The Thomistic Institute

Thomas Aquinas on Religious Vocations | Fr. Andrew Hofer, OP

Oct 28, 2019
Fr. Andrew Hofer, OP, a Dominican priest specializing in the theology of Thomas Aquinas, discusses how Aquinas' religious vocation influenced his writings. Topics include Aquinas' concerns on religious vocations, virtues of poverty, chastity, and obedience, guidance for discernment, and the beauty of the desire for a religious vocation.
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ANECDOTE

Young Thomas Sent To Monte Cassino

  • Thomas Aquinas was sent to Monte Cassino at age five and spent ten years there before going to Naples and joining the Dominicans.
  • He resisted family pressure and legendary temptations, famously carving a cross with a firebrand and receiving an angelic gift of chastity.
INSIGHT

Summa Is A Guide For Young Friars

  • The Summa was written primarily for young Dominican friars, so its 'beginner' audience is novices in religious life rather than general philosophy students.
  • Its structure moves from God to human transformation and culminates in questions about religious life and vocation.
INSIGHT

Religious Life As The End Of Christian Happiness

  • Aquinas frames human action by final causality: every life has an end and everyone seeks happiness, which requires God's grace.
  • The Secunda (second part) analyzes virtues, gifts, and finally presents religious life as ordered to charity and worship.
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