MATTHEW OF AQUASPARTA

Franciscan cardinal and theologian; b. Aquasparta (Umbria), c. 1238; d. Rome, Oct. 29, 1302. After completing his preparatory studies as a Franciscan, Matthew was sent to Paris to obtain the degree of Master of Theology. In 1268 he was already a baccalarius biblicus, and from 1270 to 1273 he commented on the Sententiae of peter lombard. By the end of August of 1273, he had received the title of Doctor of Theology and was teaching in Bologna, where he remained for a year or two. He then returned to Paris, and from 1277 to 1279 he was magister regens of the Franciscan studium.

In 1279 Matthew succeeded john peckham as lector of the Sacred Palace, holding this illustrious professorship until 1287 when, at the Chapter of Montpellier, he was elected minister general of the order. In this post Matthew distinguished himself as a peacemaker, settling disputes within the order and reinstating John of Parma and peter john olivi.

On May 16, 1288, Nicholas IV named him cardinal priest, but Matthew was obliged to continue ruling the order until the general chapter, held at Rieti in 1289. In 1291 he was promoted to cardinal bishop of Porto and of San Ruffino. He spent the remainder of his life in the service of the Holy See. He served Boniface VIII (1294–1303) with great fidelity and devotion and thus found himself embroiled in the political struggles of that pontificate. He was appointed pontifical legate to Lombardy, Romagna, and Tuscany, and was assigned to pacify the various contending factions. It is probable that he had a part in the preparation of the famous bull Unam Sanctam, which was published only 20 days after his death.

Although Matthew did not attend St. Bonaventure's lectures in Paris, he was a faithful disciple of the Seraphic Doctor. He was well versed in the works of Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas, but he remained faithful in all respects to the tradition of the Augustinian-Franciscan school. He criticized his adversaries with moderation and set forth his own views with admirable clarity. Yet Matthew had little influence on subsequent thinkers; his great commentary on the Sententiae, for example, was never copied—possibly because of the poor hand in which it was written.

Matthew's literary legacy is truly considerable. It has been described in detail by V. Doucet in Matthaei ab Aquasparta Quaestiones disputatae de gratia, cum introductione critica (Bibliotheca Franciscana scholastica medii aevi [Quaracchi-Florence 1903–] 11). His principal works are a voluminous commentary on the first, second, and part of the fourth books of the Sententiae, which is, with the exception of a few questions, still unpublished; many Quaestiones disputatae, almost all of which have been published at Quaracchi (ibid. 1, 2, 11, 17, 18); quodlibetal questions; two series of Quaestiones de anima; and various scriptural commentaries and sermons (Bibliotheca Franciscana Ascetica Medii Aevi 9–10).

Bibliography: Matteo d'Aquasparta (collected essays) (Spoleto, Italy 1993). j. dowd, "Matthew of Aquasparta's De Productione Rerum and its Relation to St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Bonaventure," Franciscan Studies 34 (1974), 34–75. z. hayes, The General Doctrine of Creation in the Thirteenth Century, with Special Emphasis on Matthew of Aquasparta (Munich 1964). p. mazzarella, La dottrina dell'anima e della conoscenza in Matteo d'Acquasparta (Padua 1969). e. brocchieri, La legge naturale nel pensiero di Matteo d'Acquasparta (Rovigo 1967), bibliography.

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