The Irish standard., 1901-10-19
THE HUMAN INTELLECT.

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THE HUMAN INTELLECT.
Sermon on Reason and Revelation by
Q Dominican.
The intellect is our most noble far.
ulH. By possessing reason we differ
essentially from all other corporeal and
corruptfble creatures; we become al.
tied to beings spiritual and immortal.
alike, In some degree, to God, our
Maker. 1t carries US above and beyond
the particular and successive move
ments Of time, and makes us look for
ward to the tmmutable and everlast-
ing. The object of the intellect Is
ruth-all truth-truth unlimited and
undefnable. Just as any colors may
be seen by the eye, and all sounds per-
ceived by the hearing faculty. SO any
truth, no matter how high or abstruse,
no matter how low or difficult Of per-
ception, may be attained by the in.
tellect, because its capacity for knowl-
edge Is unlimited. Its primary object.
then. is the highest truth: 1t is God.
who Is the embodiment of infinite
truth. 1t is to that object, to God.
that the intellect naturally tends. It
ts In seeing and knowing the Infinite
that 1t acknowledges Its highest per-
fection to consist. It speaks to the
will and shows to it the wonderful
works OF nature, the vastness of the
universe, the power of winds and seas,
the marvellous beauty of the plants. the
sagacity Of the animal and mans in
telligence, and it tells 1t that the Max
er of all this is infinite. greater and
more powerful, infinitely wiser and
more beautiful than these His works,
and there forms most naturally in that
will corresponding desire to behold
that most perfect being. What nature
gives. it does not give in vain. What
our natural being longs for must find
means of accomplishment, else we
must bring accusation against natures
Author. We have the desire, we have
the faculty capable of satisfying that
desire when the end Is attained. Have
we the means of attaining that object?
Will our reason lead US to God? Will
1t show all our Indispensable duties
towards our Sovereign Lord and Mas
ter! Behold q serious question for the
thoughtful. And mark that It is
question Of knowledge alone; for
though the will does not always fol-
low the dictates of right reason, still
1t Is always true that good cannot
Come from the will which is not guild
ed by truth in the intellect. "He will
dead bad life," says Augustine, "who
does not know the truths of God"
When we act nationally, reason guides
all the rest of our being. To live up
rightly we must know the truth and
follow 1T. Can we then by our unaid-
ed reason know all the truth necessary
to lead upright lives? To answer this
question we must examine more mi
nutely reasons power. But we are
not now to look into the mind of man
to see there all it's possible capacity.
Rather should we consider man as we
hnd him, as we know him. We must
try to discover how far our reason can
go, how much power 1t possesses I'M
der existing circumstances We all
KNOW by experience that while the soul
is united to this perlshnble matter-the
body,-the intellect is to an extent,
dependent on material things. Moth
Ing enters its sacred portals, save
through the medium of the senses. We
see, we hear and we feel, yes, and
sometimes we Imagine, and from these
we reason and conclude. This is the
sum total Of our knowledge here ON
earth. This knowledge, however, Is
not to be underestimated, for through
1t we can know many things; we can
reach by most unanswerable argu-
ments even the infinite. Reason may
prove to any one Of us the existence
OF Supreme Being. 1t will show us
that the entire universe was the work
OF His omnipotent hand, and that as
He was the beginning so He is also
the end Of all things. Such knowledge
Is not to be despised, not to be belIt-
tied. 1t is our proudest title to great
ness, and few in these days would be
willing to relinquish their claim. But
reason may 60 even farther by pro-
cesses little more Intricate 1t will
show us that God is our final end and
destination, that in possessing Him
alone can we reach the happiness
which our nature calls for 1t will
show us what we must do to obtain
that end and instruct in our duties to-
wards our Sovereign Lord and Master.
But herein Lies a great danger. May
we not go too far? Can we rely on
reason to tell us everything? May we
not make most serious mistakes? In
these our days man has become inflat-
ed with the success Of his great and
marvellous achievements. He has pen
erated into the hidden resources of