In this blog we welcome Daniel Waldow, assistant professor of theology at Saint Francis University, PA, to discuss the the theological impact of his book The Suffering Servant.
Q: The jacket copy makes note that this is a growing contribution to the field of ‘Biblical Thomism.’ Can you talk a little bit about what that means and how The Suffering Servant fits into this field?
A: Today most students and scholars of Christian philosophy and theology have at least heard of St. Thomas Aquinas due to his (1) proofs for the existence of God, (2) views on the natural moral law, and (2) his great contributions to speculative theological accounts of the Trinity, the Incarnation, the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, etc. While these aspects of Aquinas’ thought are certainly worthy of our perpetual attention, the modern focus on Aquinas as a philosopher and speculative theologian has resulted in a relative neglect of the role of scripture in his work. ‘Biblical Thomism’ seeks to rectify this. It addresses questions such as: what did Aquinas think about the nature and purpose of Scripture? What were his exegetical methods? What role did Scripture play in his Summa Theologiae, etc? How did he interpret particular biblical books and passages? My book focuses on how Aquinas interpreted the text of Isaiah 53, which is typically referred to as the “Suffering Servant” prophecy.
Q: This book focuses on Isaiah 53 and all of the places that Thomas Aquinas mentions this verse in his commentaries. What drew you to this specific topic within the corpus of Aquinas’s writings?
A: I have always been interested in soteriology, which is the study of Christ’s salvific work. Central to soteriology, of course, is reflection upon the saving value of Christ’s Passion. And Isa. 53 is one of the most beautiful and mysterious biblical descriptions of Christ’s Passion. Countless amounts of ink has been spilled on this passage, but no one has ever produced a sustained scholarly examination of how Aquinas interpreted this passage. So, I was eager to fill that void. In addition, the writings of so many saints exhort us to meditate frequently upon the Passion of Christ, for the Passion is the most perfect revelation and enactment of God’s saving and sacrificial love for us. So, I wanted to research this topic not only for its scholarly value, but also for its devotional appeal: everyday that I worked on this project, I got to meditate upon the Passion of Christ, as conveyed in Scripture, with the help of St. Thomas Aquinas. I can’t imagine many better ways to spend one’s time!
Q: The jacket copy also mentions how your book “contextualizes Aquinas’s exegesis by considering the differences between his Latin version of Isaiah 53 and contemporary renderings of Hebrew and Greek versions.” Can you speak to what some of those differences are and why they are important?
A: Before beginning this book, I exchanged a few emails with a prominent Thomistic exegete and theologian (who I won’t name, so as not to embarrass him!) in order to ask him for some advice on the project. Among the suggestions which he gave me, the one that struck me the most was this: don’t analyze Thomas’s use of Scripture in a Thomistic vacuum. Meaning, put Thomas in dialogue with non-Thomists and be attentive to contemporary insights regarding the text of Isa. 53. Further, don’t treat Thomas as if he is infallible, but rather explain and assess his approach to Isa. 53. So, concretely, one of the ways I acted on that advice is by comparing Thomas’s Latin text of Isa. 53 with the more ancient Greek and Hebrew versions, and by pointing out when and where Thomas’s interpretations of Isa. 53 are dependent upon uniquely Latin renderings of the text. I think this makes for a richer and more nuanced understanding and evaluation of Thomas’s work. Further, the very fact that Thomas did not feel a need to consult Greek and Hebrew versions of Scripture raises interesting questions: can translations of Scripture be inspired and inerrant? Can good biblical theology be based solely on translations? I think my book helps to highlight and hopefully answer some of those questions.
Q: What’s an important takeaway or two that you’d like readers to get from your book?
A: I hope that readers walk away from this book with a greater understanding of what Jesus endured in his Passion and how his suffering and death was ordered towards our salvation from sin, death, and hell. Aquinas uses Isa. 53 repeatedly in order to answer these questions, and I think he does so in inspiring and insightful ways. Further, I hope Aquinas’s interpretations of Isa. 53 can not only aid people’s theological understanding, but their prayer and moral life as well. I want it to help readers pray more fruitfully, such as at Mass and in the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, and also to be an aid to them when they have to make difficult moral choices which demand suffering and sacrifice. As Aquinas shows, Isa. 53 is not only about what Christ suffered and did for us; it is also about what we must do, through, with, and in Christ. So, I hope this book helps people not only to make better sense of the mystery of Christ’s Passion, but also to better conform their lives to that mystery.
Q: What was the most interesting or surprising piece of information that you discovered during your research?
A: That is a great question, and a difficult one to answer because I learned so much from this project! If I must choose, I would say two things stand out: first, the tremendous speculative care and nuance with which Aquinas treats the nature and saving value of Christ’s Passion. He consistently asks the right questions and never settles for easy, problematic answers. Even if at times one may disagree slightly with his answers, they nonetheless are always thought provoking and enriching. And, far more often than not, I think Thomas’s answers are right. The second thing was seeing first hand how omnipresent Scripture really is in Aquinas’s works, from his biblical commentaries to his Summa. And I became convinced that Aquinas’ approach to Scripture is quite beautiful: he takes every word seriously, interprets parts in light of the whole and the articles of the faith, and he allows the biblical text to generate, and help him answer, speculative theological questions. Isa. 53, for instance, is the source of many of his questions, and answers, regarding Christ’s Passion.