THE CELESTIAL MOVERS IN MEDIEVAL 



PHYSICS 



IN the spring of 1271 John of Vercelli, Master General of the 

 Order of Preachers, sent a list of forty-three questions to 

 three Dominican Masters in Theology for their considera- 

 tion. Independently of each other, the three theologians were 

 to consider each question carefully and reply promptly keeping 

 in mind the directive of the Master General: (i) Do accepted 

 authorities, the Sancti, maintain the doctrine or opinion con- 

 tained in the articles listed? (ii) Apart from the weight of 

 authorities, does the consultor maintain the aforesaid doctrine 

 or opinion? (iii) Apart from the consultor 's personal views, 

 could the aforesaid doctrine or opinion be tolerated without 

 prejudice to the faith? ^ Clearly the purpose of this question- 

 naire was to safeguard the truths of faith, even where the 

 question raised was one of philosophical opinion or strictly 

 natural science, 



St, Thomas Aquinas had previously given his decision on 

 most of these questions in two private communiques to the 

 lector of Venice, Bassiano of Lodi,- The official questionnaire 

 of the Master General contained nothing of importance which 

 had not already been considered by St. Thomas in his two 

 private replies. The questions are for the most part idle 

 curiosities and useless fantasies, as the consultors themselves 

 realized. However, the official questionnaire was sent to three 

 outstanding Masters in the Order, and not all the questions are 

 without interest to the modern reader. St. Thomas' reply to 

 the official questionnaire has always been known to Thomists, 

 even though little studied. The reply of the second consultor, 



* St. Thomas, Responsio ad jr. Joannem Vercdlcnsem de articulis XLII, prooem., 

 ed. R. A. Verardo, O. P., Opuscula Theologica (Turin: Marietti, 1954), I, p. 211. 

 In this list the original q. 8 is missing. 



* Responsio ad Lcctorem Venetum de articulis XXX and Responsio ad eundem 

 de articulis XXXVI, ed. R. A. Verardo in Opuscula Theologica^ pp. 193-208. 



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