Summa Theologica, Part I-II (Pars Prima Secundae) From the Complete American Edition

About this book

Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica, Part I‑II (Pars Prima Secundae) is a systematic theological treatise that begins with a detailed prologue and a series of numbered questions and articles. The edition presented here follows the Benziger Brothers translation, with modern editorial adjustments that clarify formatting, correct transcription errors, and insert the original dedication, tables of contents, and article numbers. The opening pages lay out a comprehensive contents list, then move into the “Treatise on the Last End,” where Aquinas asks whether human beings act for an end, proceeds through objections and replies, and establishes a framework of questions, objections, and answers that will structure the entire work.

The text is written in the scholastic style of the thirteenth‑century Dominican tradition, employing a formal dialectical method that juxtaposes objections with Aquinas’s reasoned replies. Its language is dense, heavily referenced to Aristotle and Scripture, and assumes familiarity with medieval philosophical terminology. Readers who enjoy rigorous philosophical theology, the history of Catholic doctrine, or the intellectual rigor of medieval scholasticism will find this volume rewarding, while those seeking a more narrative or devotional approach may prefer a different selection.