Ciencia y docencia en Agustín y Tomás de Aquino (del maestro agustiniano al maestro tomista)

Abstract

Science and teaching in Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. The author tries to make a comparative analisis of the notions science, teacher and disciple such as they appear in St. Augustine's De Magistro and in question 11th, «De Magistro», of the Disputatio De Veritate of Saint Thomas Aquinas. Augustinian science of intelligible and eternal truths is adquired by a mental view of intellect and reason; it supposes the good will of knowing subject. Thomist science consists of a number of intelligent forms adquired from a deductive logic-necessary process that begins with the first obvious principles and axioms. For Augustin, there is only one teacher of intelligible truths that hides himself in the deepest of every rational soul and shows the Truth only to the interior man, that is, the one dominated by the good will. For Thomas Aquinas, there exist two different teachers: the main and interior one that is God, and another external and human, with perfect and actual knowledge, who helps the disciple to get the ability and the habit of deducing notions and truths from the first obvious principles and axioms. For Augustin, we all are disciples of the unique teacher of Truth, Christ, and we will be good or bad disciples according to our good or evil will. For Thomas Aquinas, every disciple has from the very beginning all the notions and truths that he is going to learn, but in potency or in their seminal reasons -the first obvious principles and axioms-; but he will. try, with the important help of the teacher, to get the ability and the habit of deducing and developing all notions and truths enclosed within the first evident principles and axioms.