Carlos Steel
Date and place of birth: 8 November 1944, Sleidinge, Belgium
Appointment to the Academy: 8 February 2003
Scientific discipline: Ancient and Thomistic Philosophy
Academic title: Full Professor
Academic awards and distinctions
Carlos Steel is Professor of ancient philosophy and also holds the chair of Thomistic philosophy at the Institute of Philosophy of the Catholic University of Leuven. He is past president of the Institute. Presently he is Director of the ‘Aristoteles latinus’, of the ‘De Wulf-Mansion Centre for Ancient and Medieval Philosophy’ and of the ‘Institute of Medieval Studies’. He is member of the board of the ‘Société internationale pour l'étude de la philosophie médiévale’ and member of the editorial board of the ‘Opera omnia’ of Albert the Great and of the ‘Series Graeca’ of the ‘Corpus Christianorum’.
Summary of scientific research
Steel has devoted most of his research to the study of the Platonic tradition from Plato to Cusanus, with a particular emphasis on the philosophy of Proclus. He has also an international reputation for his critical editions of late antique and medieval authors, including Proclus, Maximus Confessor, Johannes Scottus Eriugena, Henricus Bate, Averroes. Another interest of his research is the moral philosophy and philosophy of mind and action of Thomas Aquinas.
Main publications
The Changing Self. A Study on the Soul in later Neoplatonism (Brussels, 1978); Maximus Confessor, Quaestiones ad Thalassium, with the translation of John Scot Eriugena (Leuven, 1980-1990, coauthor C. Laga); Priscian. On Theophrastus on Sense-Perception with Simplicius’ On Aristotle on the Soul 2.5-12 (London, 1997, coauthor P. Huby), 1997; Henricus Bate, Speculum divinorum (4 volumes, Leuven, 1990-96); Averroès. La béatitude de l’âme (Paris, 2001, coauthor M. Geoffroy); Proclus. On the Existence of Evils (London, 2003, coauthor J. Opsomer); On Providence and Fate (London, 2007); Proclus, Commentary on the Parmenides (critical edition in the series Oxford Classical texts, volume 1: 2007); Der Adler und die Nachteule. Thomas und Albert über die Möglichkeit der Metaphysik (Münster, 2001); ‘The Effect of the Will on Judgement: Thomas Aquinas on Faith and Prudence’, in The Will and Human Action: From Antiquity to the Present Day, ed. Th. Pink and M.W.F. Stone (London, 2004, 78-98); ‘Thomas Aquinas on preferential love’ in Amor Amicitiae, ed. Th. Kelly and Ph. Rosemann (Leuven-Paris, 2004, 437-458); ‘Thomas’ Lehre von den Kardinaltugenden’ in Thomas von Aquin. Die Summa Theologiae: Werkinterpretationen, ed. A. Speer (Berlin, 2005, 322-342).
Address
Vice Dean of Research
KU Leuven - Institute of Philosophy
K. Mercierplein, 3
B-3000 Leuven (Belgium)
