Scholasticism in the Medićval Church

Who were the Scholastics?

Scholasticism was a medićval theological movement which had great influence over the thinking of the Catholic Church. Its members generally sought to harmonise philosophical and theological truths. This was not a new thing. Even in the early days of the Church, the philosophical methods of Plato and Aristotle were employed to explain theological truths to the gentile world.

Perhaps the earliest exponents of scholasticism, however, were Anselm and Abelard. The most famous and influential of all the scholastics was Thomas Aquinas. Other well known members of this movement were Peter and Hugo Lombard, Duns Scotus and William of Ockam.

The Work of the Scholastics

The Scholastics defined many of the Catholic dogmas and especially the Sacraments and their benefits. It was at this time that the number of sacraments was defined as seven - baptism, eucharist, confirmation, penance, extreme unction, holy orders and marriage. Salvation, while it ultimately stemmed from the sacrificial work of Jesus on the Cross, was seen as dependent upon these sacraments.

The scholastics were also instrumental in formulating the doctrines of transubstantiation (i.e. the belief that the bread and wine are literally transformed into the flesh and blood of Jesus by the words of the priest spoken during the eucharist) and compulsory confession of sins to a priest at least once a year.

Many of the doctrines which were later to be bound together into the doctrinal system established by the Council of Trent (1545-1563) were, indeed, formulated by the Scholastics in the 13th to 15th centuries.