in the Light of Thomistic Philosophy.

Treading the Winepress by William Stephenson (review)

216BOOK REVIEWS stituting that of Alfarabi and Avicenna who had insisted on the real distinction of essence and existence. This conviction that real simplicity is so intimately a divine attribute that it cannot be attributed to a creature seems to have been a common misconception among the scholastics up to the time of Aureoli. In his analysis of St. Thomas' relation to Avicenna in the matter of the necessity and contingency of the angels, Dr. Collins seems to lean rather heavily upon Father G. Smith's interpretation of Avicennian "possibility". To the reviewer, it seems more a matter of viewpoint whether the Avicennian "possible" be portrayed as wholly independent of God or wholly dependent upon God. For in one sense, at least, Avicenna has come closer to the accepted Christian interpretation of creatural contingency (a parte creaturae) than Averroes, or even St. Thomas himself in the matter of the angels. For Aquinas, according to Dr. Collins, seems to reject this "tendency to non being" (p. 128) and to retain, though of course in a profoundly modified form, that peculiar Aristotelian notion of the Intelligences as a sort of intermediary gods, who as entia a se were independent of God in their being, although dependent upon God as the final cause of their agere. The interpretation of Avicenna, however, is a moot question, and this reviewer could hardly take issue with the author for the interpretation he has so ably presented and drawn to its logical conclusions . A great deal more could be said in praise of this study of Dr. Collins, but, lest this review become unseemingly long, we conclude with the suggestion that the reader interested in this too often neglected phase of Thomistic philosophy, peruse this clearly written scholarly work for himself. Allan Wolter, O.F.M. Franciscan Institute, St. Bonaventure, N. Y. Treading the Winepress. By William Stephenson, S. J. Westminster. Md.: Newman Bookshop, 1946. Pp. xviii, 336. $2.50. Father Stephenson's book deserves a prominent place on the everincreasing list of spiritual and ascetical volumes written here and abroad. It is a fast and moving presentation of the Gospel narrative on the Passion of our Blessed Saviour, accompanied by spiritual reflections . These are the two main features of the book. In reality, it is a book of meditation on the Blessed Passion of Christ. BOOK REVIEWS217 The reflections are, in many cases, an expanding of the brief points connected with the Passion, and marked out for special consideration by St. Ignatius, in the Third Week of his Spiritual Exercises. A great variety, too, of reflections has been offered, so as to suit the tastes and meet the needs of individual classes of readers. The first five chapters contain preliminary remarks. They deal with the remote and immediate events leading up to the Passion; emphasis is laid on the importance and on the fruits derived from the meditation of Christ's Passion; general norms or hints are given for a fruitful contemplation; finally, a method of examination of conscience is proposed. The remaining twelve chapters are taken up with the two main features of the book. The author does not claim much originality for the work; he has culled the best material from various sources. The book is commendable for its easy reading, accurate narrative of the Gospel data, refreshing thoughts, and inspiring reflections. Gregory Grabka, O.F.M. Conv. Si. Hyacinth Seminary, Granby, Mass. Recalling St. Anthony of Padua. By Rev. Fr. Marcellus Manzo, O.F.M. Cap., M.A., Ph.D., New York City, N. Y. Copyright, 1946. Pp. ? plus 55. Illustrated. 8vo. ("Copies of this book may be obtained from the author at 213 Stanton St., New York City, N. Y") The proclamation of St. Anthony of Padua as a Doctor of the Church Universal by Pope Pius XII on Jan. 16, 1946, has, as is usual on such and similar occasions, evoked from Franciscan and other literateurs a large bibliography and inspired festive celebrations. Besides the encyclicals by each of the three Minister Generals of the First Franciscan Order, accounts of the various festivities held throughout the world have been publicized, books printed and bibliographies compiled. Among the printed accounts were the...

