Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-01-15
LIBERTY"

Interesting Lecture in ths Convent Hall wN.-s by Vicar General MuIcahy. r~- t. ; The hall of the convent of Notre Dame was comfortably filled last night by the pupils of the convent and young ladies of the parish to hear the second of a series of three lectures on "Liberty" by Vicar Gen eral J. A. Mulcahy, The discourse was very interesting and highly instructive and the speaker had the undivided at tention of his audience from. the opening to the close of the subject. The lecturer showed thorough conception of his theme and though the subject treated was quite difficult one it was so we'll ampli- fed with apt explanation that oven the most perplexing parts were made quite plain to all. The speaker cleverly com batted the arguments advanced bys the defenderes of the theory of predesti- nation and showed the pernicious effects which would result to society from the belief in such doctrine. If men should become convinced, he said, that their own actions would not in any way effect their future state there would be no striving nf- ter good, and men would give full scope to their passions and evil inclinations There would be no motive for restraint, for once man conceived the idea that he had been destined for a certain end without any possible hope of changing that decree there would be no incentive for good Continuing he said:
 If man would attain the perfection of his nature he must not only know the good, but also will it Consciousness and moral sentiment will not suffice. This | conscious willing of the. good is called lib erty.
 Liberty may be considered from a two-fold standpoint-as the end to which all our moral acts should tend. and as the faculty of thus tending. Regarded in this second light it is called free will. Perfect freedom demands immunity from every yoke. internal as well as exter- nal. Hence passion may be as much au enemy to liberty as coercion |" To the question, are we free to attain this freedom, the catholic innate abiding conviction of the human race replies in | the affirmative, The acts of all men speak | this conviction.
 There are not, however. wanting, men who. in words at least. deny this freedom.
 All philosophies refusing this perfection | to man are termed fatalism. In tEis list may be placed Mohammedan fatalism, theological fatalism. or predestination, and the geometrical fatalism of Spinoza. The l first teaches that some blind force irrevoc- ably determines all our actions, placing them wholly beyond the pale of our will It may be summed up in three words: 1t was written This doctrine necessarily leads to what Liebnitz terms the sophis- try of indolence,' and hence to the de- moralization of mankind.
 The second teaches that regardless of all merit or demerit on the part of man, God elects some to be saved while others he leaves to inevitable reproduction, denying to them the gracts absolutely necessary for their salvation. This gloomy doctrine is open to all the objections of the first.
 "Geometric fatalism teaches that all phenomena, and hence all human EctionS arise from the nature of existing things as fully AS the nature of a triangle arises from the equality of its three angles to two right angles. In illustration of this We may quote the statement of Boyle, saying it was just as impossible that Splnoza should dIe at any other place than the Hague. as 1t is that two and two should make six. This doctrine seems to give those phenomena in man which bear no anagoly to geometric laws. Among these are sensibility. consciousness. will liberty. The charm which allurDes us to pleasure has nothing Tn common with the percep- tion of the equality of the three angles of a triangle to two right angles. Of these doctrines it must be said that whilst many may have held them. none has lived them. No better refutation can be found.
 If from these doctrines We pass to determinism it may be asked if that also is not subject to fatalism. Among its up- holders there are those who consider it absolutely destructive of free will, whilst others, among whom stands Leibnitz con- slider it consistentwith full freedom. De terminism teaches that all actions are sub ject to the laws of cause and effect.
 1t is evident that We must accept some form of determinism. Between il and liberty of indifference there seems to be no alternative. But whilst liberty of in difference is possible we must See at a glance that it will not suffice for moral actions.
 Related to determinism our actions may be divided into three classes accord ing to the nature of the agencies or mo- tives which determine them.
 'This classification Janet expresses in the following manner:
 First: The mode of action when the cause is outside of the agent. external de- terminism.
 "Second: The mode of action when the cause is internal but is determined by i'm pulses. or spontaueity.
 "Thlrd: The mode of action when the cause is internal. but is determined by ideas or rational determinism. or liberty"
 Then followed a study of thIs third mode. which will be continued on Tuesday of next week.
 As many who attend these instructions will attend also the University Extension course. they will be held on Tuesday even- ings in future.