The Redemption of Thinking

The Redemption of Thinking: A Study in the Philosophy of Thomas Aquinas

3 lectures, Dornach, May 1920 (CW 74)

Steiner begins these three lectures by depicting the background of early Christian thought, from which scholastic philosophers arose. He focuses on the “unanswered question” of the scholastic movement: How can human thinking be made Christlike and develop toward a vision of the spiritual world?

A study of subsequent European thought, especially that of Kant, leads to the possibility of deepening into spiritual perception the scientific thinking that arose from scholasticism. Steiner explains that, since the beginning of the twentieth century, this is true Christianity.

This volume is a translation of Die Philosophie Des Thomas von Aquino (GA 74).

C O N T E N T S:

The Hymn of Boethius
Introduction
Prayer of Thomas Aquinas

Three Lectures on the Philosophy of Thomas Aquinas
1. Thomas and Augustine
2. The Essence of Thomism
3. Thomism in the Present Day

Epilogue
Appendices

About the Author

Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up. As a young man, he lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, known especially for his work with Goethe’s scientific writings. At the beginning of the twentieth century, he began to develop his early philosophical principles into an approach to systematic research into psychological and spiritual phenomena. Formally beginning his spiritual teaching career under the auspices of the Theosophical Society, Steiner came to use the term Anthroposophy (and spiritual science) for his philosophy, spiritual research, and findings. The influence of Steiner’s multifaceted genius has led to innovative and holistic approaches in medicine, various therapies, philosophy, religious renewal, Waldorf education, education for special needs, threefold economics, biodynamic agriculture, Goethean science, architecture, and the arts of drama, speech, and eurythmy. In 1924, Rudolf Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches throughout the world. He died in Dornach, Switzerland.