CONCLUSION

I have only made a general outline of a subject that merits a vast detailed study. One can only admire these philosophers for having carried on, in spite of sometimes fierce opposition, a research into deep questions that touch the basis of human life, society and religion - questions that have agitated the minds of every geneeration.

Despite the pretensions of some, like Ibn-Rushd, that they have come up with a perfect theory of the universe resting on solid demonstration, one sees that for the most part it was only dialectic - but a dialectic that is exceptionally valuable for a contemporary discussion of the same questions.

We can notice errors, prejudices and ignorance, but at the same time valuable clarifications of points and perennial contributions.

One can see throughout this book how I have made continual comparison with the thought of Thomas Aquinas. I think it is right to observe that Saint Thomas face the same questions in a much superior way than the Arab philosophers and that he gave ingenious replies that are expositions of permanent truth. But we can observe also that he did not do so without building upon the thought of these same philosophers who preceded him.

Without falling into a scepticism that relativizes the truth, we can also say that the pursuit of truth is an on-going project, and Saint Thomas did not say the last word. To go onward one must always push one's roots more securely in the past. One does not arrive at a fixed summit of the truth, where one can throw away the ladder. That is why there is permanent value in the history of philosophy, particularly of the Arab philosophers.

May this book be a modest contribution to this task, and also a useful tool for those who wish to embark on such a study.