Fr. Cajetan Cuddy explains that Thomism is “fixated” on predestination because this doctrine lies at the speculative and practical center of the Thomistic vision of reality, uniting its key philosophical principles and theological convictions about God, creation, grace, and salvation in a single, coherent account.

This lecture was given on September 6th, 2025, at Dominican House of Studies.

Through your gift to the Thomistic Institute, you will send the best scholars in the Catholic Intellectual Tradition directly to college campuses, bringing the light of Christ to students longing for answers.

Thanks to a group of generous donors, every dollar you send up to $150,000 before December 31 will be matched. This means that your gift will touch twice as many souls!

To make your gift today, visit https://thomisticinstitute.org/donate-podcast

For more information on upcoming events, visit us at thomisticinstitute.org/upcoming-events.

About the Speakers:

Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P., is a priest of the Dominican Province of St. Joseph. He serves as the general editor of the Thomist Tradition Series, and he is co-author of Thomas and the Thomists: The Achievement of St. Thomas Aquinas and His Interpreters. He has written for numerous publications on the philosophy and theology of St. Thomas Aquinas and the Thomist Tradition.

Keywords: Blaise Pascal Provincial Letters, Contingency, Creator Creature Distinction, Divine Providence, Divine Causality, Grace and Human Freedom, Jean Baptiste Gonet Clippius Theologiae Thomisticae, Physical Premotion and Sacramental Causality, Predestination, Pure Nature, Universal Causality

Why is Thomism so Fixated on Predestination? – Fr. Cajetan Cuddy, O.P.

The Thomistic Institute