Scholastic Philosophy: What It Is And What Topics It Addresses
What is scholastic philosophy? How did it emerge, at what stage did it predominate and how is it understood today? What are the topics it addresses? What stages can it be divided into?
In this article we will answer these and other questions, in addition to mentioning some of the most prominent representatives of this current of philosophy and theology.
Etymologically, the word “scholasticism” comes from the Latin “scholasticus”, which means “one who teaches or studies at school”. Scholastic philosophy consists of that medieval philosophical, and also theological, current that used part of classical Greco-Latin philosophy to understand the religious meaning of Christianity
Let us remember here that classical Greco-Latin philosophy, for its part, is that current of philosophy that mixes knowledge, traditions and customs formed from the fusion of the Greek and Roman peoples.
We can say that scholastic philosophy carried out in universities (in the faculties of Theology and Arts), and is literally translated as “philosophy of schoolchildren” (that is, from university professors).
In fact, it was the predominant form of philosophy between the 11th and 16th centuries, which continued to be present in universities during the modern period (and also in cathedral schools) and until today.
Development and period
This current of philosophy and theology predominated within medieval thought But, specifically, when did scholastic philosophy develop? It was throughout the Middle Ages, mainly in the area of Christianity, although it also developed in the Arab and Jewish areas.
Furthermore, if we focus on the Christian West, we can talk about medieval philosophy, similar to scholastic philosophy, but in this case it would encompass both philosophy and theology, both taught during the aforementioned period of the Middle Ages.
General characteristics
Regarding its characteristics, we find two essential ones: its connection with the sacred texts of the Bible, together with the tradition of the Church and faith, and the use of reason to interpret reality
Reason is the tool used to interpret the texts of the Bible and also one’s own reflections on it. One of the prominent mottos of scholastic philosophy is: “the faith that seeks to understand.”
Cultural bases
We have seen how one of the bases on which scholastic philosophy was initially based was classical Greco-Latin philosophy. However, It was also based on Arab and Judaic philosophical currents
In this sense, we can speak of heterogeneous theoretical bases. In this sense, during its beginnings, scholastic philosophy had the mission of consolidating the great religious systems into a “single” classical philosophical tradition.
As a criticism of this current, it has been mentioned an excessive dependence on the argument of religious authority and a neglect, in a certain way, of the most empirical and scientific aspect.
Scholastic philosophy as a working method
Scholastic philosophy is based on a method of intellectual work that we can call “scholastic”, and which consists of submit all ideas to the principle of authority This philosophy also based its teaching on the reiteration of classical texts, especially the Bible.
We must emphasize here that The Bible was the main source of knowledge Beyond this, a positive aspect of scholasticism is that it promoted two types of thinking or ways of interpreting and analyzing reality and/or religious texts, which were reasoning and speculation.
The central theme of scholastic philosophy is The problem between faith and reason and is included in all the manuals, sentences and texts that graduates in theology, or readers/amateurs who want to train in it, must read.
Specifically, its mission is to coordinate faith and reason, although reason was always subordinated to faith, as we can see through one of its representative phrases: “Philosophia ancilla theologiae”, which means “philosophy is a servant of theology”
But the topics covered by scholastic philosophy go much further, since scholastic thought was very broad and did not have a single line to which its various authors adhered. In fact, we can talk about three major themes or problems in particular, especially discussed by scholastic philosophy, and they were the following.
1. The question of universals
This question has to do with the real existence or not of abstract concepts We can find, within scholastic philosophy, two large groups of scholastics; those who deny the real existence of abstract concepts (the so-called “nominalists”) and those who affirm it (the so-called “realists”).
2. The relationship between faith and reason
From scholastic philosophy, it is understood that reason is a natural faculty present in all people, which, in addition, is part of the revelation of things. For scholastics, faith must be rational to be true, and that is why one of their tasks is to demonstrate faith through reason
In this sense, the relationship between faith and reason is another of the central themes of this current of philosophy, and this relationship must be collaborative.
Finally, a third problem or topic widely addressed from scholastic philosophy is the creation of the “ex-nihilo” (that is, the creation “from nothing”). In this sense, scholastic defenders believe that God is “uncaused cause” which leads them to justify the very idea of creation and the independence of creatures from the “divine plan.”
Three stages
Finally, we can talk about three major stages in scholastic philosophy, which are the following.
1. First stage
The first stage goes from the beginning of the 9th century to the end of the 12th century.
Here the problem of the question of universals predominates (already explained), where there is a certain confrontation between the realists (represented by the French theologian and philosopher William of Champeaux), the nominalists (represented by the canon Roscelin, considered the founder of nominalism) and the conceptualists (represented by the philosopher and theologian , also French, Pedro Abelardo).
2. Second stage
In the second stage, which goes from the 12th century to the end of the 13th century, the figure of the philosopher Aristotle gains strength At this stage it is worth noting that philosophy is distinguished and, in a certain way, disintegrated, from theology.
3. Third stage
The third and final stage of scholastic philosophy spanned the entire 14th century
At this stage the figure of the English scholastic philosopher and logician William of Ockham stands out. William defends nominalism and also opposes Thomism, another philosophical and theological school that originated thanks to the thought of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church. As a fact to highlight here, William has just separated, in this period, philosophy from theology.
