ABSTRACT
The antipathy between edification and speculation is an entrenched division in modern philosophy. The most influential Christian philosophers in modernity have opted for edification and vilified the jejune detachment of speculative philosophy. The writings of Thomas Aquinas have, however, often been depicted as speculative, rather than edifying. Most detractors would cite the prominence of natural theology in Thomas's corpus as indicative of his deviance from the Augustinian tradition. This chapter provides an analysis of the dialectical status and rhetorical function of the preambles in the practical sphere. It examines ironic and edifying character of divine pedagogy in Thomas. In order to render the comparison between the theoretical and speculative preambles more secure, the chapter begins with a short examination of the preambles in the speculative realm before turning to the natural law. In his analysis of the constituent parts of the old law, Thomas articulates the relation between the natural law and the decalogue.
