Aquinas: Strategies and Methods

St. Thomas Aquinas had brilliant ideas, which contributed to both theology and philosophy. However, an important part of his success as a theologian and philosopher which can be easily overlooked was his effective planning. In order to gain truth and present it to the readers or listeners (according to the Dominican motto: contemplata aliis tradere), it is essential to know how to do that. Aquinas’s investigations and presentations are always ordered according to certain patterns and governed by ideas, which he often explains. They also follow clear methodological frameworks. 

In the 800th anniversary of his birthday, we would like to focus on strategies he adopts in different types of his production and methods he applies both as a theologian and as a philosopher. We are going to examine the importance and the consequences of such choices, as well as their motivations and inspirations. We will include both those strategies and methods which are explicitly mentioned by Thomas and those which can be traced back. This will enable us to create a picture of Aquinas as a scholar who cared about the correct ways of thinking and scientific procedures.

We invite submissions of contributed papers which analyse Aquinas’s:

• patterns of work composition,
• exegetical techniques,
• hermeneutical strategies,
• methodology of sciences (including metaphysics, theology, natural sciences),
• ways of argumentation,
• use of logic,
• other similar aspects of his work.

Submission

The conference will be in person only. We also invite all scholars to submit scholarly articles for future journal proceedings.

Papers should be in English. Exceptionally, it is also possible to present in Polish (the session in Polish will be held on the first day of the conference: 28 May).

Please submit the abstracts (800-2000 characters or 120-300 words) using the following form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScqIxobsXNFC4CiTD8nKnJShJNquYxxEUBMvqVkMSWUKl7YLQ/viewform?usp=sharing

Deadline for abstract submission: March 15, 2025.

However, we encourage you to submit your abstracts earlier.

Notification: by March 20, 2025.

Venue

The conference will be held at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Warsaw, which is located in the charming historical part of Warsaw at 3 Krakowskie Przedmiescie Str., in a wonderful area, which in May is full of green and blooming flowers.

Conference Fees

Accepted regular participants who present papers and participants without papers who wish to accompany them during meals will be asked to issue a conference fee:

• 100 EUR (or 400 PLN) for scholars employed by the universities or research institutions and independent scholars,
• 50 EUR (or 200 PLN) for students, PhD students and retired professors.

The fees will cover the costs of materials and meals (coffee breaks, lunches, dinners).

Institutional Organisers

The conference will be organised by the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Warsaw, and
co-organised by the Faculty of Theology, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń.

Contact

If you have any questions about the conference please contact the main organisers:
Marcin Trepczyński ([email protected]) and Piotr Roszak ([email protected]).