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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Freedom of Science by Joseph Donat
+
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no
+restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under
+the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or
+online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license
+
+
+
+Title: The Freedom of Science
+
+Author: Joseph Donat
+
+Release Date: July 26, 2012 [Ebook #40342]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: US-ASCII
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FREEDOM OF SCIENCE***
+
+
+
+
+
+                          The Freedom of Science
+
+                                    By
+
+                         Joseph Donat, S.J., D.D.
+
+                      Professor Innsbruck University
+
+                                 New York
+
+                             Joseph F. Wagner
+
+                                   1914
+
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+Imprimatur.
+Author's Preface To The English Edition.
+Translator's Note.
+First Section. The Freedom of Science and its Philosophical Basis.
+   Chapter I. Science And Freedom.
+   Chapter II. Two Views Of The World And Their Freedom.
+   Chapter III. Subjectivism And Its Freedom.
+Second Section. Freedom of Research and Faith.
+   Chapter I. Research And Faith In General.
+   Chapter II. The Authority Of Faith And The Free Exercise Of Research.
+   Chapter III. Unprepossession Of Research.
+   Chapter IV. Accusations And Objections.
+   Chapter V. The Witnesses of the Incompatibility Of Science And Faith.
+Third Section. The Liberal Freedom of Research.
+   Chapter I. Free From The Yoke Of The Supernatural.
+   Chapter II. The Unscientific Method.
+   Chapter III. The Bitter Fruit.
+Fourth Section. Freedom of Teaching.
+   Chapter I. Freedom Of Teaching And Ethics.
+   Chapter II. Freedom Of Teaching And The State.
+Fifth Section. Theology.
+   Chapter I. Theology And Science.
+   Chapter II. Theology And University.
+Index.
+Footnotes
+
+
+
+
+
+
+IMPRIMATUR.
+
+
+Nihil Obstat
+REMIGIUS LAFORT, D.D.
+_Censor_
+
+Imprimatur
+JOHN CARDINAL FARLEY
+_Archbishop of New York_
+
+NEW YORK, January 22, 1914.
+
+COPYRIGHT, 1914, BY JOSEPH F. WAGNER, NEW YORK
+
+
+
+
+
+AUTHOR'S PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH EDITION.
+
+
+The present work has already secured many friends in German Europe. An
+invitation has now been extended for its reception among the
+English-speaking countries, with the object that there, too, it may seek
+readers and friends, and communicate to them its thoughts--the ideas it has
+to convey and to interpret. While wishing it heartfelt success and good
+fortune on its journey, the Author desires it to convey his greetings to
+its new readers.
+
+This book has issued from the throes of dissension and strife, seeing the
+light at a time when, in Austria and Germany, the bitter forces of
+opposition, that range themselves about the shibboleth _Freedom of
+Science_, were seen engaging in a combat of fiercer intensity than ever.
+Yet, notwithstanding, this Child of Strife has learned the language of
+Peace only. It speaks the language of an impartial objectivity which
+endeavours, in a spirit of unimpassioned, though earnest, calm, to range
+itself over the burning questions of the day--over those great
+_Weltanschauung_ questions, that stand in such close relation with the
+compendious motto: _Freedom of Science_. Yes, _Freedom_ and _Science_
+serve, in our age and on both sides of the Atlantic, as trumpet-calls, to
+summon together--often indeed to pit in deadly combat--the rival forces of
+opposition. They are catch-words that tend to hold at fever-pitch the
+intellectual life of modern civilization--agents as they are of such mighty
+and far-reaching influences. On the one hand, Science, whence the moving
+and leading ideas of the time take shape and form to go forth in turn and
+subject to their sway the intellect of man; on the other, Freedom--that
+Freedom of sovereign emancipation, that Christian Freedom of well-ordered
+self-development, which determine the actions, the strivings of the human
+spirit, even as they control imperceptibly the march of Science. While the
+present volume is connected with this chain of profound problems, it
+becomes, of itself, a representation of the intellectual life of our day,
+with its far-reaching philosophical questions, its forces of struggle and
+opposition, its dangers, and deep-seated evils.
+
+The Author has a lively recollection of an expression which he heard a few
+years ago, in a conversation with an American professor, then journeying
+in Europe. "Here, they talk of tolerance," he observed, "while in America
+we put it into practice." The catch-word _Freedom of Science_ will not,
+therefore, in _every_ quarter of the world, serve as a call to arms,
+causing the opposing columns to engage in mutual conflict, as is the case
+in many portions of Europe. But certain it is that everywhere alike--in the
+new world of America, as well as in the old world of Europe--the human
+spirit has its attention engaged with the same identical questions--those
+topics of nerve-straining interest that sway and surge about this same
+catch-word like so many opposing forces. Everywhere we shall have those
+tense oppositions between sovereign Humanity and Christianity, between
+Knowledge and Faith, between Law and Freedom; everywhere those questions
+on the Rights and Obligations of Science, on Catholic Thought, and on
+Catholic Doctrinal Beliefs and Duties.
+
+May it fall to the lot of this book to be able to communicate to many a
+reader, interested in such topics, words of enlightenment and
+explanation--to some for the strengthening of their convictions, to others
+for the correction, perhaps, of their erroneous views. At home, while
+winning the sympathy of many readers, it has not failed to encounter also
+antagonism. This was to be expected. The resolute championing of the
+principles of the Christian view of the world, as well as many a candid
+expression of views touching the intellectual impoverishment and the
+ever-shifting position of unshackled Freethinking, must necessarily arouse
+such antagonism. May the present volume meet on the other side of the
+Atlantic with a large share of that tolerance which is put into actual
+practice there, and is there not merely an empty phrase on the lips of
+men! May it contribute something to the better and fuller understanding of
+the saying of that great English scientist, WILLIAM THOMSON: "Do not be
+afraid of being free-thinkers! If you think strongly enough, you will be
+forced by science to the belief in God, which is the foundation of all
+religion."
+
+Finally, I may be allowed to express my sincere thanks to the publisher
+for undertaking the work of this translation.
+
+May it accomplish much good.
+
+J. Donat.
+
+UNIVERSITY INNSBRUCK,
+CHRISTMAS, 1913.
+
+
+
+
+
+TRANSLATOR'S NOTE.
+
+
+The German original is replete with references to works especially in the
+German language, the author having with great care quoted title and page
+whenever referring to an author. Since many of these references are of
+value only to those familiar with the German, they have been abbreviated
+or omitted in this English version, whenever they would seem to needlessly
+encumber its pages.
+
+Those desirous of verifying quotations will be enabled to do so in all
+instances by a reference to the German original.
+
+
+
+
+
+FIRST SECTION. THE FREEDOM OF SCIENCE AND ITS PHILOSOPHICAL BASIS.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter I. Science And Freedom.
+
+
+If a question is destined to agitate and divide for considerable length of
+time the minds of men, it must undoubtedly have its root deep in the
+entire intellectual life of the times; it must be anchored in profound
+philosophical thought, in theories of life. From this source it derives
+its power of captivating the minds. All this applies to the question of
+the Freedom of Science. If, then, we desire a thorough understanding of
+this question, we must first of all seek and examine its deeper lying
+philosophical basis; we must trace the threads which so closely unite it
+to the intellectual life and effort of the times.
+
+But before we begin our study, let us remember a rule of the great orator
+and philosopher of ancient Rome; a rule only too often forgotten in our
+times: "Every philosophical discussion, of anything whatsoever, should
+begin with a definition, in order to make clear what the discussion is
+about" (_Cicero_, De Officiis, I, 2). If we would form a judgment as to
+the demand of science for freedom, as to the justification of this demand,
+as to its compatibility or incompatibility with the duty of faith, the
+first question that naturally arises is: What is the purport of this
+demand, what does it mean? Only after we have clearly circumscribed this
+demand can we approach its philosophical presumptions and test its basis.
+
+What, then, do we understand by Science, and what freedom may be granted
+to it?
+
+
+
+Science.
+
+
+When a man of Northern or Central Europe hears of science, his thoughts
+generally turn to the universities and their teachers. To him the
+university is the home of science, there its numerous branches dwell in
+good fellowship, there hundreds of men have consecrated themselves to its
+service. In those parts of Europe it is customary for men of science to be
+university professors. Of what university is he? is asked. Celebrated
+scientists, like _Helmholtz_, _Liebig_, _Hertz_, _Kirchhoff_;
+philosophers, like _Kant_, _Fichte_, _Schelling_, _Hegel_, _Herbart_;
+great philologists, historians, and so on, were university professors.
+
+For all that, _science_ and _university_ are not necessarily inseparable
+things. The university needs science, but science does not absolutely need
+the university. Science was in the world before the twelfth and thirteenth
+centuries, the time when France and Italy built their first universities;
+and also since then science has been enriched by the achievements of many
+a genius who never occupied a university chair. _Pythagoras_, _Aristotle_,
+_St. Augustine_ belonged to no universities; _Copernicus_, _Newton_, and
+_Kepler_ never taught in the higher schools. In the countries of Western
+Europe and America the man of science and the university professor are to
+this day not so much identical in person. Therefore, if the freedom of
+science applies _principally_ to the higher schools and their teachers,
+this is not its exclusive application. Science and university are not
+identical terms.
+
+What, then, is science?
+
+At the sound of this magic word there arises in the minds of many the
+image of a superhuman being: open on his lap lies the book of wisdom in
+which all mysteries are solved; in his hand is the flaming torch which
+enlightens the path down into the lowest depths of research, dispelling
+all darkness. This, in the minds of many, is what science means. The mere
+appeal to this infallible being suffices to settle all problems, to
+silence every contradiction; woe to him who dares open his profane mouth
+to utter an If or a But!
+
+Were this science, there would be no dispute. We should have to admit that
+there could be no limit set to the freedom of this being; he must share
+the privileges of divine Intelligence, for no command to keep silent can
+be imposed on Infallible Truth; there can be no amendment. But, alas! in
+the world of reality this personified Science is nowhere to be found, it
+exists solely in the realm of rhetoric and poetry. Science, as it exists
+among men, has its seat, after all, nowhere else than in the human mind.
+It is, indeed, nothing else but _the well-ordered summary of knowledge and
+of the research for the causes of things_. Natural science is the summary
+of knowledge and research in the realm of natural phenomena, arranged in
+an orderly way, as a text-book will give it; that is, an investigation of
+phenomena and their causes. A mere description of natural phenomena,
+without any explanation, or reference of them to the laws of nature, would
+indeed be teaching about nature, but not natural science. Similarly, the
+science of history is the well-ordered summary of knowledge and research
+in the domain of human events, derived from their sources, with the
+statement of facts according to cause and effect.
+
+And not all this knowledge is certain, and free from doubt. The modern
+conception of science, as we now have it--the ancients had a much narrower
+conception--includes certain as well as uncertain knowledge, results and
+hypotheses, and even the activity of research, together with its methods.
+Astronomy was thus in _Ptolemy's_ time the summary of what was then known
+with more or less certainty about the stars; included in this, as is well
+known, was the opinion that the sun circles around the earth. And the
+philosophy of _Aristotle_ embraced his philosophical ideas about God, the
+world and man; hence many errors. Further, when speaking of science in
+general, we mean the whole number of the individual sciences. It is the
+freedom of science in this sense that we have to investigate here. The
+individual sciences are distinguished one from another principally by the
+subjects of which they treat. Astronomy is distinguished from palaeontology
+and philosophy by the fact that it treats of the stars, not of fossils, or
+of the fundamental truths of reason.
+
+From this brief analysis of concepts it is clear that science and
+scientific research are not superhuman beings, but an activity or
+condition of the human mind, distinguished from the ordinary thought of
+the individual only by system and method, and, commonly, by greater
+thoroughness and by the united effort of many. _It is subject to all the
+limitations of the human mind._
+
+What follows from this? Two things. Let us at once make a brief reference
+to both of them, because in our discussion they are of the greatest
+importance.
+
+Since, then, science is an activity of the human mind, it must, like it,
+always and everywhere be _subject to the Truth_ and _subject to God_.
+Subject to the Truth: whenever science comes in contact with it, it must
+reverently bow to the truth. And subject to God: if God is the Creator of
+man and of his spiritual and bodily activity, He is also the master of his
+whole being, and man is subject to Him in all his activity and
+development, therefore in his intellectual life, and in his artistic and
+scientific pursuits. Everything is and remains the activity of the
+_creature_. As gravitation rules the entire planet and its material
+activity, attracts it towards the sun and makes it circle around it, so
+does the law of dependence on God rule the whole life of the creature. Man
+cannot therefore, even in his scientific research, ignore his Creator,
+cannot emancipate himself from His authority; and if God has given a
+revelation and demands faith, the man of science, too, must believe. There
+cannot be an emancipated, free, science in this sense.
+
+Another consequence is this: since science is an activity of the human
+mind, it shares all its _imperfections and weaknesses_. It is truly flesh
+of its flesh. The fruit cannot be more perfect than the tree that produces
+it, nor the flower better than the plant on which it blossomed. Now, as
+the human mind is throughout limited in its nature, so is it also in its
+research. It is not given to man to soar aloft on eagle wings to the
+heights of knowledge, thence to gaze upon truth with unerring intuition;
+the ascent must be slow, with constant dangers of stumbling, even of
+falling headlong. To these dangers must be added his latent likes and
+dislikes, which imperceptibly guide his thought, especially in forming
+opinions on questions of the world and of life, which the human heart
+cannot view with indifference: they influence his thought. Hence
+ignorance, darkness, and error, everywhere accompany the investigator
+individually, and science as a whole, all the more the loftier the
+questions that present themselves.
+
+
+    Already the philosopher of the dim past gave expression to the
+    complaint, that our reason is no more capable of knowing the
+    divine than the eyes of the owl are of seeing in broad daylight.
+    It is _Aristotle_ who so complains. And the great _Newton_, in the
+    evening of his life, thus estimates the worth of his knowledge:
+    "What the world may think about my labour, I do not know; I feel
+    like a child that plays on the strand of the sea: now and then I
+    may perhaps find a pebble or shell more beautiful than those of my
+    playmates, while the boundless ocean lies ever before me with its
+    undiscovered treasures" (apud _O. Zoeckler_, Gottes Zeugen im
+    Reich der Natur (1906), 173). The same sorrowful plaint is heard
+    from all serious investigators, especially those in the domain of
+    the natural sciences, who should have more reason than others to
+    be proud of their achievements. "However great the amount of human
+    knowledge may seem to the multitude," writes the well-known
+    chemist _Schoenbein_, "the most experienced scientist feels the
+    incompleteness and patchwork of it, and realizes that man so far
+    has been able to learn but infinitely little of what nature is,
+    and of what can be known." "The more exact the investigation,"
+    says the geologist _Quenstedt_, "so much the more obscure is its
+    beginning. Indeed, the deeper we think to have understood the
+    single parts, the further the original plan of the Creator seems
+    to escape us" (cf. _Kneller_, Das Christentum und die Vertreter
+    der neueren Naturwissenschaften (1904), 208, 281). "Although
+    science," so we are assured by another modern savant, "has brought
+    to light many a treasure, still, compared with what we do not yet
+    know, it is as a drop to the ocean. In all our knowledge there
+    will always be the danger of error." We are probably not very far
+    in advance of the time of _Albrecht von Haller_, who said: "We,
+    all of us, err, only each errs in a different way. Every passage
+    that has been illuminated by science is surrounded by dense
+    darkness; beyond the visible lies the invisible." And Prof. _J.
+    Reinke_ continues: "As early as the day of _Socrates_, the
+    beginning of philosophy was to know that we know nothing; the end
+    of philosophy, to know that we must believe: such is the
+    inevitable fate of human wisdom" (Naturwissenschaft und Religion,
+    in Natur und Kultur IV (1907), 418, 425. Printed also separately).
+    Some years ago Sir _W. Ramsay_, a noted scientist, concluded a
+    discourse on his scientific labour with the words: "When a man has
+    reached the middle of his life, he begins to believe that the
+    longer he lives the less he knows! This is my excuse for having
+    molested you for an hour with my ignorance" (Einige Betrachtungen
+    ueber das periodische Gesetz der Elemente. Vortrag auf der 75.
+    Versammlung Deutscher Naturforscher und AErzte zu Cassel (1903)).
+
+    If science, then, can only with difficulty lift from visible
+    nature the veils that hide the truth--and even this is often beyond
+    its power--no wonder it is confronted with still greater obstacles
+    when it approaches the truths that are beyond visible nature.
+    Moreover, it is an old truth that here it is led not by reason
+    only, but also, and even more energetically, by self-interest.
+    "Most men," says _Cicero_, "are swayed in their judgments by
+    either love or hatred, likes or dislikes" (De Oratore, II, 42).
+
+
+If this is the nature of human science, its adepts would be badly
+deceiving themselves, if, in the pride of learning, they would reject
+every correction, even proudly pushing aside the hand of God that reaches
+down into the darkness of man's intellectual life to offer its guidance.
+He who realizes that he is in danger of losing his way in the dark, will
+not reject a reliable guide; and he who fears to stumble will not refuse a
+helping hand. Self-knowledge is the sister of wisdom, and the mother of
+modesty.
+
+
+
+Freedom.
+
+
+Such, then, is science: not the goddess that emanated from the head of
+immortal Jove, but the offspring of the puny mind of man, bone of his bone
+and flesh of his flesh. And this science cries for freedom. It would be
+free and act freely; it urges its claim in the name of truth, which must
+not be slighted; in the name of the progress of civilization, which must
+not be hindered.
+
+_Freedom_ clearly means nothing less than to be untrammeled and free from
+restraint, from fetter and check, in action, thought, and desire. The
+prisoner is free when his chains drop off, a people is free when it has
+cast off the yoke of serfdom, the eagle is free and can spread out its
+wings in lofty flight when not bound down to the earth. Science,
+therefore, should be free in its activity from bond, fetter, and
+restraint. Does this mean it must be free from _all_ restraint and law?
+Should the historian be given the right to make _Solon_ a member of the
+French Academy, or of the heroes of Troy mediaeval knights? Should the
+scientist be given the right to break every rule of logic, to ignore all
+progress, and perhaps in his capriciousness return to the four elements of
+_Aristotle_, or the astronomical chart of primitive ages? Nobody demands
+this. No, science must be bound by the _truth_. Freedom indeed should not
+mean lawlessness. Science remains bound by the general laws of logic, and
+by positive facts. Truth is the irremovable barrier set in restraint of
+the freedom of everything, even of scientific thought. The freedom of
+science therefore can only be freedom from _unreasonable_ restraint and
+fetters; from such that hinder it unreasonably in its inquiry after the
+truth, and in the communication of the results of its investigation. _It
+should be free, not from the internal bondage of truth, but from the
+restraint by external authority_, the restraint which would hinder it, in
+an _improper way_, from approaching those questions, and using those
+methods, that lead to the discovery of truth, and from acknowledging the
+results it has found to be true; or which would unlawfully keep it from
+making known, for the benefit of others, the results of its investigation.
+It should be free from any unjust restriction, imposed by state or Church,
+by popular opinion, by party spirit, by hampering protectorate, or
+servility of any kind.
+
+From any _unjust_ restriction, we said. For this is clear: if under
+certain circumstances there might be warrant for a _just_ restriction by
+external authority, such a restriction could not be refused in the name of
+freedom. So long, then, as we understand by freedom a _lawful_ freedom,
+there cannot be included in this the freedom from _every_ external
+authority, but only from _unlawful_ interference. There is, then, the
+question whether there may be a legitimate restraint, imposed by external
+authority, which man must not evade, and what the nature of such restraint
+may be.
+
+We must, moreover, take into consideration two elements, which are
+distinguished in the above definitions, both belonging to the modern idea
+of scientific freedom. We will call them _freedom of research_, and
+_freedom of teaching_. The investigator and the scientist claim the one;
+the teacher, the other. Searching after truth, and communicating the truth
+found, are, as is known, the principal occupations of science. The
+scientist should first of all be an investigator. He should not be content
+to appropriate to himself the knowledge of others, he should also make his
+own additions to knowledge. He is also commonly a teacher, by word of
+mouth, as at the university, or by his writing, in his literary activity.
+Research, as such, imparts directly a certain knowledge only to the
+investigator; it is of a private nature and as such does not reach beyond
+him. But by teaching, his ideas are communicated to others, and then begin
+to influence their thought, will, and action, often very strongly.
+Teaching is a social factor; with it are bound up the weal and woe of
+others. Suppose a man of influence conceives in his study the idea that
+monogamy is an infringement upon the universal rights of man; should he be
+given without any ado the right of disseminating, by teaching, the
+imagined results of his investigation, to the confusion of men, and with
+serious danger to the peace of society?
+
+We shall therefore have to distinguish between freedom of research and
+freedom of teaching. The neglect of this distinction causes not a little
+confusion; thus, if one complains of his convictions being trammeled or
+his liberty of conscience being violated, when he is hindered from
+immediately proclaiming whatever he calls his convictions. Private
+opinion, and the public propaganda of this opinion, are evidently very
+different things. It may be that an opinion seems to me the right one,
+but, in spite of that, public dissemination of it may, always or under
+certain circumstances, mean danger to my fellow-men. If I am for this
+reason prevented from publishing it, I am not thereby hindered from giving
+it my own private assent. It is, moreover, quite clear that the state--we
+disregard here religious authority--cannot at all directly restrict
+research, which is something personal. It can only impose restrictions on
+the communication of one's ideas by teaching them to others, which is a
+social function.
+
+
+    From these few remarks will be followed the impropriety of the
+    following, or similar, observations: "The fostering of science and
+    its teaching are not separate functions ... to insinuate a twofold
+    function of freedom, viz., that of the savant and that of the
+    teacher, would be to dissolve the unity of the moral personality"
+    (_W. Kahl_, Bekenntnissgebundenheit und Lehrfreiheit (1897), 22).
+    It is not at all double-dealing if some one does not publicly
+    proclaim one's private knowledge. Is it double-dealing, is it a
+    violation of "the unity of the moral personality," if one is, and
+    must be, silent about official secrets? And if one does not tell,
+    and is not allowed to tell, official secrets, if one prevents an
+    anarchist from spreading his revolutionary ideas, is this a
+    violation of the unity of the moral personality? It is true that
+    "to deny one's convictions is a violation of one of the most
+    indubitable principles of moral conduct" (_K. v. Amira_, Die
+    Stellung des akademischen Lehrers zur Freiheit in Forschung und
+    Lehre. Beilage der Muenchener Neuesten Nachrichten. 9. Juli,
+    1908). But it is logically incorrect to conclude therefrom that
+    the freedom of teaching should not be restricted. To keep silence
+    is not denying one's convictions. Later on, when speaking of
+    freedom in teaching, we shall return to this thought and deal with
+    it more thoroughly.
+
+
+So far there can be no serious diversity of opinion. Freedom from unjust
+restraint is demanded, and rightly demanded, for science. The very object
+of science requires it. In scientific research man's power of discernment
+should freely develop; his inclination towards truth should exert itself;
+and by communication of acquired knowledge mankind should advance in
+mental and material culture.
+
+The bud bursts forth and freely unfolds its splendour; the butterfly grows
+unhindered in beauty; the tree, too, wants freedom, in order to develop
+its boughs and branches according to its nature, and if you try to bind
+and tie it, it resists as much as it can. Just so is freedom needful for
+the development of the noblest aspirations of human nature, for its
+progress in knowledge. Every friend of humanity, every one who loves his
+own kind, must be in sympathy with its progress. Who will not rejoice to
+see the mind of man happily trace the laws of nature, laid down by the
+Spirit of God in the stillness of eternity when as yet there was no
+creature to heed, the laws He then placed in nature in order that the
+reasonable creature might discern the marks of his Creator? Who would not
+rejoice to see man, diligently following the facts of history and studying
+the works of literature and art, find therein the ideas of God reflected,
+as the rays of the sun in the trembling drop of dew, and, finally, trying
+to solve the difficult problems of life? To this end has the Creator
+enkindled in the mind of man a spark of His own intelligence; to this end
+has He put in him a desire to inquire and learn, a desire which has
+exerted itself most in the noblest of men. Man is destined to find his
+ultimate gratification in beholding the Eternal Truth and Beauty, a vision
+which will be the completion of human science and culture, the highest
+perfection of created life. Thus man's noble desire for knowledge and
+truth must develop, it must be able to produce leaves and blossoms. For
+this he needs freedom, free air, and free light.
+
+If science is to attain its high purpose, it must have freedom also to
+impart the knowledge acquired. It should indeed further the progress of
+mankind. By its discovery it should enhance the beauty of human life,
+should enrich the treasure of human knowledge, should promote education
+and morality, to the honour of the Creator. For this end, too, freedom is
+necessary: freedom to impart newly acquired knowledge, else there would be
+no pleasure in work, stagnation rather than progress.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter II. Two Views Of The World And Their Freedom.
+
+
+There can, then, be no difference of opinion on this matter among
+sober-minded men: science must be free from all unjust hindrances and
+restraint. But we have not yet finished. We have not even proceeded very
+far on our way. The further question at once presents itself: Which are
+those unjust hindrances and restraints that scientific research and
+teaching may reject? May there not perhaps be such which it must respect?
+There is little meaning in the cry: Freedom! Freedom! This attractive
+word, which always finds an enthusiastic echo in man, may easily prove a
+misleading catchword, and become a dangerous weapon of the thoughtless and
+the unscrupulous.
+
+The question is not, whether our science, or, to speak more generally, our
+intellectual life, must be free--of that there can be no doubt. No life can
+spring up and thrive without due freedom. The question is: _What sort of
+freedom?_ how can it be more precisely defined? We all, indeed, demand
+freedom for the citizen; but what kind of freedom? He should be free from
+the fetters of tyranny and despotism. Do we also demand that he be free
+from the laws of the state? By no means! On the contrary, he must be
+subject to these, for the very reason that he is a citizen and not the
+inhabitant of an uncivilized world. We demand freedom for the artist; he
+should not be bound by the tyranny of fashion. Do we also demand that he
+be exempt from the laws of beauty and art? Not at all. He must subject
+himself to these if he means to be an artist and not a quack. That would
+not be true freedom, but lawlessness and license, the privilege of
+barbarism. Freedom therefore is a very ambiguous word.
+
+There are _two kinds of freedom_, _lawful_ and _unlawful_: the latter is
+freedom from just laws, the former from unjust laws.
+
+We ask again, what is that lawful freedom which man may claim for his
+scientific activity? In other words, what are the restraints which he may
+reject as unjust, and as enslaving the mind?--Here the ways part. Here,
+too, our question goes deeper, and touches something which moves men's
+minds very powerfully. Two different views of the world, two opposite
+conceptions of man and his thought, come here in collision.
+
+
+
+The Christian View of the World and its Freedom.
+
+
+On the one hand there is the Christian view of the world: it is
+essentially also the one which appears self-evident to every unbiassed
+mind. In this view man is a _creature, limited in every way, therefore in
+many ways dependent upon_ external rules, forces, and authorities. To God
+alone is it reserved to be infinite, and, therefore, to possess in Himself
+all perfection, goodness, and truth; for which reason there is nothing
+above Him on which He could be dependent. This is not the case with man.
+As a creature man is subject to his Creator. The latter is master over
+man's life and therefore at the same time its ultimate aim. For this
+reason religion is of obligation to man, that is, he must honour God as He
+demands it; if God requires faith in a revelation, if He established a
+Church and duly authorized it to guide us, we must submit to it. In the
+same way the intellect of man is bound by the laws of objective truth,
+which is not of his making, but presents itself to him as a norm: he must
+always be subject to it whether he wishes or not. Man is, finally, a
+factor in social life; he lives in the family, state, and Church, in the
+great society of mankind; upon them he is dependent for his education and
+development. And society requires that man be subject to a ruling
+authority, that in many things his own interests be subordinated to the
+welfare of the community.
+
+This is the order that God has established and wishes observed. Hence all
+human authority is a participation in God's supreme government. Thus it
+comes about that limits may be set to the scientist's free expression of
+his views, if the interest of the community require it.
+
+Man is, nevertheless, free. But his freedom does not mean complete
+independence; nor freedom from all restraint, but only from those external
+restraints which are opposed to his nature and position, which hinder his
+legitimate development and activity. He possesses freedom, but only such a
+freedom as is his due, by which he can unfold and develop his physical and
+mental powers. To keep his place of subordination to, and dependence on,
+these higher authorities and powers of truth and order, tends not to
+injure but to improve his being, not to dwarf but to develop his
+personality; for they are sources of life to him, they impart to his
+existence order and harmony, they raise him above himself and his own
+littleness, they free him from the prison of his own narrowness and
+selfishness, from the chains of his unruly desires. If a man emancipates
+himself from these bonds, which he ought to bear, he has freedom of
+course, but an unnatural freedom, which will be harmful and perhaps
+ruinous to him.
+
+Take the tree, for instance. It should have freedom for its natural
+growth. If you force it to creep along the ground instead of growing
+upward, if you deny it air and light, you infringe on the freedom it
+should have. Still it cannot have absolute freedom, for it is dependent on
+the ground from which it derives its nourishment, dependent on the laws of
+light and atmosphere and gravitation, on the laws of season; it must adapt
+itself to climate and soil. It may not say to the light: Away with you!--a
+stunted growth and deformity would be the result of such emancipation. It
+may not say to the ground: Away with you!--a sad but quick death would be
+its fate. It has its freedom, and in this freedom it grows and thrives. If
+it desires greater freedom, it would be an unnatural one, and it would
+tend, not to its development, but to its destruction.
+
+Such is the Christian view of man and his thought. Here, then, there is
+but one question to solve: Are the external restraints imposed on me in my
+investigation and teaching against my nature; against the right of my mind
+to truth; against my position in human society? If so, then I reject them,
+because they mean serfdom, not duty; unjust bonds, not natural restraint.
+But if not, then I do not refuse them my submission. Freedom I want, but
+only the freedom of man.
+
+Here we pause. Suffice it at present to have formulated the question; we
+shall return to this topic later and discuss it at greater length.
+
+
+
+The Modern Idea of Freedom.
+
+
+The Christian view of man and his freedom, which to past ages appeared
+self-evident, has grown obscure to many minds, and given place to another,
+a more modern view.(1)
+
+For the modern man, freedom, especially freedom of intellectual life,
+means _independence from external ties, from all authority_, or, to
+express it positively, absolute right of self-determination, _autonomy_.
+He does not recognize any law or rule which he has not imposed upon
+himself. In civil life, of course, it is a principle that man must submit
+to external, legal restraint in many things that do not directly concern
+his own person, but only so far as is necessary in order that others, too,
+may enjoy the same freedom; but also here every citizen must be able to
+share in the legislation, according to the rules of constitutional or
+republican government. But he must be free from every external restraint
+in whatever touches the core of his personality, his feeling, desire,
+thought, and the expression of his thought.
+
+It should now be clear, from what has been said, what is meant by _freedom
+of science_. It means independence from every external authority and
+restraint in research and teaching, the unhindered development and
+assertion of one's own intellectual personality. Man must let himself be
+directed only by his own judgment and his instinct for the truth, or his
+personal need, without heeding dogmas, Church laws, tradition, or any
+other external norm whatsoever. This is particularly true in the _domain
+of philosophy and religion_, in questions regarding the world and life,
+and in fundamental social questions. This is principally, and almost
+exclusively, the field in which an authoritative influence of the Church,
+or state, or society in general, is to be feared. Hence the importance of
+the question of the freedom of science in this field.
+
+This is also the manner in which the advocates of modern freedom of
+science unanimously describe it.
+
+
+    For the academic teacher, says _G. Kaufmann_, there are "strictly
+    speaking only the barriers drawn by his own instinct for the
+    truth. It is in this sense that we demand freedom of science
+    to-day for the university teacher. The freedom of the scientist
+    and of the academic teacher must not be limited by patented truth,
+    nor by faint-hearted consideration" (Die Lehrfreiheit an den
+    deutschen Universitaeten im neunzehnten Jahrhundert (1898), 36).
+    The first resolution proposed at the _Second Conference of German
+    University Teachers_, at Jena, in September, 1908, was this: "The
+    purpose of scientific research, and the communication of its
+    results, demand that it be independent of every consideration
+    foreign to scientific method itself." Of this resolution we have
+    from another source the following explanation: "Therefore, it
+    should be independent especially of tradition and the prejudices
+    of the masses, independent of authority and social bodies,
+    independent of party interest." (This was the addition to the
+    thesis as originally formulated by Prof. _von Amira_. Beilage der
+    Muenchener Neuesten Nachrichten, July 9, 1908.) And Prof. _F.
+    Paulsen_ writes: "No thought can be commanded or forbidden the
+    academic teacher or his audience" (Die deutschen Universitaeten
+    und das Universitaets-studium, 1902, 288).
+
+    _A. Harnack_ likewise teaches that "In regard to research and
+    knowledge there must be unlimited freedom," especially in matters
+    of religion. Here "man must fully understand his own innermost
+    being; the soul must recognize its own needs and the indicated way
+    to their satisfaction. This it can do only when it is entirely
+    free." "The fear that thereby the door to serious error is thrown
+    open should not in the least deter it, for the most serious error
+    of all is the opinion that man should not enjoy perfect freedom in
+    the determination of his state" (Neue Freie Presse, 7 Juni, 1908).
+
+    The same demands are made by free-thinkers, who are always and
+    everywhere in favor of free science. The _International Congress
+    of Free-thinkers_, held at Rome in June, 1904, thus defines
+    free-thought: "Since free-thought cannot concede to any authority
+    whatever the right to oppose human reason, or even to supersede
+    it, it demands that its advocates reject directly not only any
+    compulsory belief, but also every authority that tries to enforce
+    its dogmas, even though such an authority be based on revelation,
+    or though it command obedience to dogmas or a-priori principles of
+    philosophy, or to the decisions of public authority or the vote of
+    a majority."--We shall have frequent occasion to speak of this
+    freedom in these pages.
