Acknowledgments
There are many people whose influence and inspiration contributed to the writing of this book. I would mention first the Dominican Fathers of Fenwick High School in Oak Park, Illinois, who introduced me to the life and writings of Thomas Aquinas when I was a teenager. I would also acknowledge the impact of the numerous Thomists at whose feet I have studied over the years: Robert Sokolowski, John Wippel, and Thomas Prufer of the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC; David Burrell of the University of Notre Dame; Charles Meyer of Mundelein Seminary; and Michel Corbin of the Institut Catholique de Paris. Finally, I would like to thank two of my colleagues at Mundelein Seminary, Lawrence Hennessey and Raymond Webb, who in different ways pushed, pulled, and cajoled me into writing a better book.