Steven Long's book on Pure Nature

My friend from many years back, and Ave Maria University publishing fiend, Steven Long, has published his book on natura pura at Fordham University Press (link). Here is a scrape from the Fordham University Press site:

From speculative theology to the exegesis of Aquinas, to contemporary North American philosophy and Catholic social and ethical thought, to the thought of Benedict XVI, this work argues the crucial importance of the proportionate natural end within the context of grace and supernatural beatitude.

In two initial chapters, the book argues that Henri de Lubac and Hans Urs von Balthasar erred by negating the proportionate natural end for man within the doctrine of grace. Given the loss of natura within theological method, its recovery requires philosophic instrumentalities. In its third chapter, this book argues that the analytic thought so widespread in Anglophone circles cannot replace the role of classical Thomism within theology. The fourth chapter argues against those who construe affirmation of a proportionate natural end as equivalent to social Pelagianism, engaging the work of Jacques Maritain, Jean Porter, and David Schindler, Sr. In an appendix, the author examines the early thought of Cardinal Ratzinger / Pope Benedict XVI, and its development toward the Regensburg Lecture.

The late Ralph McInerny thought highly of it, and it’s been mentioned on an Italian blog! Long has another book coming out through ND Press.

Medieval Jewish Moral and Political Philosophy

I have met Jonathan Jacobs (Colgate University [Faculty Page]) a few times at Liberty Fund symposia, and very much enjoyed his interventions at those gatherings. He recently shared the news that his book on Medieval Jewish moral and political philosophy is now published by Oxford University Press. Jon says:

Please pardon the self-promotion; my Law, Reason, and Morality in Medieval Jewish Philosophy was very recently published by Oxford. It is currently available in the U.K. and will be available in the U.S. in several weeks. Like many books these days, it is quite expensive but you might consider asking your library to purchase a copy. It is mainly a study of the moral psychology and moral epistemology of some medieval Jewish philosophers [Maimonides, Saadia, and Bahya]… thinkers supplying resources and insights of enduring relevance. It also includes discussion of their conceptions of free will, the virtues, the relation between the rational justification of practical requirements and revelation, and also the differences and the overlap between their moral epistemology and that of natural law theorizing and approaches through practical wisdom. I’m trying to help make some of these thinkers ‘more people’s business.’

You can see the OUP page devoted to the book here.

Publishing on Aquinas

Which good academic presses might be interested in publishing a book manuscript in philosophy about Aquinas?

The question arose among my colleagues. Admittedly, the expression “good press” could be understood in a variety of ways. Notions of prestige, editorial services offered to authors, or even royalty terms might be deciding factors.

The evaluation of prospective presses is not just important to potential authors. Rank and tenure committees need to make judgments too. The European Science Foundation ranked journals in philosophy and theology/religious studies in 2007, but it has not yet published its next phase: a ranking of academic book publishers. No doubt this second venture will be as controversial as the first. We’ve all seen that side comments about presses occasionally creep up in book reviews (one might think of this example). Moreover, at least one publisher seeks to forestall problems by requiring its authors to provide a letter from a departmental dean or chair testifying that publication with the press will count for promotion at the author’s university.

The question about where to publish a philosophy monograph on Aquinas overlaps with a more general one: which presses publish books on the history of philosophy? Some outlets have ceased to accept manuscripts (see here and here), and it is not difficult to identify presses that have published great books in the past but haven’t been active in the area in recent years. The good news is that many academic presses continue to publish exegetical works in philosophy. The Association of American University Presses identifies 36 presses with active lists in the history of philosophy, and this count omits overseas university presses and all commercial academic publishers.

For me, the first English-language presses that immediately come to mind for shopping a manuscript on some aspect of Aquinas’s philosophy include:

• The Catholic University of America Press
• Brill Academic Publishers
• Cambridge University Press
• Oxford University Press
• The University of Notre Dame Press

There are, of course, other good publishers that publish widely in the history of philosophy with some books on medieval philosophy. Examples of commercial presses are: Routledge, Springer, Peeters, and Continuum. Examples of university presses are: Penn State, SUNY, Georgetown, Fordham, Marquette, and Edinburgh. Also, I’ll note that I’ve heard rumors of one press of former glory planning to reconstitute its publishing program in philosophy.

I’m sure there are presses that I have missed from the listings above. Those writing in theology might have other options than the ones I have identified. So, I invite readers to offer suggestions in the comments section below.