+
+
+Hence it is easily seen that this view differs from the one we considered
+before. Freedom from _all_ external restraint has superseded freedom from
+_unjust_ restraint. The presumption has found acceptance that every
+interference by authority is unjust, a violation of the natural rights of
+man and his thought. On what is this presumption based? In other words:
+What are the philosophical premises of modern freedom of science? We shall
+be occupied with this question now for some time. For only after we have
+attentively considered it, can we gain an intelligent idea of the nature
+of this freedom, of its methods, and of the justice of its claims.
+Advocates of this view not infrequently think they have exhausted its
+meaning when they have protested against ecclesiastical encroachments,
+when they have held forth against Syllabus and Index. Of the deeper
+thoughts it contains they have scarcely any idea.
+
+
+
+The Humanitarian View of the World.
+
+
+We may distinguish a twofold basis for this view, a general and a
+particular one. The latter, which is connected with the former, is
+subjectivism in thought. The former, the more _general_, at the same time
+the _real basis of the modern freedom of science_, is that particular view
+of man and his position in the world, which we may call the theory of
+humanitarianism. We are familiar with this word--it has its history. The
+word of itself conveys a good meaning: it means human nature and dignity,
+thought and desire worthy of man, nobility of culture. During the
+Renaissance the so-called "humanists" identified culture with knowledge of
+the ancient classical literature. Many of them, however, added to the
+admiration of classical literature also preference for pagan tastes, to
+the contempt of the Christian spirit. Since that time the word
+_humanitarian_ has never lost its unchristian sense; it has ever been made
+the motto of men who emancipated themselves from God and Christianity.
+Hence it is extensively the motto of our times.
+
+It has changed the position of man. It has forgotten that man is a
+created, limited, even a fallen being, withal destined for eternal
+existence. To it man is everything; man left to himself and to his life in
+this world, severed from God and his eternal destiny, an _absolute, purely
+worldly being_. No longer does he look up to Heaven, no longer does he get
+from above his laws, his hope for help, and strength, and eternal life. He
+is his own and only end: he and his earthly happiness and advancement. In
+himself alone he sees the source of his strength, in himself he finds his
+law, to himself alone is he responsible, the inherited corruption of his
+nature he has forgotten. What God once was to our fathers--the end and rule
+of their life--that now is Man to their sons. The anthropocentric has
+succeeded the theocentric view of the world. _Diis extinctis successit
+humanitas_ (Man has succeeded the fallen gods). "Out of the corrupted
+nations and decaying religions let there arise a more beautiful humanity!"
+is the radical cry of this humanitarian religion.
+
+When in 1892 the battle for a new school law was raging in Prussia,
+_Caprivi_, the Chancellor of the Empire, said: "It is here question of a
+contrast between Christianity and atheism. Essential to man is his
+relation to God." Scarcely had these words been uttered when a champion of
+modern thought, Prof. _Fr. Jodl_, took up his pen and wrote: "No sharper
+contrast with the convictions of the modern world is imaginable than that
+expressed by the words of the imperial Chancellor, 'essential to man is
+his relation to God.' To this sentence, which might be expected in a
+speech of Cromwell, or in a papal encyclical, rather than from a statesman
+of modern Germany, liberalism must with all possible emphasis oppose this
+other sentence: What determines the real worth of a man, is, first and
+last, his relation to humanity" (Moral, Religion und Schule, 1892, 14f.).
+_Diis extinctis successit humanitas_. We shall not deny that the modern
+spirit is a complicated structure: but neither can any one deny that its
+chief characteristic is the humanitarian view, with its emancipation from
+God, its decided emphasis of the things of this world, and its boundless
+overestimation of man.
+
+An attentive observer of these days, should he chance to come from an old,
+Catholic town, and saunter with observant eye through one of our great
+modern cities, particularly a Protestant one, would behold a vivid
+realization of this modern view of the world. The most prominent feature
+of the Catholic town of old was the House of God. It towered high above
+the city, its spires reached heavenward; the houses of the faithful clung
+around the House of God like chicks about the mother hen. The mere sight
+told the beholder that here dwelt a people whose thoughts were directed
+towards the other world; over their lives ruled the sacred peace of
+eternity.
+
+But here all is different. Here the most prominent feature is no longer
+the House of God; worldly edifices have usurped its place; railroad
+depots, barracks, city-hall and court-house dominate the city. The state
+house bears no longer on its front the Christian motto, _Nisi Dominus
+custodierit_ ("Unless the Lord keep the city he watcheth in vain that
+keepeth it"). It would be considered a degradation should the state base
+its existence upon religion. Should, then, the observer enter the
+legislature he would learn the modern principles of state wisdom. The
+state as such has no relation to religion; the principle is the separation
+of state and Church. In the public squares he beholds mighty monuments,
+erected, not to religious heroes and leaders, as perhaps of old, but to
+great men of the world, champions of national progress. At their feet lie
+wreaths of homage. They have brought modern humanity to its full stature,
+maturity, and self-consciousness. Here it is Man who is standing
+everywhere in the foreground. "It is I," says he, "that lives here. Here I
+have pitched my tent, from this earth come all my joys, and this sun is
+shining upon my sorrows."
+
+Our observer, wandering about, finds everywhere magnificent state-schools,
+scientific institutes, splendid colleges and universities. In years gone
+by a cross or a word of divine wisdom was probably found here somewhere.
+It is seen no more. Often it would seem that we can almost hear the words:
+"We will not have this One rule over us." Here a new race is being reared,
+which no longer follows blindly the "old tradition," it believes in its
+own self and its own reason: culture and science take the place of the old
+religion. He finds but few churches; and where found they are mostly
+overshadowed by great palaces, and--mostly empty. The modern man passes
+them by. He has no longer any understanding for the truths of the
+Christian religion. It fails to satisfy him because it does not appeal to
+modern ways of thinking and feeling, because it does not symbolize the
+humanitarian creed. His desire is no longer for Heaven; his aspirations
+are earthward. "The life beyond concerns me little: my joys come from this
+world." Contemplating modern civilization he exclaims, with the king of
+Babylon: "Is not this the great Babylon, which I have built to be the seat
+of the kingdom, by the strength of my power, and in the glory of my
+excellence?" (Dan. iv. 27). The doctrine of a nature corrupted by original
+sin, of a darkened intellect that needs divine revelation, of a weakened
+will that needs strength from above, of sin that demands atonement,--all
+this has become meaningless to him, it offends his higher sentiments, his
+human dignity. He has no longer any understanding for a Saviour of the
+world, in whom alone salvation is to be sought, much less for a Cross.
+This sign of redemption, as a certain herald of modern thought remarked,
+weighs like a mountain upon the mind of our day. He has no longer any
+understanding for the saving institution of the Church, by whom he should
+be led: she is to him an institution of intellectual serfdom. He makes his
+own religion, free from dogma, just as his individuality desires, just as
+he "lives" it.
+
+Should our observer, while visiting the Protestant city, make a final
+visit to its university, he will find there the thoughts, which hitherto
+he had but vaguely felt, clothed in scientific language. There they meet
+his gaze, defined sharply on the pedestal of Research as the Modern
+Philosophy, protected, often exclusively privileged, by the state license
+of teaching. It is the modern scientific view of the world, the only one
+that men of modern times may hold. From here it is to find its way to
+wider circles.
+
+
+    "Man," we are told by a pupil of _Feuerbach_, in accord with his
+    master's teaching, "man is man's god. And only by the enthronement
+    of this human god can the super-human and ultra-human God be made
+    superfluous. What Christianity was and claimed to be in times gone
+    by, that now is claimed by humanity." "The being which man in
+    religion and theology reveres," continues _Jodl_ with _Feuerbach_,
+    "is his own being, the essence of his own desires and ideals. If
+    you eliminate from this conception all that is mere fancy and
+    contrary to the laws of nature, what is left is a cultural ideal
+    of civilization, a refined humanity, which will become a reality
+    by its own independent strength and labour" (_Ludwig Feuerbach_,
+    1904, 111 f., 194). "The greatest achievement of modern times,"
+    says another panegyrist of emancipated humanity, "is the
+    deliverance from the traditional bondage of a direct
+    revelation.... Neither revelation nor redemption approach man from
+    without; he is bound rather to struggle for his perfection by his
+    own strength. What he knows about God, nature, and his own self,
+    is of his own doing. He is in reality 'the measure of all things,
+    of those that are, and why they are; of those that are not, and
+    why they are not.' Of his dignity as an image of God, he has
+    therefore not lost anything; on the contrary, he has come nearer
+    to his resemblance to God, his highest end, by his consciousness
+    of being self-existent and of having the destiny to produce
+    everything of himself; from a receptive being he has become a
+    spontaneous one; he has at last come to a clear knowledge of his
+    own real importance and destiny" (_Spicker_, Der Kampf zweier
+    Weltanschauungen, 1898, 134).
+
+    Hence "not to make man religious," to quote again the
+    above-mentioned exponent of modern wisdom of life, "but to
+    educate, to promote culture among all classes and professions,
+    this is the task of the present time." "Religion cannot therefore
+    be the watchword of a progressive humanity; neither the religion
+    of the past nor the religion that is to be looked for in the
+    future, but ethics" (_Jodl_, ibid., 108, 112). Ethics, to be sure,
+    the fundamental principles of which are not the commandments of
+    God, by the keeping of which we are to reach our eternal
+    happiness, but human laws, which are observed for the sake of man.
+    "Morality and religion," we are told, "shall no longer give us a
+    narrow ladder on which we, each one for himself, climb to the
+    heights of the other world; we are vaulting a majestic dome above
+    this earth under which the generations come and go, succeeding
+    each other in continuous procession.... The day will come when the
+    rays of thought which are now dawning upon the highest and freest
+    mountain-tops will bring the light of noonday down to mankind."
+    Woe to us, if from these high mountain-tops, where the bare rocks
+    no longer take life and fecundity from the heavens, the sad desert
+    of estrangement from God should extend into the fresh green of the
+    valleys!
+
+    The central ideas of the humanitarian view of the world appear
+    again, though under different form, among Freemasons and
+    free-thinkers, agitators for free religion and free schools. It is
+    well known that Freemasonry has emblazoned "humanity" upon its
+    standard. "One word of the highest meaning," so wrote an official
+    authority some years ago, "contains in itself the principle, the
+    purpose, and the whole tenor of Freemasonry, this word is
+    humanity. Humanity is indeed everything to us." "What is humanity?
+    It is all, and only that, which is human" (Freiburger Ritual, 24.
+    _Pachtler_, Der Goetze der Humanitaet, 1875, 249 f.). "That which
+    is essentially human is the sublime, divine, and the only
+    Christian ideal," adds another authority, addressing the aspirant
+    to Freemasonry. "Leave behind you in the world your different
+    church-formulas when you enter our temple, but let there always be
+    with you the sense for what is holy in man, the religion which
+    alone makes us happy" (Latomia, 1868, p. 167, _Pachtler_, 248). As
+    early as 1823 the "Zeitschrift fuer Freimauerei" wrote: "We should
+    be accused of idolatry should we personify the idea of humanity in
+    the way in which the Divinity is usually personified. This is
+    indeed our reason for withholding from the eyes of profane persons
+    the humanitarian cult, till the time has come when, from east to
+    west, from noon to midnight, its high ideal will be pondered and
+    its cult propagated everywhere" (_Pachtler_, 255).
+
+    The time has already come when "the rays of thought that dawned
+    upon the mountain-tops" are descending into the valley. The
+    Twenty-second Convention of German Free-religionists, at Goerlitz,
+    at the end of May, 1907, passed this resolution: "The Convention
+    sees one of its chief tasks in the alliance of all anti-clericals
+    and free-thinkers, and tries by united effort to obtain this
+    common end and interest by promoting culture, liberty of mind, and
+    humanitarianism." There was, moreover, taken up for discussion the
+    thesis: "Free-religionists reject the teaching that declares man
+    lost by original sin, unable to raise himself of his own strength
+    and reason, that directs him to revelation, redemption, and grace
+    from above."
+
+
+This view of the world finds its most characteristic expression in
+_pantheism_, which, though expressed in various and often fantastic forms,
+is eminently the religion of modern man. From this gloomy depth of
+autotheism the apotheosis of man and his earthly life, the modern
+consciousness of freedom, draws its strength and determination.
+
+To find this modern view of man expressed in the language of consistent
+radicalism, let us hear _Fr. Nietzsche_, the most modern of all
+philosophers. His ideal is the transcendental man, who knows that God is
+dead, that now there is no bar to stepping forth in unrestricted freedom
+to superhuman greatness and independence. To this "masterman," who deems
+himself superior to others, everything is licit that serves his egotism
+and will, everything that will promote his interest to the disadvantage of
+the rabble; probity is cowardice! "But now this god is dead. Ye superior
+men, this god was your greatest danger." Thus spoke Zarathustra. "Only
+since this god is buried do you begin to rise. Now at length the great
+Noon is in its zenith. Now the superior man becomes master. Onward and
+upward, then, ye superior men! At last the mountain of man's future is in
+travail. God is dead; let the superior man arise and live." (Also sprach
+Zarathustra, W. W. VI, 418.) And, in the consciousness that the Christian
+religion condemns this self-exaltation, he breaks out in this blasphemous
+charge: "I call Christianity the one great curse, the one great internal
+corruption.... I call it the one immortal, disgraceful, blot on mankind"
+(Antichrist, W. W. VIII, 313). This is independent humanity in the cloak
+of fanaticism. _Nietzsche_ has carried the modern view of the world to its
+final consequences; the autonomous man has developed into the god-like
+superman who carries into effect the behest: Ye shall be as gods; his code
+of ethics is that of the autocrat who is above the notions of good and
+bad.
+
+And "let no one deceive himself," writes an intelligent observer of the
+times, "the spirit of our time is attuned to _Nietzsche's_ idea."
+Consciously or unconsciously this sentiment dominates more minds than many
+a man learned in the wisdom of the schools may dream of. Did _Nietzsche_
+create this spirit? Certainly not: he grew out of it, he has only given it
+a philosophical setting. _Nietzsche_ would never have caused that
+tremendous sensation, never have gathered around him his enthusiastic
+followers, had not the soil been prepared. As it was, he appeared to "his"
+men as the Messiah "in the fulness of time." He, too, in his own way
+"loosened the tongue of the dumb and opened the eyes of the blind." The
+veiled anti-Christian spirit, the unconscious religious and ethical
+nihilism, which no one before dared profess openly, though it was hatching
+in the minds, now had found its "master," its "scientific system" (_Von
+Grotthuss_, Tuermer, VII, 1905, 79). It is, asserts _Wundt_, "the new
+ideal of free personality, dependent on precarious moods and chance
+influences, that has found in _Nietzsche's_ philosophy a fantastic
+expression" (Ethik, ed. 3. 1905, p. 522).
+
+
+
+The Autonomous Man.
+
+
+Now we have a clearer idea of modern freedom. It is known as autonomism.
+The individual wants to be a law to himself, his own court of last appeal;
+he wants to develop his personality, feeling, desires, and thought,
+independently of all authority. Too long, it is said, have man's
+aspirations been directed upward, away from things, of this world, to a
+supernatural world. Religion and Church seek to determine his thought and
+desire, to subject him to dogma. Too long has he clung like a child to the
+apron-strings of authority. Man has at last awoken to self-consciousness
+and to a sense of his own dignity, after a period of estrangement, so to
+say, from himself; he has become himself again, as the poet sang when the
+century of the "illuminati" was closing:
+
+
+    "How beautiful, with palm of victory,
+    O man, thou standest at the century's close,
+    The mightiest son thy Time has given birth,
+    By reason free, by law and precept strong,
+    Alike in meekness great and treasure rich,
+    So long unknown concealed within thy breast."
+
+
+Yes, man has discovered the treasure that long lay hidden in his breast,
+the seed and bud that longed to burst forth into life and blossom. Now the
+motto is: Independent self-development; no more restraint, but living out
+one's personality. The eagle is not given wings to be bound down upon the
+earth; nor does the bud come forth never to unfold. Full freedom,
+therefore, too, for everything human! And modern man leaps to the fatal
+conclusion: therefore all interference of external authority is unjust, is
+force, constraint upon my being; the same error that boys fall into when
+life begins to tingle with its fulness of strength. Being ignorant of
+their nature, they feel any kind of dependence a chain; only themselves,
+their judgments and desires, are law. Just so modern man, in his
+deplorable want of self-knowledge, fails to see how he is cutting himself
+off from the source and support of life; how he is pulling himself out by
+the roots from the soil whence he derives his strength; how, left to his
+own littleness, he withers away; how, abandoned to his own diseased
+nature, he condemns himself to intellectual decay.
+
+Autonomism, individualism, independent personality--these have become the
+ideals that permeate the man of this age, and influence the thought of
+thousands without their knowing it.
+
+
+    The well-known, Protestant, theologian, _A. Sabatier_, writes: "It
+    is not difficult to find the common principle to which all the
+    expressions and tendencies of the spirit of modern times can be
+    reduced in any field whatever. One word expresses it--the word,
+    'autonomy.' By autonomy I understand the firm confidence, which
+    the mind of man has attained in his present stage of development,
+    that he contains in himself his own rule of life and norm of
+    thought, and that he harbours the ardent desire of realizing
+    himself by obeying his own law" (La Religion de la Culture
+    moderne, 10).
+
+    "Modern times," writes _R. Eucken_, "have changed the position of
+    the human subject ... it has become to them the centre of his life
+    and the ultimate end of his endeavours" (Zeitschrift fuer
+    Philosophie und philosophische Kritik, 112 (1898), 165 s.). Still
+    clearer are the following words of _G. Spicker_: "Man depended
+    formerly either on nature or on revelation, or on both at once;
+    now it is just the opposite: man is in every way, theoretically as
+    well as practically, an autonomist. If anything can denote clearly
+    the characteristic difference between the modern and the old
+    scholastic view, it is this absolute, subjective, standpoint." "As
+    we in principle do not intend to depend on any objectivity or
+    authority, there is nothing left but the autonomy of the subject"
+    (Der Kampf zweier Weltanschauungen (1898), 143, 145).
+
+
+A noted apostle of modern freedom exclaims enthusiastically:
+
+
+    "This after all is freedom: an unconditional appreciation of human
+    greatness, no matter how it asserts itself. This greatest
+    happiness, as _Goethe_ called it, the humanists have restored to
+    us. Henceforth we must with all our strength retain it. Whoever
+    wants to rob us of it, even should he descend from heaven, is our
+    deadliest enemy." (_H. St. Chamberlain._)
+
+
+It is true, of course, that man should strive for perfection of self in
+every respect; for the harmonious development of all the faculties and
+good inclinations of his own being, and, in this sense, for a nobler
+humanity; he should also develop and assert his own peculiar disposition
+and originality, so far as they are in order, and thus promote a healthy
+individualism. But all this he should do within the moral bonds of his
+created and limited nature, being convinced that only by keeping within
+the right limits of his being can he develop his ability and personality
+harmoniously; he dare not reach out, in reckless venture after
+independence, to free himself from God and his eternal end, and from the
+yoke of truth; he dare not transform the divine sovereignty into the
+distorted image of created autotheism.
+
+He who professes a Christian view of the world, can see in such a view of
+man and his freedom only an utter misunderstanding of human nature and an
+overthrow of the right order of things. This overthrow, again, can only
+produce calamity, interior and exterior disorder. Woe to the planet that
+feels its orbit a tyrannical restraint, and leaves it to move in sovereign
+freedom through the universe! It will move along free, and free will it go
+to ruin. Woe to the speeding train that leaves its track; it will speed on
+free, but invariably dash itself to pieces! A nature that abandons the
+prescribed safeguards can only degenerate into a wild sprout. We shall see
+how these principles have actually become in modern intellectual life the
+principles of negation and intellectual degeneration.
+
+_St. Augustine_ states the history of mankind in the following, thoughtful
+words: "A twofold love divides mankind into the City of the World and the
+City of God. Man's self-love and his self-exaltation pushed to the
+contempt of God constitute the City of the World; but the love of God
+pushed to contempt of self is the foundation of the City of God."
+(_Fecerunt itaque civitates duas amores duo, terrenam scilicet amor sui
+usque ad contemptum Dei, coelestem vero amor Dei usque ad contemptum sui._
+De civ. Dei XIV, 28.) Thus _St. Augustine_, while contemplating the time
+when the war between heathenism and Christianity was raging. The same
+spectacle is presented to our own eyes to-day, probably more thoroughly
+than ever before in history.
+
+
+
+The Period of Man's Emancipation.
+
+
+The modern view of man and his freedom has shaped itself gradually in
+recent times; the present is ever the child of the past. The most
+important factor in this development was undoubtedly the _Reformation_. It
+emancipated man in the most important affair, religious life, from the
+authority of the Church, and made him independent. "All have the right to
+try and to judge what is right and wrong in belief," so _Luther_ told the
+Christian nobility of the German nation; "everybody shall according to his
+believing mind interpret the Scriptures, it is the duty of every believing
+Christian to espouse the faith, to understand and defend it, and to
+condemn all errors." Protestantism means even to the modern man "the
+thinking mind's break with authority, a protest against being fettered by
+anything positive, the mind's return to itself from self-alienation"
+(_Schwegler_, Geschichte der Philosophie (1887), 167): "it puts out of
+joint the Christian Church organization, and overturns its supernatural
+foundation, quite against its will, but with an actual, and ever more
+plainly visible, effect" (_E. Troeltsch_, Die Bedeutung des
+Protestantismus fuer die Entstehung der modernen Welt (1906), 29).
+
+The first step towards full autonomy was taken with energy; the
+emancipation from external authority then progressed rapidly in the domain
+of politics, sociology, economy, and especially of religion, to the very
+elimination of everything supernatural. There came the English
+individualism of the seventeenth century. The liberty of "individual
+conviction," termed also "tolerance," in the sense of rejecting every
+authoritative interference in the sanctuary of man's thought and feeling,
+was extolled; of course at first only as the privilege of those who were
+intellectually superior. Soon the Deism of a _Herbert of Cherbury_ and
+_Locke_ was reached; it was the religion of natural reason, with belief in
+God and the obligation to moral action. Whatever is added by positive
+religions, and therefore by the Christian religion, is superfluous; hence
+not dogma, but freedom! _Locke_, indeed, denied to atheists state
+toleration; but _J. Toland_ already advised full freedom of thought, even
+to the tolerance of atheism. In the year 1717 _Freemasonry_ came into
+existence in England. _Adam Smith_ originated the idea of a liberal
+political economy which frees the individual from all bond, even in the
+economic field. The views prevailing in England then exert great influence
+in France. _Rousseau_ and _Voltaire_ appear.
+
+In France and Germany the enlightenment of the eighteenth century makes
+rapid strides in the direction of emancipation. "The enlightenment of the
+eighteenth century," writes _H. Heltner_, "not only resumes the
+prematurely interrupted work of the sixteenth century, the Reformation,
+but carries it on independently, and in its own way. The thoughts and
+demands of the 'enlightened' are bolder and more aggressive, more
+unscrupulous and daring.... With _Luther_ the idea of revelation remained
+intact; the new method of thought rejects the idea of a divine revelation,
+and bases all religious knowledge on merely human thought and
+sentiment.... It is only the free, entirely independent thought that
+decides in truth and justice, moral and political rights and duties.
+Reason has regained its self-glory; man comes to his senses again"
+(Literaturgeschichte des 18. Jahrhunderts II (1894), 553). _Kant_ gave it
+a philosophical setting.
+
+Then the _French Revolution_ breaks into fierce blaze, writing on the
+skies of Europe with flaming letters the ideas of emancipated humanity;
+the adherents to the old religion are sent to the guillotine. On August
+27, 1789, the proclamation of the "rights of man" is made. "The principles
+of 1789," as they are now called, henceforth dominate the nineteenth
+century. The system which adopted these principles called itself, and
+still calls itself, _Liberalism_.
+
+Liberalism as a principle--we are speaking of the principles of liberalism,
+not of its adherents, who for the most part do not carry out these
+principles in their consequences, and occasionally do not even grasp them
+completely--tried to accomplish man's utter emancipation from all external
+and superior authority. It sought to accomplish this in the political
+field, by instituting constitutional, and, wherever possible, a republican
+form of government; in the field of economy, by granting freedom to labour
+and possession, to capital and commerce; but especially in the field of
+morals and religion, by emancipating thought and science, and the entire
+life of man,--school, marriage, state,--from every religious influence and
+direction, and in this sense it aimed at humanizing the whole life of man.
+This is its purpose. To achieve this, it aims at establishing itself in
+the state, by gaining political power through the aid of compulsory laws,
+of course against all principles of freedom; it tries to attain this by
+compulsory state-education, by obligatory civil marriage, and so on. At
+first there appeared only a moderate liberalism, which gradually gave
+place to a more radical tendency, striving more directly and openly toward
+the enfeeblement and, if possible, the destruction of the Christian view
+of the world and its chief representative, the Church. In 1848 the
+well-known materialist _K. Vogt_ said at the national assembly in
+Frankfort: "Every church is opposed to a free development of mankind, in
+that it demands faith above all. Every church is an obstacle in the way of
+man's free intellectual development, and since I am for such intellectual
+development of man, I am against every church" (cf. _Rothenbuecher_,
+Trennung von Staat und Kirche (1908), 106).
+
+In the field of economics, every one can see how liberalism has failed. In
+some countries people were ashamed to retain its name any longer. It
+suddenly disappeared from public life, and gave place to its
+translation,--free thought. This shows that nobody cares to boast of its
+success. All barriers of safety had been removed in a night; crises,
+confusion, and the serious danger of the social question were the
+consequence. In the field of actual economics it became clear that the
+principle of unlimited freedom could not be carried out, because it was
+utterly ruinous, and it really means a complete misunderstanding of human
+nature. Therefore liberalism has disappeared from this field, leaving to
+others to solve the problem it created, and to heal the wounds it
+inflicted. It is otherwise in the field of theoretical economics. Here it
+still strives to dominate, often more thoroughly than before, no matter
+what name it may assume. The consequences do not appear so gross to the
+eyes as they would in the tangible sphere of sociology. Especially science
+it wants to hold in subjection to its principles of freedom in
+undiminished severity.
+
+That freedom which is identified with absolute independence from all
+authority, especially in the intellectual sphere, we shall here know as
+Liberal freedom, in contradistinction to Christian freedom, which is
+satisfied with independence from unjust restraint.
+
+In the foregoing discussion it has been shown how deeply the liberal idea
+of freedom is imbedded in the unchristian philosophical view of the world.
+The inevitable result is a freedom of science which considers every
+authoritative interference in research and teaching as an encroachment
+upon the rights of free development in man's personality, especially in
+the sphere of philosophy and religion. Moreover, the humanitarian view of
+the world, insisting on the independence of man and his earthly life,
+naturally demands the exclusion of God and the other world, it orders the
+rejection of "dualism" as unscientific, and the adoption of the monistic
+view in its stead; an autonomous science can hardly be reconciled with a
+superior, restricting authority. Later on we shall demonstrate that the
+main law of modern science is that the supernatural is inadmissible.
+Furthermore, since science is not a superhuman being, but has its seat in
+the intellect of man, subject to the psychology of man, every one who
+knows the heart of man will suspect from the outset that man cannot stop
+at merely ignoring, but will often proceed to combat and explain away
+faith, the Church, and all authority that might be considered an oppressor
+of the truth. This undue love of liberty will of itself become a struggle
+for freedom against the oppressor. How far this is actually the case we
+shall have occasion to discuss later on.
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+We have heard _Nietzsche's_ haughty and proud boast. Shortly after the
+philosopher had penned these words he was stricken (1889) with permanent,
+incurable insanity, with which he was afflicted till his death in 1900.
+The "transcendental man" was dethroned. The strength of the Titan was
+shattered. He that said with _Prometheus_, I am not a god, still I am in
+strength the equal of any of them, received the ironical answer, "Behold
+he has become as one of us" (Gen. iii. 22). He that cursed Christian
+charity towards the poor and suffering, was now cast helpless upon
+charity. His grave at Roecken, the place also of his birth, is a sign of
+warning to the modern world.
+
+To the believing Christian a different grave opens on Easter day. From it
+comes the risen God-man; in His hand the banner of immortal victory. It
+points the way to true human greatness, to a superior humanity according
+to the will of God. Man longs for perfection; he longs to go beyond the
+narrow limits of his present condition. But modern man wants to rise to
+greatness by his own strength, without help from above; he would rise with
+giant bounds, without law. In his weakness he falls; error and scepticism
+and the loss of morality are the bitter fruit. Another way is pointed out
+by the great Friend of Man. Humanity is to be led on the way of progress
+by the hand of God, by faith in God, supported by His grace; thus man
+shall participate in God's nature, shall one day attain his highest
+perfection in eternal life, far beyond the limits of his present
+condition. "I am the way, the truth, and the life."
+
+
+
+
+Chapter III. Subjectivism And Its Freedom.
+
+
+The tendency of the modern intellect to independence in its own peculiar
+sphere of thinking and knowing, cannot fail to work itself out
+energetically. In this sphere it leads naturally to that view of human
+reasoning called subjectivism: the thinking or reasoning subject is its
+own law, the autonomous creator and guide of its thought. Herein lies the
+_essential presumption_, the very core, of the liberal freedom of science.
+Wherever we turn we meet subjectivism with its autonomous rejection of all
+authority, its arbitrary separation of knowledge from faith, its
+agnosticism, its relativity to truth as the moving factor of, and the
+ostensible warrant for, this freedom, especially in the sphere which it
+considers peculiarly its own, philosophy and religion. Only when we look
+closer into its philosophical premises will it be possible to form a
+judgment of the "scientific method" it employs in this, its peculiar
+sphere, and of the justice of its claim to be the sole administrator of
+man's ideal possessions, and to be altogether "independent of every view
+not conforming to this scientific method." Before considering subjectivism
+let us by way of preface set down a few considerations on the nature of
+human, intellectual perception.
+
+
+
+Objectivism and Subjectivism.
+
+
+It always has been, and still is, the firm conviction of unbiassed men,--a
+conviction which irresistibly forces itself upon us,--that in our
+intellectual perception and thought we grasp an _objective, exterior order
+of things, an existence distinct from our thought_; of this objective
+reality we reproduce an image in our minds, and thus grasp it
+intellectually. _Cognitio est similitudo rei_, says the old school; that
+is, Knowledge is the reproduction of an objective reality, which thus
+becomes the criterion of cognition. The reproduction is a counterpart of
+the original. In this perfect resemblance of our cognition to the
+objective reality there has ever been recognized the _truth_ of knowledge.
+
+When the thinking mind has arrived at the mathematical truth that the
+circumference of a circle is the product of the diameter multiplied by
+_Ludolph's_ number, it knows--unless indeed it has lost its natural
+candour--that it has not of itself produced this result of reasoning, but
+that it has recognized in it an objective reality of truth, distinct from
+its own thought, and has reproduced that truth in itself. And because this
+reproduction corresponds to the reality, it is called true cognition.
+Similarly, when the intellect expresses the general law of causality,
+namely, everything that happens has a cause, the intellect is again
+convinced that it has not of itself produced this result of reasoning, but
+has only reproduced it by assimilating to itself an objective truth which
+is necessarily so and cannot be otherwise, and which the mind must
+assimilate if it wants to think aright. This is true not only when the
+mind is dealing with concrete things, but also when it would give
+expression to general principles, as in the present instance; these, too,
+are not subjective projections, but are independent of the thinking
+subject, and are eternal laws.
+
+This view of the nature of human cognition and thought has gradually
+undergone an essential change, not indeed with those outside the influence
+of philosophical speculation, but with the representatives of modern
+philosophy, and those subject to its influence. Objectivism has been
+superseded by subjectivism. Its principle is this: cognition, imagination,
+and thought are not the intellectual apprehension of an objective world
+existing independent of us, of which we reproduce in ourselves a
+counterpart. No, _the mind creates its own results of reason and
+cognition_; the objects before us are the creatures of the imagining
+subject. At the utmost, we can but say that our reasoning is the manner in
+which a hidden exterior world appears to us. This manner must necessarily
+conform to the peculiarity of the subject, to his faculties and stage of
+development; but the exterior world as it is in itself we can never
+apprehend. _Descartes_, starting with the premise that consciousness is
+the beginning of all certainty, was the first modern philosopher to enter
+upon the way of subjectivism. He was followed by _Locke_, _Berkeley_, and
+_Kant_. It is due to them that in the modern theory of cognition the
+fundamental principle of idealistic subjectivism, no matter how difficult
+and unreasonable it may appear to an ordinary thinker, has obtained so
+many advocates who, nevertheless, cannot adhere to it, but contradict it
+at every step.
+
+
+    "The world," _Schopenhauer_ is convinced, "is the projection of my
+    idea.... No truth is more certain, more independent of all others,
+    less in need of proof, than this, that all there is to be known,
+    hence the whole world, is an object only in relation to a subject,
+    a vision of the beholder; in a word, the projection of my own
+    idea. Hence the subject is the bearer of the world" (Die Welt als
+    Wille und Vorstellung, I, §§ 1-2). "It is evidently true that
+    knowledge cannot go beyond our consciousness, and hence the
+    existence of things outside of our sphere of consciousness must,
+    to say the least, remain problematical" (Der Gegenstand der
+    Erkenntniss, 1892, p. 2). In like manner _O. Liebmann_ says: "We
+    can never go beyond our individual sphere of ideas (projection of
+    our ideas), even though we apprehend what is independent of us,
+    still the absolute reality of it is known to us only as our own
+    idea" (Zur Analysis der Wirklichkeit, 1900, p. 28). Therefore "the
+    contrast between 'I' and the world," says _E. Mach_, "between
+    feeling or apprehension and the reality, falls away" (Die Analysis
+    der Empfindungen, 2d ed., 1900, p. 9). And a disciple of _Mach_
+    says: "It is important to hold fast to the idea that a
+    self-existent, divine Truth, independent of the subject,
+    objectively binding, enthroned, so to say, above men and gods, is
+    meaningless.... Such a Truth is nonsense" (_H. Kleinpeter_,
+    Kantstudien, VIII, 1903, p. 314).
