Charity as the Perfection of Natural Friendship in Aquinas' Summa Theologiae

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Date
2006-04
Authors
Ney, Philip
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Lethbridge Undergraduate Research Journal
Abstract
In contrast to many of today's sectarian religious figures, Thomas Aquinas was interested in engaging the best of secular philosophy; seeing what his tradition could gain from philosophy and how his tradition could contribute to philosophy. Speaking from within the Christian tradition, he offers helpful insights that contribute to our understanding of Aristotle. Aquinas' writings are largely devoted to the project of demonstrating that the works of Aristotle are complementary to, and in agreement with, Christianity. The excerpts of Summa Theologiae examined in this paper deal with friendship and are a sample of Aquinas' larger project. This paper examines how Aquinas undertakes to reconcile the Christian idea of charity (love for enemies) with Aristotle's conception of preferential friendship. Aquinas' finding is that in Christian charity, the classical understanding of friendship has been perfected by grace.
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Keywords
Summa theologica , Thomas, Aquinas , Philosophy
Citation
Ney, Philip (2006). Charity as the Perfection of Natural Friendship in Aquinas' Summa Theologiae. Lethbridge Undergraduate Research Journal, 1(1).