Fides quaerens intellectum

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Fides quaerens intellectum, means "faith seeking understanding" or "faith seeking intelligence", is a Latin sentence by Anselm of Canterbury, which had been the first title for his Proslogion (I).[1] It articulates the close relationship between faith and human reason.

Anselm states: "Neque enim quaero intelligere ut credam, sed credo ut intelligam"[2] ("I do not seek to understand in order that I may believe, but rather, I believe in order that I may understand").

The sentence represents the theological method stressed by Augustine (354–430) and Anselm of Canterbury (c. 1033 – 1109), in which one begins with faith in God and on the basis of that faith moves on to further understanding of Christian truth[3] or faith: intellectus fidei.[4]

References

  1. 1.Robert Theis: Das Proslogion des Anselm von Canterbury und die Frage nach der Erkennbarkeit Gottes
  2. 2."ANSELMUS CANTUARIENSIS | PROSLOGION". www.thelatinlibrary.com (in Latin). Retrieved 2023-05-16.
  3. 3.Donald K. McKim, Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996), 104.
  4. 4."Mission Statement". dg-ktf.univie.ac.at. Retrieved 2025-12-04.