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Articles

Thomas Aquinas on Extraterrestrial Life

Babatunde Onabajo tells us why Aquinas did not believe in aliens.

The belief that life exists outside of Earth is known as ‘cosmic pluralism’. Intriguingly, this was briefly a topic of discussion during the medieval period, in the works of none other than St Thomas Aquinas.

Thomas Aquinas (1224-74) was a Roman Catholic friar, priest, theologian, and philosopher. His writings left a huge impact on the thought of the Catholic church – so much so that they still hold sway even to the present day. It is difficult, maybe even impossible, to navigate the extensive body of Catholic theology without coming across his name.

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