The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1915-12-11
POPULAR APoLoeETIcs.
Adapted from the German Of Rev
Peter Mikes, S. j., by Rev.
james Watcher.
XVI. order a Matter of Chance.


mad whirl, without any special design,
by mere chance, the present world
order could have been the result, the
first prize, as it were, in the immense
world-lottery.
Answer: Sober mathematics an
swers. The theory of probabilities
equals zero in this case.
For those not we'll versed in mathe-
mates | will give an example. In
stead of atoms let us take seven
pebbles having the seven colors Of
the rainbow and lay them in straight
line. How many different positions
are possible? Let us call the seven
pebbles a, b, C, etc.; for the first two
only two positions are possible:
alb ba
The first three, 3x2:
abe bac cab
acb boa cha
The first four, 4X3X2:
abcd bacd cabd dabc
ABIDE badc cadb dacb
acbd bead chad dbac
acdb bcda cbda dbca
adbc bdac cdab dcab
adcb bdca cdba dcba
The Z have 7x6x5x4x3x2-5,04 0 pos
sible positions. With IL pebbles we
get 1901, 600 possible positions; Is
pebbles give already 6,227020,S0O pos
sible positions; 20 pebbles give 2,432,-
S97218, 100, $4,000 G. quintillions, 432
quadrillions, 897 trillions, 21S billions,
100 millions, GAO thousand) possible
positions in one straight line. The
probability of this arrangement in
one straight line is one divided
by over two quadrillions, num-
Der far exceeding human compre-
hension. This line, formed by these
pebbles, can be turned in plane
like the hands of a clock and thus
can occupy an infinite number OF
positions. Then the probability OF
a certain arrangement of these 20
pebbles equals one divided by 2
quintillion times infinity which equals
zero. But this plane can again turn
in space and occupy an infinite num-
her of positions, and so the above
probability equals one divided by 2
quintillion times infinity times infinity,
which equals zero.
So far we have figured only with
twenty pebbles; but who can count
the atoms of the whole world? The
earth alone contains 24,942,672, 000,-
100000 cubic miles How many
atoms? The suns mass is $4,000
times greater How many atoms
TO these add all the other planets and
asteroids. But our solar system is
only a small part of the universe.
Prof. Young in his Astronomy" esti-
mates the number of stars that can
be seen with the Lick telescope at
100 million. All Of these, it is sup
posed, are solar systems, many of
them, no doubt, by far greater than
our solar system. How many atoms?
Another example. The improbable
ity of throwing one point with a die is
5; with two dice 35. Kroenig I 1879,
a believing Christian), a famous
physicist, has calculated: If for n
million years every year a million peo-
pie were born and each would live
10000 years, and if each during his
whole life would shake dice with 80
dice at 20 shakes a minute, it is
probable that it would not happen
once that each die of the 80 would
show one point. (See job. Reinke,
Die Welt ais Tat, 4th ed, p. 32D.
Now since these immense masses
of the universe were once a chaos of
atoms, without plan and order, who
could ever expect with sound reason
that by mere chance the wonderful
and stable order of the universe came
out of this confusion? The great
Spanish philosopher Balmes i 1S4S),
says: "Our mind is crushed by the
weight of such thoughts; the human
mind becomes confused with q con-
fusion that no language can express.
1t is sad TO notice that man abuses
his reason, the characteristic trait of
his greatness, and endeavors to ban
ish the highest reason t(God) from the
world
The savage Indian of the primeval
forests knows by few freshly
broken twigs that another Indian
wanted to give him sign of his
passing. But the modern atheistic
scientist wants to pass the grand
order s0f the world without acknowl-
edging the Great Spirit that produced
it!
Seeing a human piece of art no
one would ask: BY what chance did
that come into existence? Why?
Because everyone knows that where
there is law and order there an in
teIligent spirit must have been active.
And the greatest piece of art, the
universe, should be produced by
blind chance without intelligence!
How utterly senseless and dreary is
such view!
The existence of God is so beyond
all doubt that it is intellectual suicide
to deny it.
A last desperate subterfuge of the
philosopher Kuno Fisher / 1900, is:
cit is not proved at all that there
really is order in nature"
Such assertions would be extremely
ludicrous if they were not so sad.
To such lengths of Notifying their
reason, to such sacrifices of their
intellect infidels have to take their
refuge to doubt the plain fact of the
-. & sxxv1. :. \