English translation of Aquinas's Sermons

Mark-Robin Hoogland C.P. (1969), Passionist priest and member of the ‘Thomas Instituut’ in Utrecht has just published his English translation of twenty sermons of Thomas Aquinas at The Catholic University of America Press.

The critical edition of these sermons, prepared by the late Father Bataillon, is about to be published in the Editio Leonina.

Download here the PDF from the Catholic University of America Press.

We thank the Fathers Bataillon and Hoogland for this inestimable service to the Thomistic community!

Dewan books in Spanish

This in, from Liliana Irizar of the Universidad Sergio Arboleda in Columbia:

I am writing to you to tell you that two books, Fundamentos metafísicos de la ética and Lecciones de metafísica have just come out! The first contains Fr. Dewan’s lessons of the Seminar which was given by him here, in Colombia, during his stay in September 2008. The second is a compilation of some of his Metaphysics’ classes and several relevant Metaphysical articles.

It’s important to note that Fr. Stephen L. Brock wrote the prologue for the Lecciones de metafísica and Professor Jason West wrote prologue for the second book.

Liliana also provided pictures of the covers for each book (click on the pictures below for the original resolution).

Collection of essays by Leo Elders s.v.d.

The Dutch Thomist Leo Elders s.v.d. has collected some of his published and unpublished essays, written during the last thirty years or so. Together they comprise over 900 pages and are collected in two volumes, published by Éditions Parole et Silence and Les Presses Universitaires de l’IPC.

The volumes are entitled:

Au coeur de la philosophie de saint Thomas d’Aquin, Parole et Silence/Presses Universitaires de l’IPC, Paris, 2009, 357 p. ISBN 987-2-84573-792-1

 Sur les traces de saint Thomas d’Aquin : Étude de ses commentaires bibliques. Thèmes théologiques, Parole et Silence/Presses Universitaires de l’IPC, Paris, 2009, 590 p. ISBN 987-2-84573-813-3

Here is the description of the theology-volume and the table of contents :

“Ce livre est le pendant du recueil Au coeur de la philosophie de saint Thomas, déjà publie par Parole et Silence et les presses de I’IPC. Le lecteur trouvera une série de neuf articles portant sur les leçons du Docteur Commun sur plusieurs textes de la Bible, sa doctrine de l’inspiration et sa méthode en exégèse. Ces essais montrent la grande richesse et la profondeur de ces commentaires, relativement peu étudiés. Une deuxième série de quatorze articles concerne des questions théologiques: la présence des Pères dans les écrits de Thomas, la paternité de Dieu, la christologie, sa doctrine de la Loi nouvelle comme la grâce du Saint-Esprit, la théologie de l’image de Dieu et d’autres études, par exemple celle sur l’influence des courants de la pensée philosophique sur l’expression de la foi. Elle nous permet de mettre en relief l’admirable aptitude de la philosophie de saint Thomas ä servir d’instrument dans l’élaboration de la doctrine de la foi. Dans leur ensemble, ces études laissent voir l’étonnante richesse, la profondeur, la catholicité et l’actualité de la théologie de saint Thomas.”

Content : “Inspiration et révélation selon saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 13-36 ; “Les commentaires bibliques de saint Thomas : le Principium Rigans montes et Hic est liber”, 37-56 ; “Introduction à l’Expositio super Isaiam ad litteram”,57 - 84 ; “Le commentaire de saint Thomas d’Aquin sur le Livre de Job”, 85-122 ; “L’actualité de la Lettre de saint Paul aux Romains selon la lectura super epistulam ad Romanos de saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 123 - 140 ; “Saint Paul et la connaissance naturelle de Dieu par l’homme (Rm 1,18-32) selon le commentaire de saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 141-166 ; “Les leçons de saint Thomas d’Aquin sur la Lettre aux Philippiens et la Lettre aux Colossiens”, 179 -192 ; “La lectura super epistulam ad Hebræos de saint Thomas d’Aquin, 193-223 ; “Thomas d’Aquin, commentateur de saint Paul”, 224-250 ; “Une recherche des racines de l’hétérodoxie et l’apport de la philosophie de saint Thomas”, 251-286 ; “Histoire et historicité dans la théologie de l’histoire de saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 287-298 ; “Vie active et vie contemplative selon saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 299-316 ; “Saint Thomas d’Aquin et les Pères de l’ Église”, 317-350 ; “La présence de saint Jean Chrysostome dans les oeuvres de saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 351-378 ; “Saint Jérôme et saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 379-416 ; “La théologie de saint Thomas d’Aquin de l’image de Dieu”, 417-442 ; “La signification de la paternité de Dieu dans la théologie spirituelle de saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 443-458 ; “La christologie de la Somme contre les Gentils”, 459-492 ; “Le jugement dernier dans la théologie de saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 493-508 ; “La Loi Nouvelle est la grâce du Saint-Esprit”, 509-524 ; “Les racines de l’amour divin pour la vie selon saint Thomas d’Aquin”, 525-537 ; “Saint Thomas et l’évangélisation des païens”, 538-554 ; “La doctrine de saint Thomas et l’évangélisation de l’Amérique”, 555-569 . 

