St. Thomas Aquinas (Feast Day: January 28) was a13th century Domincan priest and scholar. Thomas Aquinas is one of the most influential theologians in the history of the Catholic Church. His most important work is the Summa Theologica, and he believed that God gave us reason to help us understand matters of faith — “faith seeking reason.” He is the patron saint of scholars and theologians, and the Church has given him the title “The Angelic Doctor” to honor the beauty of his philosophy. Near the end of his life, Thomas stopped working on his Summa, saying: “I can not … All that I have written seems to me like so much straw compared to what I have seen and what has been revealed to me.” Thomas’ work continues to be central to modern Catholic theology, wrestling with questions of reason and faith and pushing the human intellect to its limits as it seeks to understand the divine.

Questions for Reflection:

• Do you see any conflict between faith and reason … between science and religion?
• What intellectual problems arise for you in your own contemplation of God?
• When faced with mystery, do you simply accept it, or do you attempt to understand it as much as possible?