A Reluctant Thomist

Surprised By Thomism No one is more surprised than I am to hear me say, "I'm a Thomist." Nevertheless, I am. I'm a Thomist, albeit a reluctant one. It was never my intention to become a Thomist. In fact, I was set on not becoming one. But life has a way of surprising us. As a non-Catholic Thomist, surprised to find myself here, I feel like I need to think through and understand (maybe also explain) how I got here.

But first, why wear this name Thomist? As my own past self reminds me, it is freighted with the misgivings of many a modern, analytic Christian philosopher. Despite these problems, I choose to wear this oft-maligned name because I take myself to hold enough views in common with Aquinas (I'm thinking especially of his realist metaphysics and epistemology) to deserve the moniker. Although I know the name Thomist connotes some views I disagree with (to be named later, but you can probably guess), still, I happily call myself a Thomist. I appreciate the venerable Norman Geisler's statement to this point (Thomas Aquinas: An Evangelical Appraisal, 14):

As for myself, I gladly confess that the highest compliment that could be paid to me as a Christian philosopher, apologist, and theologian is to call me "Thomistic."

From Aristotle to Aquinas The road to Thomism was a slow but fairly straight line from modern skepticism and postmodern relativism through Aristotle's realism to Thomas' moderate realism, one of the most reasonable and elucidating ideas I have ever encountered. The objective order Aristotle observed in nature and Aquinas grounded in God was a beckoning light in the bleak post-Kantian landscape for me. The voices of Lyotard and Foucault, Rorty and the rest, were muted when the Dumb Ox bellowed into my life. The joy and refreshment I found in Aristotle were multiplied tenfold when I read Aquinas. On reading Aquinas, I found to my surprise that many central conclusions at which I had arrived previously were neatly fitted together into a sensible system the likes of which I had not found elsewhere. Finding Aquinas feels like coming home, like meeting old friends for the first time. It is that moment C.S. Lewis described so memorably:

What? You too? I thought I was the only one.

To Peter Kreeft whose books and lectures are a delight and Edward Feser whose command of the metaphysics is unmatched I owe what can only be called a pleasant debt. These, my friendly guides, have brought a beautiful light into my life and for it and them, I am truly thankful.