St. Thomas Aquinas Biography
St Thomas Aquinas was born in c.1225 at a place called Roccasecca, in Italy. His birth took place in his fathers' castle whose ruins are still visible up-to-date. These are usually seen between Rome and Naples. He was a priest of the catholic denomination. Besides this, he was also a professor and a philosopher. His physical appearance was of a fair complexion. His father's name was Landulph and his mother's name was Theodora. His name at birth was Tommaso d'Aquiono. He was the sixth born in their family. His hobbies involved reading Aristotle's works and scholasticism. During his life, he wrote many books of theology and philosophy (Elders 320). He went to Montecassino for early studies and later went to the university of Naples. During the age of nine years, Thomas was taken to Cassino, where he was to be educated in the Benedictine school under the care of a teacher. He was at the school for five years where he gained more knowledge concerning the religious teachings and also proved high degree intelligence. He later went to reunite with his parents after school. At fourteen, he joined the University of Naples for an undergraduate course that took seven years. He was under the care of his tutor (Elders 189).
When he was nineteen, his desire to become a Dominican was fulfilled. The ceremony took place without the knowledge of his family members. Later, when the news of him becoming a Dominican reached his family at Roccasecca, they were all unhappy. They never expected him to hold such a lowly esteemed, unrecognized and scorned position. His mother went to persuade him to return home but the elders of the Dominican took him to Rome. His mother was furious and ordered his brothers who served the army in Tuscany to bring him back home. Despite much persuasion to shift from being a Dominican, he stood firm to the fact that he was never to quit that position. He died on March 7th, 1274 at Fossanova, Italy (Elders 325).
St. Thomas Aquinas held many positions during his lifetime. He was a philosopher, a professor, and a priest. He was born in Italy to Landulph and Theodora. His parents were of a royal family lineage. They were related to the Emperors Henry V1 and Frederick 11. They also had a family relationship with kings of Casile, Aragon and king of France. When he was five, he was taken to Benedictine school where he learned more about religious life. His diligence in philosophy was noted there despite being taught about religion. Thomas career is said to have been foretold by a holy hermit who before his birth said to Theodora that during his times no one will equal him, he will be of great intelligence and purity and that he will be one of the great preachers. As it was prophesied about him, he had great intelligence and purity. He was wise, dedicated to prayers and he frequently his tutor what God is. In 1236, he was enrolled at the University of Naples where he learned for seven years (Wippel 400). While in this school, it is where he developed the desire to become a Dominican. After revealing this to his tutor, he advised him to meditate for three years before making up his mind completely. He was much determined all through these three years and in early 1244, when he was nineteen, he was clothed like brothers preachers without informing his family members. His mother received the news with furiousness and went to persuade him to return home. They considered the rank he had obtained to be of low level and not esteemed. When the Dominicans heard that his mother wanted him back home, they fled him to Rome where they had their convent. This catalyst his mothers' furiousness and she ordered his brothers who served the army to get him back home. He was later taken home but the persuasions to leave the Dominican bore no fruits (Wippel 450).
According to Thomas, God existence cannot be proven through lab test or experimental sciences. Therefore, to convince people that God really existed, he came up with five proofs based on natural reasons to arrive at his conclusions.
Aquinas' five Proofs
Thomas meditated and later came up with five proofs to show that there exists a supreme being by the name God.
First Mover
The first proof argues that the things in the universe have the ability to move. For something to move, another thing must have been involved to move it from its stationary state. This is the conversion from potential to actual motion or rather from potential to reality. Human beings have senses which also prove that some things are in motion. Human beings also have a sense judging between what is right and what is wrong despite them having differences in culture. He argues that only actual motion can make a potential object to gain motion. Whichever motion initiated the whole sequence had no mover and so we all get to understand that this is God (Wippel 500).
