Augustine, Anselm, and Aquinas

REL 230 | PHL 268 | PHL

Spring 2008

The Third Paper

Due: May 5

Suggested length: 5-6 pages

Suggested topics:

Write a paper in which you give an exposition and evaluation of some aspect of St. Thomas' thought. You may, if you like, compare Thomas' treatment with that of Augustine or Anselm. A list--by no means exhaustive--of suggested topics follows:

Divine Simplicity (Ia, 3). (Cf. Monologion, 21-29; Proslogion, 28).
Divine Unchangeableness (Ia, 9). (Cf. Monologion, 25).
Divine Eternity (Ia, 10). (Cf. Monologion, 18-24).
Theological Language and the Names of God (Ia, 13).
One or more of The Five Ways. Cf. Patterson Brown, "St. Thomas' Doctrine of Necessary Being" and "Infinite Causal Regression," both in Aquinas: A Collection of Critical Essays, ed. Anthony Kenny; Kenny's own The Five Ways; and Robert Fogelin, "A Reading of Aquinas' Five Ways," American Philosophical Quarterly 27 (1990): 305-313.
Divine Omniscience (and foreknowledge) (Ia, 14).
Divine Omnipotence (Ia, 25).
Pick another topic in Aquinas that interests you.

Don't plagiarize: Remember to quote all words that are not your own and to indicate by citation the source of any ideas that are not your own. Information about the College's policy on academic honesty may be found at http://www.rochester.edu/College/honesty/. Violations of academic honesty will be taken very seriously and dealt with according to the terms of this policy.