The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1912-03-02
STRONGEST
TRIPLE ALLIANCE
SCIENCE, PHILOSOPHY, AND RE-
LiGioN PROCLAIM THE EXIST
ENcE OF GOD AS THE SOURCE
AND END OF ALL THINGS.

In the course of an address de-
livered recently before the Canadian
Club at Toronto, the Rev. Bernard
Vaughan, s. j., spoke, in part, as
follows
A scientist Of some repute in a day
gone by asked the question: Whence
come we? Whittier go WEI" and he
went on to say: THE question dies
away without an answer, without even
an echo on the boundless shore of the
unknown" Very humbly, submit.
that one reason why we met with no
answer to his question is that he did
put it in the proper quarter Science
as such does not deal with our whence
and our whittier, but with phenomena,
and with facts generalized into laws.
Within that area lies its mission, and
not beyond that frontier. To inyesti-
gate the causes and the sources of
knowledge is the province, not of
science, but of philosophy. It is the
business of the philosopher to take up
the last link in the chain of phenomena
dropped by the scientist, to argue
thence to the existence of a First
Cause. If besides being scientist
and a philosopher the enquirer is also
follower of Revelation, he not only
looks back to his origin, but dips into
the future to find out his destiny; and
he proclaims to all who come to listen,
| in the words of Christ, II know
whence I came and whittier l CO."
Science, Philosophy, and Religion.
There is, as you see, strongly
formed Triple Alliance "a between
Science, Philosophy, and Revelation
Each of it's three schools contribute
it's share of information to mans
stock-in-trade of truth. What has
science to tell us? She says that this
this puny, petty islet, set in the vast
archipelago, on whose surface man
finds his temporary dwelling place,
was once ball of fire, thrown off
from a ball still bigger, which grad
ually, as it rotated on it's axis, and
swept around the sun, began to cool,
till there was spun and woven it's
present coat of many colors."
When Science wanted to know who
it was that first of all started the big
ball spinning, who was the Prime
Mover of the first thing moved, she
appealed to the Philosopher, who with
Newton and Siemens with Stewart
and Tate, with Farady, Clark, Max
well, Dawson, made answer, with the
great Kelvin: There are overwhelm-
ing proofs Of intelligence and benev-
olent design around us, showing us,
through nature, the influence of a
free will, and teaching us that all
living things depend upon an ever
lasting Creator and Ruler What
Philosophy proclaimed, Religion con.
firmed
Standing between Science and
Philosophy, linked hand in hand, the
Christian exclaimed: I'm the be-
ginning God created heaven and
earth" To which Science and Philos.
ophy answered, so be it. Amen"
Initial Life.
There is another bit of useful in.
formation tossed out to us by the
hand of Science. Science tells us that
in the days gone by there was time
when such was the high temperature
!. of the earth that not even the simplest
form of life could for moment exist
upon it's bosom. Then was the earth
, a painless, arid, barren land. When
then. did life first appear? About
initial life Science can tell us no more
: than she can about the primitive
nebula" and that is nothing at ALL She
must knock at the door of Philosophy
to learn the source of things, and the
r spring of life. What saith the
| Philosopher? He says, with Turner, in
: his inaugural address at the British
} Association, 1--WE know not as regards
time when the fiat went forth: Let
there be life and there was life. The
, only thing we know about initial life
, is what Pasteur, Lister, and Koch
knew about it--that as there is nc
such thing as life at all but as the off
: springs of previously existing life, we
, must bow to the philosophy which
: comes to our rescue, and argues that
) there must be some self-existine
: Being, Who, STOPPING down to oul
, planet, brooding over the mineral
| world, breathed into it's face the
! Breath of Life, till at length our little
( earth began to vibrate to the pulsa
: lions of life all it's own" What
} Philosophy put before us as the result
: of her Investigations, religion again
! confirmed by the words of the creed
, God breathed into the clay the
E breath of life, and man became liv
r ing SOUL
: AS Science has shown us the be
+ ginning of our little round earth, sc
a does it point to us an end to The
0 energies of our system, AS to whether
g our planet will be burnt up before
+ 1t is burnt out, Science cannot say. AL
+ that she knows is that within {