First Cause
The second proof is the fact that for anything to exist it must be caused by another. For any event to take place, it must have been caused by another one outside itself. All this have a long series of the causes and there ends up having one with no cause. A being that initiated the creations must be there. A being that is beyond the explanation of physics, nature and even time, Therefore, God comes in to be the cause of all this. The series of cause cannot go beyond Ad infinitum. From such argument, God exists (Wippel 550).
Necessary Being
The third proof is about possibility and necessity. It is possible for things in nature to happen or not to happen. Things exist and come to an end. Nothing could exist always so there was a time when nothing used to exist and later, something triggered these things and caused their existence. If this had never happened, nothing could be in existence now. Whatever triggered the existence of the things must have its own kind of existence that is not caused by any other factor and this must be God (Paterson &Matthew, 2006).
Greatest Being
The fourth proof is that objects come in different levels of degree. This can also be known as extremum. This is also called the reduction argument. Some items have a greater or lesser, better or worse than others. Reference of degrees must usually have an uttermost case from which they are referred. The maximum of any reference must be the one that caused all that which are in that lineage. Therefore, in all beings, there must be a cause or uttermost of their being and that is God (Wippel 460).
Intelligent Designer
The fifth proof of Aquinas is based on design. This is also called the teleological argument. He argues that there must be a supernatural designer who designed everything on the universe and on earth. Everything on earth and universe is seen to have a design and so a designer who did all this must be existing nature could not be the designer for this because of the components used to design the object. There is no plan or purpose followed during the creation of all this. Some objects aiming for an end have a mind in them while others do not. Those without mind must be operating through the powers of a more mindful thing and that is God (Wippel 460).
Flaws of Aquinas theories
Despite giving out some pieces of evidence to show the existence of God, Aquinas theories have been flawed by some philosophy experts with some pieces of evidence.
Aquinas theory based on the motion has been flawed through a number of arguments. Questions about what motivated God to move at first have been left unanswered. Logically, this argues that God might either been moving ever since before or has not been moving before. Then, what is the source of energy for God to move? Aquinas argued that nothing moves by itself and therefore one wonders who or what triggered God to move? Scientifically, it is said that the first static force to was unconscious energy. All matter, energy, space and motions on earth are considered to have an origin when some parameters are looked into. The major question is what initiated the motion of God and where it was from. There is no necessity for the first mover to be a supernatural being. Everything is considered to move in accordance with something else. From one stage of state to another, it moves with relevance to another existing one (Paterson &Matthew, 2006).
Causation states that for the existence of anything is usually caused by another one. Then if this is correct, then, what caused God to exist? What made it possible for him to exist by himself? Aquinas says that nothing can cause the existence of itself. There has been a wonder as to how God caused the existence of himself. Scientifically, E = mc2 is an equation is used to represent that energy can be reversed to matter and matter to energy as well. It is known that matter and energy have been in existence. The only thing known to cause itself is sub-atomic particles observed in laboratory experiments (Chesterton, 2007). Again, the first mover does not have to be a supernatural being. There are many potential events in the universe and in the world.
Aquinas says that for a thing to exist it must be caused by another. Scientists say that there may be changes in the universe even without anything causing them. Things can change by themselves more so in a universe full of chaos. Virtual particles and the big bang go against this assumption. The M-Theory models and the "parallel universe" Oppose this too. God is considered to be part of everything and so something must have caused His being.
About the argument on degree and perfection, the flaw that steps in is that there is a degree of cruelty, and then god must be the cruelest being. Logically this may look true. Both good and bad attributes may be used to describe God in these since bad attributes also have a degree of perfection (Chesterton, 2007).
The argument on design is considered as scientifically and logically false. However, it has been used by theologians to argue that there is God. It does not mean that there must be a designer even though the world is well arranged. People argue that if all these objects in the universe must have a designer, who then designed God because He is said to have great intelligence? Besides having a purposeful designer, the world also has some objects that required no design to be formed (Chesterton, 2007). There is a flaw to design that says anything to have a design; it must simply another one of the same design. Therefore, God must have been designed by a more complex designer. Else, if he had no designer, then not every requires a designer.