+
+    None of these representatives of worldly wisdom are able to fulfil
+    the first duty of the wise man: "Live according to what you
+    teach." Even the sceptic _Hume_ has to admit that in the common
+    affairs of life he feels himself compelled of necessity to talk
+    and act like other people.
+
+
+Subjectivism is really nothing but _scepticism_, for it eliminates the
+knowableness of objective truth. But it is a masked--if you will, a
+reformed--scepticism. Cognition is given another purpose; its task is not
+at all, so it is said, to reproduce or assimilate a world distinct from
+itself, but to create its own contents. The very nature of cognition is
+reversed.
+
+
+
+The Autonomy of Reason.
+
+
+It was _Kant_, the herald of a new era in philosophy, who gave to this
+gradually maturing subjectivism its scientific form and basis. At the same
+time he gave prominence to that element of subjectivism which seems to
+give justification to freedom of thought, to wit, autonomism, the creative
+power of the intellect which makes its own laws. Independence of reason
+and free thought have become catchwords since _Kant's_ time. They are a
+precious ingredient of the autonomy of modern man.
+
+When the flaming blaze of the French Revolution was reddening the skies of
+Europe, and inaugurating the restoration of the rights of man, _Kant_ was
+sitting in his study at Koenigsberg, his heart beating strongly in sympathy
+with the Revolution, for he saw in it a hopeful turn of the times. An old
+man of nearly seventy, he followed the events with most passionate
+interest. _Varnhagen_ records in his Memoirs, based on the stories of
+_Staegemann_, that, when the proclamation of the Republic was announced in
+the newspapers, _Kant_, with tears in his eyes, said to some friends: "Now
+can I say with Simeon, 'Now dost Thou, O Lord, dismiss Thy servant in
+peace, because mine eyes have seen Thy Salvation' " (_H. Hettner_,
+Literaturgeschichte des 18. Jahrh. III, 4th ed., 3, 2, 1894, p. 38). While
+on the other side of the Rhine the Jacobins were doing their bloody work
+of political liberation, the German philosopher, the herald of a new era
+and an ardent admirer of _Rousseau_, sat in his study labouring for man's
+intellectual liberation. To give man the right of autonomous
+self-determination in action and thought was the work of his life.
+Autonomy was indeed to him " 'the source' of all dignity of man and of
+every rational nature" (Grundlegung zur Metaphysik der Sitten, II). And
+hence it was that his ardent followers beheld in him "the first perfect
+model of a really free German, one who had purged himself from every trace
+of Roman absolutism, dogmatism, and anti-individualism" (_H. St.
+Chamberlain_, Die Grundlagen des 19. Jahrh., 8th ed., 1907, II, 1127).
+
+In his "Grundlegung zur Metaphysik der Sitten" (The Foundation of the
+Metaphysics of Ethics) and "Kritik der praktischen Vernunft" (Critique of
+Practical Reason) _Kant_ sought to establish _autonomy in moral life_ and
+action. Man himself, his practical reason, is the ultimate foundation of
+all moral obligation; did man lead a good life out of obedience to God it
+would be a heteronomy unworthy of the name of "moral." "The autonomy of
+the will," he teaches, "is the sole principle of all moral laws and the
+duties allied to them; all arbitrary heteronomy, on the contrary, far from
+having any binding force, is contrary to the principle of morality of the
+will" (Kritik der prakt. Vern., Elementarlehre, I, 1, 4. Lehrsatz). Or, as
+amplified by a faithful interpreter of the master: "In the moral world the
+individual should be not only a member but also a ruler; he is a member of
+the moral order when he obeys its law; he is its ruler when he enacts the
+law.... The distinction between autonomy and heteronomy separates true
+from false ethics, the system of _Kant_ from all other systems. All moral
+systems, except that of _Kant_, are based on the principles of heteronomy;
+they can have no other. And critical philosophy was the first to grasp the
+principle of autonomy" (_Kuno Fischer_, Geschichte der neuen Philosophie,
+IV, 2d ed., 1869, p. 114 _seq._). _Kant's_ just man no longer prays "Thy
+will be done"; he identifies the law with himself. _Nietzsche's_
+transcendental man is seen in the background.
+
+_Autonomy of thought_ is the result of the "Critique of Pure Reason," and
+in spite of its inconsistency of expression, its involved sentences, its
+extremely tiresome style, it is and will long continue to be the text-book
+of modern philosophy. According to _Kant_ our cognition consists in our
+fashioning the substance of our perceptions and reasoning after innate,
+purely subjective, views and conceptions. Time and place, and especially
+the abstract notions of existence and non-existence, necessity, causality,
+substance, have no truth independent of our thought; they are but forms
+and patterns according to which we are forced to picture the world. Their
+first matter is supplied by sense experience, such as sound, colour,
+feeling; but these, too, according to _Kant_, are not objective. Nothing
+then remains to our cognition that is not purely subjective, having
+existence in ourselves alone. Our cognition is no longer a reproduction,
+but a creation of its object; our thought is no longer subject to an
+external truth that may be forced upon it. "Hitherto," says _Kant_, "it
+has been generally supposed that our cognition must be governed by
+objects.... Let us see if we cannot make better headway in the province of
+metaphysics by supposing that objects must be governed by our cognition"
+(Kritik der Reinen Vernunft, Vorrede zur zweiten Ausgabe).
+
+This is, indeed, nothing but a complete falsification of human cognition.
+It is evident to an unbiassed mind that there must be a reason for
+everything, not because I so think, but I think so because such is the
+fact; that the multiplication table is right, not because I think so, but
+I must multiply according to it simply because it is right. My thought is
+subject to objective truth. But _Kant's_ autonomy means emancipation from
+objective truth, and hence, though _Kant_ himself held fast to the
+unchangeable laws of thinking and acting, he energetically opened the way
+for subjectivism with all its consequences. This was _Kant's_ doing, and
+history credits him with it. It was one of those events which have made
+men famous: the giving to the ideas and sentiments of a period their
+scientific formula, and thereby also their apparent justification.
+
+
+    _Schiller_ wrote in 1805 to _W. von Humboldt_: "The profound
+    fundamental ideas of ideal philosophy remain an enduring treasure,
+    and for this reason alone one should think himself fortunate for
+    having lived at the present time.... Finally, we are both
+    idealists, and should be ashamed to have it said of us that things
+    made us and not we the things." _Fr. Paulsen_ gives expression to
+    the opinion of many when he says: "_Kant_ gives to the intellect
+    the self-determination that is essential to it, and the position
+    in the world which it deserves. He has raised the intellect's
+    creative power to a position of honour: the essence of the
+    intellect is freedom" (Immanuel Kant, 1898, p. 386). "The autonomy
+    of reason ... we cannot give up" (_Kant_, Der Philosoph des
+    Protestantismus, in Philosophia militans, 2d ed., 1901, p. 51).
+    "It is indeed the offspring of Protestantism." "To me it is beyond
+    doubt," _Paulsen_ continues, "that the fundamental tendency of
+    primitive Protestantism has here been carried out in all
+    clearness" (Ibid. 43). _Luther_, too, found in the heart of the
+    individual the unfailing source of truth. For that reason _Kant_
+    has been called the philosopher of Protestantism.
+
+    Hence the well-known historian, _J. Scherr_, may not be wrong when
+    he calls the philosophy of _Kant_ "the foundation of granite
+    whereon is built the freedom of the German intellect."
+
+
+Now, indeed, we easily understand the demand for freedom of thought. It is
+unintelligible how an external authority, a divine revelation or
+infallible Church, could have ever approached man, assured him of the
+truth of its teaching, and laid upon him in consequence of this testimony
+the obligation of accepting it as true. "An external authority," we are
+assured, "be it ever so great, will never succeed in arousing in us a
+sense of obligation; its laws, be they ever so lofty and earnest, will be
+deemed arbitrary, simply because they come from without" (_Sabatier_, La
+Religion et la Culture moderne, apud _Fonsegrive_, Die Stellung der
+Katholiken gegenueber der Wissenschaft, Deutsch von _Schieser_ (1903),
+10). Man accepts only what he himself has produced, what is congenial to
+his individuality, what is in harmony with his personal intellectual life.
+In the place of truth steps "personal conviction," the shaping of one's
+views and ideals; in the place of unselfish submission to the truth steps
+the "development of one's intellectual individuality," the "evolution of
+one's intellectual personality"; in a word, free-thought. Exterior
+authority can no longer impose an obligation. "Is there on earth," asks
+_Paulsen_, "an instance where authority can decide for us in matters of
+belief and thought?" And he answers: "There is none; there cannot be on
+this earth an infallible teaching authority." And why not? "Philosophy and
+science must refuse to recognize such an authority.... If I could believe
+all that the Church or the Pope teaches, this one thing I could never
+believe, that they are infallible; it would include a resolution, once for
+all, to renounce my own judgment regarding whatever they declare true or
+false, good or bad; it would be the utter renunciation of the use of my
+reason and conscience." (Ibid. 51-53. We shall often cite the testimony of
+_Paulsen_ for the purpose of illustrating modern thought, partly because
+he is no longer living, partly because he is quite an outspoken
+representative of the modern view of the world, though generally regarded
+as moderate. Moreover, he is without doubt one of the most widely read of
+the modern German philosophers.)
+
+The demonstration of all this is quite unique. Here it is in brief: Were
+there an infallible authority, one which necessarily taught the truth,
+then thought and science would be irrevocably subjected to this authority:
+that will not do; therefore there is no such authority. Or thus: Were
+there an infallible teaching, then we should have to accept it without
+contradiction: that is impossible; therefore there is no infallibility.
+Hence it is clear, the protest against an infallible authority, even
+though divine,--for the argument holds good also in regard to such an
+authority,--is not based on the impossibility of teaching the truth, for
+the authority is supposed to be infallible, but on man's refusal to be
+taught. And this refusal is made in accordance with that sovereign freedom
+of thought which is the natural offspring of subjectivism; the principal
+renunciation is based on its denial of objective truth. _It is the
+rejection of the truth._
+
+
+    "In advanced progress," _Paulsen_ continues, "the individual is
+    also separating himself from the intellectual mass of the people
+    in order to enjoy a separate mental existence.... The individual
+    is beginning to have his own ideas about things; he is no longer
+    satisfied with the common opinions and notions about the world and
+    life which have been dealt out to him by religion and mythology:
+    all philosophy begins with freeing the individual from common
+    notions." "If the individual ideals of a personality, gifted with
+    extraordinary power of mind and will, happen to come in conflict
+    with the objective morality of the time, then there results one of
+    those struggles which cause the dramatic crises of history. They
+    who thus struggled were the real heroes of mankind. They rose
+    against the conventional and indifferent ideals which had grown
+    obsolete, against untrue appearances, against the salt that had
+    lost its savour; they preached a new truth, pointed out new
+    aspirations and ideals which breathed a new strength into life and
+    raised it to a higher plane" (System der Ethik, 8th ed., 1906, I,
+    372 f.).
+
+
+Truly encouraging words for the modern agitator and reformer. To summon
+the courage to rise above the level of the masses, to feel within himself
+the centre of gravity, and to fashion his thoughts regardless of the whole
+world, this is nothing less than the beginning of philosophy and wisdom.
+And should he feel himself strong-minded he may simply change all moral
+and religious values which do not square with his individual judgments.
+"To remain faithful to one's own self," we are told again, "that is the
+essence of this ideal bravery. No one can possess this virtue who does not
+feel within himself the centre about which life gravitates; whoever
+pursues exterior things as his ultimate end cannot penetrate to interior
+freedom. _Spinoza_, by life and teaching, is a great preacher of this
+freedom" (Ibid. II, p. 27). Self-consciousness as arrogant as that of a
+pantheist like _Spinoza_, who indeed did not pursue "exterior things as
+the ultimate end," nor God either; the self-consciousness in which man
+feels himself the centre about which world and life revolve; the will
+which now directs thought on its way,--these are the life-nerves of
+autonomous free-thought.
+
+
+    In fact, inclination and will, not objective truth, are the
+    measure and norm of free-thought. This _Paulsen_ again expresses
+    with astonishing candour. According to him, intelligence is after
+    all nothing else than a transformation of the will, this doctrine
+    is rooted in the more modern voluntaristic monism, and is akin to
+    subjectivism. If our cognition itself forms its object, then the
+    real concept of cognition has been lost to us, and in its place we
+    have the will determining the action even of the intellect.
+    _Paulsen_ says emphatically, "Intelligence is an instrument of the
+    will in the service of preservation of life.... Perhaps it can be
+    said that even the elementary formations of thought, the logical
+    and metaphysical forms of reality, are already codetermined by the
+    will. If the forms of abstract thought are at all the result of
+    biological evolution, then this must be accepted: they are
+    formations and conceptions of reality, which have proved effective
+    and life-preserving, and have therefore attained their object. The
+    principle of identity is in reality not a mere statement, not an
+    indicative, but an imperative: A is A; that is, what I have put
+    down as A shall be A and remain A.... If this be so, if thought
+    and cognition be determined fundamentally by the will, then it is
+    altogether unintelligible how it might finally turn against the
+    will, and force upon it a view against its will" (_Kant's_
+    Verhaeltniss zur Metaphysik, 1900, p. 31 f.).
+
+    We have to do here with a confusion of ideas possible only when
+    correct reasoning has sunk to a surprisingly low level. To think
+    with the will, to draw conclusions with intention, is degenerate
+    thinking. But now we understand better what is meant by autonomy
+    of thought. It gives man license to disregard by shallow reasoning
+    everything that clashes with his own will. "What I have put down
+    as A shall be A and remain A!"
+
+
+It is now clear that subjectivism and autonomism in thinking are rooted in
+the positive disregard of objective truth, in the refusal of an
+unconditional subjection to it; they mean _emancipation from the truth_.
+Here we have the most striking and _deepest difference_ between modern
+subjectivistic and Christian objective thought. The latter adheres to the
+old conviction that our thoughts do not make the truth, but are subject to
+an objective order of things as a norm. For this reason autonomous freedom
+and subjective caprice, a manner of reasoning that would approach truth as
+a lawgiver, and even change it according to time and circumstance, are
+unintelligible in the Christian objective thought. This thought submits
+unselfishly to truth wherever met, be it without a divine revelation or
+with it, if the revelation be but vouched for. And the reward of this
+unselfishness is the preservation of the truth.
+
+But subjectivism, with its freedom, leads inevitably to the loss of the
+truth; it is scepticism in principle, in fact, if my thoughts are not a
+counterpart of an objective world, but only a subjectively produced image;
+not knowledge of an external reality, but only a figment of the
+imagination, a projection, then I can have no assurance that they are more
+than an empty dream.
+
+
+
+The Modern Separation of Knowledge and Faith.
+
+
+Of course it would be too much to expect that subjectivism in modern
+thought and scientific work should go to the very limit, viz., to
+disregard all reasoning, to advance at will any theory whatever, to
+silence disagreeable critics by merely referring to one's autonomy in
+thinking, and denying that any one can attain to absolute truth. Errors in
+empirical speculation never prosper as others do; the power of natural
+evidence asserts itself at every step, and tears down the artificial
+cobwebs of apparently scientific scepticism. It asserts itself less
+strongly where the opposing power of natural evidence is weaker, than is
+the case in matters of actual sense-experience. Here indeed one sees the
+objective reality before him, which he cannot fashion according to his
+caprice. The astronomer has no thought of creating his own starry sky, nor
+does the archaeologist wish to create out of his own mind the history of
+ancient nations. They both desire to know and to reveal the reality. But
+in the _suprasensible sphere_, in dealing with questions of the whence and
+whither of human life, where there is question of religion and morals,
+there autonomy and scepticism assert themselves as though they were in
+their own country, there the free-thinker steps in, boasting of his
+independence and taking for his motto the axiom of ancient sophistry: the
+measure of all things is man.
+
+Here at the same time the natural product of subjectivism, sceptic
+agnosticism, has full sway. In such matters, we are told, there is no
+certain truth; nothing can be proved, nothing refuted: they are all
+matters of _faith_--not faith, of course, in the Catholic sense. The latter
+is the acceptance by reason of recognized divine testimony, hence an act
+of the intellect. The modern so-called faith, on the contrary, is not an
+act of the intellect, but is supposed to be a vague _feeling_, a want, a
+longing and striving after the divine in one's innermost soul, which
+divine is then to be grasped by the soul in some mysterious way as
+something immediately present in it. This feeling is said to emerge from
+the subconsciousness of the soul, and to raise in the mind those images
+and symbols which we encounter in the doctrines of the various religions,
+varying according to times and men. They are only the symbols for that
+unutterable experience of the divine, which can be as little expressed by
+definitions and tenets as sounds can by colour. It is a conviction of the
+ideal and divine, but different from the conviction of reason; it is an
+inner, actual experience. Hence there can no longer be absolute religious
+truth, no unchangeable dogmas, which would have to be adhered to forever.
+In religion, in views of the world and life, the free feeling of the human
+subject holds sway, a feeling that experiences and weaves together those
+thoughts and ideals that are in accord with his individuality. This is the
+modern doctrine.
+
+The dark mysticism of the ancient East and the agnosticism of modern times
+here join hands. This modern method of separating knowledge and faith is,
+as we all know, a prominent feature of modern thought. Knowledge, that is,
+cognition by reason, is said to exist only in the domain of the natural
+sciences and history. Of what may be beyond these we can have no true
+knowledge. Here, too, _Kant_ has led the way; for the important result of
+his criticism is his incessant injunction: we can have true knowledge only
+of empiric objects, never of things lying beyond the experience of the
+senses; our ideas are merely subjective constructions of the reason which
+obtain weight and meaning only by applying them to objects of sense
+experiment. Hence God, immortality, freedom, and the like, remain forever
+outside the field of our theoretical or cognitive reason. Nevertheless
+_Kant_ did not like to drop these truths. Hence he constructed for himself
+a conviction of another kind. The "practical reason" is to guide man's
+action in accomplishing the task in which her more timid sister,
+theoretical reason, failed. And it does it, too. It simply "postulates"
+these truths; they are its "_postulates_," since without them moral life
+and moral order, which it is bound to recognize, would be impossible. No
+one knows, of course, whether this be truth, but it ought to be truth.
+_Stat pro ratione voluntas._ The Gordian knot is cut. "It is so," the will
+now cries from the depths of the soul, "I believe it"; while the intellect
+stands hesitatingly by protesting "I don't know whether it is so or not."
+Doubt and conviction embrace each other; Yes and No meet peacefully. "I
+had to suspend knowledge," _Kant_ suggests, "in order to make room for
+faith" (Kritik der reinen Vernunft, 2. Vorrede). "It is an exigency of
+pure practical reason based on duty," he further comments on his
+postulate, "to make something the highest good, the object of my will, in
+order to further it with all my power. Herein, however, I have to assume
+its possibility, and therefore its conditions, viz., God, freedom, and
+immortality, because I cannot prove them by speculative reason, nor yet
+disprove them." Thus "the just man may say I wish that there be a God; I
+insist upon it, I will not have my faith taken from me" (Kritik der prakt.
+Vernunft, 1. Teil, 2. Buch, 2 VIII).
+
+Others have followed the lead of _Kant_. For philosophers, Protestant
+theologians, and modernists, he has become the pilot in whom they trust.
+
+
+    "_Kant's_ critical philosophy," says _Paulsen_, "gives to
+    knowledge what belongs to it--the entire world of phenomena, for
+    the freest investigation; on the other hand, it gives to faith its
+    eternal right, viz., the interpretation of life and the world
+    according to their value" (Immanuel Kant, 1898, 6). "Faith does
+    not simply rest upon proofs, but upon practical necessity"; "it
+    does not come from the intellect, but from the heart and will"
+    (Einleitung in die Philosophie, 10th ed., 1903, 271, 269).
+    "Religion is not a science, hence it cannot be proved nor
+    disproved." "Therefore man's view of the world does not depend on
+    the intellect, but solely on his will.... The ultimate and highest
+    truths, truths by which man lives and for which he dies, have not
+    their source in scientific knowledge, but come from the heart and
+    from the individual will." In a similar strain _R. Falkenberg_
+    writes: "The views of the world growing out of the chronology of
+    the human race, as the blossoms of a general process of
+    civilization, are not so much thoughts as rhythms of thinking, not
+    theories but views, saturated with appreciations.... Not only
+    optimism and pessimism, determinism and doctrine of freedom, but
+    also pantheism and individualism, idealism and materialism, even
+    rationalism and sensualism, have their roots ultimately in the
+    affections, and even while working with the tools of reason remain
+    for the most part matters of faith, sentiment, and resolve"
+    (Geschichte der neuen Philosophie, 5th ed., 1905, p. 3).
+
+    You may look up any books or magazines of modern philosophy or
+    Protestant theology, and you will find in all of them "that faith
+    is a kind of conviction for which there is no need of proof" (_H.
+    Luedemann_, Prot. Monatshefte IX, 1903, 367). This emotional faith
+    has been introduced into Protestant theology especially by
+    _Schleiermacher_. It is also this view of the more recent
+    philosophy that the modernists have adopted. They themselves
+    confess: "The _modernists_ in accord with modern psychology
+    distinguish clearly between knowledge and faith. The intellectual
+    processes which lead to them appear to the modernists altogether
+    foreign to and independent of one another. This is one of our
+    fundamental principles" (Programma dei Modernisti (1908), 121).
+
+    Religious instruction for children will then have to become
+    altogether different. The demand is already made for "a recast of
+    thought from the sphere of the intellect into the sphere of
+    affection." Away, so they clamour, away with the dogmas of
+    creation, of Christ as the Son of God, of His miracles, as taught
+    in the old schools! For all these are religious ideas. Pupils of
+    the higher grades should be told "the plain truth about the degree
+    of historicity in elementary religious principles.... The
+    fundamental idea of religion can neither be created nor destroyed
+    by teaching, it has its seat in sentiment, like--excuse the term--an
+    insane idea" (_Fr. Niebergall_, Christliche Welt, 1909, p. 43).
+
+
+This dualism of "faith" and knowledge is as untenable as it is common. It
+is a psychological _impossibility_ as well as a sad _degradation of
+religion_.
+
+How can I seriously believe, and seriously hold for true, a view of the
+world of which I do not know whether it be really true, when the intellect
+unceasingly whispers in my ear: it is all imagination! As long as faith is
+a conviction so long must it be an activity of the intellect. With my
+feeling and will I may indeed wish that something be true; but to wish
+simply that there be a God is not to be convinced that there actually is a
+God. By merely longing and desiring I can be as little convinced as I can
+make progress in virtue by the use of my feet, or repent of sins by a
+toothache. It is {~GREEK SMALL LETTER MU~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER TAU~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER ALPHA WITH OXIA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER BETA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER ALPHA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~} {~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA WITH PSILI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~} {~GREEK SMALL LETTER ALPHA WITH PSILI AND OXIA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER LAMDA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER LAMDA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~} {~GREEK SMALL LETTER GAMMA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON WITH OXIA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER NU~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~}. A dualism of this kind, between
+head and heart, doubt and belief, between the No of the mind and the Yes
+of the heart, is a process incompatible with logic and psychology. How
+could such a dualism be maintained for any length of time? It may perhaps
+last longer in one in whom a vivid imagination has dimmed the clearness of
+intellect; but where the intellectual life is clear, reason will very soon
+emancipate itself from a deceptive imagination. One may go on dreaming of
+ideal images, but as soon as the intellect awakens they vanish.
+Hallucinations are taken for real while the mind is affected, but they
+pass away the moment it sees clearly.
+
+
+    _Kant_ himself, the father of modern agnostic mysticism, has made
+    it quite clear that his postulates of faith concerning the
+    existence of God and the immortality of the soul, have never taken
+    in him the place of earnest conviction. Thus in the first place
+    _Kant_ holds that there are no duties towards God, since He is
+    merely a creature of our mind. "Since this idea proceeds entirely
+    from ourselves, and is a product of ours, we have here before us a
+    postulated being towards whom we cannot have an obligation; for
+    its reality would have to be proved first by experience (or
+    revealed)"; but "to have religion is a duty man owes to himself."
+    Again, he dislikes an oath, he asks whether an oath be possible
+    and binding, since we swear only on condition that there is a God
+    (without, however, stipulating it, as did _Protagoras_). And he
+    thinks that "in fact all oaths taken honestly and discreetly have
+    been taken in no other sense" (Metaphysik der Sitten, II, § 18,
+    Beschluss).
+
+    _Prayer_ he dislikes still more. "Prayer," he says, "as an
+    internal form of cult, and therefore considered as a means of
+    grace, is a superstitious delusion (feticism).... A hearty wish to
+    please God in all our actions, that is, a disposition present in
+    all our actions to perform them as if in the service of God, is a
+    spirit of prayer that can and ought to be our perpetual guide."
+    "By this desire, the spirit of prayer, man seeks to influence only
+    himself; by prayer, since man expresses himself in words, hence
+    outwardly, he seeks to influence God. In the former sense a prayer
+    can be made with all sincerity, though man does not pretend to
+    assert the existence of God fully established; in the latter form,
+    as an address, he assumes this highest Being as personally
+    present, or at least pretends that he is convinced of its
+    presence, in the belief that even if it should not be so it can do
+    him no harm, on the contrary it may win him favour; hence in the
+    latter form of actual prayer we shall not find the sincerity as
+    perfect as in the former. The truth of this last remark any one
+    will find confirmed when he imagines to himself a pious and
+    well-meaning man, but rather backward in regard to such advanced
+    religious ideas, surprised by another man while, I will not say
+    praying aloud, but only in an attitude of prayer; any one will
+    expect, without my saying so, that that man will be confused, as
+    if he were in a condition of which he ought to be ashamed. But why
+    this? A man caught talking aloud to himself raises at once the
+    suspicion that his mind is slightly deranged; and not altogether
+    wrongly, because one would seem out of mind if found all alone
+    making gestures as though he had somebody else before him; that,
+    however, is the case in the example given" (Religion innerhalb der
+    Grenzen der blossen Vernunft, 4. Stueck, 2, § 4, Allgemeine
+    Anmerkung). Thus it happens that in his opinion those who have
+    advanced in perfection cease to pray.
+
+    Nor does it seem that _Kant_ is serious about his postulate of the
+    _immortality_ of the soul. Asked by _Lacharpe_ what he thought of
+    the soul, he did not answer at first, but remarked, when the
+    question was repeated: "We must not make too much boast of it"
+    (_H. Hettner_, Literat. Gesch. des 18. Jahrh., III, 4. ed., 3, p.
+    26. From _Varnhausen's_ Denkwuerdigkeiten).
+
+    Thousands have with _Kant_ destroyed their religious conviction by
+    a boastful scepticism, and, like him, finally given it up to
+    replace its lack by artificial autosuggestions.
+
+
+And is not the religious life of man thereby made completely valueless?
+The highest truths on which the mind of man lives, and which from the
+first stage of his existence not only interested but deeply stirred him,
+become fiction, pictures of the fancy, suggestions of an effeminate mind,
+that cannot make a lasting impression on stronger minds. And how can the
+products of autosuggestion give comfort and strength in hours of need and
+trial? It is true they do not impose any obligations. Every one is free to
+form his own notions of life; they are not to be taken seriously anyway,
+whether they be this or that; they are all equally true and equally false.
+Buddhism is just as true as Christianity, Materialism as true as
+Spiritualism, Mohammedanism as true as Quakerism, the wisdom of the Saints
+as true as the philosophy of the worldly. "The most beautiful flower is
+growing on the same soil (that of the emotions) with the rankest weed"
+(_Hegel_). The decision rests with sentiments which admit of no arguing.
+Thus all is made over to scepticism, to that constant doubting which
+degrades and unnerves the higher life of modern times, to that _modern
+agnosticism_ which, though bearing the distinction of aristocratic
+reserve, is in reality dulness and poverty of intellect; not a perfection
+of the human intellect, but a hideous disease, all the more dangerous
+because difficult to cure. It is the neurasthenia of the intellect of
+which the physical neurasthenia of our generation is the counterpart.
+
+The distinguishing mark between man and the lower animals has ever been
+held to be that the former could knowingly step beyond the sphere of the
+senses, into that world of which his intellect is a part. The conviction
+has always prevailed that man by means of his own valid laws of thought,
+for instance, the principle of causality, could safely ascend from the
+visible world to an invisible one. Thus also the physician concludes the
+interior cause of the disease from the exterior symptoms, the physicist
+thus comes to the knowledge of the existence of atoms and ions which he
+has never seen, and the astronomer calculates with _Leverrier_ the
+existence and location of stars which no eye has yet detected.
+
+One thing has certainly been established: a _free sentiment_ can now
+assert itself with sovereignty in the most important spheres of
+intellectual life, without any barriers of stationary truths and immovable
+Christian dogmas; one is now free to fashion his religion and ideals to
+suit the _individuum ineffabile_. The latter asks no longer what religion
+demands of him, but rather how religion can serve his purposes. "For the
+gods," it is said, "which we now acknowledge, are those we need, which we
+can use, whose demands confirm and strengthen our own personal demands and
+those of our fellow-men.... We apply thereby only the principle of
+elimination of everything unsuitable to man, and of the survival of the
+fittest, to our own religious convictions"; "we turn to that religion
+which best suits our own individuality" (_W. James_). Arrogant doubt can
+now undermine all fundamental truths of Christian faith until they crumble
+to pieces; beside it rises the free genius of the new religion, on whose
+emblem the name of God is no longer emblazoned, but the glittering seal of
+an independent humanity.
+
+
+
+Relative Truth.
+
+
+Freedom of thought appears still more justified when we take a further
+step which brings us to the _consequence of subjectivism_; _i.e._, when we
+advance so far as to assert that there are no unchangeable and in this
+sense no absolute truths, but only temporary, changeable, relative truths.
+And modern thought does profess this: there is no absolute truth, no
+_religio et philosophia perennis_; different principles and views are
+justified and even necessary for different times and even classes. This
+removes another barrier to freedom of thought, viz., allegiance to
+generally accepted truths and to the convictions of bygone ages.
+
+The logicalness of this further step can hardly be denied. If the human
+intellect, independent of the laws of objective truth, fashions its own
+object and truth, especially in things above the senses, why can it not
+form for itself, at different periods and in different stages of life, a
+different religion and another view of the world? Cannot the human subject
+pass through different phases? He indeed changes his costume and style of
+architecture; why not also his thoughts? Every product of thought would
+then be the right one for the time, but would be untenable for a further
+stage of his intellectual genesis and growth, and would have to be
+replaced by a new one. The nature of subjectivistic thought is no longer
+an obstacle to this. Besides, we have the modern idea of _evolution_,
+already predominant in all fields: the world, the species of plants and
+animals, man himself with his whole life, his language, right, family, all
+of them the products of a perpetual evolution, everything constantly
+changing. Why not also his religion, morality, and view of the world? They
+are only reflexes of a temporary state of civilization. Hence also here
+motion and change, evolution into new shapes!
+
+Therefore, so it is said, we have now broken definitely with the "dogmatic
+method of reasoning" of the belief in revelation, and of scholastic
+philosophy which adhered to absolute truth. They are replaced by the
+historical-genetical reasoning of the _saeculum historicum_ which "has
+discarded absolute truth: there are only relative, no eternal truths"
+(_Paulsen_, Immanuel Kant, 1898, 389). We are further assured that "this
+treatment of the history of thought prevails in the scientific world; the
+Catholic Church alone has not adopted it. She still clings to dogmatic
+reasoning, and that is natural to her; she is sure that she is in
+possession of the absolute truth" (Idem, Philosophia militans, 2d ed.,
+1901, 5). Outside of this Church every period of time is free to construct
+its own theories, which will eventually go with it as they came with it.
+
+We meet this relative truth, and all the indefinable hazy notions
+identified with it, _in all spheres_.
+
+
+    The modern history of philosophy and religion concedes to every
+    system and religion the right to their historic position: they are
+    necessary phases of evolution. The notion of immutable problems
+    and truths by which any system of thought would have to be
+    measured has been lost. "The appearance and rejection of a
+    system," says _J. E. Erdmann_, "is a necessity of world-history.
+    The former was demanded by the character of the time which the
+    system reflected, the latter again is demanded by the fact that
+    the time has changed" (Grundriss der Geschichte der Philosophie,
+    3rd, I, 1878, 4). And Professor _Eucken_ says: "Despite all its
+    advantages, such a view and construction of life is not a definite
+    truth, it remains an attempt, a problem that always causes new
+    discord among minds" (Grundlinien einer neuen Lebensanschauung,
+    1907, 2). "Thus, if according to _Hegel_ the coming into being
+    constitutes the truth of being, the ideals and aims also must
+    share in the mobility, and truth becomes a child of the times
+    (_veritas temporis filia_). That apparently subjects life to a
+    full-blown relativism, but such a relativism has lost all its
+    terror by the deterioration of the older method of reasoning. For
+    agreement with existing truth is no longer its chief object."