Thomistic Philosophy in Social Case Work

Thomistic Philosophy in Social Case Work

Nature, Knowledge and God. An Introduction to Thomistic Philosophy

Nature, Knowledge and God. An Introduction to Thomistic Philosophy

Maritain’s Philosophy of the Sciences

MARITAIN'S PHILOSOPHY OF THE SCIENCES By YVEs R. SIMoN T HE upholders of the Thomistic revival which began late in the nineteenth century were soon confronted with the following challenge: Because the philosophical principles of Thomism had been established at a time when positive science was in its infancy, it was asserted that Thomism was forbidden ever to deal successfully with the problems of our time. There could be no provision made in the system of St. Thomas for the interpretation of either the results or the spirit of modern science, both of which influence so deeply the very statement of our philosophical problems. The collapse of Aristotelian physics had entailed the general ruin of the Thomistic philosophy; against this verdict, rendered at the time of Galileo and Descartes, there could be no appeal. Thomism was at best a remarkable phase in the development of Western thought. If something of it could be revived, it was a certain inspiration, a certain aspiration, a certain frame of mjnd, but not any part of the systematic synthesis actually known under the name of Thomism. Such was the only possible attitude for those who did not believe that any part of philosophy is independent of the data of positive science. Less radical-minded persons were willing to make an exception for metaphysics, considering that our knowledge of the one, the true, and the good is little affected by what happens in physics and mathematics. But when there is a question of cosmology, psychology, even of logic, the restoration of a philosophy conceived in the Middle Ages was deemed plainly impossible. The result was a number of eclectic constructions in which St. Thomas was permitted to supply a few general truths but not any refined and detailed achievement On the other hand, scholars convinced of the perennial truth of St. Thomas's philosophy were engaging in an ambiguous task: that of finding points of agreement between the teaching of St. Thomas and that of modern sciences. In the domain of 85 86 YVES R. SIMON psychology in particular, there is quite a literature about St. Thomas co:rroborated by the most modern and positive research . As a matter of fact, in order to know how far Thomism was affected by modern developments in the positive sciences, a group of preliminary questions had to be investigated. What about the object of philosophy? Has philosophy any distinct object? What about the unity of philosophy? Is philosophy a science or not? One science or several? What is the significance of the distinction between philosophical and positive knowledge? Is it a necessary and everlastingly indispensable distinction, or a merely provisional one? What about the kind of truth that belongs to philosophy? To positive knowledge? Is it the same or not? All these questions have received invaluable elaboration from the critical research whose climax was the publication , in 193~, of The Degrees of Knowledge.1 The pioneers of the Thomistic revival had rather vague ideas about the nature of the disciplines which some of them practiced with great ability. It seems that they were not particularly interested in problems pertaining to the specification of philosophical sciences. Today we consider it a paradox that Thomists have ever accepted a division' of philosophy which was initiated by Wolff, consolidated by Kant, popularized by the Eclectics of the school of Cousin, and was fundamentally at variance with that upheld by St. Thomas. Our old masters undertook the restoration of the Thomistic philosophy without having asked themselves what conception of philosophy and of its divisions a philosophy must adopt in order to be consistently Thomistic. Rediscovering the genuine Thomistic concept of philosophy, reasserting it against many sorts of eclectic combinations -this is a task that l\!Iaritain has carried out with an uncompromising spirit of exactness and accuracy. * * * * * 1 Main writings of Maritain concerning the philosophy of sciences: Ref!exions sur ['intelligence, Paris, 1924, Ch. 6 and 7; Distinguer pour unir ou les Degres du savoir, Paris, 1982 (English translation, The Degrees of Knowledge, Scribner's, New York, 1988); La Philosophie de la nature, Paris, 1985; Science and Wisdom, Scribner 's, New York, 1940; Scholasticism and Politics, Macmillan, New York, 1940, Ch...

Sociology in Yugoslavia

The sociology of Yugoslavia is divided according to the ethnic groupings in that country: Serbian, Croatian, and Slovenian. Each form is characterized by strong ethnocentrism and a close union with political activities. Jovan Cvijic, the outstanding theorist of Serbian expansionism, attempts to establish the superiority of the Dinaric race and the necessity of transforming other Yugoslav types into subordinate groups under the leadership of Serbia. These ideas are further developed by Stanojevic, Popovic, and Jovanovic. Earlier, Markovic criticized imperialist Serbia and expounded a theory of a "peasant revolution." Radic, leader of Croatian sociology, shows the need of a new, all-human civilization. Sufflay stresses the racial, cultural, and mental differences between Serbs and Croatians and is impressed by their irreconcilability. One group of his followers argues for the German origin of Croatians, and the other emphasizes their Roman Catholicism. In Slovenia we find a Catholic counterliberalist movement directed against an encroaching liberalism and pan-Germanism. Mahnic, Krek, and Usenicnik are its leading exponents. Sociology should be based on the encyclic Rerum novarum and on Thomist philosophy. On its practical side, especially in the work of Gosar, it advocates a reform away from liberalism and socialism toward Christian solidarity and ecclesiastical authority.

