Aquinas and the Early Chinese Masters lays intellectual foundations for the integration of Chinese philosophy into Catholic theology. Although Catholic theology in Chinese contexts has drawn upon Chinese philosophical concepts, few have attempted to develop a rigorous, systematic approach to testing what in the Chinese philosophical traditions can be fruitful or unfruitful for Catholic theological expression.

This book attempts to model such an approach by engaging classical Chinese philosophy with the mind and spirit of St. Thomas Aquinas, who read Aristotle and other pagan philosophers with both charitable appreciation and a firm, critical eye. It applies this Thomistic lens through concrete comparative engagements with three main representatives of early Chinese philosophy: Mencius (Mengzi孟子), Xunzi荀子, and Mozi墨子. In each chapter, the book presents Aquinas’ thought as an evaluative frame for perceiving how Chinese philosophical commitments and concepts do or do not seem fit for adoption into Catholic theological science.

Following the general structure of the Summa theologiae, the book is comprised of six chapters touching on the doctrine of God, morality, and Christology. The first two chapters engage Confucian master Mengzi’s notion of Heaven (Tian天), and then the Mohist doctrine of Heaven’s Will (Tian zhi天志). Chapter three provides a Thomistic assessment of the two main positions in the classical Confucian debate on the goodness of man’s moral nature (renxing人性). Chapter four compares Aquinas’ account of charity and Mozi’s doctrine of “universal love” (jian ai兼愛). Chapter 5 offers a Thomistic assessment of the possibility of understanding Christ in terms of Xunzi’s “sage” (shengren聖人). Finally, Chapter 6 explores Christ as a moral teacher by putting Aquinas’ reading of Matt 8:21-22 into conversation with Confucian ethics of filial virtue.

Joshua Brown is assistant professor of theology at Mt. St. Mary’s University (Md.).