The philosophy club at Saint Louis University continued a seven-year tradition on Tuesday, Jan. 28. Members of the club, students, faculty and staff from across the disciplines participated in the annual “Summa-thon,” a reading of the Summa Theologica written by revered theologian St. Thomas Aquinas. Anyone can participate in a number of languages.

“It’s a good excuse to read good philosophy,” said Cab Gutting, president of the philosophy club.

The text was written in question-and-answer format and read in several languages. The work addresses important questions regarding the meaning of life, the existence and nature of God and what happens after death.

“We will cover about 200 questions today with different readers for each question,” said Gregory Beabout, Ph.D., associate professor of philosophy and faculty advisor to the philosophy club.

A different type of reader was introduced to the Summa-thon audience this year–a laptop computer placed at the front of the room played a recorded reading.

“Each year Dominicans come wearing the same clothing Aquinas would have worn,” Beabout said.

The medieval masterpiece has been named one of the “top-10 books of the second millennium” by USA Today. Aquinas is known as the patron saint of philosophers and is considered by many as one of the most important philosophers of all time.

This year the reading will reach only the halfway point in the text that addresses more than 3,000 questions. The University is on pace to read the final question in 2010.