| rdfs:comment | - Eighteen months into his pontificate, Pope Leo XIII, formerly Joachim Pecci, cardinal and bishop of Perugia, published the encyclical Aeterni Patris (“Of the Eternal Father”). The aim of the encyclical was to aid and advance the restoration of Christian philosophy, which had fallen into danger and disrepute by adhering to modern trends in secular philosophy, by urging a return to the scholastic thinkers of the Middle Ages, most especially the “Angelic Doctor” St. Thomas Aquinas. The encyclical attempts to clarify the roles of faith and philosophy, showing how most beneficially each may profit from the other. And according to the encyclical, the philosophy most conformable and useful for the faith is that of St. Thomas. The vigorous reintroduction of St. Thomas into the Catholic philosophic
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| abstract | - Eighteen months into his pontificate, Pope Leo XIII, formerly Joachim Pecci, cardinal and bishop of Perugia, published the encyclical Aeterni Patris (“Of the Eternal Father”). The aim of the encyclical was to aid and advance the restoration of Christian philosophy, which had fallen into danger and disrepute by adhering to modern trends in secular philosophy, by urging a return to the scholastic thinkers of the Middle Ages, most especially the “Angelic Doctor” St. Thomas Aquinas. The encyclical attempts to clarify the roles of faith and philosophy, showing how most beneficially each may profit from the other. And according to the encyclical, the philosophy most conformable and useful for the faith is that of St. Thomas. The vigorous reintroduction of St. Thomas into the Catholic philosophical teaching was perceived by many as a bold and unprecedented step by the new pope. Indeed, since the French Revolution, most pontiffs had preferred to condemn the errors in contemporary philosophy, not to recommend explicitly a return to the old. The encyclical, however, was no surprise to any acquainted with Cardinal Pecci, who had for years been spearheading a Thomistic renaissance in the schools in his diocese of Perugia. The interpretations and effects of the encyclical have been varied, some using it to authorize a return to a strict adherence to St. Thomas, others believing the document urges more a return to the spirit of Thomistic thinking. However various the effects may have been, the document has at least succeeded in reestablishing since its promulgation St. Thomas as a central figure in Catholic philosophy.
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