The Origins of Scholasticism

A landmark study of the pivotal thinkers who established theology as an academic discipline in the first university at Paris.

The Origins of Scholasticism provides the first systematic account of the theological and philosophical ideas that were debated and developed by the scholars immediately before the founding of the first official university at Paris. This volume shows how earlier scholastic thinkers laid the groundwork for the emergence of theology as a discipline.The Origins of Scholasticism provides the first systematic account of the theological and philosophical ideas that were debated and developed by the scholars who flourished during the years immediately before and after the founding of the first official university at Paris. The period from 1150-1250 has traditionally been neglected in favor of the next century (1250-1350) which witnessed the rise of intellectual giants like Thomas Aquinas, Albert the Great, and John Duns Scotus, who famously popularized the major works of Aristotle. As this volume demonstrates, however, earlier scholastic thinkers laid the groundwork for the emergence of theology as a discipline with which such later thinkers actively engaged. Although they relied heavily on traditional theological sources, this volume highlights the extent to which they also made use of philosophy not only from the Greek but also the Arabic traditions in ways that defined the role it would play in theological contexts for generations to follow.