Xavier University Exhibit Honors Bachelor of Arts Undergraduate 2017-3 Classical Style and Catholic Theology: A Multi- Faceted Analysis of the Eucharistic Hymns of Saint Thomas Aquinas David Nussman Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH Follow this and additional works at: http://www.exhibit.xavier.edu/hab Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons, Ancient Philosophy Commons, Classical Archaeology and Art History Commons, Classical Literature and Philology Commons, and the Other Classics Commons Recommended Citation Nussman, David, "Classical Style and Catholic Theology: A Multi-Faceted Analysis of the Eucharistic Hymns of Saint Thomas Aquinas" (2017). Honors Bachelor of Arts. 21. http://www.exhibit.xavier.edu/hab/21 This Capstone/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Undergraduate at Exhibit. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Bachelor of Arts by an authorized administrator of Exhibit. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. David Nussman Classical Style and Catholic Theology: A Multi-Faceted Analysis of the Eucharistic Hymns of Saint Thomas Aquinas Instructor: Dr. Thomas Strunk Director: Dr. Michael Sweeney Readers: Dr. Marita von Weissenberg and Fr. Thomas Kennealy, S.J. Abstract: Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote five Eucharistic hymns, and four of them are included among the liturgical texts for the Feast of Corpus Christi. This essay seeks to analyze these five hymns using a classical methodology. In short, this classical methodology consists of paying close attention to rhetorical devices—especially the micro-level details of diction, syntax, and word-order. The first chapter argues that Saint Thomas Aquinas approached his hymns with a mindset comparable in some respects to that of the ancient Roman poets.