+    (Geistige Stroemungen der Gegenwart, 1904, p. 197). The new theory
+    of knowledge assures us quite generally: "It is a vain attempt to
+    single out certain lasting primitive forms of consciousness,
+    acknowledged constant elements of the mind, to retain them. Every
+    'a-priori' principle which is thus maintained as an unalienable
+    dowry of thought, as a necessary result of its psychological and
+    physiological 'disposition,' will prove an obstacle of which the
+    progress of science will steer clear sooner or later" (_E.
+    Cassirer_, Das Erkenntnissproblem in der Philosophie und
+    Wissenschaft der neueren Zeit, 1906, 6).
+
+    That this relativism is also laying hand, more and more firmly,
+    upon modern ethics is well known. One often gets the conviction
+    that, as _E. Westermark_ teaches, "there is no absolute standard
+    of morality," that "there are no general truths," "that all moral
+    values," as Prof. _R. Broda_ writes, "are relative and varying
+    with every people, every civilization, every society, every free
+    person" (Dokumente des Fortschritts, 1908, 362).
+
+
+Thus modern subjectivism has lost all sense for definite rules of thought;
+in its frantic rush for freedom and in its confused excitement it seeks to
+upset all barriers. Now, of course, we may disregard convictions thousands
+of years old, by simply observing that they suited former ages but not the
+present; that they perhaps suit the uneducated but not the educated.
+Henceforth one may also reject the dogmas of _Christianity_ by merely
+pointing out that they were at one time of importance, but are not suited
+to the modern man. That is an idea readily grasped, one which has already
+become quite general with those who are mentally tired of Christianity.
+What is demanded is a further evolution also of the Christian religion, a
+continuous cultivation of freer, higher forms, an undogmatic Christianity
+without duty to believe, without a Church: nothing else, in the end, but a
+veiled humanitarian religion.
+
+
+    "It will be difficult for coming generations to understand," says
+    _Paulsen_, in the same sense, "how our time could cling in
+    religious instruction with such peace of mind to a system which,
+    having originated several centuries ago under entirely different
+    conditions of intellectual life, stands in striking contrast to
+    facts and ideas accepted by our time everywhere outside the
+    schools." Hence a revision of the fundamental truths of
+    Christianity is needed. Away with everything supernatural and
+    miraculous, obedience to faith, original sin, redemption: all this
+    sounds strange to the modern man. "So there remains but one way:
+    to adapt the doctrine of the Church to the theories and views of
+    our times" (System der Ethik, 8th ed., 1906, II, pp. 247, 250).
+    And _Eucken_ says similarly: "We can adopt the doctrinal system of
+    the Church only by retiring from the present back to the past"
+    (Zeitschr. fuer Philosophie u. Phil. Kritik 112, 1898, 165).
+    Therefore we demand evolution of the Christian religion! "Let us
+    not blindly follow antiquated doctrines disposed of by science,"
+    we are exhorted. "Let there be no fear lest our belief in God and
+    true piety suffer by it! Let us remember that everything earthly
+    is in continual motion, carried along by the rushing river of
+    life." Onward, therefore, to advancement! ... cheerfully avowing
+    the watchword: "evolution of religion" (_Fr. Delitzsch_, Zweiter
+    Vortrag ueber Babel u. Bibel, 45. thousand, 1904, 42).
+
+    Modern Protestant theology has achieved a great deal in this
+    direction; its evolution has progressed to a complete
+    disintegration of Christianity, by adapting it to modern ideas so
+    thoroughly that there is not a single thought left which this
+    Christianity, reduced to meaningless words, might not accept.
+
+
+This is the relativism of the present subjectivistic reasoning and its
+consequences.
+
+Now, it is true that there is room for a certain relativity and evolution
+in the field of thought and truth. There is a relative truth in the sense
+that our knowledge of it is never exhaustive. Even the eternal truths of
+the Christian religion we always know only imperfectly, and we ought to
+perfect our knowledge continually; established facts of history can also
+be known, if studied, in greater detail. Thus there is progress and
+evolution. But from this we may not conclude that there can be no fixed
+truths at all. In the astronomy of to-day one can surely have the
+conviction that the fundamental truths of _Copernicus's_ System of the
+Universe must remain an unchangeable truth, and that the time will never
+come when we shall go back to the obsolete doctrines of old _Ptolemy_, who
+made the sun revolve around the earth. Is astronomy therefore excluded
+from progress and evolution? It is moreover true that the individual as
+well as the community pass through an intellectual evolution in the sense
+that they gradually increase their knowledge and correct their errors,
+that literature and the schools gradually enhance the energy and wealth of
+our ideas and thoughts.
+
+But a progressive change of the laws of thought, to the effect that we
+must now hold to a proposition which at another time we should naturally
+reject as untenable, can be maintained only upon the supposition that the
+thought of evolution has driven all others out of the intellect. It would
+be absurd to hold that the same view could be true at one time and false
+at another, that the same views about the world and life could be right
+to-day and wrong to-morrow, to be accepted to-day and rejected to-morrow.
+A view is either true or false. If true, it is always true and warranted.
+Or was old _Thales_ right when he declared the world to consist of water;
+were _Plato_ and _Aristotle_ right in maintaining that it consisted of
+ideas, or forms, with real existences; was _Fichte_ and his time right
+with his Ego, and are finally _Schopenhauer_, _Wundt_, and _Paulsen_ right
+in claiming the world to be the work of the will? Were our heroic
+ancestors right, as the theories of evolution claim, in holding that trees
+are inhabited by ghosts; were then the Greeks right with their idea of a
+host of gods dwelling in the Olympus; and later on, was the civilized
+world right in holding that there is but one God, a personal one; and,
+after that, are many others of to-day right when they tell us that the
+world, and nature itself, is god? These are conclusions that threaten
+confusion to the human brain. And yet they are the logical consequences of
+"relative truth," and any one reluctant to accept these consequences would
+prove thereby that he has never realized what absurdities are marketed as
+relative truth.
+
+Or shall we give it up, as entirely impossible, to judge of the truth or
+falseness of doctrines and views? Are we to value them only so far as they
+are adapted to a period, and as moulding and benefiting that period? This
+opinion indeed is held. "The values of science and philosophy," says
+_Paulsen_, "of our arts and poetry, consist in what they give us; whether
+a distant future will still use them is very questionable. Scholastic
+philosophy has passed away; we use it no longer; that is, however, no
+proof against its value; if it has made the generations living in the
+latter half of the Middle Ages more intelligent and wise ... then it has
+done all that could rightfully be expected of it: having served its
+purpose, it may be laid with the dead: there is no philosophy of enduring
+value." "Whatever new ideas a people produces from its own inner nature
+will be beneficial to it. Nature may be confidently expected to produce
+here and everywhere at the right time what is proper and necessary"
+(System der Ethik, 8th ed., 1906, I, 339, _seq._, II, 241).
+
+We have here a very deplorable misconception of the real value of truth,
+degrading it to suit passing interests and to promote them. This also is
+in conformity with subjectivism. But what could be answered to the
+straight question: suppose the opinions which some prefer to call "false"
+are more useful and valuable than "truth"? None but _Nietzsche_ had the
+courage to say that "the falsity of a judgment is not yet a sufficient
+prejudice against it; here our new speech will perhaps sound strangest.
+The question is: How far is that judgment life-promoting, life-sustaining,
+preservative, even creative of species, and we are inclined, on principle,
+to say that the falsest judgments are to us the most indispensable"
+(Jenseits von Gut und Boese, I, 4, W. W. VII, 12.) The view that doctrines
+and opinions become especially or exclusively true and valuable by their
+usefulness for practical life, has become in our times the principle of
+pragmatism.
+
+What others thought out only half way, _Nietzsche_ reasons out to the end.
+
+
+    To what lengths this contempt of objective truth may lead a man of
+    such an honest character as _Paulsen_, is learned from his advice
+    to the modern Protestant preacher who can no longer believe what
+    he has to preach to his orthodox congregation: he may speak just
+    as suits his congregation, orthodox as well as unorthodox,
+    according to the principles of relative truth. "Let us assume," he
+    says, "that his congregation is of a remote country village, where
+    not the slightest report of the happenings in theology and
+    literature has penetrated, where the names of _Strauss_ and
+    _Renan_ are as little heard as those of _Kant_ and
+    _Schleiermacher_. Here the Bible is still taken to be the literal
+    Word of God, transmitted to us by holy men commissioned to do it.
+    In this case the preacher may speak without scruple of that book
+    in the same way as his present hearers are used to. Would he thus
+    be saying what is wrong? What is meant by saying the Bible is the
+    Word of God? The same preacher, if transferred to other
+    surroundings where he has to address readers of _Strauss_ and
+    _Kant_, may change his manner of speaking without changing his
+    view or without violating the truth one way or the other. He would
+    be speaking to them from their own point of view.... Again, should
+    the same preacher publish his philosophical scientific research,
+    he could speak of Holy Scripture in an entirely different way...."
+    And he adds: "Some have taken exception to this opinion." Surely
+    not without reason!
+
+    A justification of this counsel was attempted in these words:
+
+    "Just as the electric incandescent light and the tallow-candle may
+    exist side by side, and as each of them may serve its purpose in
+    its proper place, so there exist also side by side various
+    physical and metaphysical ideas and fundamental notions: the
+    scientist and the philosopher and the old grandmother in her
+    cottage on the remote mountain-side, cannot think of the world in
+    the same way" (Ethik II, 240-244). But the argument, if it should
+    prove anything, must be formulated thus: "As the incandescent
+    light can at the same time be a tallow-candle, just so can two
+    different and opposite views about one and the same thing be at
+    the same time both right."
+
+
+Thus, thanks to the science of modern subjectivism, every fixed and
+unchangeable truth, especially in the sphere of philosophy and religion,
+is removed, and with it also every barrier to freedom of thought in
+science as well as elsewhere. The human intellect in its autonomous
+self-consciousness may not only reject those truths which are proposed by
+revelation or the Church; it may not only experience its views of religion
+and the world by giving free activity to its feelings, it also knows that
+to be no longer satisfied with the old truths means to be progressive.
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+Above we have sketched the deeper-lying thoughts on which the liberal
+freedom of science is based; it is the humanitarian view of the world with
+its emancipation of man, and autonomous scepticism in thought, joined to
+that sceptical disregard of truth which once the representative of
+expiring pagan antiquity comprised in the words: _Quid est veritas?_ Now
+we also understand better the liberal science which often claims the
+privilege of being "the" science, and which only too often likes to put
+down as unwarranted and inferior every other science that does not pursue
+its investigations in the same way. We understand its methods of thought
+in philosophy and religion, for which it claims an exclusive privilege; we
+can also form a judgment of its claim to be the leader of humanity in
+place of faith.
+
+No doubt there are many who are flirting with this freedom without
+accepting its principles entirely. They do not reason out the thing to the
+end, they argue against the invasion of the Church into the field of
+science, and point to _Galileo_; they denounce Index and Syllabus, and
+then believe they have therewith exhausted the meaning of freedom of
+science. That the real matter in question is a view of the world
+diametrically opposed to the Christian view, that a changed theory of
+cognition is underlying it, is by many but insufficiently realized.
+
+This freedom is not acceptable to one who professes the Christian view of
+the world. He will not offer any feeble apology to the eulogist of this
+freedom, as, for instance: Indeed you are quite right about your freedom,
+but please remember that I, too, as a faithful Christian am entitled to
+profess freedom. No; the answer can only be: Freedom, yes; but _this_
+freedom, no. A wholly different view of the world separates me from it. I
+see in it not freedom but rebellion, not the rights of man but upheaval,
+not a real boon of mankind but real danger.
+
+The principle of liberalism has in the field of social economy already
+done enough to wreck man's welfare. It has here proved its incompetence as
+a factor of civilization. That in science also, where it is active in the
+field of philosophy and religion, liberalism is the principle of
+overthrowing true science, without any appreciation for truth and human
+nature, that it is a principle of intellectual pauperism and decay, that
+it despoils man of his greatest treasures, inherited from better
+centuries--this we shall prove conclusively.
+
+It is difficult to say how long the high tide of liberalism will sweep
+over the fields of modern intellectual life before it subsides. One thing,
+however, is certain, that just so long it will remain a danger to
+Christian civilization, and to the intellectual life of mankind.
+
+
+
+
+
+SECOND SECTION. FREEDOM OF RESEARCH AND FAITH.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter I. Research And Faith In General.
+
+
+
+Introduction.
+
+
+When the youth growing to maturity begins to feel the development of his
+own strength, it may happen that he finds his dependence on home
+unbearably trying. Perhaps he will say, "Father, give me the portion of
+substance that falleth to me," and then depart into a strange country.
+
+The men of Europe have for centuries lived in the Christian religion as in
+their fathers' house, and have fared well. But to many children of our
+time the old homestead has become too confining. Modern man, we are told,
+has at last come to his senses. He wants to develop his personality,
+thoughts, and sentiments freely, independently of every authority. He
+turns his back on his father's house. His parting words are the
+accusation: The old Church "opposes the modern principles of free
+individuality, the right to drain the cup of one's own reason and personal
+life, and it sets itself against the whole of modern feeling,
+investigation, and activity" (_Th. Ziegler_, Gesch. der Ethik, II, 2d ed.,
+1892, p. 589).
+
+We are already acquainted with this freedom. We approach now the main
+question: What is the true relation of the freedom, which man may rightly
+claim for his scientific activity and reason, to external laws and
+regulations? Is man really justified to reject them all on the plea that
+they degrade his intellect and are an obstacle to his development, or does
+this rejection but manifest an error into which his desire of freedom has
+decoyed him? This is the question, it will be remembered, that we reached
+soon in the beginning of our investigation. We have already found the
+categorical answer--an emphatic rejection of such justification; we also
+traced the hypotheses on which the answer rests. We now return to the
+question to discuss it in principle. We begin with the freedom of
+scientific _research_, in order to take up afterwards the freedom in
+_teaching_.
+
+What are those external powers that may interrupt or caution the scientist
+in his investigations and problems? Here we do not yet consider the
+scientist as a teacher, communicating to the public the result of his
+investigation, his ideas and views, from the university chair to his
+scientific audience, or to a wider circle of hearers by means of
+publications; we here regard him in his private study only, in the pursuit
+of which he perhaps encounters new questions, and new solutions suggest
+themselves to him. What freedom can he and must he enjoy here? This
+private freedom must evidently be judged from a point of view other than
+that from which the freedom in teaching should be judged. With the latter,
+the interests of his contemporaries must be taken into account, and the
+question must be considered, whether they suffer by such teaching. The
+freedom of the scientist is greater than that of the teacher. Moreover,
+research is the principal and most important activity of science: nothing,
+surely, is taught that has not been previously investigated. If,
+therefore, research is in any way restricted, so also is teaching; but not
+_vice versa_. Are there, then, exterior authorities that may restrain
+research and reasoning, and what are they?
+
+One who lives in the Christian world knows at once of what authority to
+think. It is not the state. The state cannot directly influence the
+private work of the student: if it may exert its influence directly upon
+anything, it is only upon freedom in teaching. No, the authority to think
+of is the authority of the faith, revealed religion and its guardian, the
+Church.
+
+Of course, this is not the only authority. Even if a revelation from
+heaven had not been given us, yet those _general convictions of mankind_,
+common to all nations and times, of the immutability of the laws of
+thought and morality, of the existence of a supramundane God, of the
+retribution for moral conduct to be made in the world to come, of the
+sanctity of state-authority, of the necessity of private property, and
+others, would ever remain most revered utterances of truth. No one would
+be allowed to contradict this avowal of all mankind, relying on his own
+reasoning, which he calls science, and give the lie to the reasoning of
+all other men, in order to make his own reason the sole measure of truth.
+
+But for the present let us pass over the natural authority of mankind, of
+its convictions and traditions. It is surpassed and replaced by the
+_authority of faith_ which belongs to _our Christian religion_. The latter
+comes to us claiming to possess the only true view of the world, and
+laying upon us the obligation of accepting it. It has even the courage to
+put its anathema upon propositions which the scientist may call science;
+it dares write out a list of the propositions which it condemns as
+untenable. Against this authority the protest is raised: Where is freedom
+of research, if one cannot even indulge in his own ideas, if the intellect
+is to be cropped and fettered? What is to become of frank, unprejudiced
+investigation, if I am from the outset bound to certain propositions, if
+from the outset the result at which I must arrive is already determined?
+It is intellectual bondage that the man of faith is languishing in. Thus
+reads the indictment; thus sounds the battle-cry. Is the indictment
+justified? Can and shall science take faith as a guide in many instances
+without detriment to its own innate freedom? And where, and when?
+
+First, the more general question: Is freedom of research compatible with
+the duty to believe, or do they exclude each other in principle?
+
+
+
+What Faith is Not.
+
+
+What, then, is faith, and what does the duty to believe demand of us?
+
+Here we meet at once with a false proposition which the opponents of the
+Christian faith will not abandon. To them faith is always a blind assent,
+in giving which one does not ask, nor dare ask, whether the proposition be
+true--_a belief without personal conviction_. According to them the
+believer holds himself "captive to the teaching of his Church. He cannot
+reflect personally, but follows blindly the lead of authority and force of
+habit." Thus "Catholicism is the religion of bondage" (_W. Wundt_, Ethik,
+3d ed., 1903, II, 255, 254). To them it is but an "uncritical submission
+to the existing authority, uninfluenced either by the testimony of the
+senses or the reflection of the intellect" (_K. Menger_, Neue Freie
+Presse, 24 Nov., 1907). The campaign for liberal science is denouncing
+those who "even to-day dare to demand blind faith," "without proof or
+criticism," faith in the "word of the Popes and men pretending to be
+interpreters and emissaries of God, men who have proved their incompetence
+and inability by the physical and religious coercion to which they have
+subjected mankind" (_T. G. Masaryk_, V boji o nabozenstvi, The Battle for
+Religion, 1904, p. 10, 23).
+
+To be sure, if the Christian faith were such, it would be intellectual
+slavery. If I am compelled to believe something of which I cannot know the
+truth, this is coercion, and conflicts with the nature of the intellect
+and its right to truth. Infidelity would then be liberation. But faith is
+_not_ that.
+
+As a rule this view is based on a presumption, which has already been
+extensively discussed, viz., that faith and religion have nothing at all
+to do with intellectual activity, but are merely the _product of the
+heart_, a sentimental, freely acting notion; for, of metaphysical objects
+no human intellect can form a certain conviction. It is subjectivism that
+leads to this view. According to it the subject creates its own world of
+thought, free in action and feeling, not indeed everywhere,--in the sphere
+of sense-experience the evidence of the concrete is too great,--but at
+least in the sphere of metaphysical truth.
+
+Such modes of expression find their way also into Catholic literature and
+language; even here we meet with the assertion that religion is a matter
+of the heart, and for that very reason has nothing to do with science. On
+the whole it is a remarkable fact that among believing men many
+expressions are current that have been coined in the mint of modern
+philosophy, and have there received a special significance. They are used
+without real knowledge of their origin and purposed meaning; but the words
+do not fail to colour their ideas, and to create imperceptibly a strange
+train of thought.
+
+One who is of the opinion that religion and views of the world are but
+sentiment and feeling, which change with one's personality and
+individuality, can, of course, no longer understand a dogmatic
+Christianity and the obligation to hold fast to clearly defined dogmas as
+unchangeable truth. I can hold dogmas and doctrinal decisions to be
+unquestionably true only when I can _convince myself of their credibility_
+by the judgment of my reason. If I cannot do that, and am still bound to
+believe them, without the least doubt, then such obedience is compulsory
+repression of the reason. Then it would indeed be necessary for the
+Church, as _Kant_ says, "to instil into its flock a pious dread of the
+least deviation from certain articles of faith based on history, and a
+dread of all investigation, to such a degree that they dare not let a
+doubt rise, even in thought, against the articles proposed for their
+belief, because this would be tantamount to lending an ear to the evil
+spirit" (Religion innerhalb der Grenzen der blossen Vernunft, 3. Stueck,
+2. Abtlg.). Fixed dogmas may then at the very most, according to the great
+master of modern thought, be of pedagogic value to a minor, until he be
+grown to maturity. But to more advanced minds must be unconditionally
+conceded the freedom to construct dogmas as they think best, viz., as
+symbols and images for the subjective thought they underlie. This also, as
+is well known, is an article of Modernism, which here again follows in the
+steps of _Kant_.
+
+
+    "Ecclesiastical faith," says _Kant_, "may be useful as a vehicle
+    to minors who can grasp a purely rational religion only through
+    symbols, until in the course of time, owing to the general
+    enlightenment, they can with the consent of everybody exchange the
+    form of degrading means of coercion for an ecclesiastical form
+    suitable to the dignity of a moral religion--that of free faith."
+    "The membranes," he says in another place, "in which the embryo
+    first shaped itself into man must be cast off, if he is to see the
+    light of day. The apron-strings of sacred tradition with its
+    appendages, viz., the statutes and observances which at one time
+    did good service, can gradually be dispensed with; they may even
+    become a harmful hindrance when one is growing to manhood."
+
+
+Of course, to him who takes the position of _Kant's_ _dualism of belief
+and rational judgment_, freedom from every authority in matters of faith,
+and in this sense tolerance, will appear to be self-evident. Whatever has
+nothing to do with knowledge, but is merely the personal result of an
+inner, subjective experience, cannot be offered by external authority as
+matter for instruction. The sole standard for this belief is the
+autonomous subject and its own needs. In this sense _Harnack_ tells us:
+"The kernel of one's being is to be grasped in its own depths and the soul
+is merely to recognize its own needs and the road traced out for their
+gratification. This can only be done with the fullest freedom. Any
+restraint here is tantamount to the destruction of the problem; any
+submission to the teaching of others ... is treason to one's own religion"
+(Religioeser Glaube und freie Forschung. Neue Freie Presse, 7. Juni,
+1908). To have one's religion determined by any authority, even a divine
+one, would be treason to the sovereignty of man!
+
+Viewed from this standpoint, the _reconciliation between faith and
+science_ is no longer a problem. And they congratulate themselves on the
+solution of this vexing question. Now, they say, deliverance from an
+oppressive misery has been found, now the peace sought for so long is
+restored. A fair division has been made: two worlds, the world of the
+senses, and the world above sense experience. One belongs to science,
+where it now rules supreme; the other belongs to faith, where it can move
+freely, undisturbed by, and even unapproachable to science. Just as the
+stars in the sky are inaccessible to the custodian of civil order,--he can
+neither support them nor hinder them, nor pull them down,--just so the
+realm of faith is inaccessible to science: peace reigns everywhere.
+
+
+    Cheered on by this treaty of peace, _Paulsen_ writes: "Thus
+    critical philosophy has solved the old problem of the relation of
+    knowledge to faith. _Kant_ is convinced that by properly setting
+    the limits he has succeeded in laying the foundation for real and
+    enduring peace between them. In fact, upon this in the first place
+    will rest the importance and vitality of his philosophy. It gives
+    to knowledge, on the one hand, what belongs to it for unlimited
+    research, the whole world of phenomena; on the other hand it gives
+    to faith its eternal right, the interpretation of life and the
+    world from the view-point of values. There can be no doubt that
+    herein lies the cause of the great impression made by _Kant_ upon
+    his time; he appeared as the liberator from unbearable suspense"
+    (Immanuel Kant, 1898, 6).
+
+
+To a critical observer, such peace-making is utterly incomprehensible.
+They probably did not consider that in this way _religion and faith_ were
+not liberated, but _dispossessed_; not brought to a place of safety, but
+transferred from the realm of reality into the realm of fancy. Similarly
+an aggressive ruler might address a neighbouring prince thus: We cannot
+agree any longer, let us make peace: you retain all your titles, and I
+shall see to your decent support, but you will have to lay down your crown
+and sovereignty and leave the country--in this way we can have peace.
+Religion, once the greatest power in the life of man, for the sake of
+which man made sacrifices and even laid down his life, has now become a
+matter of sterile devotion; it may, moreover, no longer claim power and
+importance; it is now reduced to a poetic feeling, with which one can fill
+up intellectual vacancies. No longer is man here for religion's sake;
+religion is here for man's sake. A buttonhole flower, a poetic perfume to
+sprinkle over his person. For he does not want to give up religion
+entirely. "We are the less inclined to give up religion forthwith, since
+we are prone to consider a religious disposition as a prerogative of human
+nature, even as its noblest title." Thus _D. F. Strauss_, when he asked of
+those who sympathized with his opinions, Have we still religion? (Der alte
+u. neue Glaube, II, n. 33). Of course religion has now become something
+quite different; it has been _consigned to deep degradation_.
+
+To be sure, feeling is of great importance in religion. Dissatisfaction
+with the things of this earth, man's longing for something higher, for the
+Infinite, his craving for immortality, for aid and consolation--are all
+naturally seeking for religious truths. If these are known, they in turn
+arouse fear and hope, love and gratitude; they become a source of
+happiness and inspiration. But these feelings have no meaning unless we
+are certain that there exists something corresponding to them; much less
+could they of themselves be a conviction, just as little as hunger could
+convince us that we have food and drink. If one cannot perceive that there
+is a God, a Providence, a life beyond, then religion sinks to the level of
+a hazy feeling, without reason and truth, which must appear foolish to men
+who think,--as "the great phantasmagoria of the human mind, which we call
+religion" (_Jodl_, Gedanken ueber Reform Katholizismus, 1902, 12),--which
+departs from the sphere of rational intellectual life, and which many have
+even begun to contemplate from the view-point of psychopathology. It is
+only due to the after-effect of a more religious past that religion is
+suffered to lead still a life of pretence: moral support in struggles it
+can give no more, nor comfort in dark hours, much less may it presume to
+guide man's thought. It stands far below science.
+
+Despair of the possibility of knowing higher truths is confronting us, the
+disease of deteriorating times and intellectually decaying nations. But
+just as Christianity, once in youthful vigour, went to the rescue of an
+old World dying of scepticism, just as the Catholic Church has ever upheld
+the rights of reason, especially against Protestantism, which from its
+beginning has torn asunder faith and knowledge: so the Catholic Church
+stands to this day unaffected by the doubting tendency of our times,
+upholding the rights of reason. It also upholds faith. But its faith has
+nothing to do with modern agnosticism.
+
+
+
+What Faith Is.
+
+
+What, then, according to Catholic doctrine, is faith and the duty to
+believe?
+
+Let us briefly recall to mind the _fundamental tenets_ of the _Christian
+religion_. It tells us that even in the Old Testament, but more especially
+in the New, through His Incarnate Son, God has revealed to man all those
+religious and moral truths which are necessary and sufficient for the
+attainment of his supernatural end. Some of them are truths which reason
+by itself could not discover; others it could discover, but only by great
+labour. And this divine revelation demands belief. Belief is natural to
+man. The child believes its parents, the judge believes the witnesses, the
+ruler believes his counsellors. God wished to meet man in this way, and to
+give him certainty in regard to the highest truths.
+
+But revelation was to be an heritage of mankind, it was to be transmitted
+and laid unadulterated before all generations. For this reason it could
+not be left unprotected to the vicissitudes of time, or the arbitrary
+interpretation of the individual. It would have utterly failed in its
+purpose of transmitting sure knowledge of certain truth,--the history of
+Protestantism proves this,--had it been given merely with the injunction:
+Receive what I have committed to your keeping, and do with it what you
+please. No, it had to be made secure against subjective, arbitrary choice.
+
+To this end Christ established an international organization, the
+_Church_, and committed to it His Gospel as a means of grace, together
+with the right and sacred duty to teach it to all men in His Name, to keep
+inviolate the heirloom of revelation, defending it against all error.
+"Going, therefore, teach ye all nations" (Matt. xxviii. 19), was His
+command. "Go ye into the whole world and preach the Gospel to every
+creature; he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that
+believeth not shall be condemned" (Mark xvi. 15). "He that heareth you,
+heareth Me, and he that despiseth you, despiseth Me" (Luke x. 16).
+"Behold, I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world"
+(Matt. xxviii. 20). He gave His divine aid to the Church, in order that
+she might _infallibly_ keep His doctrine to the very end of time.
+
+Thus the divine revelation and the Church approach all men with the duty
+to believe: "he that believeth shall be saved," God gravely commands; "and
+if he will not hear the Church, let him be to thee as the heathen and
+publican" (Matt. xviii. 17). They lay their teachings before the human
+intellect, bidding it retain them as indubitable truth, upon their
+infallible testimony, yet only after convincing itself that God has really
+spoken, and that this Church is the true one, which cannot err. And only
+after having convinced itself of the credibility of the proposed teaching
+is it obliged to believe. Hence, according to the Christian mind, faith is
+the _reasonable conviction of the truth of what is proposed for belief, by
+reason of an acknowledged infallible testimony_.
+
+
+    The Catholic dogma we find explained in the definition of the
+    Vatican Council, which had to expose so many errors that are
+    liable in our days to confuse the faithful in their notions of
+    faith and Church. "This faith," says the Vatican Council (Sess.
+    III, chap. 3), "which is the beginning of human salvation, the
+    Catholic Church teaches to be a supernatural virtue, by which,
+    through the inspiration and co-operation of the grace of God, we
+    believe to be true what He has revealed, not on account of the
+    intrinsic truth of it, perceived by the natural light of reason,
+    but on the authority of God who gives the revelation, who can
+    neither deceive nor be deceived.... Nevertheless, in order that
+    the service of our belief might be in accord with reason ('a
+    reasonable service') God willed to unite to the internal helps of
+    the Holy Ghost external proofs of His revelation, to wit, external
+    works divine, especially miracles and prophecies, which, clearly
+    demonstrating God's omnipotence and infinite knowledge, are most
+    certain signs of divine revelation and are suited to the
+    intelligence of all." The Council adds expressly the canon: "If
+    any one say that divine revelation cannot be made credible by
+    exterior signs, and that men ought therefore to be moved to belief
+    solely by their interior experience or individual inspiration, let
+    him be anathema." We have here stated the Catholic dogma as
+    unanimously taught by all Christian centuries, by all Fathers and
+    theologians.
+
+
+Hence, the act of faith by which I believe that the Son of God became man,
+that I shall rise from the dead, is first of all a _judgment of the
+reason_, not an act of the will, or a feeling of the heart. It is,
+moreover, a _certain_ rational judgment upon weighty reasons, not, indeed,
+such which I draw from intellectual knowledge, but those which rest upon
+the infallible testimony of God. The act of faith agrees therefore with
+assent to historic truth in that it is of the same kind of knowledge, but
+upon the authority of infallible testimony. Just as I believe that
+Alexander once marched victoriously through Asia, because there is sure
+testimony to that effect, so I believe that I shall rise from the dead,
+because God has revealed it. The difference being that in the former case
+we have only human testimony, whereas in the latter God Himself speaks.
+Thus, according to Catholic teaching, faith and knowledge may be distinct
+from each other, but in a sense quite different from that of the
+representatives of modern, sentimental faith. The latter understand
+knowledge, in this connection, to be any judgment of the reason based upon
+evidence, and they deny that faith is such; but to a Catholic, faith, too,
+is a _judgment of the reason_, and in this sense true knowledge; only it
+is not knowledge in the more common sense of a cognition derived from
+one's own mental activity _without_ the external means of authority.
+
+As we have heard from the Vatican Council, it is the recognized fact of
+divine revelation which bestows upon the matter of faith its certainty in
+reason. Hence the knowledge of this fact must precede faith itself. But
+the knowledge must be certain, not merely a belief, for it is the very
+presupposition of belief, but a knowledge, derived from the intellect,
+which may at any time be traced back to scientific proofs if there is the
+requisite philosophical training. So long as man is not certain that God
+has spoken, he cannot have faith according to the Catholic view. One of
+the sentences condemned by _Innocent XI._, to say nothing of other
+ecclesiastical testimonies, is this: "The assent of supernatural faith,
+useful for salvation, can exist with merely probable information of the
+fact of revelation, even with the fear that God has not spoken." And very
+recently there has been condemned also the proposition: "The assent of
+faith ultimately rests upon a sum of probabilities" (Decretum Lamentabile,
+July 3, 1907. Sent. 25).
+
+It cannot be our task here to show at length how the Christian arrives at
+this certain knowledge. Our present purpose is only to state the Catholic
+concept of faith. We have already heard the Vatican Council refer to
+miracles and prophecies. To most of the faithful the chief fact that
+offers them this security is the wonderful phenomenon of the _Catholic
+Church_ itself, which proposes to them the doctrines of faith as divine
+revelation.
+
+
+    Thus again the Vatican Council defines clearly: "To enable us to
+    do our duty in embracing the true faith and remaining in it
+    steadfastly, God has through His incarnate Son established the
+    Church and set plain marks upon His institution, in order that it
+    may be recognized by all as the guardian and interpreter of
+    revelation. For only the Catholic Church possesses all those
+    arrangements, so various and wonderful, made by God in order to
+    demonstrate publicly the credibility of Christianity. Indeed the
+    Church of itself, because of its wonderful propagation, its
+    pre-eminent sanctity and inexhaustible fecundity in everything
+    good, its Catholic unity and invincible duration, is a grand
+    permanent proof of its credibility and irrefutable testimony in
+    behalf of its divine mission. Thus, like a 'standard unto the
+    nations,' it invites those to come to it who have not yet
+    believed, and assures its children that the faith they profess
+    rests upon a most firm foundation."
+
+    The Catholic looks with pride upon his Church: she has stood all
+    the trials of history. He sees her endure, though within harassed
+    by heresies and endangered by various unworthiness and incapacity
+    of her priests, and attacked incessantly from without by
+    irreconcilable enemies, yet prevailing victoriously through the
+    centuries, blessing, converting nations and beloved by them; while
+    by her side worldly kingdoms, supported by armies and weapons, go
+    down into the grave of human instability. The most wonderful fact
+    in the world's history, contrary to all laws of natural,
+    historical events,--here a higher hand is plainly thrust into human
+    history; it is the fulfilment of the divine promise: "I am with
+    you all days, even to the consummation of the world." "The gates
+    of hell shall not prevail against it." He sees the Saints, who
+    have lived in this Church and have become saints through her,
+    those superhuman heroes of virtue, who far surpass the laws of
+    human capacity.
