Saint Aquinas Thomas

Born around 1225 in Roccasecca, Italy, Thomas Aquinas became a Dominican friar, priest, and scholar at a time when ancient philosophy was being rediscovered in medieval Europe. He studied under Albertus Magnus and went on to teach and write in major intellectual centers including Paris and Italy.

Aquinas is best known for works such as the Summa Theologiae and the Summa contra Gentiles. Drawing deeply on Aristotle as well as Christian tradition, he asked big questions about God, human nature, law, virtue, and knowledge, and answered them with unusual clarity and order.

He died in 1274 while traveling to the Second Council of Lyon. Later canonized as a saint, he is widely regarded as a central figure in Scholasticism and remains a major voice for readers interested in philosophy, theology, and the meeting of reason and belief.