The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1915-10-30

neither logical COnSecut1VeneSS OF
thought, nor mathematical exactitude
in giving utterance to their ideas, are
always to be found arrayed against
anything that savors of defniteness
and precision in thinking; in other
words, they are opposed to dogmas.
And well they may be, for there is
nothing like a short, sharp, crisp, pre-
else, well-defined dogma to show the
absurdity of their thoughts and words.
Vague, indefinite, obscure, foggy think
ing is incapable of dogmatic express
sion, hence, as men progress intel,
lectually, as their brains develop, as
their reason expands, the more will
they be found to express their conclu-
sions in set formula which we de-
note by the word dogma.
We must not infer that dogmas are
confined strictly to the realm of the
ology. We must not fall into the er-
ror of surprising that dogmas are used
only in the religious world. On, the
| contrary, dogmas are found in every
sciences that can engage the mind of
man. When scholars find it necessary
to state a truth, to present it emphati-
cally, to express it clearly, simply,
briefly, positively, convincingly and un-
erringly, they use dogmatic form of
Repression. Thus it is that every
branch of science has it's full quota of
dognlas. We find them in chemistry,
in medicine, in mathematics, in astron-
omy, in physics, in geology, and in
every field of knowledge cultivated by
mankind. Scientists have been more
dognlatic in expressing the truths of
their own branches than have all the
Popes from st. Peter to Benedict XIV
A modern university professor is more
dogmatic in his utterances than any
medieval pontiff.
Engineers have their dogmas; cleo
tricians have their dogmas; every man
who thinks at all, who knows that he
is thinking, and who grasps clearly
i and firmly the truths which occupy
| his thoughts, cannot help expressing
himself in dogmas. Dogmas are mere
ly conclusions derived from universal
i ly admitted, incontestable premises,
and we can no more avoid using them
than we can deny our existence, or
i prevent our intellect from functioning.
i To say that, hydrogen and oxygen
in certain proportions are the elements
composing drop of water is dogma
/ in Chemistry. To say that twice two
are four is a dogma of mathematics
To say that the square of the hypo-
thenuse is equal to the sum of the
squares of the other two sides is a
dogma of geometry. To say that light
travels faster than sound is dogma of
i physics. To say that Pittsburgh is in
the state of Pennsylvania is dogma
of geography. To say that the earth
1, reyolVes around the sun is dogma of
! astronomy. To say that life can only
: come from life, and that every living
/ being, comes from another living be-
ing, is dogma of biology. To say
there is nothing in the intellect that
was not previously in the senses is a
i dogma of psychology. To say that
Wellington defeated Napoleon at Wa
terloo is a dogma of history.
i And SO might run on through every
bFanchaofr knowledge and quote from
it's standard text books innumerable
dogmas which are the broad and deep
foundation upon which every science
reposes. All these and million
others are as luminous as sunlight, and
no one in his senses ever thought of
denying them, or of objecting to their
being put into dogmatic form. Indeed,
their being thrown into dogmatic
shape, and thus being made easy of
uses is the great source of their value
, It is only when we come to the res.
ervoir of truths contained in Divine
Revelation that self-contained minds
call halt. There is today altogether
too much reverence paid to university
degrees. University honors no long
er suppose true knowledge in the pos.
SCISSOR of the degrees; hence the great
names bearing university degrees are
i entitled to no consideration when they
attempt to tell us that religious truths
must be different from other truths
that they must be vacillating, oscillat
. ing, constantly adjusted to their en-
vironment, be put in conformity to the
agee, and not confined within the com
: pass of dogmatic expression, for the
very nature of a dogma, and fortiori
Catholic dogma, is that it is fixed
q permanent, stable, unyielding, unerr
/ ing and incapable OF change.