+
+    In the most widely different states of life in the Church he sees
+    virtue grow in the degree in which one submits to her guidance. He
+    witnesses the remarkable spectacle, that everything noble and good
+    is attracted by the Church, and their contrary repelled. He sees
+    the miracles which never cease in her midst. Finally he beholds
+    her admirable unity and vigorous faith; she alone holding firm to
+    her teaching, not compromising with any error; she alone holding
+    fearlessly aloft the principle of divine authority, and thus
+    becoming a beacon to many who are seeking a safe shelter from
+    spiritual ruin. In addition we finally have that harmony and
+    grandeur of the truths of faith, and--perhaps not in the last
+    place--that calm and peace of mind, produced in the faithful soul
+    by a life led according to this faith, by prayer and the reception
+    of the Sacraments. This is a clear proof that where the Spirit of
+    God breathes there cannot be the seat of untruth.
+
+
+These are sufficient proofs to produce even in the uneducated, and in
+children, true and reasonable certainty, provided they have had sufficient
+instruction in religion. It must, however, be emphasized that this
+conviction produced by faith need _not first be gained by scientific
+investigation_ of the motives of faith, or by minute or extensive
+theological studies. A wrong notion of human knowledge frequently leads to
+the opinion that there is no true certainty at all unless it is the result
+of scientific study--a presumption on which is based the claim of freedom
+of science to disregard any conviction, be it ever so sacred, and the
+claim that it is reserved to science alone to attain the sure possession
+of the truth. Later on we shall dwell more at length upon this important
+point. Let it suffice here to remark that the intellect can attain real
+certainty even without scientific research; most of our convictions, which
+we all hold unhesitatingly as true, are of this kind. They constitute a
+belief that is based upon the real knowledge of the reason, which
+knowledge is not, however, so clear and distinct that it could be
+demonstrated easily in scientific form.
+
+The certainty of faith, therefore, is based upon the knowledge that God
+Himself vouches for the truth of the teachings of faith. This relieves the
+faithful from the necessity of obtaining by his own reflection an insight
+into the intrinsic reasons of the why and the wherefore of the proposed
+truth, and to examine in each instance the correctness of the thing. He
+knows that God has revealed it, that His infallible Church vouches for it;
+hence it is credible and true; that suffices for him, just as trustworthy
+evidence suffices for the historian concerning facts which he himself has
+not observed.
+
+Let no one say that faith is a _blind belief_ and blind obedience, and
+that dogmatic Christianity, or, to use another phrase, "the religion of
+the law, demands first of all obedience: it is true it would like, besides
+that, an interior assent for its thoughts and commandments, but where this
+is lacking the law itself furnishes the ways and means to compensate the
+lack of this internal assent, if only obedience is there" (_A. Harnack_,
+Religioeser Glaube u. freie Forschung. Neue Freie Presse, June 7, 1908).
+Nor let any one say that free research has "at least this advantage over
+dogma, that its claims can be proved, which is not true of the other's
+claims" (_J. H. van't Hoff_, ibid., Dec. 29, 1907). These are
+misrepresentations.
+
+There is no obedience to faith which is not _internal assent and
+conviction_, and there is no clinging to dogmas which is not based on
+motives of faith, or which could not at any time be subjected to
+scientific investigation. If the term "blindness of belief" were intended
+to express only that the believer holds the revealed doctrine to be true,
+not because he has discovered its truth by his own reasoning, but on the
+authority of God, then we might suffer the misleading word. But it is
+utterly false in the sense that the believer has no conviction at all.
+Even though others have it not, the faithful Catholic, the believing
+Christian, has it, and it is personal conviction. He has convinced himself
+that God has spoken, and of the credibility and hence the truth of the
+revealed doctrine, by his own reason, and this is why he assents.
+
+
+    Still greater is the misrepresentation of the real motive of
+    faith, if it is held to be the opinion of the Pope or of Roman
+    Prelates. _Wundt_ thus misstates the Catholic position: "Not every
+    one can acquire knowledge. But any one can believe. The
+    enlightened leaders of the Church, and the Church herself first of
+    all, have knowledge, and by dint of authority determine what is to
+    be believed" (Ethik, 3d ed., 1903, I, p. 342). According to the
+    popular scientific propaganda of unbelief, we have to deal in the
+    Church merely with "ignorant monks, Asiatic patriarchs, and
+    similar dignitaries, some very superstitious, who, for instance,
+    assembled in the third century and decided _by vote_ that the
+    Gospel is the word of God; we have to deal with men who have
+    proved their incapacity and incompetence" (_Masaryk_, Im Kampfe um
+    die Religion, 1904, pp. 22-23).
+
+    Any one who shares such ideas about the supernaturalness of the
+    Catholic Church has, of course, forfeited his claim to understand
+    Catholic life and faith. The Catholic believes in his Church, not
+    on any account of Asiatic patriarchs and superstitious
+    dignitaries, but because she is led by the Holy Ghost, and the
+    Pope must believe the same as the humblest of the faithful:
+    neither the Pope himself relies upon his own judgment, nor does
+    the Catholic who trusts in the word of the Pope.
+
+    We add a few remarks which may further illustrate the action of
+    faith.
+
+    The knowledge of the fact of revelation, hence of the credibility
+    of the truths revealed, is certain, as shown above. Nevertheless,
+    _it does not compel_ reason to assent. Under ordinary
+    circumstances it would be impossible to think of one's own
+    existence, of the elementary laws of mathematics, without being
+    constrained by the evidence to give direct internal assent. But
+    insight into the truth of a thing is not always of this high
+    degree of clearness. In such cases it is an empirical law of the
+    mind that reason discerns of itself the _logical_ necessity, that
+    is, if it desires to proceed according to the merits of the case,
+    without, however, acting under _physical_ constraint. There
+    remains then the determination, the command of the will. This is
+    generally true of many judgments about natural things, but
+    especially true of belief. The knowledge of the fact of revelation
+    is true and certain, though it might be still clearer. The truths
+    offered by divine revelation are too deep for us to comprehend
+    them fully; they imply questions and difficulties for us to
+    ponder. We feel the physical possibility of pondering these
+    difficulties, although we see at the same time that the difficulty
+    is exploded by the certainty of the fact of revelation; but we
+    remain _free_ in giving our assent.
+
+    Herein lies the possibility of _meritorious_ faith, the
+    possibility of the creature rendering to God the free tribute of
+    his free submission. At the same time it opens the possibility of
+    turning voluntarily to doubts, and of submitting to them more and
+    more, till the mind becomes clouded and ensnared by error. Thus,
+    since faith depends on free will, the will is strictly commanded
+    to impel the intellect to assent and cling to faith and to put
+    aside doubts. God has revealed the truths of faith that they may
+    be firmly believed.
+
+    Hence faith is a product of the will also, and may become part and
+    parcel of the sentimental life. Firmly believed, revealed truths
+    engender in man love and gratitude, fear and hope. And being
+    beautiful and comforting, they are embraced fervently by the
+    heart, and become objects of desire, sources of comfort and
+    happiness. Nevertheless they are in themselves, and remain,
+    rational judgments, based upon insight and knowledge; just as the
+    fond recollections of home are and remain acts of cognition,
+    though our affections are twined round those reminiscences like
+    wreaths of evergreen.
+
+    What has just been said illustrates also another point,--the
+    _relation of faith to grace_. The Vatican Council says: "Faith is
+    a supernatural virtue by which, through the inspiration and
+    co-operation of the grace of God, we believe to be true what He
+    has revealed." Faith is called a gift of God, a work of grace. But
+    this must not mislead us to think that it is a mystical process,
+    taking place in the human mind, indeed, but not moving along the
+    natural course of human cognition, but along quite a different
+    course: perhaps an immediate mystical grasp of the revealed truth,
+    while natural intelligence stands aside, not understanding it.
+    This would be returning to our starting point,--making faith
+    anything but a judgment of the reason. It is a common doctrine of
+    theology that the process of faith differs nothing in kind from
+    the natural process of human intellect in its apprehension of the
+    truth. It is belief on grounds recognized as sufficient motives
+    for assent.
+
+    What then does grace do? Two things. First, it elevates the act of
+    the soul in the process of believing to a higher sphere. Just as
+    sanctifying grace elevates the soul itself to a supernatural
+    sphere, permitting it to partake of the nature of God, so does the
+    grace of faith raise the acts of the soul to the supernatural
+    order. The _kind_ of cognition, however, remains the same: just as
+    a ring does not alter its form by being golden instead of silver.
+
+    In the second place, grace is _assistance_: it enlightens the
+    intellect that it may be able to see more clearly, not giving to
+    motives of faith an importance which they have not of themselves,
+    but helping the intellect to see them as they are; removing the
+    troubles and dangers of doubt which beset the mind, so that it may
+    retain that calmness which generally accompanies the possession of
+    the truth. The pledge of this assistance is given the Christian at
+    baptism and with each increase of sanctifying grace. But the
+    actual effect of grace depends on many conditions. If one omits
+    prayer and neglects religious duties, deafens one's ear to the
+    word of God, incurs knowingly unnecessary dangers to faith,
+    forsakes the path of virtue, then grace may withdraw to a
+    considerable extent; doubts become stronger, intellectual darkness
+    and confusion increase, and man goes on apace towards infidelity.
+
+    This is the Catholic doctrine concerning faith.
+
+
+
+Faith and Reason.
+
+
+But to return to our question: In what relation do faith and the duty to
+believe stand to freedom of research? We said that freedom of research
+consists in exemption from all unjust external restraint, that is, from
+those external hindrances to the action of the human intellect which
+prevent it from attaining its natural end. Now what is this natural end?
+The answer will make clear what restraint and laws must be respected by
+the human mind, and which may be rightly rejected.
+
+On the coat-of-arms of Harvard University is written the beautiful word
+"Truth." Upon the human mind, too, is inscribed the word _Veritati_--_for
+the truth_. The human mind exists for the sake of truth; for the truth it
+reasons and searches; it is its natural object, as sound is the object of
+the human ear, and light and colour the object of the eye. And truth
+attracts the mind strongly. The child wants the truth, and tries to get it
+by its many questions; the historian wants the truth, and tries to get it
+by his incessant searching and collecting. "I can hardly resist my
+craving," _William von Humboldt_ confesses, "to see and know and examine
+as much as possible: after all, man seems to be here only for the purpose
+of appropriating to himself, making his own property, the property of his
+intellect, all that surrounds him--and life is short. When I depart this
+life I should like to leave behind me as little as possible unexperienced
+by me" (apud _O. Willmann_, Didaktik als Bildungslehre, 3d ed., II, 1903,
+p. 7). The great physicist, _W. Thomson_, a few years ago closed a life of
+eighty-three years--he died in December, 1907--devoted to the last to
+unabated search for the truth. It is true not all are called to labour in
+this field like _W. Thomson_. But every one who has capability may and
+should help to promote the noble work. Only they are excluded who do not
+want to look for the truth, or who are even ready, for external
+considerations, to pass off falsehood for the truth, unproved for
+established results. "I know of nothing," says the ancient sage, _Plato_,
+"that is more worthy of the human mind than truth" (Rep. VI, p. 483 c.).
+And so the poet _Pindar_ sings: "Queen Truth, the mother of sublime
+Virtue."
+
+If this is the aim of the human mind and its science, there is but one
+freedom of research, the _freedom for the truth_, the right not to be
+hampered in searching for the truth, not to be forced to hold as true what
+has not been previously vouched for to the intellect as true; in a word,
+the freedom to wear but one chain, the golden chain of the truth. Hence,
+if the scientist should be compelled by party interest, or public opinion,
+to pursue a course in science which he cannot acknowledge as the right
+one; if the younger scientist should feel constrained to conform the
+results of his research to the pleasure of his older colleagues or of men
+of name, against his own better judgment, then he would be deprived of his
+rightful freedom of searching for the truth, and of deciding for himself
+when he has found it. But there is one sort of freedom the scientist
+should never claim--_freedom against the truth_, freedom to ignore the
+truth, to emancipate himself from the truth. He is bound to accept every
+truth, sufficiently proved, even religious dogmas, miracles too, provided
+they are authenticated. Not freedom, but truth, is the purpose of
+research: emancipation from the truth is degeneration of the intellect,
+destruction of science.
+
+What, then, does the duty to believe require of the faithful Christian? He
+is required, first of all, to assure himself of the certain credibility of
+those truths which he is required to believe, and here authentic proofs
+are offered him. On his perception of the credibility of these truths, he
+ought to assent to and accept God's testimony. Hence there should be no
+coercion to believe without interior conviction, no obstacle put in the
+way of recognizing the truth. _Where, then, is here any opposition to the
+lawful freedom of research_, to the right of unimpeded search for the
+truth? How is reason hindered in its search for the truth when truth is
+offered it by an infallible authority? We have here no opposition to the
+laws of reason, but due honour to its sacred rights; no bondage, but
+elevation and enrichment, completion and crowning of its thought, for the
+highest truth has been communicated to the reason that it may be of one
+mind with that Infinite Wisdom which has shaped reason for the truth, and
+from which it obtains its light as the planet from the sun around which it
+revolves.
+
+Therefore, it cannot be said that "the Catholic resolves to believe as
+true what the Church teaches in the Apostles' Creed, but were he offered
+anything else as Church doctrine he would accept it as well. Hence these
+doctrines do not express his own personal opinions, they are something
+extraneous to him." (_W. Herrmann_, Roemische u. evangelische
+Sittlichkeit, 3d ed., 1903, p. 3). No, what the Catholic, what any true
+Christian, believes by faith, that is his innermost conviction, as it is
+the firm conviction of the historian that what he has drawn from reliable
+sources is true.--But what if the contrary were offered him? Well, this
+assumption is absurd; and why? Because God and His Church are infallible,
+and an infallible authority cannot speak the truth and its contrary at the
+same time. Much less than a reliable historical witness can testify to the
+truth and its contrary at the same time.
+
+This same conviction gives to the faithful Christian the firm assurance
+that no certain result of human research will ever come in conflict with
+his faith, just as the mathematician does not fear that his principle will
+ever be contradicted by any further work. Truth can never contradict
+truth. "Thus we believe and thus we teach and herein lies our salvation."
+It is the very old conviction of the faithful Christian "that philosophy,
+that is, the study of wisdom, and religion are not different things." _Non
+aliam esse philosophiam, i.e., sapientiae studium et aliam religionem_
+(_Augustinus_, De Vera Religione, 5). It is precisely this that enables
+the believing scientist to devote himself with great freedom and
+impartiality to research in every field, and to acknowledge any certified
+result without fear of ever having to stop before a definite conclusion.
+
+Such is the _peace between faith and science_ according to Christian
+principles. They are not torn apart, but join hands peacefully, like truth
+with truth, like two certain convictions, only gained in different ways.
+Similar is the peace and harmony between the results of various sciences,
+as physics and astronomy, geology and biology, which results, though
+arrived at by different methods, are still not opposed to each other,
+because they are both true.
+
+The authority of faith, however, must be _infallible_; the authority of a
+scientist, a school or the state, can never approach us with an absolute
+obligation to believe it, because it cannot vouch for the truth. To the
+Catholic his Church proves itself infallible; hence everything is here
+logically consequent. Protestant Church authorities have not
+infallibility, nor do they claim it. Hence their precepts are seen more
+and more opposed. Hence to the Protestant the firm attachment of the
+Catholic to his Church must ever remain unintelligible, and it is
+regrettable that Catholics take instruction from Protestants about their
+relation to their Church.(2)
+
+We must go a step further. If there is a divine revelation or an
+infallible Church--we speak only hypothetically--then no man and _no
+scientific research can claim the right_ to contradict this revelation and
+Church. Scientific research is not the hypostatized activity of a
+superhuman genius, of a god-like intelligence. No, it is the activity of a
+human intellect, and the latter is subject to God and truth everywhere.
+There can be no freedom to oppose the truth; no privilege not to be bound
+to the truth but rather to have the right to construct one's views
+autonomously.
+
+But here lies the deeper reason why to-day thousands to whom _Kant's_
+_autonomism in thought_ has become the nerve of their intellectual life,
+will have nothing to do with guidance by revelation and Church. They can
+no longer understand that their reason should accept the truth from an
+external authority, not, indeed, because they would not find the truth,
+but because they would lose their independence.
+
+
+    It was _Sabatier_ who maintained that "an external authority, no
+    matter how great one may think it to be, does not suffice to
+    arouse in us any sense of obligation." And _Th. Lipps_ says on
+    this further: "If obedience is taken in its narrower sense, that
+    is, of determination by the will of another, then no obedience is
+    moral." "In brief, obedience is immoral--not as a fact but as a
+    feeling, betokening an unfree, slavish mind" (Die ethiseben
+    Grundfragen, 2d ed., 1905, p. 119). And _W. Herrmann_ assures us.
+    "We would deem it a sin if we dared treat a proposition as true of
+    which the ideas are not our own. If we should find such a
+    proposition in the Bible, then we may perhaps resolve to wait and
+    see whether its truth cannot be brought home to us after we have
+    obtained a clearer and stronger insight of ourselves. But from the
+    resolution to take that proposition as true without more ado, we
+    could not promise ourselves anything beneficial."
+
+
+It is for the sovereign subject himself to decide whether the ideas
+offered are compatible with the rest of his notions. A truth offered from
+without is acceptable to the subject only when, and because, he can
+produce of himself at the same time what is offered; but he cannot accept
+the obligation of _submitting_ to that truth in obedience to faith. "There
+is no infallible teaching authority on earth, nor can there be any.
+Philosophy and science would have to contradict themselves to acknowledge
+it," says another champion of _Kant's_ freedom (_Paulsen_, Philosophia
+militans, 2d ed., p. 52). Hence the reason why there cannot be any
+infallible authority is, not because it does not offer the truth, but
+because the human intellect must not be chained down.
+
+Now, this is no longer true freedom, but rebellion against the sacred
+right that truth has over the intellect. It is rebellion against the
+supreme authority of God, who can oblige man to embrace His revelation
+with that reason which He Himself has bestowed upon man. It is a
+misconception of the human mind, for it is by no means the source of truth
+and absolute knowledge, but weak and in need of supplement. Many truths it
+cannot by itself find at all, while in the quest for others it needs safe
+guidance lest it lose its way. If it refuses to be supplemented and guided
+from above, it demands the freedom of the weak vine allowed to break loose
+from the needed support of the tree, the freedom of the planet allowed to
+deviate from its orbit to be hopelessly wrecked in the universe. The
+barrenness and disintegration in the ideal life of our own unchristian
+age, are clear testimony that freedom is not only lawlessness but a sin
+against one's own nature.
+
+Or, do they seek to save themselves by asserting that a divine revelation
+and the founding of an infallible Church are _impossible_? Very well,
+then, let them prove it. On this the question hinges. If they can prove it
+to us, that very moment we shall cease to be faithful Catholics, and
+Christianity will have been the most stupendous lie in history. But if the
+reverse is the case, then all declamations in the name of free research
+fall to the ground.
+
+This impossibility, however, could only be proved by the aid of a
+presumption. This presumption is _atheism_, which denies the existence of
+a personal God, or at least doubts it. If it is admitted that there is a
+personal God, then it is self-evident that He can give a revelation, and
+found an infallible Church, and can oblige all to believe. But herewith
+collapses also the liberal principle that, in reasoning, one may reject an
+external authority. Hence the principle of liberal freedom in science can
+only then be taken seriously, when one advances to atheism. Then, of
+course, they will say with _Nietzsche_: God is dead; long live the
+transcendental man!
+
+Our assertions are proved by experience. At the end of the eighteenth
+century the enlightenment began by excluding all revelation; but it was
+desired to retain the rational truth of God's existence. Since then,
+liberal science has been aiming at atheism in philosophy, whether open or
+masked. And if we follow up the career of men who have left their faith,
+we shall soon find that if they do not seek peace in the sheltering
+harbour of thoughtlessness, they have reached the terminal station of
+atheism. There is no stopping on this incline.
+
+Since it is the express fundamental principle of the liberal freedom of
+research, that science is not bound to any external authority, it is
+evident that it is nothing else but the refusal to submit to God's
+authority, hence, also, to submit to truth if it appears as revelation.
+For, either it is admitted that if there is a divine revelation, we have
+to give it our assent--and in this event liberal freedom of science would
+have to be abandoned,--or this liberal freedom is adopted in real
+earnest--then it must be admitted that it is tantamount to _radical
+apostasy and defection from the truth_. If a man wishes to be a faithful
+Christian and at the same time to uphold the liberal freedom of science,
+then he has never made clear to himself what he wishes.
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+_Ecce ancilla Domini._ Thus spoke the Mother of the Lord, when she heard
+the message that she was to receive the Word of the eternal Father in her
+bosom. This word of humility and submission was the condition under which
+she could receive in herself the eternal Wisdom of the Father.
+
+Behold, the Handmaid of the Lord! This word of humility and submission to
+God must also be spoken by the creature's intelligence, if it desires by
+faith to share in God's truth. Without humility of mind a faithful
+attachment to God is impossible; pride and arrogance lead to desertion of
+God, faith, and truth. _Multum errant, quoniam superbi sunt_, says
+_Augustine_ of the erring companions of his youth. Only if there is
+humility does God's wisdom cross the threshold of the creature's mind,
+only if there is humility can it be said of man: _Et verbum caro factum
+est et habitat in nobis, plenum gratiae et veritatis_.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter II. The Authority Of Faith And The Free Exercise Of Research.
+
+
+
+Preliminary Remarks.
+
+
+We must not stop at what we have just said in general about the relation
+between the freedom of research and the obligation to believe. We must go
+further into detail, in order to give a more exact explanation of how and
+where the authority of faith clashes with research and restrains it. Is it
+true that the believing scientist cannot move freely in his research, that
+there are barriers on all sides which he may not overstep? Is it true that
+the Church may prescribe for the Catholic scientist what he is allowed to
+defend and approve, what he ought to refute and reprove, suppress or
+advocate, so that his eyes must ever be turned towards Rome, to inquire
+and ascertain what might there be approved? And what a chain of
+proscriptions of free thinking is attached to the name of Rome! Index,
+Syllabus, _Galileo_--link after link is added to this chain of miserable
+slavery!
+
+We shall say something more about this chain later on. First we must
+consider the principal question: Where and how do faith and science come
+in contact? And what we are going to say we shall condense into four
+points. Thus freedom of science will be more precisely defined; it will be
+shown what freedom revelation, and especially the guardian of revelation,
+the Church, offers to science: there can be no doubt that its natural
+freedom of exercise must be left to science intact.
+
+We shall deal in the first place with the _profane sciences_, and, at
+least for the present, leave aside the discussion of theology, since it is
+clear that theology, being the science of faith, must assume a peculiar
+position in regard to the authority of faith: theology, moreover, is a
+special mark for attack; accordingly we shall deal with it particularly
+later on. However, the principles to be cited, being of a general nature,
+refer also to the science of faith, and for this reason we shall have
+occasion to refer to them.
+
+
+
+1. Authority of Faith and Private Authority.
+
+
+We often meet with the most inconceivable notions. We are told quite
+seriously that the Church teaches, and that the Catholic has therefore to
+believe, that the earth is a flat disc surrounded by the sea, as the
+ancients believed; above it is a vault, below it hell-fire; that the earth
+stands still and the sun and stars revolve about it, just as _Ptolemy_ of
+Egypt taught; that God created the whole world just as it is now in
+exactly six days of twenty-four hours each; that He made the sun and moon,
+just as they are now illuminating the skies; that the strata, just as they
+now look when bared by the geologist's hammer, even the coal-fields and
+petrified saurians and fossils--all were made, just as they now are, well
+nigh six thousand years ago. The Scriptures teach this, the Fathers of old
+and the theologians believe this: and that is where the Catholic must get
+his science. And then they are astonished, and consider dogma retreating
+before science, when they see other notions prevailing, when they see
+Catholic scientists defend without prejudice the evolution of the solar
+system, and even the system of the whole universe, from some primitive
+matter, or assume an organic evolution, as far as science supports it (cf.
+_Braun_, Ueber Kosmologie u. Standpunkt christlich. Wiss., 2d ed., 1906,
+etc.). They would be still more astonished perhaps to learn that similar
+ideas had long ago been proposed by _St. Augustine_ and _St. Thomas_ (cf.
+Summa c. G. l. 3, c. 77; _Knabenbauer_, in Stimmen a. M. Laach xiii, 75
+_seq._).
+
+A distinction must be made between the teaching of the Church and the
+private views of individuals, schools, or periods. Only the teaching of
+the Church is the obligatory standard of Christian and Catholic thought,
+not the opinion of individuals. Hence not everything that Catholic savants
+have held to be true belongs to the teaching of the Church. Only when
+theologians unanimously declare something to be contained in the deposit
+of revealed truth, or the teaching of the Church,--only then is their
+teaching authoritative; not because it is the teaching of theologians, but
+because it is contained in revelation or the teaching of the Church. Else
+the maxim holds good: _Tantum valet auctoritas, quantum argumenta_. Nor is
+all that which a former age found in Holy Scripture, therefore to be
+believed as revealed truth, to the exclusion of all other interpretations.
+
+The foregoing may be elucidated by the examples given above. When Holy
+Writ describes in figurative language and Oriental, demonstrative style,
+how God created the heaven and earth, the sun and moon, the sea and its
+contents, it means to teach us religious truths: that God is the First
+Cause of everything, and hence that the sun and moon, for instance, are
+not uncreated deities, as the Egyptian believed them to be. The narrative
+need not be taken in a literal sense, as if God immediately formed
+everything in the exact condition as it now appears to us; it may be
+interpreted in the sense that God let the present condition of things
+gradually grow out of the forces and materials and plan of nature He
+created, the result of a lengthy evolution. When our Lord tells us in the
+gospel that His Father in heaven feeds the birds of the air and clothes
+the grass of the field, we know that this is to be understood as a mediate
+action of God, which He exercises through the instinct of animals and
+through natural forces which He created for the purpose. Now when former
+ages, reading the narrative of Genesis, generally understood an immediate
+creation of the world, because the knowledge of nature at the time did not
+admit of any other interpretation, it is by no means necessary to conclude
+from it that every other interpretation must be rejected as against the
+Bible, or that the Church herself has prescribed this literal
+interpretation as the only correct one. As is known, _St. Augustine_, the
+greatest Father of the Church, had another very liberal explanation of the
+Genesis narrative, and the Church has never censured him. (He taught that
+the whole world had been created at one time, and that the six days of the
+Mosaic narrative were the logical divisions of an account of the various
+orders of creatures.) And now the interpretations vary greatly. The
+passages in Scripture, in which, according to popular modes of expression,
+the sun is said to rise and set and revolve about the earth, the latter
+standing in the centre of the world--these, too, were interpreted literally
+in the days of the Fathers: there was no cause for interpreting them
+otherwise; but it was only due to defective knowledge of nature at the
+time. These temporary errors remained till corrected by research in the
+field of the natural sciences: had the discoveries been made sooner, the
+errors, too, would have disappeared sooner.
+
+The Church knows, and the holy Fathers knew, that it is not the purpose of
+Holy Writ to teach profane sciences, but to instruct in faith and morals;
+if it speaks of other matters, it is but occasionally, and then in the
+idiom of common life, which is not the same as the scientific language of
+the specialist. Indeed, the Bible does not intend to give scientific
+instruction in such matters, nor could it have done so at a time when men
+were not ripe for such enlightenment.
+
+
+    Thus _St. Augustine_ insists that the Spirit of God who spoke
+    through the authors of Scripture did not intend to instruct men in
+    matters which do not serve for salvation, and hence he objects to
+    the Scriptures being taken literally in regard to such matters,
+    because the Bible adapts itself to man's manner of speech: a
+    distinction is to be made between letter and sense ("Multi multum
+    disputant de iis rebus, quae majore prudentia nostri auctores
+    omiserunt, ad beatam vitam non profuturas discentibus ... Breviter
+    dicendum est, ... Spiritum Dei, qui per ipsos loquebatur, noluisse
+    ita docere homines nulli saluti profuturas," De Gen. ad lit., II,
+    9, n. 20. Cf. De Gen. contra Manich. 1, 5, n. 3; 11, n. 17). He
+    further cautions Bible students against putting their own
+    interpretation upon obscure passages and then claiming it to be
+    dogma, because one may easily go astray and thus make the
+    Scriptures appear ridiculous. "In rebus obscuris atque a nostris
+    oculis remotissimis, si qua inde scripta etiam divina legerimus,
+    quae possint salva fide, qua imbuimur, alias atque alias parere
+    sententias, in nullam earum nos praecipiti affirmatione
+    proiciamus, ut si forte, diligentius discussa veritas eam recte
+    labefactaverit, corruamus, non pro sententia divinarum
+    scripturarum sed pro nosctra ita dimicantes, ut eam velimus
+    scripturarum esse, quae nostra est" (De genesi ad lit. I, 18 n.
+    37). "Plerumque accidit, ut aliquid de terra, de coelo, de ceteris
+    mundi huius elementis ... etiam non christianus ita noverit, ut
+    certissima ratione et experientia teneat. Turpe est autem nimis et
+    perniciosum ac maxime cavendum, ut christianus de his rebus quasi
+    secundum christianas literas loquentem ita delirare quilibet
+    infidelis audiat, ut, quemadmodum dicitur, toto coelo errare
+    conspiciens, risum tenere vix possit" (Ibid. I, 19 n. 39). Cf.
+    also I, 21. _St. Thomas of Aquin_ also expresses himself in this
+    sense: "Multum autem nocet, talia, quae ad pietatis doctrinam non
+    spectant, vel asserere vel negare, quasi pertinentia ad sacram
+    doctrinam ... Unde mihi videtur tutius esse, ut haec, quae
+    philosophi communius senserunt et nostrae fidei non repugnant,
+    neque sic esse asserenda ut dogmata fidei, licet aliquando sub
+    nomine philosophorum introducantur, neque sic esse neganda tamquam
+    fidei contraria, ne sapientibus huius mundi contemnendi doctrinam
+    fidei occasio praebeatur" (Opusc. X. ad Jo. Vercel. Proem.).
+
+    The doctrine of the _Church_ concurs with this, as laid down in
+    numerous documents, many of them quoting the above-mentioned words
+    of _St. Augustine_. It also insists that the interpretation of the
+    Fathers be only taken as a standard of the Church's explanation of
+    the meaning of Scripture when they are unanimous on the meaning of
+    a passage relating to faith and morals; but not to other things
+    (cf. Encycl. Providentissimus, Denz. 10 ed., n. 1947, 1944; Conc.
+    Trid., sess. IV., Conc. Vat. sess. III., c. 2, Denz. nn. 786,
+    1788).
+
+
+Now if one simply opens Holy Scripture, takes up some passage at random,
+explains it in its most literal sense, and then insists that this is the
+evident meaning, and goes on to assert with the same insistence that this
+is the interpretation of the Church, and a part of the faith of Catholics
+in regard to the natural sciences, then of course it is very easy to make
+out contradictions between faith and science: but such efforts cannot
+claim to be scientific. It is not necessary to know theology and the
+principles of Catholic exegesis; but it is not proper that those who are
+ignorant of these matters pass judgment on them, not even in the name of
+objective research.
+
+
+    Hence we may easily see what we should think of a writer who
+    asserts that the examination of the Christian-Catholic idea of the
+    world leads to the following results: "The Books of Moses,
+    inspired by divine revelation, are the golden key to the
+    understanding of the whole history of creation. Other Scriptural
+    passages of the Old and New Testaments, the writings of the
+    Fathers, etc., are to be considered as supplementary to these.
+    According to these authorities the earth is a flat disc,
+    surrounded by the sea. Above it arches the firmament of heaven,
+    with its great lights for day and night. Below it are purgatory
+    and hell. All this is not the gradual outgrowth of lengthy
+    evolution, but was created by God out of nothing in a few days,
+    about six thousand years ago, of which four thousand are reckoned
+    before Christ and two thousand after Christ. Although modern
+    science has long since established that the Biblical narrative is
+    of no worth, nothing but an imperfect reproduction of older myths,
+    the Catholic Church continues to teach it literally to this very
+    day, spreading it broadcast by thousands and thousands of
+    catechisms, and insisting on it being learned as a part of
+    religious instruction in all schools, and to be accepted as the
+    revealed truth" (_L. Wahrmund_, Katholische Weltanschauung und
+    freie Wissenschaft, 1908, p. 14. The scientific value of this work
+    has been considered by _L. Fonck_, Katholische Weltansch).
+
+    "Clericalism," we are told, "stands on a rigidly fixed view of the
+    world, corresponding in part to the childhood of mankind, to the
+    dawning of civilization.... Philosophy, built upon the results of
+    progress, since it is unceasingly forcing its way ahead, cannot
+    remain in accord with the notions belonging to a remote past,
+    partly to Babylonian and Egyptian civilization, partly to the
+    thought of nomadic times." It is then pointed out how this view of
+    the world on which clericalism, that is, the Catholic Church, is
+    based, has already been overthrown in many instances. "The
+    geocentric position, the doctrine of our earth being the centre
+    and man the ultimate aim of the universe, must needs be abandoned
+    by the world of scientists, in view of the new system of
+    Copernicus; the doctrine also of the earth being a disc must be
+    abandoned in consequence of the voyage of Columbus, and subsequent
+    discoveries, which make it certain that the earth is a globe"
+    (Prof. _K. Menger_, Die Eroberung der Universitaeten. Neue Freie
+    Presse, Nov. 24, 1907). It is surprising what little knowledge
+    suffices to warrant writing about theological matters in the name
+    of "objective research."
