“Is this not the task of philosophy to inquire about the divine?”
~St. Justin Martyr: Dialogue with Trypho, 1.
"Philosophy, then, is the knowledge of that which really exists, and a clear perception of the truth; and happiness is the reward of such knowledge and wisdom."
~Dialogue with Trypho, 3.
“Philosophy is the knowledge of things human and divine, united with a zeal for right living.”
~St. Isidore of Seville: Etymologies, 2, 24.
“Philosophy is the meditation on death; this definition is better suited to Christians who, trampling on worldly ambitions, live in the intercourse of discipline, after the likeness of their future country.”
~St. Isidore: Etymologies, 2, 24.
“Philosophy is called natural when the nature of each and every thing is discussed, since nothing arises contrary to nature in life, but each thing is assigned to those uses for which it was intended by the Creator, unless perchance by God’s will it is shown that some miracle has intervened.”
~St. Isidore: Etymologies, 2, 24.
“Philosophy is the art of arts and science of sciences.”
~St. John Damascene: Dialectica, 3.