Scholasticism

• The first method of the critical thought that rose from within the Christian monastic schools was Scholasticism. It was based upon the teachings of ancient philosophers such as Aristotle and the existing theological knowledge such as of the Roman Catholic Church.
• In the 11th and 12th century, the first institutions in the West to be considered universities were established in Italy, France, Spain and England. These were the places where arts, law, medicine and theology started being taught properly but with a heavy influence of religion.
• A beginning of the ‘discovery’ of many Greek works which had been lost to the Latin West could be seen. As early as the 10th century, scholars in Spain had begun to gather translated texts and, in the latter half of that century, began transmitting them to the rest of Europe.
• The most notable name among the various scholars of this late medieval Europe was Thomas Aquinas (1224-1274). He is sometimes called the founder of scholasticism.
• Aquinas’ scholasticism attempted to reconcile all new knowledge with accepted Christian dogma, but it ran into many problems. This was the beginning of the long conflict between science and religion. As per the theories of Scholasticism, if reason and religious dogma clashed, reason must always emerge as winner because religious knowledge was considered to be flawless. All the so called feudal estates were religion oriented. The art, architecture, literature, and music of those times were heavily influenced by the religion.

The Problems of Scholasticism

• Aquinas’ scholasticism attempted to reconcile all new knowledge with accepted Christian dogma, but it ran into many problems. This was the beginning of the long conflict between science and religion. As per the theories of Scholasticism, if reason and religious dogma clashed, reason must always emerge as winner because religious knowledge was considered to be flawless. All the so called feudal estates were religion oriented. The art, architecture, literature, and music of those times were heavily influenced by the religion.