+
+    These passages, in regard to their scientific contents and manner,
+    recall vividly an American work that appeared some time ago, and
+    reached many editions. It is entitled, "A History of the Conflict
+    Between Religion and Science," by _J. W. Draper_. The book was
+    answered by a competent authority, _De Smedt_, S. J., "L'Eglise et
+    la Science," 1877.
+
+    It seems _Draper's_ arguments have since become a pattern for
+    many. He, too, maintains that Holy Writ has always been declared
+    by the Church and the Fathers to be a source of profane science.
+    This, he states, is true especially of _St. Augustine_. We read:
+    "The book of Genesis ... also in a philosophical point of view
+    became the grand authority of Patristic science. Astronomy,
+    geology, geography, anthropology, chronology, and indeed all the
+    various departments of human knowledge, were made to conform to
+    it.... The doctrines of _St. Augustine_ have had the effect of
+    thus placing theology in antagonism with science...." "No one did
+    more than this Father to bring science and religion into
+    antagonism; it was mainly he who diverted the Bible from its true
+    office--a guide to purity of life--and placed it in the perilous
+    position of being the arbiter of human knowledge...." "What, then,
+    is that sacred, that revealed science, declared by the Fathers to
+    be the sum of all knowledge?... As to the earth, it affirmed that
+    it is a flat surface, over which the sky is spread like a dome. In
+    this the sun and moon and stars move, so that they may give light
+    by day and by night to man.... Above the sky or firmament is
+    heaven; in the dark and fiery space beneath the earth is hell...."
+    (pp. 57-63).
+
+    By reading again what we said above, especially the urgent
+    admonitions of _St. Augustine_ not to look upon the Scriptures as
+    a text-book of profane science, one will be able to appreciate the
+    scientific quality of the book in question.
+
+    The fancy of this writer has distorted Christianity and the Church
+    into a monster that has nothing more important to do than to tread
+    down and crush science and civilization. A few examples will
+    suffice to show how he proves the _contradictions between faith
+    and science_. The Christian religion teaches that man is subject
+    to death as a penalty for original sin: prior to that sin death
+    had no power over Adam and Eve. It is claimed that this is a
+    contradiction of science. But how? Long before Adam, thousands of
+    animals and plants had died, the author asserts. "The doctrine
+    declared to be orthodox by ecclesiastical authority is overthrown
+    by the unquestionable discoveries of modern science. Long before a
+    human being had appeared on earth millions of individuals, nay,
+    more, thousands of species and even genera had died" (p. 57). The
+    author has completely missed the point. The matter in question is
+    not the death of animals and plants, but the death of man. The
+    infallibility of the Pope is refuted by the fact that he failed to
+    foresee the result of the war between France and Germany.
+    "Notwithstanding his infallibility, which implies omniscience, His
+    Holiness did not foresee the issue of the Franco-Prussian war" (p.
+    352, also p. 362).
+
+    How high his historical statements are to be rated is shown by the
+    assertion that _Cyril of Alexandria_ had much to do with the
+    introduction of the worship of the Virgin Mary (p. 55); that
+    auricular confession was introduced by the Fourth Lateran Council
+    in 1215 (p. 208). He asks when the idea originated that the
+    Pentateuch was written by Moses under divine inspiration, and he
+    finds that "not until after the second century [of the Christian
+    era] was there any such extravagant demand on human credulity" (p.
+    220). It would seem incredible that any one could write such
+    stuff.
+
+    The author says in his preface: "I had also devoted much attention
+    to the experimental investigation of natural phenomena, and had
+    published many well-known memoirs on such subjects. And perhaps no
+    one can give himself to these pursuits, and spend a large part of
+    his life in the public teaching of science, without partaking of
+    that love of impartiality and truth which philosophy incites"
+    (VIII-IX). We do not care to argue with the author about his
+    experience in experimental research, nor about his love for the
+    truth, but he himself has shown superabundantly that they have not
+    sufficed to keep him clear from scientific shallowness and the
+    grossest blunders. Nevertheless, it seems that his scientific
+    ability obtained for him in the consideration of many the weight
+    of an authority. _Haeckel_, in his "Weltraetsel," refers
+    repeatedly to the book, and recommends "its truthful statements
+    and excellent discussion" to his readers (Weltraetsel, 17. Kap.,
+    Wissenschaft u. Christentum).
+
+    Such is the fashion in which contradictions between faith and
+    science, and the Church's hostility towards scientific research,
+    are proved.
+
+
+The result is that we must distinguish clearly between dogmas of faith and
+private opinions or interpretations. Of course it may frequently happen,
+and has happened, that the Christian savant is too timorous, and looks
+askance at the discoveries of science, and even thinks he ought to resist
+them, because he is afraid that religious truth might be opposed by them.
+Nor can it be said that this timidity is altogether without excuse, for
+there was hardly one scientific discovery of the nineteenth century that
+was not immediately grasped and exploited by eager enemies of the
+Christian religion. Too often has science been made the menial of
+infidelity, and the assertion has been untiringly repeated that science
+and faith cannot agree. No wonder, then, that timid souls become
+suspicious, that they are prone to resist the whole theory of evolution in
+a lump, instead of trying to distinguish between what is of scientific
+value in it, and what is misused for the purpose of denying creation.
+
+Nevertheless, such narrow-mindedness is strongly to be censured. It has
+often caused the reproach, that Catholics lack the freedom to admit
+scientific discoveries. They forget the wise admonition of the prince of
+mediaeval theologians, that it were advisable, in regard to scientific
+views which have nothing to do with religion, neither to set them down as
+truths of faith, nor either to reject them as contrary to faith lest
+occasion be given to think contemptuously of the faith. As long as men are
+and men think, narrow-mindedness will never be lacking. Hence if the
+believing scientist wants to know whether he is running counter to faith
+in any particular, he has to ascertain from theological text-books what
+the Church declares to belong to faith, what explanation of Holy Scripture
+is unconditionally binding, and not what is the individual opinion of
+theologians, much less what some pious nurse is telling the little ones.
+
+This is the first rule concerning the relation between faith and science:
+it states what the scientist is _not_ tied down to.
+
+
+
+2. Science Retains its Method of Research.
+
+
+But when and how may the scientist be restricted? Here we come to the
+second point: the directions which faith may give to the profane sciences
+are in themselves not of a positive but of a _negative kind_; revelation
+and Church cannot tell the scientist what he is to assert or defend in the
+field of the profane sciences, but only what propositions he must _avoid_.
+Thus every science is left free to pursue its own method of research. It
+is not difficult to understand this.
+
+Faith draws from divine revelation; profane sciences, as such, do not draw
+from divine revelation, but only from experience and reason. Philosophy
+would cease to be philosophy and become theology did it demonstrate the
+immortality of the soul by revelation. The anthropologist would cease to
+be an anthropologist and become a theologian if he would attempt to prove
+the common origin of mankind by Holy Scripture.
+
+In other words, the profane sciences are distinguished from faith and
+theology by their formal object, by the end they have in view, by the
+scientific method with which they handle their subject. Theology, of
+course, uses revelation extensively; and in this it differs from the other
+sciences. Hence faith cannot command the anthropologist to defend also in
+profane science the common origin of the human race from Adam and Eve,
+because it is held to be a revealed truth. He must say: I believe as a
+Christian that this is true, established by divine revelation, and no
+science will ever prove the contrary; but whether I can positively defend
+this fact as resulting from anthropology, depends on my ability to
+corroborate it by the methods of this science, that is by the testimony of
+profane history. And just as little could the historian be required to
+obtain historical results of which he cannot produce the evidence
+according to his method.
+
+Therefore faith can only tell the profane scientist that he must not
+assert anything which is held by faith to be erroneous; that it is false
+to say there is nothing but force and matter, that the human soul ends in
+death, or that the various families of the human race have not a common
+origin. As soon as the scientist knows by faith that a thing is false, he
+is bound to refrain from asserting it: bound in the first place by the
+duty to believe, but also by the principles of his own science, which is
+to find not error, but truth, which forbids to assert what has been proved
+to be erroneous. Perhaps his own means will not enable him to prove the
+truth independently of revelation; then from the standpoint of his science
+he must say, _Non liquet._
+
+
+    The position of the Catholic Church agrees with these principles.
+    She knows, and emphasizes that science has its own method, and
+    hence a natural right and freedom to proceed in its own field
+    according to its method. The Church rejects but one kind of
+    freedom, viz., the freedom to propound a doctrine proved by faith
+    to be erroneous. "The Church by no means forbids these disciplines
+    to use in their own field their own principles and method,"
+    declares the Vatican Council. "But, while acknowledging this
+    lawful freedom, the Church takes care to prevent them from taking
+    up errors in opposition to divine teaching, or from creating
+    confusion by transgressing their limits and invading the realm of
+    faith" (Vat. sess. III, ch. 4. Cf. also the letter of _Pius IX_.,
+    "Gravissimas," of Dec. 11, 1862, to the Archbishop of Munich,
+    Denz. n. 1666, _seq._)
+
+
+These few remarks show the lack of intelligence in the charge that
+"Catholic philosophy starts from dogmas and revelation," or that the
+Church would dictate to scientists everything they should teach; that,
+according to its principles it could claim the right "to impose upon a
+physicist of _Zeppelin's_ era the task of proving the Ascension of Christ
+or the Assumption of Mary by aerostatic rules." This is simply gross
+ignorance or misrepresentation.
+
+
+
+3. Restraint Only in the Province of Revelation.
+
+
+In what matters may faith and the Church be a guide to research in this
+negative sense? In all fields, or only some? Evidently only in their own
+sphere. But to the sphere of faith belongs only what is contained in
+divine revelation, viz., the truths of _religion and morality_, as laid
+down in Scripture and tradition, the truths of God and His work of
+salvation, of man and his way to his eternal destiny, of the means of
+grace, and of the Church. Whatever lies outside of that sphere does not
+belong to the province of faith. This is true also of the teaching
+authority of the Church. The purpose of the Church is to guard faithfully
+the treasure of divine revelation and to transmit it in an authoritative
+manner to mankind: hence her authority in teaching is confined to what is
+contained in revelation, and what is necessary for an efficient custody
+and transmission of it to mankind. Hence she may declare certain truths as
+revealed, she may reject opposing errors, she may condemn books offensive
+to faith, she may approve or reject systems of ethics. But she cannot set
+up wholly new religious truths or revelations. _Depositum custodi_--this is
+the purpose of the Church. Still less are matters of an entirely profane
+nature subject to the teaching authority of the Church. Profane sciences
+can therefore receive direction from faith only in those matters which at
+the same time belong to the province of faith.
+
+What follows from this? It follows that _almost all the profane sciences
+are incapable of being instructed or restricted by faith_, because their
+province lies outside that of faith, and does not come in touch with it:
+they are left to themselves to correct their errors. When the astronomer
+in his observatory watches the movements of the planets, and bases thereon
+his mathematical calculations, when the physicist or chemist in his
+laboratory observes the laws of nature or makes new discoveries, when the
+pathologist studies the symptoms of diseases in organisms, no warning
+voice interrupts their work of study. Of course when they deny the
+creation, the possibility of miracles, then they conflict with faith; but
+then they have ceased to be naturalists, they have become philosophers.
+When the botanist or zooelogist in his laboratory is studying plants and
+animals and collecting his specimens, when the palaeontologist is
+excavating and examining his fossils, they enjoy perfect freedom: all this
+has nothing directly to do with faith. And there is no warning sign set up
+for the geographer or geologist when settling the orographical or
+hydrographical conditions of countries or measuring geological strata; no
+danger signal disturbs the linguist in establishing the grammar of unknown
+languages, nor the archaeologist or the historian, when they discover new
+documents or decipher inscriptions. Nor does anybody interrupt the
+mathematician in his calculations.
+
+What unnecessary worry, then, for the representatives of mathematics,
+geology, palaeontology, and chemistry to write burning protests against the
+fetters of dogma in the interest of their scientific activity! And it is
+superfluous worry for professors of the technical arts to get excited by
+imagining that electricity and steam must be treated according to
+ecclesiastical precepts. Nor is there need of emphasizing the statement
+that there cannot be a Catholic chemistry, geography, or mathematics--it is
+self-evident.
+
+Hence almost the entire province of the profane sciences, which are the
+pride of our age and occupy the foremost position in our universities,
+with their laboratories, institutes and observatories and meteorological
+stations, are free and perfectly undisturbed by faith. If accordingly any
+one should be of the opinion that the Christian-minded scientist were
+hindered in his scientific research, he would have to consider him an
+unhampered investigator at least in this vast field.
+
+Most in touch with faith comes _philosophy_. Not in the vast field of
+logic, of empirical psychology, in questions concerning the essence of
+bodies and their forces, in matters of mere history of philosophy; but in
+questions of views of the world and life, in metaphysics and ethics, it
+does. These, the highest questions, bearing on the direction and pursuit
+of human life, matters that most occupy the human mind, are at the same
+time subjects of revelation; God Himself has deigned to teach the truth in
+these matters, to make them safe for all time against the error of the
+mind of man. Here philosophers encounter danger-signals. They hear, what
+their reason even tells them, that it is erroneous to think there is no
+world of spirits, no God above nature, no immortality, no life hereafter,
+no providence. Nor could one say that philosophy is the loser by being
+kept from error which endangers human life. Nowhere are errors so apt to
+occur as in questions which are outside the sphere of immediate
+experience; nowhere are self-deceptions more common than there, where
+disposition and character continually influence the mind.
+
+
+    A modern representative of philosophy, _E. Adickes_, writes as
+    follows: "In the course of this history (of metaphysics) there
+    have been given long since all the principal answers that are at
+    all possible to all metaphysical questions. The building up of
+    metaphysical systems can and will proceed, nevertheless, and their
+    multiplicity will remain.... Of course, progress will not be
+    gained thereby: results will not gain in certainty, contradictions
+    and mysteries do not diminish."
+
+    "If the greatest of the ancient Greek natural scientists,
+    physicians, and geographers should rise again they would be amazed
+    at the progress made in their sciences; like beginners they would
+    sit at the feet of teachers of our day, they would lack the most
+    elementary ideas; they would first have to learn what every
+    grammar-school boy knows, and much of what they once considered
+    achievements would be disclosed to them as deception or mere
+    hypothesis. On the other hand a _Plato_, an _Aristotle_, a _Zeno_
+    or _Epicurus_, might readily take part in our discussions about
+    God and the soul, about virtue and immortality. And they could
+    safely use their old weapons, the keenness of which has suffered
+    but little from the rust of time and the attacks of opponents.
+    They would be astonished at the little progress made, so that now,
+    after two thousand years, the same answers are given to the same
+    questions." (Charakter und Weltanschauung, 1905, p. 24).
+
+    A science which must make such a confession has no reason to
+    reject with haughty self-confidence the intimations of a divine
+    revelation.
+
+
+The _science of history_ again has not the duty of praising everything
+that has happened within the Catholic Church or else to repress it; no,
+only the truth is desired. But it must not start out with the assumption
+that God's influence in the world, a divine revelation, miracles, and a
+supernatural guidance of the Church, are impossible; nor must it attempt
+to construe history according to that assumption. Hence it must not
+undertake to explain the religion of the Jewish nation, or the origin of
+Christianity, by unconditionally ignoring everything supernatural, and
+attempting to eliminate it by prejudiced research and by means of natural
+factors, whether they be called Babylonic myths or Greek philosophy or
+anything else; it must not impugn the credibility of the Gospel, claiming
+that reports of miracles must be false; it must not write the history of
+the Church and deliberately ignore its supernatural character, as if it
+were the violent struggle of a federation of priests for universal rule.
+Assured results undoubtedly are arrived at in history less frequently than
+in other sciences; it offers full play to suppositions, hypotheses,
+constructive fancy, the influence of ideas inculcated by education and
+personal views of the world, especially when summing up facts. Hence here
+more than anywhere else must moral character and unselfish love of the
+truth stand higher than the desire for freedom.
+
+The _history of religion_ and _anthropology_ must be forbidden to assume
+that the human mind is but a product of animal evolution, that therefore
+religion and morality, family and state life, reason and language, and the
+entire intellectual and social life have necessarily evolved from the
+first stages of animal life. If we add that _jurisprudence_ in its highest
+principles comes in touch with faith, and that it also must not dispute
+the divine right of the Church, we have mentioned the most important
+sciences and instances in which the investigator must take faith into
+consideration.
+
+We now understand in what sense we may rightly speak of a "_Christian
+philosophy and science_" or of a "_Catholic science of history_." Surely
+not in this sense that philosophy and history have to draw their results
+from Holy Scripture or from the dogmatical decisions of the Church; nor in
+the sense that they have to make positive defence for everything that the
+Church finds it necessary to prescribe. The sense is merely this: they
+guide themselves by faith, as we said above, by refraining from
+propositions and presumptions proved by faith to be false. In a large
+measure this is also the meaning of the often-misrepresented term,
+_Catholic University_. In the reverse sense we may speak of a liberal
+science. It is that science which in the field of philosophy and religion
+guides itself by the principles of liberalism and the principle of liberal
+freedom and the rejection of faith. But to speak of a Catholic,
+Protestant, Liberal chemistry or mathematics, has no sense at all, because
+these disciplines, like most other profane sciences, have no direct
+connection with Catholicism, Protestantism, or Liberalism.
+
+
+    That we have stated correctly the _attitude of the Catholic
+    Church_ is evidenced by more than one official document. In the
+    decree of the Holy Office of July 3, 1907, the so-called Syllabus
+    of _Pius X._, the following (5.) proposition is condemned:
+    "Inasmuch as the treasure of faith contains only revealed truths,
+    it does not behoove the Church under any consideration to pass
+    judgment on the assertions made by human sciences." Similarly was
+    the proposition (14), likewise condemned in the Syllabus of _Pius
+    IX._: "Philosophy must be pursued without any regard to
+    supernatural revelation."
+
+    These condemnations stirred up anger: "Now," it was said, "the
+    Church wants to subject the whole of human knowledge to her
+    judgment: this is unbearable insolence." But what follows from
+    these condemnations? The opposite truth asserted in them is this:
+    the Church in one respect must pass judgment on the assertions
+    made by human science, namely, in so far as they come in conflict
+    with the doctrines of faith. The only freedom rejected by the
+    Council is the freedom to contradict revealed truth: it must not
+    be held "that human science may be pursued with freedom, that its
+    assertions can be considered true and must not be rejected by the
+    Church even if they contradict a revealed doctrine." (sess. III,
+    ch. 4, can. 2). The Church does not want to judge on matters of
+    profane science; but she claims the right, due to her as guardian
+    appointed for the preservation of the pure faith, to raise her
+    warning voice when, for instance, natural science transgresses its
+    limits and trespasses on the province of religion by denying the
+    creation of the world. It is but self-defence against an attack
+    upon her inviolable domain. But she does not claim the authority
+    to sit in judgment upon the results of astro-physics, upon the
+    atom-hypothesis, or its opposite; or on the acceptance of a theory
+    about ions or earthquakes.
+
+
+Another question may be touched upon: Is the _Catholic historian_ free to
+proceed steadily in the search after historic truth, even where he
+discovers facts which do not reflect honour on his Church? And where it is
+a question of uncertain, private revelation, of doubtfulness of relics and
+other sacred objects exposed for public worship, may he proceed
+undisturbed with his critical research, or is he restrained by
+ecclesiastical authority?
+
+Should the Catholic meet with dark passages in the history of his Church,
+then every well-meaning observer will demand that he display in the
+treatment of such matters a pious forbearance for his Church. His respect
+for her will dictate this. Unsparing criticism and hunting for blemishes
+and shadows must be excluded. But he cannot on this account be bound to
+pass by the unpleasant facts he may meet in his researches, or to cloak or
+deny them against his better knowledge. He knows that the divinity of his
+Church shows itself to best advantage just because, notwithstanding many
+weaknesses and faults, past and present, she passes unvanquished and
+imperishable through all storms,--a token of the supernatural origin of her
+strength and power of endurance.
+
+It was this very thought that moved _Leo XIII._ to open the Vatican
+Archives for freest research to friend and enemy,--the clearest proof that
+could possibly be given that the Church does not fear historical truth. In
+his letter of admonition, of August 18, 1883, urging the fostering of
+historiography, the same Pope gives the following rules for the Catholic
+scientist: "The first law of history is that it must not say anything
+false; the second, that it must not be afraid of saying the truth, lest a
+suspicion of partiality and unfairness arise." An excellent example of the
+application of these rules is found in _L. v. Pastor's_ "History of the
+Popes," especially in what he says about _Alexander VI._ and _Leo X._
+
+In his historical investigation of private revelations, such as those of
+_St. Gertrude_, _St. Mechtild_, _Bl. Juliana of Liege_, or of relics and
+objects of veneration, the historian is likewise not restricted by
+Church-direction. Having merely the task of preserving the treasure of the
+faith received from Christ and the Apostles, the Church in her function as
+Teacher never vouches for the divine origin of new, private revelations,
+nor for the accuracy of pious traditions of another kind. True, she
+decides authoritatively whether private revelations contain anything
+against faith and morals, but she decides nothing more. If she accepts
+such revelations or traditions as genuine, she claims for the facts in
+question only that human faith which corresponds to their historical
+proof.
+
+
+    This is clearly stated by the recent encyclical _Pascendi_: "In
+    judging of pious traditions, the following must be kept in mind:
+    the Church employs such prudence in treating of these matters that
+    she does not allow such traditions to be written about except with
+    great precaution and only after making the declarations required
+    by _Urban VIII._; and even then, after this has been properly
+    done, the Church by no means asserts the truth of the private
+    revelation or of the tradition, but merely permits them to be
+    believed, provided there be sufficient human reasons. It was in
+    this sense that the Sacred Congregation of Rites declared
+    thirty-one years ago: 'These apparitions are neither approved nor
+    condemned by the Holy See; it merely permits them to be believed
+    in a natural way, provided the tradition on which they rest be
+    corroborated by credible testimonies and documents.' Whoever
+    follows this maxim is safe. The veneration of such things is
+    always conditional, it is only relative, and on the condition that
+    the tradition be true. In so far only is the veneration absolute
+    as it relates to the Saint to whom the veneration is paid. The
+    same applies to the veneration of relics." (_Benedict XIV._ says
+    of private revelations: "Praedictis revelationibus etsi
+    _approbatis_, non debere nec posse a nobis adhiberi assensum fidei
+    catholicae, sed tantum fidei humanae juxta regulas prudentiae,
+    juxta quas praedictae revelationes sunt probabiles et pie
+    credibiles." De Serv. Dei beatificatione, III, c. ult. n. 15).
+
+    Hence the historian is free to investigate such traditions
+    critically, provided, of course, that he does not violate the
+    reverence due to sacred things.
+
+
+
+4. Infallible and Non-Infallible Teachings.
+
+
+Now to consider a last point. Does it not rest entirely with the pleasure
+of ecclesiastical authority, as would seem from what has been said above,
+to suppress at any time the results, or at least the hypotheses, of
+scientific research by pointing to putative truths of faith presumed to be
+in opposition? Then, of course, the scientist would be at the mercy of a
+zealous ecclesiastical authority. Or will it perhaps be said that this
+authority is infallible in its every decision? Think of _Galileo_, of the
+interdict against the Copernican view of the world, and you will be able
+fully to appreciate the danger alluded to!
+
+We shall later on return to the famous case of _Galileo_. For the present
+we only call attention to a distinction which must not be overlooked, the
+distinction between infallible teachings and those that are not
+infallible.(3)
+
+According to Catholic teaching, the universal teaching body of the Church,
+when declaring unanimously to be an object of faith something relating to
+faith and morals, is endowed with _infallibility_, and also when in its
+daily practice of the faith it unanimously professes a doctrine to be a
+truth of faith. This infallibility is also possessed by the Pope alone
+when, acting in his capacity as Supreme Teacher of the Church in matters
+of faith and morals, he intends to give a permanent decision for the whole
+Church (ex cathedra).
+
+Besides these infallible teachings there are also _non-infallible_
+teachings, and they are the more frequent. Such are, first of all, the
+ordinary doctrinal utterances of the Pope himself in his regular
+supervision of the teaching of doctrine: these instructions and
+declarations are of a lower kind than those peremptory ones that are
+pronounced ex cathedra: he is infallible only in the utterance of these
+ultimate, supreme decisions, the chief bulwark, as it were, erected
+against the floods of error. Decisions ex cathedra are very rare.
+Encyclical letters, too, are, as a rule, not infallible. It is
+self-evident that the theological opinions and statements of the Pope as a
+private person, not as Supreme Head of the Church, do not belong here at
+all. They have no official character and are in no way binding.
+
+Among decisions that are not infallible are further included, in various
+degrees, the doctrinal utterances of Bishops, of particular synods, and
+especially those of the Roman Congregations. The latter are bodies of
+Cardinals, delegated by the Head of the Church, as highest Papal boards,
+to co-operate with him in the various offices of administration. Of these,
+the Congregation of the Holy Office and that of the Index may also render
+decisions on doctrinal questions. Although the Congregations act by virtue
+of their delegation from the Pope, and publish their decrees with his
+consent, the decisions are not decisions of the Pope himself, but remain
+decisions of the Cardinals. Much less can the infallibility of the Pope
+pass over to them: it is his personal prerogative, the aid of the Holy
+Ghost is promised to him, and protects his judgments under certain
+conditions against error.
+
+But the Catholic owes submission also to the non-infallible teachings; and
+not only an outer submission, a reverent silence, that offends not either
+verbally or in writing against the decision rendered, but he owes also his
+inner assent. But it cannot be that unconditional inner assent which he
+owes to the infallible decision, for this he holds to be irrevocably
+certain; nor is his assent to non-infallible decisions a real act of
+faith. He is not given any unconditional guarantee of the truth. An error
+is, of course, most unlikely, but not absolutely impossible. Hence the
+faithful Catholic should always be ready to accept such decisions in as
+far as they are warranted by recognized truth. This applies to all kinds
+of doctrinal teaching, but of course in different ways, corresponding to
+the degree of authority,--for instance, Papal decisions are of higher
+authority than those of the Congregations,--yet it applies also to the
+doctrinal decisions of the Congregations, because they are the ordinary
+teaching organs of the Church.
+
+
+    When the Congregation of the Index, 1857, had forbidden the works
+    of _Guenther_ and many thought they could evade the decision,
+    _Pius IX._ wrote, June 15, to the Archbishop of Cologne: "The
+    decree is so far-reaching that nobody may think himself free not
+    to hold what we have confirmed." Similar was what the Pope had
+    written to the Archbishop of Mecheln after the condemnation of the
+    ontological errors of _Ubagh_. The Motu proprio of _Pius X._ of
+    November 8, 1907, speaks similarly of the obligation of submission
+    to the decisions of the Papal Biblical Commission relating to
+    doctrines, and to the decrees of Congregations when approved by
+    the Pope. (Cf. also the Syllabus of Pius IX., sent. 22.)
+
+    Theologians agree that this requisite internal assent is not the
+    same as irrevocable assent. This was also declared by _Pius IX._
+    in his letter to the Archbishop of Munich-Freising, saying that
+    this inner submission is by no means faith; and no theologian will
+    ascribe infallibility to a mere congregational decree. (See on
+    this point: _e.g._ _Grisar_, Galileistudien, 1882, 171 _seq._ Cr.
+    _Pesch_, Theol. Zeitfragen, Erste Folge, 1900, III. _Egger_,
+    Streiflichter ueber die freiere Bibelforschung, 1889.)
+
+    It would be erroneous to think that only in recent times, after
+    the embarrassment caused by the regrettable _Galileo_ decision the
+    subtle distinction had been invented that congregational decisions
+    are not binding on Catholics with absolute force. This was taught
+    by theologians long before the _Galileo_ case caused any
+    excitement. In this sense the celebrated writer on Moral Theology,
+    _Lacroix_, said: "The declarations of none of these Congregations
+    are infallible.... No infallibility is promised to the
+    Congregation in so far as it is viewed as separate from the Pope"
+    (Theologia Moralis, 1729, I, n. 215). _Raccioli_, soon after the
+    _Galileo_ trial, wrote: "The Holy Congregation of Cardinals as
+    separate from the Pope cannot give to any proposition the proper
+    authority of faith." And he adds: "There being extant no decision
+    of the Pope, or of a Council directed and confirmed by him, the
+    proposition of the sun moving and the earth standing still cannot
+    on the strength of a congregational decree be considered a truth
+    that must be believed" (Almagestum novum, 1651, I, 52).
+
+
+The obligation to give interior assent also to an authority not
+infallible, cannot seem strange if this authority offers a guarantee for
+the truth commensurate to the assent demanded. We certainly ask of a child
+to receive the instruction from his parent and teacher with internal
+assent, so far as the latter does not run counter to its instinct for the
+truth, else the education of the child and the needful influence over its
+intellectual life would be impossible. Upon the Church has been bestowed
+by her divine Founder the task of guiding the faithful authoritatively in
+the educational matters committed to the Church, and not only in their
+youth but throughout their lives. This guidance in religion and morality
+would be impossible if the faithful could constantly deny their internal
+assent to the instruction of the Church, which is given generally in a
+form that is not infallible. The full power of the Church to teach with
+authority implies a corresponding duty of the faithful to assent to her
+teachings as far as this is possible. Does not the scientific specialist
+think himself obliged to accept a proposition on the strength of a certain
+authority, even if the latter's infallibility is not established? He reads
+in his scientific periodical and finds in it the report of special
+researches made by a colleague. He cannot examine them over again, yet he
+accepts them because of the reliability of his colleague, in which he sees
+the guarantee of truth. Likewise, only more so, does the Catholic owe it
+to his sense of truth to impose upon himself an assent even where the
+representatives of the teaching authority of the Church are not endowed in
+their decision with the gift of infallibility. For he knows that even in
+such teachings the Church is commonly under the guidance of the Holy
+Ghost, who will seldom tolerate error. He is promised to the teaching
+Church for the safe guidance of the faithful; these declarations are,
+however, the ordinary doctrinal utterances of that ecclesiastical office.
+And the Holy Ghost cannot permit that the teaching authority should by a
+wrong decision forfeit the confidence it enjoys.
+
+Moreover, this authority ranks very high even when looked at from a purely
+human standpoint. Those who are invested with it are mostly men of great
+learning, competent to give such doctrinal decisions by virtue of their
+experience and position, and learned advisers are at their side. They are
+guided by the tradition and wisdom of a universal Church, which measures
+its history by thousands of years: the decisions, too, are for the most
+part but the application or repetition of previous doctrinal utterances.
+Besides, there is the hesitating caution which advances to a decision only
+after long deliberations, and in undemonstrated matters usually refrains
+from decision; a caution which has increased still more in recent times,
+since so many subtle questions have arisen on the boundaries of science
+and faith. It is also known that many inquisitive eyes are constantly
+turned on Rome, and a single wrong decision might entail most disagreeable
+consequences for friend and foe. The pressure must be very great before a
+much-disputed question is taken up at all.
+
+Of course it is by no means impossible that difficulties may pile up in
+such a way that an error may really be made. History knows of such a case.
+But the very fact that the one case of _Galileo_ is always quoted, and,
+therefore, that in the long history of the Congregations this is
+considered to be almost the only case of importance, is a proof how
+carefully the Congregations proceed, and that supernatural aid is granted
+them. An institution which in the course of its long existence had to
+reply to innumerable questions and against which only one wrong decision
+of importance can be pointed out, must necessarily be an exemplary
+institution. An institution so free from human error must surely be guided
+by the Holy Ghost. Compare with this the many cases in which science has
+had to correct itself, had to abandon its long-championed propositions as
+untenable.
+
+Thus, in a given case, the decision is not difficult for the Catholic. On
+one side stand the representatives of a science which has erred, very
+often, incomparably more frequently than the ecclesiastical teaching
+authority, and which lacks the special aid of God. On the other side is
+the ecclesiastical authority, which has almost never erred, and which
+enjoys special divine aid; moreover, it examines into its questions with
+greater caution and care, because it has more to lose. In addition it is
+almost invariably able to point to a large number, and frequently the
+majority, of savants who indorse its decisions, because these mostly
+concern disputed questions not yet scientifically determined. Hence the
+Catholic will find no difficulty in presuming that the decision is in
+accord with the truth; the more so because, as a rule, he himself is
+unable to examine scientifically both sides of the question.
+
+Should any one, nevertheless, be clearly convinced, by substantial and
+valid reasons, that there has been prejudgment, then he would not be any
+longer obliged to give it his interior assent: truth before all else. It
+would be easy, too, by presenting reliable information to an authoritative
+quarter, to secure the triumph of the truth. However, in this case a man
+must be ever on his guard against the tendency to overrate his own
+arguments. In excitement he easily thinks himself to be certainly in the
+right, but when considering the matter quietly before God and his
+conscience, he will rarely come to the conclusion that it would be wise to
+set his judgment above the decision. In the case of _Galileo_ the decision
+of the Congregation was by no means opposed by a clear conviction of the
+truth of the opposite.
+
+
+    Take, for instance, a more recent decision of the Congregation,
+    forbidding craniotomy. It has often been denounced. The question
+    was submitted to the Congregation of the Holy Office whether it
+    were permissible to teach that craniotomy is allowable in case the
+    mother cannot give birth to the child, and that both will have to
+    die unless the child be killed and removed by a surgical
+    operation. The Congregation answered twice in the negative, in May
+    and August, 1889. Neither craniotomy, nor any operation implying
+    the direct murder of the child or mother can be taught to be
+    permissible. The reason on which the answers were based is that
+    the direct murder of an innocent person in order to save human
+    life is never allowable; and this applies to the murder of a
+    child, which has as much right to its life as any other person. In
+    the case of craniotomy we have the direct murder of the child. We,
+    too, shall have to admit, if we judge according to the objective
+    morality of the action, that the Congregation is in the right;
+    though it may seem hard to let both mother and child die rather
+    than take a life directly, we shall have to admit that it is more
+    in accord with the sanctity of the moral law than the opposite,
+    though the latter may seem preferable to medical practice. Viewed
+    in the interest of truth and the purity of the moral law, it is
+    gratifying to know that there is a court courageous enough to
+    uphold this law always and everywhere, even when it becomes hard.