The Intellectual Cognition of Particulars

THE INTELLECTUAL COGNITION OF PARTICULARS EVERY philosophical system has problems which belong only to itself and which are either non-existent or quite peripheral in othel" systems. Absolute Idealism, for instance, does not have to explain the" affinity" that thecategories have for transcendent reality, a question of central importance in the Kantian critique of knowledge. Similarly, the problem of individuation does not exist within a nomalistic philosophy as the latter considers individuals the only reality and universals pure products of the mind or even as " operational " indications. In like manner, Thomism has some problems which are meaningful only within the totality of Thomistic conceptions. One of these prob1ems regards the manner in which the human intellect becomes cognizant of material particulars. This problem is of pivotal importance. Though, at first sight, it may seem that the intellectual cognition of particulars represents but a minor detail-one meriting attention only for the sake of completing Thomistic psychology-it is in fact a problem that must be analyzed and solved if it is not to become a serious stumbling-block for Thomistic philosophy. This danger becomes apparent when one considers the principles involved: the principle of individuation by matter, the immateriality of the intellect, and the origin of knowledge in sensecognition . Nobody can deny that these principles are inde~d fundamental to Thomistic philosophy. If we are to retain them, it behooves us to explain more clearly how intellectual cognition of particulars takes place. To that elucidation the following pages aspire to contribute. During the last thirty years experimental psychology has accumulated a number of facts apparently irreconcilable with the Thomistic principles of intellectual cognition. There are, 95 96 RUDOLF ALLERS of course, facts of which St. Thomas was absolutely ignorantthey were discovered only many centuries after his time-and some of them present certain problems to Thomistic philosophy . One may try to apply the principles of his philosophy and to devise a theory of the facts based on his principles, but one cannot expect to find a ready-made solution in the writings of Aquinas. There are other problems, however, of which St. Thomas was perfectly aware, but which have taken on another aspect since his time by reason of more recent discoveries. In these cases one has to ask whether the ideas of St. Thomas can be preserved without modification, or whether they have to be adapted-without however abandoning basic principles-to the new facts. Finally there are problems which arise within the system of Thomism itself. Some of these problems result from certain obscurities in the texts, or their problematic character may be due to some incompleteness and indecision of the author. The problem of how the intellect comes to know the material particular seems to be one of these problems for which St. Thomas himself did not discover a thoroughly satisfactory solution. That this may be the case seems to be indicated by a noteworthy mode of expression: when speaking of the intellect gaining knowledge of singulars through what he calls " reflexion on or upon the phantasm" (reflexio in vel super phantasma), St. Thomas never omits to qualify his term by calling it a "kind of" (quaedam) reflexion, while he mentions other ideas closely related to this one without any such restriction; thus, he speaks of the " complete " return (reditio completa) of the intellect to itself. It seems as if Aquinas himself was not quite satisfied with the solution he proposed and by adding the qualification, " a kind of," he meant to indicate the necessity of a further elucidation. The problem and the solution proposed by St. Thomas are well known. A brief recapitulation will be enough. The intellect evidently has a knowledge of material particulars. This is evident, since judging is an achievement of the intellect and since among judgments there are some whose subject is a particular and whose predicate is a universal: Socrates is a man. THE INTELLECTUAL COGNITION OF PARTICULARS 97 Furthermore there are syllogisms in which the minor concerns a particular, as in the classical example for the mode barbara: All men are mortal, Caius is a man, Caius is mortal. To these frequently cited examples one may add another case. The...

Physical Science and the Catholic Student

The Catholic engaged in the study of natural science is in some ways less well placed than any other student for growing into a full-blooded Christian. His subject is not one which provides obvious stimulation for his Catholic conscience. Its content and presentations are unaltered whether its exponents are Christians or not, and the student lacks the stimulus of that constant need of criticism and re-interpretation, which is provided, for instance, by the study of history. And it is undeniable that natural science when studied intensively easily produces a person hypertrophied in some respects and gravely lacking in Catholic fundamentals. Laboratory work occupies long hours which others would spend on general Catholic reading, and it is too easy to become caught up into a routine which contains little but science. Prayer and spiritual reading do not thrive when they have to be fitted precariously into short intervals saved from the rush. Work is not readily sacrificed to them, for there is severe overcrowding and economic pressure in the lower ranks of scientific workers. (This competition, incidentally, does not favour humility nor a true love of learning.) The manual work of the laboratory gives a certain balance to the scientist’s life, and this again tends to obscure the deficiencies of the latter on the spiritual level. Further, there are certain intellectual obstacles. If a Catholic scientist is intelligent enough to begin thinking about the nature of his scientific knowledge and comparing it with Thomist philosophy, he is liable to be oppressed by certain superficial divergences between the principles of Thomism and of physical science.

