Neo-Scholasticism was a philosophical and theological school of thought that arose in the mid-nineteenth century as a revival of medieval scholasticism, especially the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas. In the later decades of the century and well into the 20th century Neo-Scholasticism dominated the Catholic intellectual milieu.Neo-Scholasticism was a philosophical and theological school of thought that arose in the mid–-nineteenth century as a revival of medieval scholasticism, especially of the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas. In the later decades of the nineteenth century and well into the twentieth, Neo-Scholasticism dominated the Catholic intellectual milieu.

In this introduction to metaphysics, Joseph Rickaby explores this branch of philosophy in the following chapters: • Being, and the Ideas Most Closely Connected with Being • Nature and Need of Metaphysics • The Notion of Being • Essence and Existence • Three Attributes of Being: Unity, Truth, and Goodness • The Possibilities of Being • The Finite and the Infinite in Being • Explanation of Some Notions Next in Point of Generality to Transcendental Being ...

In The First Principles of Knowledge, Joseph Rickaby addresses the concept of “certitude” and explores the differences between metaphysical, physical, and moral certitude. He defends the Scholastic view of these concepts, and compares them favorably against antagonistic doctrines, particularly the principles of Hume and the pure empirics.