The End of an Era

and

the Continuation of a Legacy

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2009

2009Aquinas Lecture

Fr. Leo J. Elders, SVDProfessor of Philosophy at

Rolduc Seminary, The Netherlands

“The Ripest Fruit:”Aquinas as Commentator on the Letters of St. Paul

It is particularly fitting that, during the period which the Catholic Church has proclaimed The Year of St. Paul, the annual Aquinas Lecture at the

University of St. Thomas should focus on Thomas Aquinas as a Pauline commentator. It is only recently that Thomists have become interested in Aquinas’s biblical commentaries and have begun to discover the unsuspected treasures of these numerous texts. Thomas’s lectures on the Letters of Paul have been called “the ripest fruit and the most perfect example of medieval scholastic exegesis.”

Modern scriptural exegesis is marked by its philological and historical orientation. The medieval theologians, by contrast, examined in the

first place and above all the doctrine contained in the text and its relevance for the moral life. This makes the study of the commentaries of St. Thomas a spiritual excursion through Sacred Scripture. We listen in silence and open our mind as part of the history of salvation unfolds before our eyes.

UnIversIty of st. thoMasEducating Leaders of Faith and Character

AMERICAN MARITAIN ASSOCIATION

“ST. THOMAS & THE PROBLEM OF EVIL”

Renaissance Greenway Plaza Hotel, Houston, TX. October 22 – 24, 2009

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22nd

All Events at the Renaissance Hotel 7 – 9 pm – Conference Registration 6 pm – Opening Mass – Sam Rayburn Room

• Main Celebrant: Rev. Chris Cullen, S.J. Fordham University 6:45 pm – Welcome & Presidential Address – Century I Room

• John G. Trapani, Jr., Walsh University “The Teeth-Marks of Nothingness: Habit & the Innermost Hiding Place of Evil”

7:30 – 9:30 pm – Concurrent Sessions #1: Session T-1.1 – Politics and the Problem of Evil – Sam Rayburn Room Chair: Gavin Colvert, Assumption College

• Jose Enrique Puente, Instituto Jacques Maritain De Cuba Political Evil and Providence

• Jose Maria J. Yulo, Academy of Art University The Fall of the Greatest Good: Political Evil from Augustine to Machiavelli

• Benjamin Smith, Aquinas College Politics, Happiness, and Friendship: Thomas Aquinas on the Common Good Session T-1.2 – Ethical & Theologico/Political Problems – Camellia Room Chair: John G. Trapani, Jr., Walsh University

• Herbert Hartmann, Southern Catholic College Jerusalem and Athens Revisited

• Nikolaj Zunic, St. Jerome’s University The Measure of Morality

• Richard Rolwing, Independent Scholar The Problem of Good Session T-1.3 – Classical Treatments & Modern Twists – Camellia Room Chair: James Hanink, Loyola Marymount University

• Nicholas Case, Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York Exploring the Intersection of Aristotelian Causality and Thomas’ Definition of God

• Maria Picone, Rice University Three Paradoxes of Plotinus: Evil’s Origin, Effects, and Characteristics

• Sergey Trostyanskiy, Union Theological Seminary Origen of Alexandria and Frege: Scriptural Interpretations & Contemporary Semantics 9:30 pm – Reception: Sponsored by Walsh University – Greenway Foyer

Joint BA/MA Degree in Philosophy The BA/MA Program in the Philosophy Department and Center for Thomistic Studies allows qualified UST philosophy majors (or double majors) to earn a BA and an MA in philosophy in 5 years instead of the standard 6.5. Students receive the BA after completing all requirements for a UST undergraduate degree and the MA after completing all remaining requirements of the BA/MA Program.

• Philosophy is a growing major. “Nationwide, there are more colleges offering undergraduate philosophy programs today than a decade ago (817, up from 765), according to the College Board”(NY Times, April 6, 2008). Fordham (FCLC), City University of New York and Rutgers had twice as many philosophy majors in 2008 than in 2002 and at Texas A&M, Notre Dame, the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, philosophy majors have doubled since the 1990s. A 2002 Boston College Chronicle (Oct 31, v. 11, 5) article reported the number of philosophy majors as “the highest in 20 years”.

• Admission to philosophy Ph.D. programs is extremely competitive and students significantly improve their academic profile with an M.A. degree: writing samples, GRE scores and letters of recommendation are all likely to improve. These same advantages accrue to students seeking admission to law school or to Ph.D. programs in related disciplines.

ADMISSIONS

• Students apply in the Junior year • Requirements:

− 18 hrs of Philosophy − 3.5 GPA in Philosophy and 3.3 overall − CLASS 1331- 1332 (Latin) or the equivalent − Two letters of recommendation from Philosophy faculty − GREs are not required

Students are eligible for regular UST financial aid, and the Cullen Undergraduate Scholarships in Philosophy. THE PROGRAM 30 hr. of graduate philosophy: including (1) PHIL 5314 Aquinas on Human Nature (2) PHIL 5338 Thomistic Ethics (3) PHIL 5304 Thomistic Metaphysics (4) PHIL 5359 Introduction to Philosophical Latin (5) PHIL 5334 M.A. Comprehensive Exam Course or PHIL 5300 M.A. Thesis. and 15 hrs. of electives.

