The Trinitarian Christology of St Thomas Aquinas

by Dominic Legge, O.P.

Overview

The Trinitarian Christology of St Thomas Aquinas brings to light the Trinitarian riches in Thomas Aquinas's Christology. Dominic Legge, O.P, disproves Karl Rahner's assertion that Aquinas divorces the study of Christ from the Trinity, by offering a stimulating re-reading of Aquinas on his own terms, as a profound theologian of the Trinitarian mystery of God as manifested in and through Christ. Legge highlights that, for Aquinas, Christology is intrinsically Trinitarian, in its origin and its principles, its structure, and its role in the dispensation of salvation. He investigates the Trinitarian shape of the incarnation itself: the visible mission of the Son, sent by the Father, implicating the invisible mission of the Holy Spirit to his assumed human nature. For Aquinas, Christ's humanity, at its deepest foundations, incarnates the very personal being of the divine Son and Word of the Father, and hence every action of Christ reveals the Father, is from the Father, and leads back to the Father. This study also uncovers a remarkable Spirit Christology in Aquinas: Christ as man stands in need of the Spirit's anointing to carry out his saving work; his supernatural human knowledge is dependent on the Spirit's gift; and it is the Spirit who moves and guides him in every action, from Nazareth to Golgotha.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198829096
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	12/05/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	732,689
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Dominic Legge, O.P., is Assistant Professor in the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception at the Dominican House of Studies and Assistant Director at the Thomistic Institute.

Table of Contents

Foreword, Gilles Emery, O.P.Abbreviations & Editions of Works of St. Thomas AquinasOther AbbreviationsIntroductionPart I: The Trinity and the Dispensation of Salvation1. The Divine Missions: From the Trinity, To the Trinity2. Divine Missions: Invisible and VisiblePart II: Jesus Christ, the Word of the Father Sent in the Flesh3. Why the Son Became Incarnate4. The Hypostatic Union and the TrinityPart III: Christ and the Holy Spirit5. Like Splendor Flowing from the Sun: The Holy Spirit and Christ's Grace6. The Holy Spirit and Christ's Human Knowledge7. Christ's Action and the Holy Spirit8. Christ Gives the Holy SpiritConclusionBibliography

Editorial Reviews

"Important clarifications like this from Legge abound, truly opening up Aquinas' trinitarian richness to contribute to today's rediscovery." — Nathan Adams, McGill University, Religious Studies Review

"One does not need to adopt Aquinas's sacramentology or theories of merit in order to appreciate and learn from such breathtaking theological insights. This book puts us on the right track." — Ryan M. McGraw, Theology and History

"This work is of immense importance." — Editor, Catholic Medical Quarterly

"In focusing on the trinitarian origin, ratio and shape of the incarnation and of the salvation brought by Christ, however, Legge has put all students of Aquinas, and, indeed, all contemporary students of Christ himself, in his debt. This is a dense but lucid work that ranges across all the major theological opera of Aquinas, as well as a good number of his biblical commentaries and theological opuscula. It is attentive to both the consistency and development in Aquinas's thinking about Christ. Its nuanced interpretation of Aquinas's Christology brings out the depth, subtlety and biblical grounding of Aquinas's conception One may hope that this book contributes in its own way to the renewal of Christology and soteriology, East and West."—John P. Yocum, International Journal of Systematic Theology

"As it deals with a demanding topic, commonly addressed as a mystery of faith that is, as something that could not be known had God not decided to reveal it, Legge s volume is a demanding book. Although formidable, Legge's treatment of the Angelic Doctor's Trinitarian Christology is highly rewarding for any reader interested in the core features of Christianity, and the theological rationale beyond Christian faith. Legge shows convincingly how Aquinas spells out the intrinsic relation between the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, and the doctrine of the Incarnation, as the fundamentals of a Christian account of the origin and purpose of the existence of the universe."—Reading Religion

"This is an excellent book! . . . His exhaustive knowledge and use of the primary sources is admirable, boarding on wonderment. This book establishes Legge as a premier theologian within the Dominican Thomistic tradition. . . . Legge's book should be required reading for every graduate student of theology."—Thomas G. Weinandy, OFM, The Journal of Theological Studies

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