The Thomistic Institute Flirting with Happiness: Aquinas on the Good Life – Fr. Alan O'Sullivan, O.P.
Jan 27, 2026
Fr. Alan O'Sullivan, O.P., chaplain at Trinity College Dublin and Thomist theologian, unpacks Aquinas on the good life. He contrasts candidates for happiness like wealth, fame, power, and pleasure with true beatitude. He explains imperfect versus perfect happiness, the role of virtue and intellect, and why union with God is presented as the ultimate good.
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Happiness As Active Human Flourishing
- Eudaimonia describes human flourishing as an active, shared, and objective state rather than mere subjective feeling.
- Aristotle ties happiness to virtuous activity and the exercise of the intellect toward higher truths.
Twofold Happiness: Imperfect And Perfect
- St. Thomas distinguishes imperfect (earthly) happiness from perfect (transcendent) happiness.
- Imperfect happiness participates in and foreshadows the perfect beatitude given by union with God.
Wealth's Short-Lived Satisfaction
- Material wealth delights briefly then prompts desire for newer goods, so it cannot be the sovereign good.
- Temporal goods fail to provide lasting satisfaction because we quickly tire of possessions.
