Thomas Aquinas's Summa theologiae

The life and times of the most important theological work of medieval Christendom Thomas Aquinass Summa theologiae holds a unique place in Western religion and philosophy. Written between 1266 and 1273, it was conceived by Aquinas as an instructional guide for teachers and novices and a compendium of all the approved teachings of the Catholic Church. It synthesizes an astonishing range of scholarship, covering hundreds of topics and containing more than a million and a half wordsand was still unfinished at the time of Aquinass death. Bernard McGinn, one of todays most acclaimed scholars of medieval Christianity, traces the remarkable life of this iconic work, examining Aquinass reasons for writing it, its subject matter, and the novel way he organized it. McGinn looks at the influence of Aquinass masterpiece on such giants of medieval Christendom as Meister Eckhart, its ridicule during the Enlightenment, the role of the Summa in the postVatican II church, and the books enduring relevance today.