1st year: students take 12 hrs. of graduate philosophy courses, including PHIL 5359 Philosophical Latin, and at least one of the following: PHIL 5314 Aquinas on Human Nature

PHIL 5338 Thomistic Ethics PHIL 5304 Thomistic Metaphysics

2nd year: students take 18 hrs. of graduate philosophy courses including either PHIL 5334 M.A. Comprehensive Exam Course or PHIL 5300 M.A. Thesis.

These are dual-credit courses, i.e., they count towards both the BA and the MA.

On the seven hundredth anniversary of the death of ThomasAquinas (1974), Pope Paul VI called him “the light of theChurch and of the whole world”. The Second VaticanCouncil’s Declaration on Christian Education (1965), singleshim out as the exemplar for harmonizing faith and reason inthe pursuit of truth. Yet since the Council, there has been aconsistent refrain of “Should Old Aquinas Be Forgot”,questioning the relevance of Thomas’ philosophy to thecontemporary church. Some have even argued thatThomism, “imposed” by Leo XIII in Aeterni Patris (1879) , was“abrogated” by John Paul II in Veritatis splendor (1993). IsThomas Aquinas still the “common doctor” of the Church?Should his philosophy and theology still have a special placein the curricula of Catholic universities and seminaries?This lecture will seek an answer to these questions in theencouragement that is found in recent papal documents,including those of Benedict XVI, for the study of St. ThomasAquinas in seminaries and universities and will discuss theimportance of such study at this critical juncture in the historyof Catholic universities in North America and worldwide.

Archbishop Miller holds a B.A. (1969) from TheUniversity of Toronto and an M.A. (1970) from theUniversity of Wisconsin, both in Latin AmericanStudies. He received an S.T.L. (1976) and anS.T.D. (1979) at the Pontifical GregorianUniversity. Archbishop Miller served as thePresident of the University of St. Thomas (1997-2004) and Secretary of the Congregation forCatholic Education (2003-2008) He has beenArchbishop of Vancouver since 2009.Archbishop Miller is the author of 7 books andover 150 articles and is a member of the AdvisoryBoard of the Center for Thomistic Studies.

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Archbishop of Vancouver, BC

2010 AQUINAS LECTURE

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Free and open to the publicParking available in Moran Parking Center: Graustark and West Alabama

For more information, call 713-525-3591

Educating Leaders of Faith and Character

Center for Thomistic Studiespresents

The Church’s “Common Doctor:”

Thomas Aquinas and the Contemporary

Catholic University

Aquinas Lecture and Reception, 2010

Archbishop J. Michael Miller, CSB

The Church’s “Common Doctor”: Thomas Aquinas and the Contemporary Catholic University

Aquinas Lecture Reception, 2011

Dr. Peter Kreeft

Thomistic Personalism: A Marriage Made in Heaven, Hell, or Harvard

Matthew Levering received his Ph.D. in Theology from Boston

College (2000) and taught at Ave Maria University before

moving to the University of Dayton. He was the Myser Fellow at

the Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of Notre

Dame (2006-2007) and has served as Chair of the Board of the

Academy of Catholic Theology since 2007 and with Hans

Boersma, co-directs the Center for Catholic-Evangelical

Dialogue. Dr. Levering has published in numerous journals

including The Thomist, Nova et Vetera, American Catholic

Philosophical Quarterly, and First Things. The author, editor,

translator or co-editor of over 19 books, his most current book,

Predestination is forthcoming from Oxford Press.

Can we know God’s existence and attributes by reflection upon

the good things that we see around us? If we can know God in

this way, why do we also need to know him through his self-

revelation in Jesus Christ? Put another way, is the God of the

Greek philosophers the same God whom we encounter in

Jesus, and if the God that we know in these two ways is indeed

the same, can we make do with one way alone? It may seem

that believers in the incarnate Son of God have little stake in

also holding that we can know God through natural reason,

especially now that relatively few philosophers think that

philosophical labors can attain to knowledge of the living God.

Dr. Levering will argue that Christians should hold that God’s

existence, along with certain other attributes, can be

demonstrated by natural reason on the basis of material things.

Romans 1:20

and

Our Natural

Knowledge

of God

Educating Leaders of Faith and Character

Dr. Matthew Levering

Professor of Religious Studies

University of Dayton

Thursday, January 26

7:30 p.m.

Jones Hall

3910 Yoakum

Free and open to the public

For more information, call 713-525-3591

2012 Aquinas Lecture

Aquinas Lecture Reception, 2012

Dr. Matthew Levering

Romans 1:20 and Our Natural Knowledge of God