A student's history of educationGraves, Frank Pierrepont
History
A student's history of education
Graves, Frank Pierrepont
Education -- History
A new epoch for scholasticism dawned in the twelfth and thirteenth
centuries through contact with the Greek philosophy of the Moors
in Spain and the subsequent recovery of some original treatises of
Aristotle (see p. 67). For a time the Church endeavored to suppress the
great philosopher, but, failing to do so, soon utilized his works for
its own defense, and even made reason identical with Aristotle, whose
authority was not to be disputed. A group of most prominent schoolmen
arose, and, as a result of the discussions of Aquinas (1225-1274),
Duns Scotus (1274-1308), and William of Occam (1280-1347), it came
to be held that truth is established by the _fiat_ of God, and that
ecclesiastical dogmas are, consequently, not matters of reason, but
purely of faith. As a result of this breach between revelation and
reason, there arose two types of truth, and a tendency to choose that
type which was supported by reason.
[Sidenote: Aim,]
[Sidenote: content,]
[Sidenote: and method.]
=Scholastic Education.=--The schoolmen were thus throughout attempting
to rationalize the teachings of the Church, and to present them
in scientific form. As an education, scholasticism aimed also at
furnishing a training in dialectic and intellectual discipline that
should make the student both keen and learned in the knowledge of
the times. The scholastic course of study, which was given at first
in the monastic and episcopal schools and later in the universities,
consisted in the beliefs of the Church and the limited learning of the
times arranged in a systematized form largely on the deductive basis
of the Aristotelian logic. This knowledge could all be grouped under
the head of philosophical theology. The best illustration of the formal
and dogmatic way in which these doctrines were usually presented can
be found in the _Sententiæ_ of Peter the Lombard (1100-1160) and the
_Summa Theologiæ_ of Aquinas (1225-1274), which were the standard texts
of the day upon theology. The work of Aquinas has four main parts,
under each of which is grouped a number of problems. Every problem
is concerned with some fundamental doctrine, and is further divided
into several subtopics. After the problem has been stated, first the
arguments and authorities for the various solutions other than the
orthodox one are given and refuted in regular order, then the proper
solution with its arguments is set forth, and finally, the different
objections to it are answered in a similarly systematic way. Peter the
Lombard’s work has a like arrangement.
[Sidenote: It systematized Church doctrines, and liberated philosophy
from theology.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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