Critical Reflection Of Aquinas

While we live in a world that idolizes popstars and political figures, we often forget about the men that made our self expression possible. Humanism is defined as “a philosophy that usually rejects supernaturalism and stresses an individual's dignity and worth and capacity for self-realization through reason (Humanism).” St. Francis and St. Aquinas were both key figures in the beginning of this movement. Instead of reflecting on the holy they decided to look inward and also outward at the world that surrounded them. St. Aquinas, St. Francis, and the impacts they had on humanism were monumental and are worthy of discussion.

states that all wars are sinful, but if it is justified it is not a sin; however, I feel that just because one has authority over others, this shouldn't

When it comes to studying St. Thomas Aquinas, one of his main philosophies were the five ways. The five ways are claims and conclusions based on Aquinas’s beliefs. Aquinas theory is broken into premises and a conclusion. In Aquinas’s first way he explains how whatever is moved must be moved by another, meaning that something must come from something before, and before that. Aquinas believed that nothing could go on for infinity without no “first mover”. Aquinas continues his explanation when he says “This Cannot go on for infinity, because then there would be no first mover” (textbook). Aquinas concludes that the first initial mover was God.

1) Based on this research and analysis, how did your perspectives change, if any? Explain your rationale whether your views changed or remained the same.

Well unfortunately some believe their (omnipotent) God has all the answers and knows of every person’s next moves and what’s yet to come. I can somewhat agree with that but I don’t believe it is my duty to judge or prove the existence, and the all mighty power God has. I certainly am a believer of faith and that the existence of good and evil lies in all of us, regardless of the control God has over us. My opinion relates to how Aquinas believes that everyone’s consequences and endings they choose are because of the free choice God gives us all. As mentioned in the book, a great example that I find makes a perfect analogy is when he states, “He can create in a multitude of ways, No

I researched appropriate training content and materials that I might enjoy giving my skills demonstration on, I found I was evaluating my own effectiveness as a trainer as I scanned through different subject and sites, pursuing a subject that learners might find interesting and some content where I could apply my new communication skills.

To support Aquinas’ claim that money, honor, fame, power, goods of the body, or pleasure is not required for human happiness, one may cite they share ends for the sake of human beings. That is, their ends are meant only to fulfill human capacities

6) How would you apply the lessons learned in this project for future initiatives in the

Thomas Aquinas also had a critique of the ontological argument, that we as humans cannot know Gods nature, humans will all conceive of God in different ways, some conceptions of God even assign him a body; this argument couldn’t apply to all these conceptions, some of which are contradictory, this would mean it’s impossible to conceive of God in the way that Anselm has put forward. In order for the ontological argument to work you would need to know God perfectly, and since only God knows itself perfectly, only God could use this argument. The phrase “a being than which none greater can be imagined” is far too vague to be used in a strong argument.

Throughout the course of this essay, I will first define what Aquinas means by incorporating the claim that “an unjust law is no law at all”. This will include defining important terms that will correspond with evaluating Aquinas’ claim.

Thomas Aquinas’ fourth way discusses the subject of “degrees”. According to Aquinas, everything in our world has degrees. There must be an example of something so you can accurately define if it is more or less of a specific perfection. If an object is said to be hotter than another there must be an example of the hottest thing in order to know if it truly is the hottest thing by comparison. The “degrees” refer to being able to say that an object is most good or least good than another object in comparison.

1.) Thomas Aquinas believes that humans are born with a clean slate in a state of potency and acquire knowledge through sense experiences by abstraction of the phantasms. His view on how man acquires knowledge rejects Plato’s theory that humans are born with innate species. Along with Plato’s theory of humans understanding corporeal things through innate species, Aquinas also rejects Plato’s theory that in being born with innate species, humans spend their lives recollecting their knowledge.

For centuries The Five Ways, drawn from St. Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica have been studied, scrutinized, and at the epicenter of heated debate.

Utilizing Aristotle, Aquinas presents an organized system virtue. Aquinas divides virtues into the categories. Throughout the selected reading, Aquinas refers to four major virtues that he refers to as cardinal virtues. According to Aquinas’ writing, these four virtues are prudence, temperance, justice, and fortitude. Within, these four cardinal virtues reside various secondary virtues. These secondary virtues are parts of the cardinal virtue expressed in specific applications. Additionally, Aquinas refers to these virtues as theological virtues that are above man and belong to the realm of God. These cardinal virtues are universal and are fundamental for ethical decision-making. As individuals, we face ethical situations every day from the workplace to church. We use these four virtues in all of our decision-making. Each virtue plays a different role in our decision-making.

Thomas Aquinas claims Christianity is a science with the use of the writings of Aristotle on scientific knowledge. Aquinas also makes the claim that theology, or the study God, is a science accepted through Revelation. Faith provides ammunition for Aquinas to state that believers of Christianity have the affirmation of God already inside of them. This claim considered that divine writings were inspired by God. Aquinas stated, "The principles of any science are either in themselves self-evident, are reducible to the knowledge of a higher science are the principles of sacred doctrine." Once these documents had God’s authority approved by faith, they became indemonstrable knowledge,