During the thirteenth century in the Latin West, medieval theologians who supported the supremacy of the papacy over both the Church and secular rulers drew on Aristotle's thought to strengthen their arguments. Aristotle's works became required reading in the universities during this time, so pro-papal theologians need to adduce him in support of papal authority to keep the papacy's hierocratic ideas intellectually vibrant. Before the specific scholarly debate and the arguments of this essay can be discussed, it is necessary to make some detailed preliminary remarks.