The irony of invisible order
Aquinas is clear: the order of nature and of the created world is so unfathomably complex and strangely beautiful in the human mind that he believes order is a sufficient proof of God's sovereignty over reality. Although the religious aspect of his belief is moot, he is absolutely correct: the order of nature is incredibly ironic, given the observable entropy of nature. Also, now we know by science that there are many kinds of order that exist, but aren't observable, like the weak and strong force in an atom.
The irony of religion and reason
Aquinas's compendium is an expression of how vast and complicated the issue of reality is. His work is a relic of the human mind in an attempt to understand the unfathomable. Why should any of us have ever existed in the first place? We're just animals on a rock in space, after all. Ironically, the facts of our reality are more unimaginably complex and interesting that we could ever explain. So, he turns to religion, understanding the mystery of reality.
The irony of religion and law
Although human law is derivative from divine law in Aquinas's view, there is still an ironic gap, because humans are finite and broken, so the issues of justice constantly overwhelm us with nuance and complexity. The result is as if the universe designed the issues of justice to be perplexing to us for some reason. This is Aquinas's estimation at least.
The irony of sovereignty and evil
Of course, what conversation about the Summa Theologica could be complete without a mention of the ultimate issue of religion? Why do rape, murder, injustice, and greed exist if the universe remains in God's sovereign control? This religious question is an existential philosophical issue as well, so the academic worth of the question is just to say, these unsavory aspects of the human experience are indeed unfathomable and sad.
