The life and spiritual teachings of the Catholic Church's greatest classical theologian as seen through the eyes of a contemporary theologian. Robert Barron examines the life and work of Catholicism's premier scholar and discovers a saintly deep in love with Jesus Christ.
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53 of 57 people found the following review helpful
By Sammy Jo
Format:Paperback
The great achievement of Robert Barron's little book on the Angelic Doctor is that he points the reader to the spiritual quest that lies at the heart of Aquinas' seemingly arid intellectual inquiry.
For too long, the scholastics in general and Aquinas in particular have been accused of overintellectualizing about the mysteries of faith. An overemphasis on reason is presented as squelching our embrace of the mysteries of faith. On the contrary, as Barron argues, the scholastic effort to find theological precision was an effort to clear away the stumbling blocks to faith that our false notions of God can present. Whether we mean to or not, we do have concrete ideas about the mystery of God. To the extent that our ideas are mistaken, our faith can never lead us to the heart of the True Mystery we seek. Aquinas' project was to clear away the dead-ends our unexamined reason produces for us, so that we can find our way to the abyss of God.
Barron has the great gift of making Aquinas' theology come alive for the lay reader. For anyone seeking the great adventure of coming to know God better both through reason and faith, I recommend this book most highly.
30 of 37 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
In this helpful little book, Barron saves Thomas from the dry treatments his theology often receives in the secondary literature. To be sure, Barron is less interested in interpreting Thomas as a historical figure, and more concerned to show the relevance of Thomas for Christians today. In fact, Barron may often go too far in taking Thomas out of his medieval context. For example, Barron emphasizes the centrality of Christ for Thomas's theology (something rarely argued). While this is in a sense true, more textual argument is required to establish this point for scholars who are accustomed to seeing Thomas as more interested in philosophy than Christian theology. Barron may too quickly make Thomas a dialogue-partner with 20th century theology. All this said, the book remains a joy to read and a helpful introduction to Thomas for those teaching undergraduates or seminary students. After all, Thomas's dry writing is meant to do nothing less than lead the reader into the wonder at the center of the Christian life, which is most profoundly revealed in Christ. I must personally thank Barron for helping me remember this as I wade through Thomas's often less-than-exciting texts.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By M. Richard
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Excellent insights. Aquinas can be challenging, but this book serves as a strong introduction as well as to deepen the understanding of Aquinas for those with some familiarity with his work. Highly recommended.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thomas Acquinas made easy to understand!
A wonderful book. Fr. Barron has a way of making Aquinas easy to understand by his examples and explanations. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Janice M. Olmes
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Mind Opener
Stay with Fr. Barron through his take on one of the worlds greatest thinkers and you'll end up a much happier and enlitghtened person.
Published 2 months ago by Uncle Bob
5.0 out of 5 stars
a must read for the serious student of theology and spirituality
i have been interested in the subject of St. Thomas Aquinas and Fr. Barron makes him come alive in his book. He also bring the reader into the role St. Read more
Published 2 months ago by joan b galbraith
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Treatise on Physical Reality and Ultimate Reality
Father Barron did a credible job explaining the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). Father Barron explained Aquinas' work without getting into complex details which readers... Read more
Published 15 months ago by James E. Egolf
1.0 out of 5 stars
Dominatrix Barron Wants To "Discipline" The Sciences
I am going to review this book on the basis of Padre Barron's video posted on his entertainment site "Word on Fire" for the feast of Thomas Aquinas. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Peter P. Fuchs
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very good, but ...
I don't know much about St. Thomas, so I don't know if Robert Barron has adequately summarized him. But I like what he has to say. It's good stuff, and very worthwhile reading. Read more
Published on June 5, 2003 by Greg Krehbiel
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