Updated: October 1, 2025
What would happen if St. Thomas Aquinas sat down as your financial advisor? In this episode of The Catholic Money Show, Jonathan interviews his good friend (and former roommate!) Chris Schilmoeller, a certified financial planner, about what the church Doctor can teach us about money—and why modern financial advice often falls short.
Why Aquinas Still Matters for Money Today
St. Thomas Aquinas lived in the 13th century, but his thought continues to shape the Catholic Church and even modern society. As Chris explains, Aquinas’ genius was in bringing together Scripture, the Church Fathers, and Aristotle’s philosophy into an ordered system that helps us understand the human person and our pursuit of happiness.
When it comes to money, Aquinas reminds us that wealth is not an end in itself—it’s an instrumental good. Used rightly, money supports our bodily needs and frees us for higher goods of the soul, like virtue, prayer, and generosity.
The Disorder of Modern Finances
As a financial planner, Chris sees three common challenges in modern money management:
- Disorder – Accounts spread across different places with no clear plan.
- Quantity over Quality – Defining financial success only by numbers in the bank.
- Lack of Meaning – Treating money as the goal, instead of tying it to higher ends.
Aquinas offers a corrective by teaching that money’s value lies in its role as a tool—helping us pursue higher goods, not becoming the ultimate goal itself.
Aquinas on Value, Goods, and Happiness
Aquinas distinguishes between three kinds of goods:
- Exterior goods (like money, possessions, or resources)
- Goods of the body (health, well-being, safety)
- Goods of the soul (virtue, wisdom, and ultimately union with God)
The hierarchy matters. Exterior goods like money are meant to serve the body and the soul—not replace them. When we confuse wealth for happiness, we fall into what Aquinas, Augustine, and Aristotle all warned against: seeking an infinite in something finite.
“Money is a means, not an end. True happiness is found only in God.” – Chris Schilmoeller
Why This Matters for Catholics
Today, our culture equates net worth with self-worth. But Aquinas helps us step back and put money in its proper place. Used rightly, money supports family life, frees us for leisure and prayer, and enables generosity. But when misordered, it becomes an idol that distracts us from our true calling.
This conversation will challenge you to rethink the role of money in your life—and encourage you to seek not just financial success, but holiness.
