Why do you think philosophy is so unpopular here?

[JayneK]

ETA: this is an interesting read:

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12025c.htm

Thanks for this.  I learn best when I have a sense of the big picture and then fill in details.  That is just the sort of overview that I need.

Any ideas about how to study Aquinas?  As I said, I've done an intro course (we used Kreeft's Summa of the Summa).  I tried just starting at the beginning of a translation of the Summa and reading, but I bogged down.