「신학대전」 미완성의 교육적 의미

Meaning of unfinished Summa Theologiae in Education

「신학대전」은 교육 실천과 무관하게 신의 의미를 밝히려는 형이상학적 사변에 불과한 것이 아니다. 그것은 오히려 신의 의미에 대해 질문하고 토론하는 방식 그 자체로 저자는 물론 독자의 삶을 신에게로 이끄는 교육 실천의 모범을 예시한다. 신의 의미를 밝히려는 아퀴나스의 학문적 노력은 ‘신과 분리되지 않은 인간’이 되기 위한 훌륭한 실천으로 해석될 가능성이 있으며, 7년이라는 기간에 걸쳐 저술된 대작(大作)이 끝내 ‘미완성’으로 남겨졌다는 사실은 이러한 실천이 그야말로 성공했다는 증거로서 재해석될 수 있다.

Thomas Aquinas left his great work Summa Theologiae unfinished. A mystical experience on the feast of St. Nicholas or his health problem could be a reason he stopped writing. But neither of these answer the question, ‘what did he mean when he said that all I have written appears to be as so much straw?’ The purpose of this study is to offer an explanation as to why he stopped writing after December 6, 1273. According to this study, Aquinas’ Summa Theologiae is not simply to transcribe already-fixed religious doctrines with theological or philosophical terms. It is meaningful as an ‘educational practice’ that leads the life of the author and readers to God by way of discussing and asking about the meaning of God. And his efforts to understand God is more likely to be interpreted as a worthy practice to become ‘man who is not separated from God’. From the viewpoint of metapraxis, it can be argued that Aquinas’ reason could serve as the path to God although his Summa Theologiae was left unfinished. The fact that the Summa Theologiae ended unfinished can be strong evidence that Aquinas’ efforts to understand God did not fail, but rather succeeded.