A number of flaws state that the presence of God has no evidence and is beyond any kind of proof. The five proofs are seen as statements about divine qualities and not about God. Unlike human beings, God is simple and has no composition of parts. Living beings have body and soul .non living beings have a composition of matter and form. God is also believed to be self-sufficient and hence does not require any external matter to be complete.
Aquinas' proofs have triggered many questions .there are those who believe that these are only descriptions of a holy being and not exactly God. Most of the things proved here to coincide with the religious faiths of many Catholics. There has been no exact proof about them but are only beliefs. Therefore, some Christians will refute the existence of God. In real terms, to prove that something exists comes along with evidence. Atheists have flawed theses proofs with unmoved determination.
St. Thomas Aquinas was born in a family that was religious. He grew up also to uphold morals and later wrote about why he thought God was real. Just as it had been prophesied about him, he grew up a person of good morals and led a life worth the fear of God. He lived from the year 1225 to 1274 where he later died at Fossanova in Italy. His death is said to have been caused by sickness at the Cistercian monastery of Fossanova. He was buried at Sant'Eustorgio in Italy. He died as the leading Catholicism's theologian. Throughout his school life, he always wondered what God was and he later came to write about him. He has outlined this in five theories (Chesterton, 2007). These are the argument on the motion, the argument on existence, the argument on possibility and necessity, the argument on the degree and lastly the argument on design. All of St Thomas Aquinas' proofs have been opposed and proposed at the same time. These are among other theories that have been used to proof the existence of God. He was clothed as a Dominican and in 1268; he was a teacher in Rome and Bologna. At the same time, he was responsible for the affairs of the church .he wrote a book called summa theological that focused more on works of faith and Aristotle. However, he died before he completed writing this book. The book was divided into three, one part talked about God, the other about a man and the last one about God-Man. Aquinas also studied at cologne under the care of St. Albert the Great. While here, he was nicknamed as "dumb ox" due to his enormous body size and his silence (Chesterton, 2007).
During his life, he was devoted to prayers and educated people on how to live a holy life. He died at an age of 49 years. He is still remembered as the leading Catholicism theologian.
Conclusion
St. Thomas Aquinas was born in a family that was religious. He grew up also to uphold morals and later wrote about why he thought God was real. Just as it had been prophesied about him, he grew up a person of good morals and led a life worth the fear of God. He lived from the year 1225 to 1274 where he later died at Fossanova in Italy He fell sick and died. He was buried at Sant'Eustorgio in Italy (Martin & Aquinas 190). He died as the leading Catholicism's theologian. Throughout his school life, he always wondered what God was and he later came to write about him. He has outlined this in five theories. These are the argument on the motion, the argument on existence, the argument on possibility and necessity, the argument on the degree and lastly the argument on design. All of St Thomas Aquinas' proofs have been opposed and also proposed at the same time. This is among other theories that have been used to proof the existence of God. He was clothed as a Dominican and in 1268; he was a teacher in Rome and Bologna. At the same time, he was responsible for the affairs of the church. He wrote a book called summa theological that focused more on works of faith and Aristotle (Martin & Aquinas 210). However, he died before he completed writing this book. The book was divided into three, one part talked about God, the other about a man and the last one about God-Man. During his life, he was devoted to prayers and educated people on how to live a holy life. He died at an age of 49 years. He is still remembered as the leading Catholicism theologian. He is mostly remembered during every 28th of January, this is the day when his feast is celebrated. His death is said to have been caused by sickness. During his death, he was accompanied by Brother Reginald on their way to a council of Lyons where Aquinas would be a papal consultant. He was announced as a doctor of the church on 1567.aquinas was buried at Toulouse. His tomb is known to be in the Basilica of St. Sernin at Toulouse (Martin & Aquinas 215). He is associated with a number of items all with different meanings along with them: a sacramental cup symbolizing how he upheld the meaning of sacrament, a dove or the sun on his breast showing the inspiration he had from the Holy Spirit.
