Maven, a person who obtains knowledge in a specific field whose purpose is to spread and inform into other fields. During the time period of the Medieval Times and Renaissance, those Mavens provided influences in departments such as art, literature, science, philosophy, religion, etc. In the Medieval era, there were two Mavens who stuck out from the others. One was a man that goes under the name of St. Thomas Aquinas, a Catholic “philosopher and theologian” (Chenu). The other scholar, Ibn Battuta, a man who is known for his traveling. In comparison, they both were successful scholars, travelers, and are recognized for spreading their ideas through teaching. Though what they experienced had different purpose/perspective based on their religion, which may of contributed in their decisions and type of impact they had towards their community. The common similarity between both St. Thomas Aquinas and Ibn Battuta were that they were scholars who traveled throughout different regions collecting as much knowledge as possible, whom then return back to their homeland where they dispense their learnings. Thomas Aquinas learning was only possible because he was a fortunate to be born into a wealthy family who could afford and supply his needs. With the large amount of economic source, he had the opportunity to journey to places such as the “monasteries” and “convents” (Chenu), in hope to gain Catholic education. In addition to his education, he had access to receive high-level
In Documents 2 and 4, traveling to unfamiliar areas shows its importance. Although Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo were not traveling for the same
Self-knowledge is a highly discussed topic by many prominent philosophers. Two of these philosophers are Thomas Aquinas and Catherine of Siena. The philosopher, Thomas Aquinas, is a very important figure in medieval philosophy. He has discussed various topics, including self-knowledge. In addition, “he was influenced, philosophically, by past philosophers as well as those who became his mentors and contemporaries. Among these the most important was, of course, Aristotle” (MacIntosh, 2017, p. 1). Another philosopher that has extensively examined self-knowledge is Catherine of Siena. She is a “renowned medieval theologian and Doctor of the Catholic Church” (Nemes & Wessling, 2017, p. 303). Although both philosophers have discussed self-knowledge,
Today, new technology and theories provide proof on how our world functions. Through these new developments, the sciences can advance. This advancement not only allowed us to increase knowledge but our rationality likewise. Traits that are only unique to us in the entire animal kingdom. Like science, Religion is seen to have as much of an influential role in our development as a species. Organized religion helps create a connection between people which results in community and culture. Ideas would be able to spread and grow far easier within a community. This was due to religion’s prevalence in the ancient world more so than the present day. A key example was the establishment of Christianity as the Roman Empire’s official religion. As
Aquinas’ third way argument states that there has to be something that must exist, which is most likely God. He starts his argument by saying not everything must exist, because things are born and die every single day. By stating this we can jump to the conclusion that if everything need not exist then there would have been a time where there was nothing. But, he goes on, if there was a time when there was nothing, then nothing would exist even today, because something cannot come from nothing. However, our observations tell us that something does exist, therefore there is something that must exist, and Aquinas says that something is God.
‘Something rather than nothing refers to’ the cosmological argument for the existence of God claiming that all things in nature; ‘something’ are dependent on something else for their existence. As Lucretius puts it in his first book De Rerum Natura, “by observing nature and her laws…her first principle: that nothing’s brought forth by any supernatural power out of naught” hence we arrive at nihil fit ex nihilo ‘nothing comes from nothing’
The foundations of law have been set in the ideas of natural laws that are given to us. There are many different theories on how our laws of nature have brought us to develop the social contracts and government of today’s society. John Locke and Saint Thomas Aquinas’s views of how social contracts are developed from natural and eternal laws are both well seated in the belief of God given rights, but differ in the politics of the governments.
