1260–1274

Thomas Aquinas: The Synthesis of Reason and Revelation, the Summa contra Gentiles and the Summa Theologiae

Following Albert the Great, who distinguished philosophy and theology by their principles, Thomas distinguished truths accessible to reason from truths that surpass it: the articles of faith are above reason but do not contradict it. Philosophy is autonomous but not infallible; Aristotle was accepted with corrections (for example, against the eternity of the world). Grace does not destroy nature but perfects it – Lane compares the system to a two-story house. In the Summa contra Gentiles (early 1260s) books 1–3 argue from reason, and the fourth sets out the Trinity, the incarnation, the sacraments and the resurrection. The Summa Theologiae, intended to replace the Sentences, remained unfinished.