Saint Thomas Aquinas was the youngest son to a well-off family, and as such, was expected to enter the monastery. It is believed that Thomas was introduced to his philosophical influences - Aristotle, Averroes, and Maimonides - at the university(in Naples). He was influenced to join the recently founded Dominican Order. He would later study at the Faculty of the Arts at the University of Paris, where he met Dominican scholar Albertus Mangus. Thomas would then teach in Cologne and began writing books. After stints back in Paris, then Naples, and finally Rome, he wrote his most famous book, Summa theologiae, which continues to serve as an instructional guide for theology students, including seminarians and the literate laity.