Review of Book: Modern Thomistic Philosophy

Review of Book: Modern Thomistic Philosophy

Modern Thomistic Philosophy. Vol. II, Metaphysics. By R. P. PhillipsD.D. (Burns Oates; 9/-.)

Book reviewed in this article:Modern Thomistic Philosophy. Vol. II, Metaphysics. By R. P. Phillips, D.D. (Burns Oates; 9/‐.)The Intellectualism of St. Thomas. Translated with a Foreword by Fr. James E. O'Mahony, O.M.Cap., M.A., Ph.D., D.Litt. (Sheed & Ward; 7/6.)Rene Descartes, Lettres Sur la Morale. Texte présenté, revu et annoté par Jacques Chevalier. (Boivin, Paris; 30 frs.)RECHERCHES PHILOSOPHIQUES, IV, 1934‐1935. (Boivin, Paris; 65 frs.)The Way to God. The Broadcast Talks, Second Series, by Rev. C. C. Martindale, Professor C. E. Raven, Rev. G. F. Macleod. (Student Christian Movement Press; 3/6.)The Pilgrim's Regress. By C. S. Lewis. (Sheed & Ward; 5/‐.)Robert Southwell the Writer. By Pierre Janelle. (Sheed & Ward; 16s.)Edmund Campion. By Evelyn Waugh. (Longmans; 6s.)SIR THOMAS MORE. By the Rev. Sir John R. O'Connell. (Duckworth; 6/‐.)The Chemistry of Thought. By Claude A. Claremont. (Geo. Allen & Unwin; 8/6.)A LITTLE BOOK OF CHEESE. By Osbert Burdett. (Howe; 3/6.)

Review of Book: Modern Thomistic Philosophy

Review of Book: Modern Thomistic Philosophy

The Life and Teaching of Jesus Christ. By Jules Lebreton. Translated by Francis Day. Vol. I. (Burns Oates; 10/6.)

The Life and Teaching of Jesus Christ. By Jules Lebreton. Translated by Francis DayThe Franciscan Message to the World. By Agostino Gemelli, O.F.M. Translated and adapted by H. L. Hughes.Modern Thomistic Philosophy, Vol. I. The Philosophy of Nature. By R. P. Phillips, D.D., M.A.Sir Thomas More. By Christopher HollisCardinal Ximenes and the Making of Spain. By Reginald Merton.Preface a une Reforme de l'Etat. By Georges VianceEducation and Biology. By J. A. LauwerysModern Photography, 1934–5

BOOK REVIEWS

Book Reviews in This Article:Les Saintes Icones. Dom Ildefonse Dirks, Hieromoine.St. Hugh of Lincoln. By Joseph Clayton.An Anthology of Contemporary Catholic Poetry. Compiled by Maurice Leahy; with a Preface by D. B. Wyndham‐Lewis.The Well‐Springs. By Alphonse Gratry; translated from Les Sources by Rev. S. J. Brown, S.J.A Saint in the Making. By John Oxenham.The Secret of the Cure d'Ars. By Henri Ghéon; translated by F. J. SheedThe Simplicity of Plainsong. By the Rev. Justin Field, O.P.The Truth of Christianity. Being an Examination of the More Important Arguments for and against Believing in that Religion.March, Kind Comrade: War Experiences with the H.L.I.Foundations of Thomistic Philosophy. By A. D. Sertillanges, O.P. Translated by Godfrey Anstruther, O.P.Evolution and Faith. With other Essays. By Bishop Hedley.The Spirit of the Liturgy. By Dr. Romano Guardini.The Trial of Jeanne d'Arc. A complete translation of the text of the original documents, with an Introduction by W. P. Barrett.Prayers from the Eastern Liturgies. Compiled by Donald Attwater.The Franciscan Adventure: A Study in the First Hundred Years of the Order of St. Francis of Assisi. By Vida Dutton Scudder.Irish Nuns in Penal Days. By Mrs. Thomas Concannon, M.A., D.Litt.Theology. A Monthly Journal of Historic Christianity. Edited by E. G. Selwyn.