Commentary on Boethius’s De Trinitate

COMMENTARY ON BOETHIUS'S DE TRINITATE Thomas Aquinas and Avicenna on the Relationship between First Philosophy and the Other Theoretical Sciences: A Note on Thomas's Commentary on Boethius's DE TRINITATE , Q. 5, art. 1, ad 9. IN RECENT DECADES considerable progress has been made in investigating and identifying earlier philosophical sources for the thought of Thomas Aquinas. Among these sources Avicenna stands out as one whose work must be considered by anyone interested in the historical origins of Thomistic metaphysics. In addition to groundbreaking studies by Etienne Gilson illustrating the general influence of Arabic philosophy on Latin scholasticism,1 a number of more recent efforts have been directed to particular examples of the Avicennian influence on Thomas himself. Some of these have investigated the Avicennian influence on particular doctrines while others have concentrated on Avicenna as a source for particular Thomistic works.2 1 "Pourquoi saint Thomas a critique saint Augustin," Archives d'hiatmre doctrinale et litteraire du Moyen .Age, 1st yr. (19~6-~7), pp. 5-U7; "Avicenne et Ie point de depart de Duns Scot," ibid., ~nd yr. (19~7), pp. 89-149; "Les sources greco-arabes de l'augustinisme avicennisant," ibid., 4th yr. (1929), pp. 5-149. 2 Cf. for instance, G. Smith, "Avicenna and the Possibles," The New Scholasticism 17 (1943), pp. 340-57; A. Lobato, De influxu Avicennae in theoria cognitionia Sancti Thomae Aquinatis (Granada, 1956); B. Zedler, "Saint Thomas and Avicenna in the 'De Potentia Dei,' " Traditio 6 (1948), pp. 105-59; " St. Thomas, Interpreter of Avicenna," The Modern Schoolman 33 (1955-1956), pp. 1-18; L. De Raeymaeker, "L'etre selon Avicenne et selon s. Thomas d'Aquin,'' Avicenna Commemoration Volume (Calcutta, 1956), pp. 119-31; "La esencia avicenista y Ia esencia tomista," Sapientia 11 (1956), pp. 154-65. For a list of explicit citations of Avicenna by St. Thomas cf. C. Vansteenkiste, "Avicenna-Citaten bij S. Thomas,'' Tijdschrift voor Philosophie 15 (1953), pp. 457-507. For further bibliographical indications concerning Avicenna and his influence on Latin scholasticism cf. G. C. Anawati, Essai de bibliographie avicennienne (Cairo, 1950), section 4 "Les 133 134 JOHN F. WIPPEL At the same time, Questions 5 and 6 of Thomas's Commentary on Boethius's De Trinitate contain his most extensive treatment of the division and nature of the speculative sciences and their respective methods. Renewed interest in these questions is indicated by the relatively recent appearance of two important editions of these questions,8 by two English translations/ and by a series of articles treating of the Thomistic theory of abstraction and separation developed therein.5 Finally, S. Neumann has devoted a monograph to the object Travaux Sur Avicenne En Langues Autres Que L'Arabe," and for a resume of this bibliography in French his "La tradition manuscrite orientale de I'oeuvre d'Avicenne," Revue thomiste 51 (1951), pp. 407-40; also his "Chronique avicennienne 1951-1960," Revue thomiste 60 (1960), pp. 630-31; and "Bibliographie de la philosophic medievale en terre d'lslam pour les annees 1959-1969," Bulletin de philosophie medievale 10-12 (1968-70), p. 361. 3 Thomas von Aquin, In Libmm Boethii de Trinitate, Quaestiones Quinta et Sexta, ed. P. Wyser (Fribourg-Louvain, 1948); Sancti Thomae de Aquino Expositio super Librum Boethii de Trinitate, ed. B. Decker (Leiden, 1955). In addition to being an edition of the entire Thomistic commentary rather than merely of QQ. 5 and 6, Decker's work has the added merit of having consulted other codices in addition to the autograph manuscript used by Wyser. Cf. Decker, op. cit., pp. 33 ff. • St. Thomas Aquinas. The Divisions and Methods of the Sciences (Question V and VI of his Commentary on the De Trinitate of Boethius) tr. by A. Maurer, 3rd ed. (Toronto, 1963); The Trinity and the Unicity of the Intellect by St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. by Sister Rose Emmanuella Brennan (St. Louis, 1946), pp. 7-197 for a translation of all six questions of Thomas's commentary on the De Trinitate. Maurer's translation is based on the autograph edition of Wyser, but in the third edition Decker's edition has also been used. Cf. Maurer, op. cit., pp. xxxix-xl. Although the Brennan translation...