Henry's Books

Henry Stachyra of Stillwater, Minnesota, worked for many years at Thomas Loome’s famous Loome’s Theological Booksellers. He now has his own bookselling company, Henry’s Books (link), which includes a collection of Aquinas texts (link) as well as one devoted to Thomism (link). Here is his site’s self-description:

Our specialties include Theology, Philosophy, Medieval and Patristic Studies, Greco-Roman and Judaica Studies and all related subject areas.  In addition to these categories, we also have a general selection to choose from.  We have 16 years of experience in buying and selling scholarly books in North America and abroad.

Go and check out this impressive young enterprise…

Aquinas on the Emotions: A Religious-Ethical Inquiry—by Diana Fritz Cates

This in from Georgetown University Press:

Greetings from Georgetown University Press! I want to let you know about a brand new book we’ve just published: Aquinas on the Emotion: A Religious-Ethical Inquiry by Diana Fritz Cates.

Cates shows how emotions are composed as embodied mental states. She identifies various factors, including religious beliefs, intuitions, images, and questions that can affect the formation and the course of a person’s emotions. She attends to the appetitive as well as the cognitive dimensions of emotion, both of which Aquinas interprets with flexibiity. The result is a powerful study of Aquinas that is also a resource for readers who want to understand and cultivate the emotional dimension of their lives.

To read more about the book and see what other scholars in the field are saying about it, please visit our website at: http://press.georgetown.edu/detail.html?id=9781589015050.

Georgetown University Press has also kindly provided a discount code for 30% off the cost of the book, for use on their website. Follow the link above, and use the discount code of M46 at check-out time.

PS: The publication of this book sets up an unexpected competition with a similar book, recently published by Robert Miner, reported in September. It will be fun to read the two, side-by-side.

The “Introduction” to the new Cursus philosophicus thomisticus edition

John Deely, of the University of St Thomas (Houston, TX), worked long and hard to get a reprint of John of St. Thomas’s (Jean Poinsot’s) Cursus philosophicus thomisticus. Thanks to the Georg Olms Verlag, and the editorship of Martin Walter, the thing has been reprinted in a glorious, three-volume set. And Deely, who knows a thing or sixty about John of St. Thomas (link), has kindly shared a PDF of his “Introductory Remarks on the Value of Poinsot’s Work to Philosophy Today.” A selection:

The standard histories of philosophy over the whole of the 20th century have tacitly agreed to give the impression that nothing of value or interest happened in the Latin tradition after the death of William of Ockham. I was first led to see the falsity of this standard view by a reading of Jacques Maritain’s writings on sign, published together in his book Quatre Essais sur l’Esprit dans sa Condition Charnelle (nouvelle edition revue et augmenté; Paris: Alsatia, 1956). In those writings, Maritain directed me to the Tractatus de Signis of John Poinsot, then thoroughly embedded within the hefty volumes of Poinsot’s Cursus Philosophicus.

Mainly interested at the time in the newly developing idea of semiotics as a study of the action of signs, I spent the next fifteen years in preparing Poinsot’s semiotics for presentation as an independent edition, which was published in bilingual format by the University of California Press in 1985. Over the course of that work I came to appreciate the value of Poinsot’s work not only on the sign, but as a whole. For what the Cursus Philosophicus presents us with is nothing less than a careful and complete summation of what philosophy was able to achieve independently and in its own right prior to the advent of science in the modern sense as a complementary intellectual development.

