Overview: Thomas Aquinas’ contribution to the Church and to Western culture in general has been so massive that it is exceedingly difficult to get a grip on him. He was a philosopher, a scientist, a scripture commentator, a theologian, a mystic, and in all things, a saint. It is this last description that is, at the same time, the most overlooked and the most illuminating. When one interprets Aquinas merely as a rationalist philosopher, one misses the point of everything he wrote, for Thomas was a saint, deeply in love with Jesus Christ. He was a spiritual master, and his writings were designed to lead people on the road to Christ.