My course work in Duns Scotus has led me to discover a wealth of Franciscan insight. I recently came across this glowing endorsement of Alexander of Hales by Thomas Aquinas. It may be apocryphal, but it’s interesting all the same:

The doctrine of Alexander is of a wealth surpassing all expression. It is said that someone asked St. Thomas what was the best manner of studying theology; he replied that it was by attaching oneself to a Master. “And to which Doctor?” he was asked again. “To Alexander of Hales,” the Angelic Doctor replied.

– John Gerson, Opera omnia. Epistola Lugdunum missa cuidam fratri Minori, vol. 1, p. 554.