+
+
+So much about assenting to doctrinal decisions that are not infallible.
+
+In regard to _infallible_ decisions, the Catholic knows that there are
+certain truths which no result of science can contradict. To these
+decisions he owes unconditional submission, and he gives it with
+conviction: he knows the promise, "I am with you always, even unto the
+consummation of the world." New decisions of this kind are very rare. When
+the dogma of the Infallibility of the Pope was proclaimed in 1870, the
+fear was frequently expressed that the Head of the Roman Church would
+hasten to make the fullest use of this prerogative, by erecting
+theological barriers at all nooks and corners in the realm of thought. The
+fear did not come true; it was unfounded.
+
+
+    A Protestant scientist wrote recently: "Those who thought
+    _Doellinger's_ prediction of a prolific crop of dogmas would come
+    true were disappointed. There has been no new dogma pronounced
+    since 1870, although there were many pious opinions that certain
+    circles would have been only too glad to see confirmed. On looking
+    calmly at the dogma of infallibility it is seen that it was, after
+    all, not so bad as had been feared during the first excitement"
+    (_K. Holl_, Modernismus, 1908, p. 9, Religionsgesch. Volksbuecher,
+    IV, 7, Heft).
+
+
+We may get a good idea of the precaution taken prior to the proclamation
+of an infallible decision by perusing the History of the Vatican Council,
+published by _Granderath_, in three volumes. He describes the proceedings
+with conscientious objectiveness. He shows how minutely all questions had
+been previously studied, with all the available means of scientific
+investigation, and how minutely and freely they were discussed by the most
+venerable representatives of the Catholic world.
+
+Cardinal _Gibbons_, Archbishop of Baltimore, gave his impressions of the
+Vatican Council as follows:
+
+"I happened to be the youngest Bishop that attended the Council of the
+Vatican, and, while my youth and inexperience imposed on me a discreet
+silence among my elders, I do not remember to have missed a single
+session, and I was an attentive listener at all the debates.... I think I
+am not exaggerating when I say that the Council of the Vatican has been
+excelled by few, if any, deliberative assemblies, civil or ecclesiastical,
+that have ever met, whether we consider the _maturity_ of years of its
+members, their _learning_, their _experience_ and _piety_, or the
+widespread influence of the _Decrees_ that they framed for the spiritual
+and moral welfare of the Christian Republic.
+
+"The youngest Bishop in the Council was thirty-six years old. Fully
+three-fourths of the Prelates ranged between fifty-six and ninety years.
+The great majority, therefore, had grown gray in the service of their
+Divine Master. Several Fathers of the Church, bent with age, might be seen
+passing through St. Peter's Basilica to the council chamber every morning,
+leaning with one hand on their staff, the other resting on the shoulder of
+their secretary. One or two blind Bishops could be observed, guided by
+their servants, as they advanced to their posts with tottering steps,
+determined to aid the Church in their declining years by the wisdom of
+their counsel, as they had consecrated to her their vigorous manhood by
+their Apostolic labours.
+
+"But to the gravity of years the members of the Council generally united
+profound and varied learning....
+
+"They were men, too, of world-wide experience and close observation. Each
+Bishop brought with him an intimate knowledge of the history of his
+country and of the religious, moral, social, and political condition of
+the people among whom he lived. One could learn more from an hour's
+interview with this living encyclopaedia of divines, who were a world in
+miniature, than from a week's study of books.... The most ample liberty of
+discussion prevailed in the Council. This freedom the Holy Father pledged
+at the opening of the synod, and the pledge was religiously kept. I can
+safely say that neither in the British House of Commons, nor in the French
+Chambers, nor in the German Reichstag, nor in our American Congress, would
+a wider liberty of debate be tolerated than was granted in the Vatican
+Council. The presiding Cardinal exhibited a courtesy of manner and a
+forbearance even in the heat of debate that was worthy of all praise. I do
+not think that he called a speaker to order more than a dozen times during
+the eighty-nine sessions, and then only in deference to the dissenting
+murmurs or demands of some Bishops. A Prelate representing the smallest
+diocese had the same rights that were accorded to the highest dignitary in
+the Chamber. There was no limit prescribed as to the length of the
+speeches. We may judge of the wide scope of discussion from the single
+fact that the debate on the Infallibility of the Pope lasted two months,
+occupying twenty-five sessions, and was participated in by one hundred and
+twenty-five Prelates, not counting one hundred others who handed in
+written observations. No stone was left unturned, no text of Sacred
+Scripture, no passage in the writings of the Fathers, no page of
+Ecclesiastical History bearing on the subject, escaped the vigilant
+investigations of the Bishops, so that the whole truth of God might be
+brought to light....
+
+"The most important debate in the Council was that on the Infallibility of
+the Pope. It may be proper to observe here that the discussion was rather
+on the expediency or opportuneness of defining the dogma than on the
+intrinsic truth of the doctrine itself. The number of Prelates who
+questioned the claim of Papal Infallibility could be counted on the
+fingers of a single hand. Many of the speakers, indeed, impugned the
+dogma, not because they did not personally accept it, but with the view of
+pointing out the difficulties with which the teaching body of the Church
+would have to contend in vindicating it before the world. I have listened
+in the council chamber to far more subtle, more plausible, and more
+searching objections against this prerogative of the Pope than I have ever
+read or heard from the pen or tongue of the most learned and formidable
+Protestant assailant" (North American Review, April, 1894).
+
+
+
+Obedience of Faith and Freedom of Action.
+
+
+In looking back at what has been said, we see the justice of the question:
+where is here any real injury to lawful freedom in thought and scientific
+research? In most of the profane sciences the scientist receives no
+directions from the authority of faith; he is altogether free, as long as
+he keeps within his province. In some matters he is given a list of errors
+to beware of: these are in the first place the great questions concerning
+views of the world and life, of which, after all, it is very difficult to
+obtain scientific knowledge. But here he knows, through the conviction he
+has of the truth of his faith, that he is offered the truth free from
+error and prejudice.
+
+It is true, adhering to a religious authority implies restraint. But it is
+only the restraint of truth. Truth does not lose its claim upon the mind
+because it is offered to the latter by a supernatural authority; much less
+does the Creator lose the right to the tribute of homage of his rational
+creature; and this tribute is rendered by voluntary submission to the
+revealed truth. Upon the Church, however, has been laid the task of
+preserving unadulterated the legacy of her Founder from generation to
+generation. She is responsible before God and history for the faithful
+presentation of the most sacred inheritance of mankind. Therefore the
+Church must raise her voice when the puny thoughts of men, called science
+and progress, rise against the saving truth to disparage, to falsify, to
+annihilate it. _It is not science the Church opposes, but error_; not
+truth, but the emancipation of the human mind from God's authority, an
+emancipation that is trying to hide its real self under the guise of
+scientific truth.
+
+"The Church," says the Vatican Council (Sess. III, ch. 4), "having
+received with her apostolic office to teach, the obligation of preserving
+the legacy of the faith, has also the God-given right and duty to condemn
+what is falsely called science, 'lest any one be cheated by philosophy and
+vain deceit.'" That the denial of the faith is flippantly called science
+does not alter the case. What determines the attitude of the Church is not
+eagerness to rule, not a propensity to apply force to the mind, but
+loyalty to her vocation. If it is disagreeable for any superior to have to
+correct those under him, then it requires an heroic strength and courage
+to cry out time and again to the whole world and its leading minds,
+_Errastis_, you have erred! It requires heroism to reject, to oppose and
+condemn, time and again, propositions sailing under the flag of progress,
+light and enlightenment, in spite of the protest of those concerned, who
+denounce whatever opposes them as darkness and retrogression. How much
+easier it would be to fawn upon the pet ideas of the age,
+Neo-protestantism and Modernism, and thus to gain their approval, than to
+hear repeatedly the distressing words, "We will not have her to rule over
+us--_crucifige, crucifige_!"
+
+But why not let _science correct itself_? Why these violent condemnations
+and indictments? Science, by virtue of its instinct for the truth will by
+itself find the way back, when it has gone on the wrong track; only be
+patient. Science has in itself the cure for all its defects. Has it not
+already all by itself overcome numerous errors in the course of the
+centuries? Indeed, were there nothing at stake but scientific theories
+they might be readily left to themselves: the loss to mankind would not be
+great. But here there are more important issues at stake. The protection
+of the faith, of truths of the vastest importance for Christian life and
+the souls of men. And it is the duty of the Church to protect her charges
+from going astray, from dangers to salvation. How many thousands of them
+would suffer harm before it would please science to correct its heresies!
+It often takes a long time to pull down the idols placed upon pedestals,
+and then it may be only to erect another idol. How long will it take
+modern philosophy to agree that the will of man is free, that there is a
+substantial immortal soul, that a Creator of the world dwells above the
+heavens? Is the Church to wait till the men of science make up their minds
+to desist from denying the existence of a personal God, and to bow before
+the Creator of heaven and earth? Should she meanwhile look on calmly how
+such ruinous doctrines are pervading and penetrating society deeper and
+deeper? Souls cannot wait thus to suffer shipwreck. Finally, the duty to
+believe remains the same for all, for the scientist, too--he is not free to
+delay his assent until he has exhausted all his antagonistic scientific
+experiments.
+
+To be sure, the scientist is restricted in so far as he is not allowed to
+pursue any and every hypothesis, regardless of the immutable truth; he may
+no longer follow every scientific fashion. But is this a real detriment to
+the human intellect and science? Has not every science to bear _restraint
+from other sciences_ at all times? The adherent of _Darwin's_ theory of
+natural selection needs a billion years for his slow evolution; but the
+geologist tells him that neither the formation of the earth's surface nor
+the strata or sub-strata have taken so long in formation--he corrects him.
+When the philosopher, drawing the logical deductions from his
+materialistic views of the world, assumes that the first living being
+sprang from lifeless matter, the naturalist informs him that this is
+contradicted by facts--there never has been a case of spontaneous
+generation. The naturalist is corrected by the better experiment of men of
+his profession, the scientific author is corrected by his critic. Hence if
+a man submits to the guidance of other men of his profession, if one
+science accepts direction from another science, without any one seeing any
+injury to freedom therein, why, then, should it be mental oppression for
+God's infallible wisdom to call out through His Church to the fallible
+human mind: this is error, I declare it so? When the guide-post points out
+to the traveller that he is on the wrong way, will the wanderer
+indignantly resent the correction as an interference with his freedom of
+action? Is the railing along the steep precipice, to guard against falling
+down, an interference with liberty? Is the lighthouse, warning the sailor
+of cliffs and shoals, any interference with his freedom?
+
+Generally those who oppose the Christian and Catholic duty to believe use
+the following argument: Where there is restraint and dependence there is
+no freedom; the Christian, and especially the Catholic, is restrained and
+dependent; hence he is not free: consequently he has no true science,
+because there can be no true science without freedom. In the same way it
+may be argued: The civilized nation is restrained in various ways by the
+civil order, therefore it is not free. The careful writer of scientific
+works is tied down on all sides by the rules of logic, by the dictates of
+good style, by scientific usages: hence he is not free.
+
+Let us not lose sight of the question. It cannot be denied that the man
+who does not bother about faith has a greater outer freedom than the man
+who does. We speak purposely of outer freedom. It is quite another
+question, where real internal freedom exists, _i.e._, freedom from the
+fetters of one's own inclinations and prejudices,--in the religiously
+disciplined mind, or in the other. Here we speak of inner freedom.
+Obviously it is greater in the former. The deer in the forest is freer in
+his movements than the cautious mountain-climber, who keeps to marked
+roads and paths, so as to journey safely, yet the latter is not without
+freedom. Nor will any one deny that the Australian bushman enjoys a
+greater outer freedom than the civilized white, restrained by laws, by
+rules and regulations, by standards of decency. And the busy writer of
+many things and everything, who in his writing never pays any attention to
+logic, to scientific form, to style and tact, has more freedom than one
+who strictly conforms to all these.
+
+_Every civilization, culture, and education implies restriction of
+freedom_, and the more the rejection of dependence and laws increases the
+nearer we approach the state of uncultured and barbarous nations. The same
+applies to intellectual culture. The higher it is, the more learning and
+mental culture a man has, the greater the number of truths, principles,
+and intellectual standards he carries within him. By these he is bound if
+he wants to advance into the higher spheres of intellectuality. And the
+more the intellect rejects laws and standards the more unregulated and
+dull its intellectual life will become. The more one knows the more
+strictly is he bound to truth in every respect; the less one knows the
+freer he is to commit errors. This is no advantage, it is the privilege of
+the ignorant and untrained mind. The believer is bound by religious truth
+in the same way as one who knows the truth is bound by it, while one who
+is ignorant of it is not.
+
+It is certainly not impossible for the obedience of faith to create
+_intellectual conflict_. There may be cases when scientific views look
+probable to the scientist, while they contradict a doctrine of faith or an
+ecclesiastical decision. The roads may even cross more radically. It may
+happen that his views and books are condemned, forbidden by the Church.
+
+If the conflicting doctrine should be an _infallible_ one, the decision of
+the believing scientist is soon reached. He knows now what to think of his
+hypothesis, that it is not true progress but aberration, and consistency
+with his own conviction moves him to desist. Thus the philosophical errors
+of modern times are opposed almost throughout to infallible dogmas, for
+the most part fundamental doctrines of the Christian religion. This is
+also the legal right under which revelation and the Church approach the
+scientist with the demand not to permit his views to go contrary to faith,
+because there can never be a contradiction between faith and reason.
+"There can never be a contradiction between faith and reason," the Vatican
+Council teaches; "the apparent conflict is due either to the doctrine not
+being understood and interpreted in the sense of the Church, or to
+erroneous opinions that are mistaken for conclusions of reason" (Conc.
+Vat. sess. III, cp. 4). If the Catholic finds his position opposed to
+_non-infallible_ decisions, then he will re-examine his views in unselfish
+impartiality before God. If he must calmly tell himself that his arguments
+are not so weighty as to be able to stand up before so high an authority,
+guided by the Holy Ghost, then he will forego the gratification of holding
+fast to his own opinions, and will remind himself that true wisdom knows
+the fallibility of the human mind, and is ever ready to take advice from a
+divinely guided authority. Perhaps he will recall the words of the great
+_St. Augustine_: "Better bow before an incomprehensible but saving symbol
+than entangle one's neck in the meshes of error" (De doctr. Christ. III,
+13). This Christian self-denial surpasses in beauty even science itself,
+and sheds upon it a greater splendour.
+
+
+    The great _Fenelon_, proceeding to his pulpit in the cathedral of
+    Cambrai, on Annunciation day in 1699, was handed by his brother
+    the Roman brief condemning twenty-three propositions of
+    _Fenelon's_ "Maximes des Saints." The Bishop took the writing,
+    calmly ascended the pulpit and announced it forthwith, and
+    preached a sermon on the submission due to ecclesiastical
+    superiors, at which the whole congregation was greatly moved. A
+    few days later he announced in an episcopal letter to his diocese
+    his submission, "simple, absolute, and without a shadow of
+    reservation." By this deed, an heroic act of obedience, _Fenelon_
+    is placed higher in history than by his brilliant works, than by
+    the honour of having been the illustrious tutor of the Dauphin of
+    France.
+
+    _Antonio Rosmini-Serbati_ in August, 1849, received official
+    notice of the condemnation of two of his works by the Congregation
+    of the Index. He immediately sent in his submission: "With the
+    sentiments of a true and obedient son of the Apostolic See, that I
+    have always been by the grace of God and wish ever to be, and have
+    ever acknowledged myself, I now declare clearly and sincerely,
+    without reservation, my submission, in the most complete manner,
+    to the condemnation of my writings." Both the condemnation and the
+    submission were soon made the target of attack by the Liberal
+    press. _Rosmini_ replied in an admirable open letter: "To my great
+    sorrow I have seen several articles in different newspapers which
+    dare criticize the Holy Congregation of the Index for condemning
+    my writings. Inasmuch as I have submitted to the decree of the
+    said Congregation with all sincerity, and with full interior and
+    exterior obedience as becomes a true son of the Church, every one
+    will easily understand how much I regret these articles and
+    disapprove of them. Yet I deem it not superfluous to declare
+    expressly that I reject those articles entirely and that I do not
+    accept the praise for me which they offer. With regard to other
+    newspaper writers, who are censuring me and even insulting me for
+    having done what it was my duty to do, in submitting to the
+    condemnation, as though I had committed a crime, I can only say
+    that I greatly pity them, and that they would fill me with
+    contempt could I deem it permissible to despise any one" (apud _J.
+    Hilgers_, Der Index der verbotenen Buecher, 1904, 413).
+
+    A _Fenelon_ or a _Rosmini_, bowing with the humility of the
+    Christian savant to the judgment of their Church, have thereby
+    forfeited nothing of their intellectual fame in the eyes of
+    earnest critics, but, on the contrary, have greatly increased the
+    respect for their noble character.
+
+
+Even should the future prove as scientifically correct that which the
+believing scientist does not as yet clearly see, that he was
+scientifically in the right, no considerable damage would result to
+science. Providence, which guides human affairs, will protect science for
+its noble modesty in submitting meanwhile to an authority appointed by
+God. As a matter of fact, science cannot be shown ever to have suffered
+any real loss by such submission, not even in the _Galileo_ case, as we
+shall see further on. On the other hand, countless are the errors and
+injuries which have befallen human thought and belief, and which the
+Church has warded off from those who yielded to her guidance. Of course
+the submission may become difficult if a man clings to his views, or has
+already publicly proclaimed them. Then, indeed, a bitter struggle may
+ensue. A number of scientists have failed to stand the test and have left
+to posterity the ill-fated name of apostates. The Church regrets such
+cases; but the deposit of faith is too precious to be endangered for the
+sake of any individual.
+
+For this reason the Church is and must be _conservative_; for this reason
+she may have to warn against the dissemination of propositions which may
+not in themselves be false, but fraught with danger for the time being.
+She cannot take part in any hasty effort to make experiments, risking
+everything inherited in order to try something new.
+
+
+    During the nineteenth century the United States was repeatedly the
+    scene of communistic experiments. Daring adventurers assembled
+    people and founded settlements on communistic principles, private
+    property being abolished. In 1824 _Robert Owen_ founded a colony
+    in Indiana, which soon grew to nine hundred members, living in the
+    fashion of atheistic communism. In 1825 the colony adopted its
+    first constitution, which within the following year suffered six
+    complete revisions. In June of the second year the last members of
+    the colony ate their farewell dinner together. The experiment had
+    come to a speedy termination. A Frenchman, _Etienne Cabet_,
+    founded, in 1848, a new colony in Texas, called Icaria. Soon it
+    numbered 500 members. Each family had its small homestead.
+    Children were educated by the community. Amusement was provided
+    for by a band and a theatre; a library supplied more intellectual
+    wants. But soon it all fell into decay. _Cabet_ departed and died.
+    In 1895 the newspapers reported the dissolution of the last
+    remnant of the colony. Such is the fate of experiments.
+
+    Daring adventurers may undertake them. The lecturer at college,
+    too, will be readily pardoned for his eagerness to take up the
+    cudgel in defence of what is new in his profane science: he may
+    easily correct himself. But the Teacher of the Centuries and of
+    the Nations, in the sphere of religion and morals, has not the
+    right to experiment. Here, where mistakes may entail the direst
+    consequences, the rule must be: slowly onward, to keep the whole
+    from ruin. Cardinal _Benedict Gaetani_, later Pope _Boniface
+    VIII._, once praised Rome for having _pedes non plumeos sed
+    plumbeos_--not winged feet, but leaden heels.
+
+
+Sentiments of the kind just set forth are of course possible only in
+conjunction with the belief in a revelation and in the supernatural
+character of the Church, where the interests of faith come first, and must
+be unconditionally preserved. He who lacks this conviction, he to whom the
+Church is but a human institution, founded in the course of time, tending
+perhaps to oppose truth and science for fear they might endanger the
+submission of minds--to such a one the Catholic's confident devotion to his
+Church, and consciousness of unimpaired freedom at the same time, will be
+unintelligible; and the inflexibility of the Church in defending the faith
+will pass his comprehension. And woe to the Church when her position
+toward science is being tried before this court: only harsh denunciations
+are to be expected where the judge does not understand the matter he
+undertakes to decide.
+
+Nor do we attempt to bridge the chasm that separates the two views of the
+world which we here again encounter, the one, which rejects the
+supernatural world, the other, the view of the believing Christian. We
+have but endeavoured to show that _faith does not restrain the mental
+freedom of one who is convinced of the truth of his faith_. Submission to
+the authority of faith is the consequence of his conviction. This is the
+question to be decided: Either there is a revelation and a Church founded
+by God, or there is not. If such there be, or if it is only possible, then
+modern freedom of thought, with its demand of exemption from all
+authority, is against reason and morality. If there is not, then this
+should be proved. It can be done consistently only by acknowledging
+atheism. For if there is a personal God, then He can give a revelation and
+found a Church, and demand submission from all. Since the days of _Celsus_
+to this day the attempt to demonstrate that the convictions of a faithful
+Christian are unjustifiable has proved futile.
+
+
+
+Obedience of Faith and Injury to Science.
+
+
+While all this is true, yet one may not share this conviction, nor rise to
+the certainty that there is a supernatural world whence the Son of God
+descended to teach man and to found an infallible Church. Still, to be
+fair, he must admit that no real danger to freedom of research and
+progress of science results from submission to faith, as shown above.
+
+In the first place it must be admitted that the assertion is still
+unproved, that a positive result of research has ever come in hopeless
+conflict with a dogma of faith; hence that science has been prevented from
+accepting this result. No such case can be found. The condemnation of the
+Copernican view of the world will be considered presently; we pass over
+the fact that at the time of its condemnation it was not a positive result
+of science: the main point is that the condemnation was not an irrevocable
+dogma of faith, but only the decision of a Congregation, which was
+withdrawn as soon as the truth was clearly demonstrated. Besides, science
+has suffered no injury from that decision.
+
+In general, where there is real contradiction between science and faith,
+the matters in question are invariably _hypotheses_. Is it more than an
+hypothesis, and a very doubtful hypothesis at that, that the world and God
+are identical, that there is an eternal, uncreated course of the world,
+that miracles are impossible? That what is said about the natural origin
+of Christianity, the origin of the Jewish religion from Babylonian myths,
+the origin of all religions from fear, fancy, or deception, is it anything
+more than hypothetical? The false systems of knowledge, subjectivism, and
+agnosticism--are they more than hypotheses? Ask their originators and
+champions; they will admit it themselves; and if they will not admit it,
+others will tell them that their propositions are not only hypotheses, but
+often quite untenable. There is hardly a single hypothesis which has not
+its vehement opponents. That the serious conflict between dogma and
+science is waged only in this field could be proved by abundant examples.
+Besides, is it not the philosophical axiom of modern freedom of thought,
+that in the sphere of philosophy and religion there is no certain
+knowledge, but only supposition?
+
+Can hypotheses claim to rank as assured results of research which should
+be universally accepted? Why should it not be allowed to contradict them,
+to oppose them with other suppositions? Is it not in the interest of
+science that this be done, that they be subjected to sharp criticism, lest
+they gradually be given out for positive results? Is it not a shameful
+trifling with the truth, when a _Haeckel_ deceives wide circles by
+pretending that most frivolous hypotheses are established results of
+science? Is it not misleading when modern science treats the rejection of
+a supernatural order as an established principle?
+
+
+    And how often the hypotheses of profane sciences change! "Laymen
+    are astonished," says _H. Poincare_, "that so many scientific
+    theories are perishable. They see them thrive for a few years, to
+    be abandoned one after the other; they see wrecks heaped upon
+    wrecks; they foresee that theories now fashionable will after a
+    short while be forgotten, and they conclude that these theories
+    are absolute fallacy. They call it the bankruptcy of science"
+    (Wissenschaft u. Hypothese, German by _F. Lindemann_, 2d ed.,
+    1906, 161). The conclusion is certainly unjustified, but the fact
+    itself remains. Is it then a loss to science when faith opposes in
+    the field of religion these variations of opinion with fixed
+    dogmas?
+
+    Or are these perhaps of less worth, or less certain than their
+    contraries? Is the dogma of the existence of God of less value
+    than atheism? Is the conviction of the existence of a world of
+    spirits less substantial than the philosophy of materialistic
+    monism? Is the doctrine of the origin of the human soul from the
+    creating hand of God found inferior to the notion that the soul
+    has developed from the lower stages of animal life? Should the
+    holy teaching of Christianity, doctrines believed by the best
+    periods in the world's history, believed in and professed by minds
+    like those of an _Augustine_, a _Thomas_, and a _Leibnitz_;
+    doctrines that since their appearance on earth have always
+    attracted the noble and good, and repelled chiefly the base and
+    immoral; doctrines that still wait for their first unobjectionable
+    refutation--should such doctrines be less sure than the
+    innumerable, ever-changing suggestions of unregulated thought,
+    apparently directed by an aversion to everything supernatural?
+
+
+
+Erravimus.
+
+
+Yet another fact may be pointed out. It is an undeniable fact that
+science, after straying for some time, is not unfrequently _compelled to
+return to what is taught by faith and the Church_, thus confirming the
+truth of the faith. Frequently the new theory has come on like a tornado,
+sweeping all minds before it. But the tempest was soon spent, the minds
+recovered their balance and the hasty misjudgment was recognized.
+
+
+    Not long ago, when materialism revelled in its orgies, especially
+    in Germany, when _Vogt_, _Buechner_, and _Moleschott_ were writing
+    their books, and science with _Du Bois-Reymond_ was hunting
+    _Laplace's_ theory in the evolution of the world, the Syllabus,
+    undaunted, put its anathema upon the (58.) proposition: "No other
+    forces are acknowledged but those of matter." The summer-night's
+    dream came to an end, and people rubbed their eyes and saw the
+    reality they had lost a while. The materialism of the 60's and
+    70's has been discarded by the scientific world, and finds a
+    shelter only in the circles of unschooled infidelity. _J. Reinke_,
+    in the name of biology, bears testimony in the words: "In my
+    opinion materialism has been disposed of in biology; if,
+    nevertheless, a number of biologists still stand by its colours,
+    this tenacity may be explained psychologically; for, in the apt
+    words of _Du Bois-Reymond_, in the domain of ideas a man does not
+    willingly and easily forsake the highway of thought which his
+    entire mental training has opened up" (Einleitung in die
+    theoretische Biologie, 1901, 52).
+
+    A few decades ago a number of scientists declared it impossible
+    that the different races could have descended from one pair of
+    ancestors, as taught by faith: the difference between the various
+    families being too great and radical, it was said; the difference
+    being rather of species than of race. Moreover, there was
+    announced the discovery of people without religion, without
+    notions of morality and family life; of tribes incapable of
+    civilization and culture; it was asserted in the early days of
+    _Darwin_ enthusiasm that there had been discovered a race of men
+    that clearly belonged to the species ape. Assertions of this kind
+    have gradually ceased. Now the different human races are
+    considered to belong to the same species, and their common
+    parentage is considered possible from the view-point of the theory
+    of evolution. The anthropologist _Ranke_ expresses his opinion
+    thus: "We find the bodily differences perfectly connected by
+    intermediate forms, graded to a nicety, and the summary of the
+    differences appears to point to but one species.... This is the
+    prevalent opinion of all independent research of anatomically
+    schooled anthropologists" (Der Mensch, 2d ed., II, 1894, 261).
+    Ethnology denies the existence of nations or tribes without
+    religion (_Ratzel_, Voelkerkunde, I, 1885, 31). _Peschel_ says:
+    "The statement that any nation or tribe has ever been found
+    anywhere on earth without notions and suggestions of religion can
+    be denied emphatically" (_O. Peschel_, Voelkerkunde, 6th ed.,
+    1885, 273). "The more recent ethnology knows of no tribes without
+    morality, nor does history record any" (_W. Schneider_, Die
+    Naturvoelker, 1886, II, 348).
+
+    Until a short time ago it was believed that the derivation of
+    man's life from inferior stages of animal life would not be
+    difficult to prove; but at present, while many still adhere to the
+    theory that man has developed from the brute, the conviction is
+    steadily gaining ground that it cannot be scientifically proved
+    and that it becomes more and more difficult to disprove man's
+    higher origin. Unable to withstand the force of facts, one
+    hypothesis gives place to another: what had to be found could not
+    be found, living or extinct links between the brute and man
+    refused to appear anywhere, and those which people thought they
+    had found, turned out to be unsuitable. _Kohlbrugge_ concludes his
+    criticism of the recent theories of the evolution of the body of
+    man from lower animals with the confession: "The above summary is
+    enough to convince everybody that we do not know anything distinct
+    about the great problem of evolution; we have not yet seen its
+    face. All must be done over again" (Die Morpholog. Abstammung des
+    Menschen, 1908, 88). _Virchow_ said at the anthropological
+    congress of Vienna, 1889: "When we met at Innsbruck twenty years
+    ago Darwinism had just finished its first triumphal march through
+    the world, and my friend _Vogt_ became its ardent champion. We
+    have searched in vain for the missing link connecting man directly
+    with the ape."
+
+    What has become of those anatomic-morphologic links between man
+    and beast, the _pithecanthropus erectus_, the man dug out at
+    Neandertal, Spy, Schipka, La Naulette, and Krapina, and shown with
+    great confidence to the world? What has become of the prehistoric
+    man, said to belong to the glacial period of Europe, and to have
+    ranked far below the present man? _J. Kohlmann_ writes: "I wish to
+    state that I thoroughly adhere to the theory of evolution, but my
+    own experience has led me to the result that man has not changed
+    his racial characteristics since the glacial period. He appears on
+    the soil of Europe physically complete, and there is no ape-man to
+    be found" (apud _Ranke_, Ibid. 480). Prof. _Branco_, director of
+    the Palaeontological Institute of Berlin, says: "Palaeontology tells
+    us nothing about the missing link. This science knows of no
+    ancestors of man" (at the 5th international Zoological Congress,
+    1901, _Wasmann_, Die mod. Biolog. 3, p. 488). And the
+    palaeontologist _Zittel_ says: "The missing link between man and
+    ape, though a postulate of the theory of evolution, has not been
+    found" (_Ranke_, l. c. 504). _E. Grosse_ concludes his studies on
+    evolution with the significant words: "I began this book with the
+    intention of writing a history of the evolution of the family, and
+    I finish it convinced that at present the writing of that history
+    is impossible for me or for anybody else" (Die Formen der Familie,
+    1896, Vorwort). _Ranke_ is perfectly right in saying that "it
+    behoves the dignity of science to confess that it knows nothing of
+    the origin of man" (Thuermer V, 1902, I. Heft).
+
+    A century ago or so, ridicule was heaped in the name of science on
+    the description in the Bible of the last day: "The stars shall
+    fall," "and the powers of heaven shall be moved," "the elements
+    shall be melted with heat, and the earth shall be burnt up" (Matt.
+    xxiv. 29 _seq._; Luke xxi. 25 _seq._; Mark xiii. 24 _seq._; 2 Pet.
+    iii. 10). Then the assertion that stones could fall from the skies
+    caused a smile, but now science has come to the general knowledge
+    that this is not only possible, but perhaps really will be the end
+    of all things, if once our earth on its journey through unknown
+    spaces of the universe should collide with a comet or get into a
+    cosmic cloud of large meteors. (Cf. the graphic description in _K.
+    Braun_, Ueber Kosmogonie, 3d ed., 1905, p. 381 _seq._)
+
+    An example of another kind: It is not so long since Protestant,
+    liberal Bible-criticism and its history of early Christian
+    literature, in the endeavour to remove everything supernatural
+    from the beginning of Christianity, regarded the New Testament and
+    the oldest Christian documents as unreliable testimony, even
+    forgeries, and for this reason placed the date of their origin as
+    late as possible. But now they have to retrace their steps.
+
+    _A. Harnack_ writes: "There was a period--the general public is
+    still living in it--when the New Testament and the oldest Christian
+    literature were thought to be but a tissue of lies and forgeries.
+    This time has passed. For science it was an episode in which much
+    was learned of which much must be forgotten. The result of
+    subsequent research over-reaches in a 'reactionary' effect what
+    might be termed the central position of modern criticism. The
+    oldest literature of the Church is in the main and in most details
+    true and reliable, that is, from the literary and historical point
+    of view.... I am not afraid to use the word 'retrogressive'--for we
+    should call a spade a spade--the criticism of the sources of the
+    earliest Christianity is beyond doubt moving retrogressively
+    towards tradition" (Chronologie der Alt-Christ. Literatur I, 1897,
+    VIII). In a more recent work the same savant writes: "During the
+    years from 30 to 70 all originated in Palestine, or, better, in
+    Jerusalem, what later on was developed. This knowledge is steadily
+    gaining and replacing the former 'critical' opinion that the
+    fundamental development had extended over a period of about a
+    hundred years" (Lukas der Arzt, 1906, Vorwort). This retrogression
+    is continued still farther in his later work, "Neue Untersuchungen
+    zur Apostolgesch. u. zur Abfassungszeit der synopt. Evang., 1911,"
+    in which _Harnack_ draws very near to the Catholic view regarding
+    the date of writing of the Acts of the Apostles, as also regarding
+    _St. Paul's_ attitude towards Judaism and Christian-Judaism, and
+    departs from the modern Protestant view (cf. pp. 28-47, 79 _seq._,
+    86, 93 _seq._). "Protestant authorities on church-history," he
+    says elsewhere, "no longer take offence at the proposition that
+    the main elements of Catholicism go back to the Apostolic era, and
+    not only peripherically" (Theol. Literar. Zeitung, 1905, 52).
