Scholasticism: A Lecture Delivered Before the University of Oxford

In January 1866, Walter Waddington Shirley stood before Oxford's academic elite to resurrect a world that had been dormant for centuries. As Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History, he illuminates the medieval intellectual revolution: the bold attempt by medieval minds to reconcile Christian theology with the newly rediscovered philosophy of Aristotle. This lecture captures a pivotal Victorian moment when scholars began rediscovering medieval thought not as a mere precursor to modernity, but as a sophisticated intellectual tradition in its own right. Shirley traces scholasticism's historical emergence, its defining characteristics, and the profound tension at its heart: can faith and reason coexist, or must one conquer the other? For readers curious about the philosophical foundations of Western thought, or those fascinated by how Victorians interpreted their intellectual ancestors, this lecture offers a window into a transformative scholarly rediscovery.