Further Reading: Aquinas
Mike Reeves
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Mike Reeves is UCCF's Head of Theology. Follow him on Twitter @mike_reeves View all resources by Mike Reeves
Aquinas' style is so dry that he is extremely hard to digest if one bravely tries to read through the Summa Theologiae, one article after another; he is, however, so neat and methodical that it is a very easy work to dip into. And he is so lucid that he still makes himself perfectly understood without the need for any great mental effort by the reader (no mean feat after the best part of a millenium). In other words, the Summa - which is, quite obviously, the best place to get to know Aquinas - is genuinely open to the public.
The best version to use, both for reliability and ease, is the translation by the Fathers of the English Dominican Province. It is freely available online or in print in five volumes under the title Summa Theologica. There are abridgements, but the Summa is so easy to navigate that they are hardly necessary.
While it is now a little dated, James Weisheipl has written what is still perhaps the most useful single-volume introduction to the man and his thought, Thomas D'Aquino: His Life, Thought and Work.
Two more detailed - and quite brilliant - examinations of Aquinas' theology are Brian Davies' The Thought of Thomas Aquinas and Eleonore Stump's Aquinas.
