Thomism - What is it?
Since this site does say Thomist Tacos I feel as though I do need to give you at least a small primer on what Thomism is as a philosophy. Since I’m a lazy amateur tha-mist, I will go to my ever trusting resource and thomistic expositor Joseph M. Magee for a quick and concise answer:
Thomistic Philosophy is inspired by the philosophical methods and principles used by Thomas Aquinas (1224/5-1274), a Dominican Friar and Theologian, in his explanation of the Catholic faith. Aquinas, who is most renowned for his Five Ways of Proving the Existence of God, believed that both faith and reason discover truth, a conflict between them being impossible since they both originate in God. Believing that reason can, in principle, lead the mind to God, Aquinas defended reason’s legitimacy, especially in the works of Aristotle. The philosophy of Aquinas continues to offer insights into many lingering problems in Metaphysics, the Philosophy of Mind, Philosophy of Religion and Ethics.
Of course there is much, much more to Thomas’ thought. In fact, many of the people who don’t know much about him and criticize him for what they understand little about, don’t get beyond the straw-man arguments that include but are not limited to: The five ways, him being a rationalist, opposed to the relationship of faith and reason, being catholic (genetic fallacy here), among other things.
I really invite you to at least give him a chance to speak through his various works (especially his commentary on many of the books of the Bible). Peter Kreeft says it well when he says that the best way to know what Thomas really thought is to read directly from his works and not secondary sources. With that said, let me share a small bibliography for some of his work just to get your feet wet.
- Thomas Aquinas. Selected Philosophical Writings, Timothy McDermott tran. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998).
- Thomas Aquinas. Summa Contra Gentiles, Vernon Bourke tran. (Notre Dame: Notre Dame University Press, 1997).
- Thomas Aquinas. Summa Theologica, 5 vols. (Allen, TX: Thomas More, 1997).
- Thomas Aquinas. Thomas Aquinas: Selected Writings, Ralph McInerny ed. (New York: Penguin, 1998).
And for those of you that want to read more contemporary writers:
- Copleston, F. C. Aquinas (New York: Penguin, 1991).
- Davies, Brian. The Thought of Thomas Aquinas (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992).
- Chesterton, G. K. St Thomas Aquinas: The Dumb Ox (New York: Doubleday, 1992).
- Geisler, Norman L. Thomas Aquinas: An Evangelical Appraisal (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1991). Excellent resource
- Gilson, Etienne. The Christian Philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994). Excellent resource
- Hastings, Adrian, Alistair Mason, and Hugh Pyper. Key Thinkers in Christianity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), 43-52.
- Kenny, Anthony. Aquinas (New York: Oxford University Press, 1980).
- Kreeft, Peter, ed. A Summa of the Summa (San Francisco: Ignatius, 1990).
- Küng, Hans. Great Christian Thinkers (New York: Continuum, 2000), 99-126.
- McGrath, Alister E. A Cloud of Witnesses: Ten Great Christian Thinkers (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1990), 45-56.
- McInerny, Ralph. A First Glance At St. Thomas Aquinas (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1990).
- Nash, Ronald H. LifeÂ’s Ultimate Questions: An Introduction to Philosophy (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 199), 167-189.
- OÂ’Meara, Thomas F. Thomas Aquinas Theologian (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1997).
- Vos, Arvin. Aquinas, Calvin, & Contemporary Protestant Thought (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985). Excellent resource
If you want a sample his commentary to the Ephesians you can download it here. And if you have any questions regarding Thomas of Aquinas’ thought, life or contribution feel free to email me or just contact Max. (Like he needs more work on top of his dissertation 
)
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