This essay will be examining the literary work of Columbus, De Las Casas, and Villagra to understand the individual viewpoints and the true motives of the Spanish Conquistadors. Christopher Columbus attempted to hide his desire for wealth and power behind the idea that all his actions were justified because he was acting out God’s will. Additionally, Gaspar Perez De Villagra thought that his mission of establishing a colony in New Mexico and converting the Native Americans would be successful because God was on the Conquistadors’ side. At first, Bartolome De Las Casas accepted the horrible behavior of the Conquistadors, but he began to realize that the Conquistadors were doing the opposite of God’s work. Bartolome De Las Casas rejected the
In the tomes of history, many philosophers have outlined their visions of a perfect society. Until recently however, few have ventured into the waters of religious tolerance. One such philosopher was John Locke. Writing in the late 17th century, Locke advocated a complete separation between church and state. He argued for an unprecedented tolerance of people of all faiths. Although Locke's views became widely popular throughout Europe and the Americas, they did not meet with unanimous approval. Many earlier philosophers disagreed with Locke. Two such philosophers were Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas disagreed in three key respects: Compulsion, toleration, and authority. Aristotle, on
Aquinas, Saint Thomas was born at approximately 1225 at Aquino castle in Roccasecca, Italy. As a philosopher-theologian he was arguably the most influential thinker of the medieval period. He produced a powerful synthesis that combined Aristotelian and Neoplatonic elements within a Christian context. He maintained the Christian theological traditions, inspired by Aristotle's approach sought his own argument for God's existence.
As a Christian educator, it is important to base educational practices on Biblical authority. Christian education should teach students to learn to act like God and to do His work (Graham, 2003). “True education is to develop knowledge of God and His created reality and to use that knowledge in exercising a creative-redemptive dominion over the world . . . “ (Graham, 2003, p. 57). Being a Christian educator, does not mean that organizational structure and curriculum occur in a vacuum. Educational philosophy and structure have been developing for thousands of years and the wise educational administrator should study and understand the history and ideas that impact the educational landscape of today.
On February 25, 1304, Ibn Battuta,one of the history’s most famous explorer, was born. The explorer was born in Tangier, Morocco in a family of Islamic judges. His pilgrimage in 1325 to the holy city of Mecca started his series of journeys which lasted for three decades. Battuta journeyed to North Africa, the Horn of Africa, West Africa, Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in the West, to the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China. After voyaging for three decades, Ibn Battuta completed his book of travels called Rihla meaning journey in Arabic with a young scholar named Ibn Juzayy.
St. Thomas Aquinas interpreted Aristotle’s philosophies to be read in a Christian lens. His view demonstrates that moral obligations are determinants of a natural law, one that is acquired from each individual’s “God-given nature and is knowable by [all]” (McBrayer & Markie 2014, p. 241). Aquinas emphasized morality being crucial for everyone, and that God’s plans for his creations include being good. Although, he knew that not everyone was informed of God’s moral rules; so, he theorized that God created the world in accordance to natural laws in which his creations have an innate sense of knowing what is good for themselves. From our intuitive desires, some inclinations are natural, while others are unnatural.
Ibn Battuta’s remarks of his travels say a great deal about his own culture and norms. Almost every place he travels to he brings up women and how they are treated, as well as what their status is in that society. He is also very amused with the décor of the buildings in terms of gold and silver decorations. It seems as though he does not come from a wealthy society or his family is not on the wealthy status level. Battuta also seems to bring up the cleanliness of each area he travels to.
There are four main philosophers that set the basis for different styles of ethics. The four Philosophers that made a huge impact on us all are Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas, Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill. All four philosophers are very well known for their intelligence and work in the ethics community. Although all of the philosophers have the same goal of defining ethics and how we should behave in terms of the highest good for human beings they all do it in different ways in which they feel is the proper way. Throughout this paper I will be comparing each of the four main Philosophers that we learned about this semester to each other so that you can
At first glance the words “Tradition” and “tradition” may appear to be identical concepts. Upon further study, examination, and contemplation, however, these two words differ in their precise definitions. “Tradition” carries more weight and meaning than the word “tradition.” Similarly, “Truth” and “truth” do not denote the exact same principle. In fact, philosophers and religious scholars have been debating the origins of the latter two doctrines since the Middle Ages. The major dispute associated with “Truth” with a capital T and “truth” with a lower-case “t” focuses around the field of study in which each is used. According to two prominent thinkers of the