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Summa Theologica - 11 Pars Secunda Secundae, Treatise on the Cardinal Virtues

by Saint Thomas Aquinas

The Summa Theologica (or the Summa Theologiae or simply the Summa, written 1265–1274) is the most famous work of Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225–1274) although it was never finished. It was intended as a manual for beginners and a compilation of all of the main theological teachings of that time. It summarizes the reasoning for almost all points of Christian theology in the West, which, before the Protestant Reformation, subsisted solely in the Roman Catholic Church. The Summa's topics follow a cycle: the existence of God, God's creation, Man, Man's purpose, Christ, the Sacraments, and back to God. (Summary adapted from the Wikipedia) This selection of the Summa Theologica covers questions 47-170 of the Secunda Secundae ("Second-half of the Second Part"), comprising a Treatise on the Cardinal Virtues: Prudence (questions 47-56), Justice (questions 57-122), Fortitude (questions 123-140), and Temperance (questions 141-170) - each with their own subordinate moral virtues.