Thomas Aquinas Quotes

Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, Catholic priest, and Doctor of the Church (1225–1274)

Saint Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225 – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, Catholic priest, and Doctor of the Church. An immensely influential philosopher, theologian, and jurist in the tradition of scholasticism, he is also known within the latter as the Doctor Angelicus, the Doctor Communis, and the Doctor Universalis. The name Aquinas identifies his ancestral origins in the county of Aquino in present-day Lazio, Italy. Among other things, he was a prominent proponent of natural theology and the father of a school of thought (encompassing both theology and philosophy) known as Thomism. He argued that God is the source of both the light of natural reason and the light of faith. His influence on Western thought is considerable, and much of modern philosophy is derived from his ideas, particularly in the areas of ethics, natural law, metaphysics, and political theory.

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Native Name: Thomas Aquinos

Alternative Names: Saint Thomas Aquinas • Saint Thomas • Tommaso d'Aquino • Thomas of Aquino • St Thomas Aquinas • St. Thomas Aquinas • Aquinas • Angelic Doctor • Dumb Ox

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The happy man in this life needs friends.

This is part of the infinite goodness of God, that He should allow evil to exist, and out of it produce good.

Now, as the Word of God is the Son of God, so the love of God is the Holy Spirit.

Anima mea non est ego.

I answer that, Every being, as being, is good. For all being, as being, has actuality and is in some way perfect; since every act implies some sort of perfection; and perfection implies desirability and goodness, as is clear from A[1]. Hence it follows that every being as such is good.

Rarely affirm, seldom deny, always distinguish.

Sciences are differentiated according to the various means through which knowledge is obtained. For the astronomer and the physicist both may prove the same conclusion: that the earth, for instance, is round: the astronomer by means of mathematics (i.e. abstracting from matter), but the physicist by means of matter itself. Hence there is no reason why those things which may be learned from philosophical science, so far as they can be known by natural reason, may not also be taught us by another science so far as they fall within revelation. Hence theology included in sacred doctrine differs in kind from that theology which is part of philosophy. SECOND ARTICLE [I, Q.

our manner of knowing is so weak that no philosopher could perfectly investigate the nature of even one little fly.

It must be said that charity can, in no way, exist along with mortal sin.

Sorrow can be alleviated by good sleep, a bath and a glass of wine

"I answer that, It was necessary for man's salvation that there should be a knowledge revealed by God besides philosophical science built up by human reason. Firstly, indeed, because man is directed to God, as to an end that surpasses the grasp of his reason: "The eye hath not seen, O God, besides Thee, what things Thou hast prepared for them that wait for Thee" (Is. 66: 4). But the end must first be known by men who are to direct their thoughts and actions to the end. Hence it was necessary for the salvation of man that certain truths which exceed human reason should be made known to him by divine revelation. Even as regards those truths about God which human reason could have discovered, it was necessary that man should be taught by a divine revelation; because the truth about God such as reason could discover, would only be known by a few, and"

The human mind may perceive truth only through thinking, as is clear from Augustine.

We should eliminate sin if we wish to eliminate the scourge of tyrants.

To signify equality, God did not form the woman from the foot or the head of the man, but from his rib.

Lex naturae […] nihil aliud est nisi lumen intellectis insitum nobis a Deo, per quod cognoscimus quid agendum et quid vitandum. Hoc lumen et hanc legem dedit Deus homini in creatione.