Two Early English Thomists: Thomas Sutton and Robert Orford vs. Henry of Ghent

Abstract

TWO EARLY ENGLISH THOMISTS: THOMAS SUTTON AND ROBERT ORFORD VS. HENRY OF GHENT IN THE CLOSING decades of the thirteenth century there took place in Oxford what I have elsewhere called the 'early Oxford Thomist movement '.1 Its literary remains are ample enough to enable the historian to form a picture of the principal persons of this school along with the ideas they advanced. Much work has already been done, both the edition of texts and scholarly articles written by men such as Ehrle, Callus and Pelster, to mention only a few. But as F. Van Steenberghen said recently of late thirteenth century Oxford theology in general: "il serait premature de vouloir en preciser la physionomie doctrinale ".2 In this article we propose to examine some of the criticisms levelled against Henry of Ghent by two of the leading representatives of the early Oxford Thomist school, viz., Thomas Sutton 3 and Robert Orford.4 Henry of Ghent has been described as "the most illustrious teacher in the last quarter of the thirteenth century ".5 If not 1 F. Kelley, The Thomists and their opponents at Oxford in the last part of the thirteenth century (unpublished D. Phil. thesis-Oxford Univ., 1977) MS. Bodleian D. Phil. d. 6258, introduction, p. I. 2 La Philos.ophie au xiiie Siecle (Philosophes Medievaux, Tome ix, Louvain-Paris, 1966), p. 499. • For recent discussions of Sutton's life and writings see Thomas von Sutton Quodlibeta, ed. Schmaus-Gonzalez Haba (Bayerische Akad. d. Wissensch., Band !!, Munich, 1969), Introduction passim; Expositionis D. Thomae Aquinatis in Libroa Aristotelis De Generatione et Corruptione Continuatio per Thomam de Sutona, ed. F. Kelley (Bayerische Akad. d. Wissensch., Band 6, Munich, 1976), Introduction passim; Thomas von Sutton Quaestiones Ordinariae, ed. J. Schneider (Bayerische Akad. d. Wissensch., Band 3, Munich, 1977), Introduction passim. 4 For Orford's life and writings see Les Premieres Polemiques Thomis.tes: Robert d'Orford Reprobationes Dictorum a Fratre Egidio in Primum Sententiarum, ed. A. Vella, O.P. (Bibliotheque Thomiste, xxxviii, Paris, 1968), Introduction passim. 5 J. Paulus, "Henry of Ghent", New Oath. Encycl. (Vol. 6, 1967), p. 1035. the most illustrious teacher of this period, Henry was certainly 345 346 FRANCIS E. KELLEY the most indefatigable His fifteen Quo

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