It is true that the period of early modern philosophy approached from its Latin side, rather than from the side of its emergence out of Latin into the national language traditions of classical modern thought, is a dismaying maze of the greatest difficulty to navigate. This is precisely the value of Poinsot’s work as a whole.

Download the PDF here.

Edward Feser's Aquinas: A Beginner's Guide

Catholic philosopher Edward Feser has published Aquinas: A Beginner’s Guide (link), an introduction to the thought of St Thomas. Here’s a scrape from Amazon’s page:

One of history’s most influential philosophers and theologians, Thomas Aquinas was the father of modern philosophy of religion, and is infamous for his proofs for God’s existence. In this cogent introduction to his work, Edward Feser argues that you cannot fully understand Aquinas’ philosophy without his theology and vice-versa. Covering his thoughts on the soul, natural law, metaphysics, and the interaction of faith and reason, this is an essential introduction to the great thinker.

Feser is a well-known philosopher who vigorously engages contemporary philosophy and science, from an Aristotelian-Thomistic point of view (i.e., supportive of natural philosophy and A-T metaphysics). While at Amazon.com, check out his important The Last Supersition: A Refutation of the New Atheism.

Feser is also an active blogger, writing on an array of topics ranging from philosophy of mind to contemporary politics. More on his book (including the Table of Contents) at his website.

Thomas Aquinas on the Passions

Robert Miner (Baylor University) has sent along word that this book, Thomas Aquinas on the Passions, has appeared. Published by Cambridge University Press, the book is a study of questions 22-48 of the Prima secundae of Thomas’s Summa theologiae—you know, the questions that everyone skips over on the way from questions 6-21 on the way to question 94, article 2!

Here’s a scrape from the CUP website (link to book):

The Summa Theologiae is Thomas Aquinas’ undisputed masterwork, and it includes his thoughts on the elemental forces in human life. Feelings such as love, hatred, pleasure, pain, hope and despair were described by Aquinas as ‘passions’, representing the different ways in which happiness could be affected. But what causes the passions? What impact do they have on the person who suffers them? Can they be shaped and reshaped in order to better promote human flourishing? The aim of this book is to provide a better understanding of Aquinas’ account of the passions. It identifies the Aristotelian influences that lie at the heart of the Summa Theologiae, and it enters into a dialogue with contemporary thinking about the nature of emotion. The study argues that Aquinas’ work is still important today, and shows why for Aquinas both the understanding and attainment of happiness requires prolonged reflection on the passions.

Part I. The Passions in General

1. The sensitive appetite

2. The definition of passion

3. The activation of passion

4. The morality of the passions

Part II. Particular Passions: The Concupiscible Passions

 5. Love

 6. Hatred and concupiscence

 7. Pleasure

 8. Sorrow

Part III. Particular Passions: The Irascible Passions

9. Hope and despair

10. Fear

11. Daring

12. Anger

 Epilogue: the passions, the virtues, and happiness

 Many happy sales (and reviews!), Robert!

Update on 2009-09-23 09:55 by Mark Johnson

Oh, you can also read a nice on-line excerpt from the book (link).

On Love and Charity: a translation of Aquinas

Peter A. Kwasniewski, Thomas Bolin, O.S.B., and Joseph Bolin, have collaborated to produce a book of translations and notes on St Thomas's teaching on love and charity, as found in his scriptum on the Sentences. Published by CUA Press, here is an abbreviated description:

The Commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard has suffered almost total neglect among translators. Such neglect is surprising, considering that the massive Commentary is not only Aquinas's first systematic engagement with all the philosophical and theological topics on which he expended his energy over the span of a short career but is also characterized by an exuberance and elaborateness seldom found in his subsequent writings. The present volume, containing all the major texts on love and charity, makes available what is by far the most extensive translation ever to be made from the Commentary with the added benefit that the better part of the translation is based on the (as yet unpublished) critical edition of the Leonine Commission. The collection of texts from all four books has a tight thematic coherence that makes it invaluable to students of Thomas's moral philosophy, moral theology, and philosophical theology. In addition, the inclusion of parallel texts from Aquinas's first (Parisian) Commentary as well as from his second (Roman) attempt at a commentary--the recently rediscovered Lectura Romana--makes this edition all the more valuable for those who wish to track the internal development of Thomas's thinking.

The printed volume is supplemented by a web-based document containing a fuller introduction, "webnotes," and a bibliography, which you can get here.