+
+    In a speech, much commented on, which he made at his university
+    January 12, 1907, Prof. _Harnack_, discussing the religious
+    question in Germany, called attention to the fact that there has
+    been quite a marked return to the Catholic standpoint: "From the
+    study of Church history we find that we all have become different
+    from what our fathers were, whether we may like it or not. Study
+    has shown that we are separated from our fathers by a long course
+    of development; that we do not understand their ideas and words at
+    all, much less do we use them in the sense they used them." He
+    then draws out the comparison more particularly: "_Flacius_ and
+    the older Protestants denied that _Peter_ had ever been in Rome at
+    all. Now we know that his having been there is a fact well
+    evidenced in history." The motto of the older Protestants was that
+    the Scriptures are the sole source of revelation. "But now, and
+    for a long time past, Protestant savants have realized that the
+    Scriptures could not be separated from tradition, and that the
+    collecting of the New Testament Scriptures was a part of
+    tradition." "Protestants of the sixteenth century taught
+    justification by faith alone, without works. In the absence of
+    confessional controversy, no evangelical Christian would now find
+    fault with the teaching which declares only such faith to be of
+    any worth which shows itself by the love of God and of the
+    neighbour" (Protestantismus u. Katholizismus in Deutschland,
+    Preussisch. Jahrbuecher 127. Bd., 1907, 301 _seq._).
+
+
+Many similar instances of science confessing Erravimus in regard to the
+Christian or Catholic position could be cited. They are an admonition to
+be modest, not to overrate the value of a scientific proposition, and not,
+with supreme confidence and infallibility, to brand it as an offence
+against the human intellect to let one's self be guided by the principles
+of faith.
+
+Moreover, it has often happened that science emphatically and sneeringly
+rejected propositions, and called them false and absurd, which to-day are
+considered elementary.
+
+_Newton_, in 1687, had correctly explained the revolution of the moon
+around the earth, and of the planets around the sun, as the co-operation
+of gravitation and inertia, and thence concluded also the elliptic form of
+the orbits of planets previously discovered by _Kepler_. _Leibnitz_
+rejected this theory, _Huygens_ called it absurd, and the Academy of Paris
+as late as 1730 still favoured the theory of revolution of _Descartes_; it
+was only about the year 1740 that it was generally accepted. _Huygens_,
+himself, had formed in 1690 his theory about light-waves. For a long time
+it was misunderstood. Only in 1800, or somewhat later, it received its
+merited acknowledgment, but noted physicists like _Biot_ and _Brewster_
+rejected it still for some time and held to the theory of emission. "Even
+in the intellectual world the law of inertia holds good" (_Rosenberger_,
+Gesch. der Physik, III, 1887, 139).
+
+
+    The great discoverer _Galvani_ complained of being attacked from
+    two opposite sides, by the scientists and by the ignorant: "Both
+    make fun of me. They call me the dancing master of frogs. Yet I
+    know I have discovered one of the greatest forces of nature."
+
+
+When _Benjamin Franklin_ explained the lightning-rod to the Royal Academy
+of Sciences, he was ridiculed as a dreamer. The same happened to _Young_
+with his theory of the undulation of light. "The Edinburgh Review"
+proposed to the public to put _Thomas Grey_ in a strait-jacket when he
+presented his plan for railroads. Sir _Humphry Davy_ laughed at the idea
+of illuminating the city of London by gas. The French Academy of Sciences
+actually sneered at the physicist _Arago_ when he proposed a resolution to
+merely open a discussion of the idea of an electric telegraph (_Wallace_,
+Die wissensch. Ansicht des Uebernatuerlichen, 102 _seq._).
+
+
+    Until about a hundred years ago scientists almost universally
+    thought it impossible for a stone to fall from the skies--not to
+    mention a rain of stones. Of the big meteor that fell at Agram in
+    1751 the learned Vienna professor, _Stuetz_, wrote in 1790 as
+    follows: "That iron had fallen from the skies may have been
+    believed in Germany in 1751 even by its enlightened minds, owing
+    to the uncertainty then prevailing in regard to physics and
+    natural history. In our times, however, it were unpardonable to
+    consider similar fairy tales even probable." Some museums threw
+    away their collections of meteors, fearing they would appear
+    ridiculous by keeping them. In that very year, 1790, a meteor fell
+    near the city of Juillac in France, and the mayor of the town sent
+    a report of it to the French Academy of Sciences, signed by three
+    hundred eye-witnesses. But the wise men of the academy knew
+    better. Referee _Bertholon_ said: "It is a pity for a town to have
+    so foolish a mayor," and added: "It is sad to see the whole
+    municipality certifying by affidavit to a folk-saga that can only
+    be pitied. What more can I say of an affidavit like that? Comment
+    is self-evident to a philosophically trained mind who reads this
+    authentic testimonial about an evidently false fact, about a
+    physically impossible phenomenon." _A. Deluc_, in other respects a
+    sober-minded man, and a scientist, even remarked that should a
+    stone like that fall before his feet, then he would have to admit
+    that he had seen it, but nevertheless would not believe it.
+    _Vaudin_ remarked: "Better to deny such incredible things than to
+    have to try to explain them." Thus taught the French Academy of
+    that time (apud _Braun_, Ueber Kosmogonie, 3d ed., 1905, 378
+    _seq._). And now science is teaching the contrary. Everybody knows
+    that such falling meteors are not only possible, but that they
+    fall about seven hundred times a year on our earth.
+
+
+Do not these examples bear a striking resemblance to the attitude of many
+of the representatives of modern science towards facts and truths of our
+faith?
+
+This has not been said with a view of detracting from the reputation of
+science. Not at all. It has fallen to the lot of man to be subject to
+error. The above was said to recall that fact. Science is not so
+infallible as to be able to claim the right to ignore, in religious and
+ethical questions, faith and the Church, and even to usurp the place of
+the faith given by God, in order to lead its disciples upon the new paths
+of a delivered mankind.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter III. Unprepossession Of Research.
+
+
+
+What It Is.
+
+
+In the year 1901 a case, insignificant in itself, caused great excitement
+in and even beyond the scientific world. What had happened? At the
+University of Strassburg, in a territory for the most part Catholic, no
+less than one-third of the students were Catholic, yet of the seventy-two
+professors sixty-one were Protestant, six Israelites and but four
+Catholics (according to the report of the Secretary of State, _Koeller_,
+in the 115th session of the Reichstag, January 11, 1901). The government
+resolved, in view of the state of affairs, to give more consideration,
+when appointing professors, to the Catholic members of the university.
+Even the non-Catholic members of the Bundesrat desired it. A vacancy
+occurring in the faculty of history, the government, besides appointing
+the Protestant professor proposed by the faculty of philosophy, decided to
+create a new chair to be filled by a Catholic.
+
+The appointment of a Catholic professor of history was regarded as
+seriously endangering science. The storm broke. The venerable historian,
+_Th. Mommsen_, who had been a champion of liberty in the revolution of
+1848, promptly gave the alarm. In the Munich "Neueste Nachrichten" there
+appeared over his signature an article that created a general sensation.
+"German university circles," he said, in his solemn protest, "are pervaded
+by a feeling of degradation. Our vital nerve is unprejudiced research;
+research that does not find what it seeks and expects to find, owing to
+purposes, considerations, and restraints that serve other, practical ends
+extraneous to science--but finds what logically and historically appears to
+the conscientious scientist the right thing, truthfulness. The appointment
+of a college teacher whose freedom is restricted by barriers is laying the
+axe to the root of German science. The call to a chair of history, or
+philosophy, of one who must be a Catholic or a Protestant, and who must
+serve this or that confession, is tantamount to compelling him to set
+bounds to his work whenever the results might be awkward for a religious
+dogma." And he concludes with a ringing appeal for the solidarity of the
+representatives of science: "Perhaps I am not deceived in the hope of
+having given expression to the sentiments of our colleagues." This
+statement of the famous scientist, conceived in the temper of his days of
+'48, was soon softened, if not neutralized, by a subsequent statement from
+his pen. But the spark had already started the fire. From most
+universities there came letters of approval and praise of his courageous
+stand, in behalf of the honour of the universities and of German science.
+On the other hand, some gave vent to their regret of his hot-spurred
+action. Since then the song of unprejudiced science has been sung in
+countless variations and keys, ending as a rule with the chorus: Hence the
+believing, especially Catholics, cannot be true scientists. For this was
+the central idea of _Mommsen's_ protest, and in that sense it had been
+understood.
+
+For the sake of clearness we shall condense the substance of the thought
+into a brief form: The vital nerve of science, the condition under which
+alone it can exist, is unprepossession, that is, a straightforward honesty
+that knows of no other consideration than to aim at the truth for its own
+sake. The believer, the Catholic, cannot be unprepossessed, because he
+must pay regard to dogmas and Church-doctrine and precept. Therefore he is
+wanting in the most essential requisite of true science. Hence college
+professors of a Catholic conviction are anomalous: they have no right to
+claim a chair in the home of unprepossessed science. For reasons of
+expediency it may be advisable to appoint some of them, but they cannot be
+regarded as sterling scientists. Catholic theology, building upon faith,
+is not science in the true sense of the word, and deserves no place in a
+university. A Catholic university, a home of scientific research built
+upon a Catholic foundation, is something like a squared circle. It may be
+that Catholic scientists, too, have their achievements, but they cannot be
+expected to be possessed of that unflinching pursuit of the truth which
+must be part of the man of science.
+
+These are thoughts which have petrified in the minds of many into
+self-evident principles, with all the obstinacy of intolerance. It is not
+difficult to recognize in it the old reproach we have already dealt with,
+it is here in a slightly different form. The believing scientist is not
+free to search for the truth, being tied down by his duty to believe.
+Science, however, must be free. Hence the believer cannot properly pursue
+science.
+
+Freedom of science and science unprepossessed are related terms and are
+often used synonymously. Therefore, in putting the probe to the
+often-repeated demand for unprepossession, we shall meet with ideas
+similar to those we have already discussed, only in a slightly different
+shape.
+
+What, then, is that unprepossession which science must avow? Can the
+Catholic, the believing scientist, possess it? Unprepossessed research--"I
+don't like the expression," says a representative of free-thought,
+"because it is a product of that shortcoming which has already done great
+damage to free-thought in its struggle with the powers of the past"
+(_Jodl_). Hence we have reason to fear that the confidence with which this
+word is used is greater than the clearness of thought it represents.
+
+What is meant by saying that science must be _unprepossessed_? Undoubtedly
+it means that science should make no presuppositions, it must enter upon
+its work free from prejudice and presumption. And what is presumption?
+Evidently something presumed, upon which the research is to rest the level
+and rule of its direction: the supposition being taken for granted,
+without express proof. What I have expressly proved in my process of
+thought is no longer a supposition to the structure of thought, but a part
+of that structure.
+
+Is the scientist, however, to allow no presumption at all? That would be
+impossible. When making his calculations the mathematician presupposes the
+correctness of the multiplication table. Or is he first to prove that
+twice three are six? He could not do it, because it is immediately
+self-evident. In his optical experiments in the laboratory, in drawing
+inferences as to the nature of light from different indications, the
+physicist presupposes that senses are able to observe the facts correctly,
+that everything has its respective reason, that nothing can be and not be,
+at the same time, under the same conditions. Can he or must he try first
+to prove it? He must presume it because it is beyond a doubt, and because
+it cannot be proved at all, at least all of it cannot. The astronomer,
+too, makes unhesitating use of the formulas of mathematics without
+examining them anew; every natural scientist calmly presupposes the
+correctness of the results established by his predecessors and goes on
+building upon those results: he may do so because he cannot with reason
+doubt them. Hence presumptions are common; they may be made when we are
+convinced of their truth; they must be made because not everything can be
+proved. Much cannot be proved because it is immediately self-evident, as,
+for instance, the ability to recognize the true or the elementary
+principles of reasoning; many other things cannot always be proved
+minutely, because not every scientist cares to begin with the egg of Leda.
+He that wants to build a house builds upon a given base; if he will not
+accept it, if he desires to dig up the fundament to the very bottom, in
+order to lay it anew, he will be digging forever, but the house will never
+be built.
+
+Hence to say that science must be unprepossessed cannot mean that it must
+not make any presupposition. What, therefore, does it mean? Simply this:
+_Science must not presume anything to be true which is false, nor anything
+as proved which is still uncertain and unproved_. Whatever the scientist
+knows to be certain he may take as such, presuming it as the foundation
+and direction of further work; and what he knows to be probable he may
+suppose to be probable.
+
+In so doing he in no way offends against the ideal that should be
+ever-present to his mind--the truth, because he merely allows himself to be
+guided by the truth, recognized as such. And the sequence of truth cannot
+but be truth, the sequence of certainty cannot but be certainty. But
+should he presuppose to be true what is false and unproved, and the
+uncertain to be certain, then he would offend against truth, against the
+aim of every science.
+
+
+    Hence if the critic of the Bible presupposes miracles and
+    prophecies to be impossible, inferring therefrom that many
+    narratives in Holy Writ cannot be authentic, but must be legends
+    of a later period, he is making arbitrary presuppositions, he is
+    not an unprepossessed scientist. Likewise, if an historian
+    presupposing God's supernatural providence over the world to be
+    impossible, and, in building upon this basis, comes to the
+    conclusion that the Christian religion grew from purely natural
+    factors, from Oriental notions and myths, from Greek philosophy
+    and Roman forms of government, he again makes unproved
+    suppositions. If the natural philosopher assumes that there cannot
+    be a personal Creator, and infers from it that the world is of
+    itself and eternal, he has forfeited the claim of being an
+    unprepossessed scientist, and by making in any way his own pet
+    ideas the basis of his research he is violating the demands of
+    unprepossession; the results he arrives at are not scientific
+    results, but the speculations of an amateur.
+
+
+
+Unprepossession and Religious Conviction.
+
+
+Is it possible for the Christian scientist who adheres to his faith, to be
+unprepossessed, as demanded by science? According to all that has been
+said hitherto about the relation of science to faith, the answer can be
+only in the affirmative. The believing Christian and Catholic looks upon
+the doctrines of faith taught him by revelation and the Church as an
+_established truth_. What to me is true and certain I can take for the
+true and certain basis and standard of my thought. This is demanded by
+unprepossession--nothing more.
+
+Considering the immense extent of the sciences, the profane sciences will
+but seldom, and in but few matters, have occasion to presuppose truths of
+faith in the above-mentioned way; and only in a negative form at that. We
+have previously shown that the profane sciences must never take truths of
+faith for a positive basis to build upon; they must regard the doctrines
+of revelation only in so far as it is not allowed to teach anything in
+contradiction to them. And with this demand they will meet in rare
+instances only, because, if not overstepping their province, they will
+very seldom come in touch with faith (cf. pp. 88-96). When _Kepler_ was
+studying his planetary orbits, and _Newton_ discovered the law of
+gravitation, both worked independent of the Christian view of the world
+which they both professed; it was in no way a necessary presupposition to
+their research. When _Scheiner_ discovered the sun-spots, and _Secchi_
+classified the spectra of the stars, they were not doing so as Jesuits nor
+as Catholics; as Mohammedans or atheists they might have made the same
+discoveries. Steam engines and railways, _Volta's_ electricity,
+cathode-rays and X-rays, all discoveries that the nineteenth century can
+boast of, do not depend directly on any special view of the world.
+
+And if the believing scientist does take his faith for a guide in some
+matters, when in all his researches in the history of the Christian
+religion and the Church he presupposes that God's miraculous interference
+is not impossible, because the contrary would offend not only against his
+faith, but also against his common sense; when in pondering the ultimate
+reasons of all things he allows himself to be influenced by the idea that
+atheism is false, or at least not proved--for that there is a God both his
+faith and his reason tell him--then these presumptions are by no means
+inadmissible. The naturalist, too, presupposing certain results of science
+to be true, takes care not to get into conflict with them, and he will
+soon correct himself should he arrive at different results. If a
+mathematician should arrive at results conflicting with other proved
+results, he would infer therefrom that his calculation was faulty; why,
+then, cannot the Christian now and then be led by the truths of his faith,
+of which he is certain, without by doing so offending against the spirit
+of scientific truthfulness?
+
+Or may he not do so just because they are _religious_ truths, vouched for
+by a supernatural authority? As a fact many of them are established also
+by the testimony of reason. This is shown by the examples just mentioned.
+However, the question is not how a truth is vouched for, but whether it be
+a truth or not. If the scientist is assured that something is
+unquestionably true, then he owes it to the spirit of truthfulness to
+accept it. In doing so he will in no way be unfaithful to his scientific
+method; the truths of faith are to him not a source of proofs for the
+results of his profane science, but only hints, calling his attention to
+the fact that certain propositions are not proved, that they are even
+false.
+
+
+    Much less is in historical questions the Catholic obliged to
+    defend or praise everything of advantage to his Church, whether
+    true or not. Hence _Mommsen_ is grossly mistaken when he states in
+    his letter of protest mentioned above: "The appointment of a
+    historian or philosopher, who must be a Catholic or a Protestant
+    and who must serve his confession, evidently means nothing else
+    but to prohibit the Protestant historian from presenting the
+    powerful mental structure of the papacy in its full light, and the
+    Catholic historian from appreciating the profound thought and the
+    tremendous importance of heresy and Protestantism." The Catholic
+    is only bound to the truth.
+
+
+Or are the Christian truths of faith perhaps regrettable errors, hence
+presumptions that should not be made? If so, demonstrate it. Hitherto such
+demonstration has not succeeded. So long as the creed of the believing
+Christian cannot be refuted convincingly, he has the right to cling to it
+in the name of truth.
+
+Or can we not have reasonable certainty at all in religious matters? Are
+they the undemonstrable things of an uncontrollable sentiment? To be sure,
+this is asserted often enough, explicitly or by insinuation. If this were
+true, then of course duty of faith and true unprepossession could not go
+together; one would be regarding as the truth things of which one cannot
+be convinced. But this is also an unproved assumption: it is the duality
+of subjectivism and agnosticism, the fundamental presumption of liberal
+freedom of science, which we have already sufficiently exposed.
+
+However, let us assume again the position of those who do not feel
+themselves personally convinced of the truth of the Christian dogmatic
+faith, or of the Catholic Church. But the Catholic is _firmly convinced_
+thereof and, if need be, will make sacrifices for this conviction, as
+millions have done. Hence, can any one forbid him to think and judge
+according to his conviction? Would they who differ from his opinion for
+this very reason force him to think against his own conviction? Would not
+that indeed be "seduction to sin against the Holy Ghost"? If the jurist or
+historian has formed the conviction that _Mommsen_ is on historical
+questions concerning Roman law an authority, who may be followed without
+scruple, and he does so without re-examining the particular points, will
+this be looked upon as an offence against unprepossession? If, then, the
+Catholic is certain that he may safely trust to revelation and the
+Church--and there is no authority on earth of more venerable standing, even
+if viewed from a purely natural point--will he alone be accused of mental
+blindness and lack of freedom?
+
+Or may the scientist have _no view of the world_ at all, because he might
+be influenced thereby in certain directions? The champions of this demand
+will surely not admit that they have not a definite view of the world. By
+no means! We know very well that just those who are most vehement in
+urging unprepossessed science have a very pronounced notion of the world,
+we know also that they are resolutely propagating that notion. Yet nothing
+is said against a scientist who is a monist, or who starts from
+agnosticism. It seems they intend to exclude one view only, the positive
+religious view. Yet not even this one wholly. No one finds the Jew who
+adheres to his religion unfit for scientific research. Of course not.
+Protestants, too, find favour: according to the statutes of some German
+universities Protestants only may be professors there. Neither _Mommsen_
+nor any other herald of unprepossession deems it necessary to defend
+science against these institutions and usages. It is plain what is meant
+by the popular cry for science unprepossessed: The man of science may be
+anything, sceptic or atheist, pagan or Hottentot, only he must not be a
+faithful Catholic. Is this fair? Is this the spirit of truth and justice
+with which they claim to be filled?
+
+
+    What has just been said about the Catholic being excluded, could
+    easily be exemplified by a lengthy list of facts. But we shall
+    pass them over. We shall note one utterance only, from the pen of
+    a non-Catholic writer. The renowned pedagogue, _Fr. W. Foerster_,
+    says in the preface to the second edition of his book on "Sexual
+    Ethics and Sexual Pedagogy": "Special exception has been taken to
+    the catholicizing tendency of my book, and not infrequently the
+    author has without further ado been made out an orthodox Catholic.
+    For many years past I have been in a position to gain interesting
+    information concerning the incredible bias of many champions of
+    unprepossessed research. To them it is an a-priori dogma that
+    everything represented by the Catholic Church is nonsense,
+    superstition, bigotry. They are past comprehending how an
+    unprejudiced man, simply by concrete experience, unprepossessed
+    research and serious pondering in the field of pedagogy, could be
+    brought to affirm that certain notions of the Roman Catholic
+    Church are the unavoidable consequence of a penetrating knowledge
+    of soul and life. This cannot be admitted by the non-Catholic: for
+    him the truth must cease where the Catholic faith begins; he dares
+    not assent to anything, else he will no longer be taken for a
+    reputable scientific man."
+
+
+The bluster about unprepossession proceeds from _shallowness and
+dishonesty_. The most varied presumptions, that have nothing to do with
+science and the pursuit of the truth, may pass without notice; only when
+Christian and Catholic religious convictions, resting upon divine
+authority, are encountered, then tolerance gives way to excitement, a hue
+and cry is raised, the gate is shut, and entrance to the scientific world
+denied.
+
+
+    Philosophers arise, and each philosophizes according to his
+    manner. _Fichte_ says: "What philosophy to choose depends on the
+    kind of a man one is." The historian enters. It is reported that
+    _Treitschke_ said: "If I cannot write history from my own
+    view-point, with my own judgment, then I had rather be a
+    soapmaker." According to trustworthy testimony, the well-known
+    Protestant historian, _Giesebrecht_, used to preface his lectures
+    in Munich with the words: "I am a Prussian and a Protestant: I
+    shall lecture accordingly" (Hochschulnachrichten, 1901, 2, p. 30).
+    Even here there are no objections in the name of Unprepossession.
+    "Science," says _Harnack_, "will tear off the mask of the
+    hypocrite or plagiarist and throw him out of the temple, but the
+    queerest suppositions it must let pass if they go by the name of
+    convictions, and if those who harbour them are trying to
+    demonstrate them by scientific means."
+
+    Therefore the convictions, or, to speak with _Harnack_, the
+    "prejudices," of the Catholic "certainly deserve as much
+    consideration and patience as the velleities, idiosyncrasies, and
+    blind dogmas which we have to meet and refute in the struggle
+    between intellects" (Internationale Wochenschrift, 1908, 259
+    _seq._). "Science has been restricted," the same authority also
+    admits, "at all times; our progeny will find even modern science
+    in many ways not ruled by pure reason only" (Dogmengesch. III, 3d
+    ed., 1907, 326).
+
+    And what is to be said of those more serious suppositions,
+    unproved and unprovable, which guide modern science wherever it
+    meets philosophical-religious questions? That truly dogmatic
+    rejection of everything supernatural and transcendental, that
+    obstinate ignoration of a personal God, the rejection of any
+    creative act, of any miracle, of any revelation,--a presupposition
+    directly raised to a scientific principle: the principle of
+    causality. Later on we shall make an excursion into various fields
+    of science, and we shall show clearly how this presumption is
+    stamped upon entire branches of science. Those solemn assurances
+    of persevering unselfishness in desiring nothing but the truth;
+    the confidence with which they claim a monopoly of the instinct
+    for the truth, all this will appear in quite a strange light, the
+    twilight of dishonesty, when we examine the documents and records
+    of liberal science itself. We shall see sufficiently how truthful
+    the self-confession of a modern champion of liberal science really
+    is: "The recently coined expression, 'science unprepossessed,' I
+    do not like, because it is a product of that shortcoming which has
+    already done so much damage to free thought in its struggle with
+    the powers of the past--because that word is not entirely honest.
+    None of us sits down to his work unprepossessed" (_F. Jodl_, Neue
+    Freie Presse, November 26, 1907). Here we shall touch upon only
+    one more question.
+
+
+
+The Duty to Believe and Scientific Demonstration.
+
+
+But cannot the believing Christian submit to scientific investigation the
+doctrine of faith itself, which he must without doubt hold to be true?
+This must surely be allowed if he is to convince himself scientifically of
+the truth of it. Indeed, this is allowed. He may critically examine
+everything to the very bottom, even the existence of God, the rationality
+of his own mind. But how can he, if no doubt is permissible? To examine
+means to search doubtingly; it means to call the matter in question--this,
+too, is right. It is, on the one hand, a doctrine of the Catholic Church
+that they who have received faith through the ministry of the Church, that
+is, they that have been made familiar with the essential subjects of the
+faith and the motives of their credibility by proper religious
+instruction, must not doubt their faith. They have no reasonable excuse
+for doubting because they are assured of the truth of the faith. We have
+discussed this point before.(4)
+
+
+    As a matter of course only voluntary doubts are excluded, doubts
+    by which one assents deliberately and wilfully to the judgment
+    that perhaps not all may be true that is proposed for our belief.
+    Involuntary doubts are neither excluded nor sinful. These are
+    apparent counter-arguments, objections, difficulties against the
+    faith, which occur to the mind without getting its conscious
+    approval. They are not unlikely, because the cognition of the
+    credibility of Christian truths, while it is certain, is yet
+    lacking in that obvious clearness which would render obscurity and
+    counter-argument impossible; the assent to faith is free. Doubts
+    of this kind are apt to molest the mind and buzz round it like
+    bothersome insects, but they are not sinful because they do not
+    set aside the assent to faith any more than the cloud that
+    intervenes between us and the sun can extinguish its light. The
+    assent to faith is withdrawn only when the will with clear
+    consideration approves of the judgment that the doubt may be
+    right.
+
+    But what about doubts which one cannot solve? Would we not owe it
+    to truth and probity to withhold assent to faith for a while?
+
+    The answer lies in the distinction of a twofold solution of
+    difficulties. It is by no means necessary, nor even possible, to
+    solve directly all objections; it suffices to solve them
+    indirectly, that is, by recognizing them as void; since faith is
+    certain, whatever is contrary to it must be false. If one is
+    convinced by clear proofs of the innocence of a defendant he will
+    not be swayed in his assurance, no matter how much circumstantial
+    evidence be offered against the defendant. He may not be able to
+    account directly for one or the other remarkable coincidence of
+    circumstances, but all the arguments of the other side are to him
+    refuted, because to him the defendant's innocence is a certainty.
+    Thus the faithful Christian may hear it solemnly proclaimed as a
+    scientifically established fact that miracles are impossible,
+    because they would be tantamount to God making correction on His
+    own work, because they would imply a self-contradiction, or they
+    would be against the law of preservation of energy; he hears of
+    atrocities in the history of the Church, of the Inquisition, of
+    the Church being an enemy of civilization--he knows not what to
+    say: but one thing he knows, that there must be an answer, because
+    he knows, enlightened by faith, that his belief cannot be false.
+    Nowhere is it demanded that all objections be directly answered,
+    in order that the conviction be true. If I, with the whole world,
+    am convinced that I am able to recognize the truth, must I
+    therefore carefully disentangle all the cobwebs ever spun about
+    the truth by brooding philosophical brains? If I am in the house,
+    safe from the rain, must I, in order to keep dry, go out and catch
+    every drop of rain that is falling? Such doubts may indeed harass
+    the untrained mind, may even confuse it. This is the juncture
+    where grace comes in, the pledge of which has been received at
+    baptism, bringing enlightenment, peace, assurance; then we learn
+    from others and from ourselves that faith is also a grace.
+
+
+Nevertheless a scientific examination of the foundations and truths of
+faith is allowed and wholesome. Nearly all the theological works written
+by Catholics since the days of _Justin_ and _Augustine_ are nothing but
+examinations of this kind. At every examination one proceeds with doubt
+and question. This is admitted; but this doubt must be merely a methodical
+one, not a serious one, nor need it be serious. These two kinds of doubt
+must be clearly distinguished. In case of a serious doubt I look upon the
+matter as really dubious, and withhold my assent. I am not yet convinced
+of its truth. This kind of a doubt is not allowed in matters of faith and
+it is the only one that is forbidden. In case of a methodical doubt I
+proceed as convinced of a truth, but I do not yet see the reasons plainly,
+and would like to be fully conscious of them. Evidently there is no need
+of casting aside the convictions I have hitherto held, and of beginning to
+think that the matter is by no means positively established.
+
+For instance, I am convinced that a complicated order must be the work of
+intellect; however, I would like to find the proof of it. Hence I proceed
+as if the truth were yet to be found. But it would evidently be absurd to
+think in the meantime that such admirable order could be the result of
+blind accident. Or, I am convinced that there must be a source for every
+event: I desire to find the demonstration of it. In the meantime shall I
+think it possible for another Nova Persei to be produced in the sky
+without any cause? Or, investigating to see whether I am capable of
+recognizing the truth, shall I seriously become a sceptic till I am
+convinced that I ought not to be such? As soon as I really doubt that I
+can recognize anything at all as true, obviously I cannot proceed any
+further. _Kant_ begins his "Critique of Pure Reason" with this doubt, and
+many imitate him, but only by evident inconsistency are they able to
+continue their researches by means of reason. Scientific examination does
+not consist in repudiating a certainty held hitherto, in order to arrive
+at it anew; it consists in bringing to one's clear consciousness the
+reasons for that certainty, and in trying to formulate those reasons
+precisely. To investigate the light it is evidently not necessary first to
+extinguish it.
+
+Thus the believing Christian may most certainly probe into his religious
+conviction without interfering with his adherence, and by doing so proceed
+unprepossessed in the fullest sense, for unprepossession does not mean the
+rooting up of all certainty. At the threshold of wisdom does not sit
+Scepticism.
+
+
+
+What Unprepossession is Not.
+
+
+But the deeper, modern meaning of unprepossession is precisely the right
+to doubt seriously everything, especially the truths of the Christian
+faith; this is the freedom demanded. Scepticism, the stamp of our time.
+
+Many a misconception may have contributed to the definition of this
+unprepossession. For instance, overlooking the important difference
+between methodical doubt and serious doubt.
+
+Then there is the erroneous opinion that we should and could proceed
+everywhere in the same way as in the natural sciences. Almost parallel
+with the progress in the natural sciences grew the doubt of the
+correctness of the ancient physical and astronomical notion of the world;
+piece after piece crumbled away under the hand of research; new truths
+were discovered. In just admiration of these results it was concluded that
+all provinces of human cognition should be "researched" in the same way,
+not excepting religion and theories of the world; here, too, science
+should cast a radical doubt upon everything and discover truth--as if here
+we had to deal with matters similar to astronomy and physics, in the state
+they were centuries ago; as if all mankind was still ignorant of the truth
+and science had to discover it.
+
+This right to doubt is claimed especially in the higher questions of
+religion. Certain cognition by reason is, after all, impossible here, such
+is the presumption, and therefore, first of all, it is the right and duty
+of man, as soon as he has attained his intellectual maturity, to shape by
+doubt his views of the world to the satisfaction of his mind and heart, to
+win them by a struggle; nor is this true only in the case of the single
+individual, but also of entire generations. To see problems everywhere,
+not to have any convictions, this is taken to be true unprepossession.
+
+
+    "Man must learn," so we are told, "that there is no absolute
+    miracle, not even in the domain of the religious life, which
+    supernaturally offers truth at a point or by an institution, but
+    that every man and every era as witnessed by the authority of
+    history must conquer truth by themselves for their own sake and at
+    their own risk" (_E. Troeltsch_, Internationale Wochensch. 1908,
+    26). Thus the mind of man cannot slake its thirst for positive
+    truth at the divine fountain of revelation, but only by search and
+    research. Such is the cheerful message of this science. "Amid
+    grave crises," we are told again, "a new concept of science has
+    forced its way to the front since the beginning of the eighteenth
+    century and conquered the universities." "Science is not a
+    finished system, but a research to be forever under examination"
+    (_A. Harnack_, Die Aufgabe der theol. Facultaeten, 1901, 17).
+
+
+Research without ever arriving at the sure possession of the truth, this
+is now the meaning of science, especially of philosophy. Hence there
+cannot be a philosophy conclusive and immutable, and any point which seems
+established may at any time be revised according to new perceptions.
+"There is no question that may not be asked; none which in the abstract
+could not just as well be denied as affirmed. In this sense philosophy is
+unprepossessed" (_Paulsen_, Die deutschen Universitaeten, 1902, 304
+_seq._). The highest achievement it declares itself capable of, is not to
+point out the truth to its disciples, for it does not know the truth
+itself, but only this: "We expect, or at least we should expect, that
+during the years of study the mind give itself earnestly to philosophy,
+and strive for a firm grasp of ideas. The great pathfinders in world
+thought, _Plato_, _Aristotle_, _Spinoza_, _Kant_, and whoever may be
+ranked with them, remain the living teachers of philosophy." Thus we hold
+those great intellectual achievements, _Plato's_ doctrine and ideas,
+_Spinoza's_ atheistic pantheism, _Aristotle's_ objectivism and _Kant's_
+subjectivism, with other views of the world of most variegated patterns,
+all contradicting and excluding one another, all dubious, none sure. What
+would be said of an astronomy that could do nothing better than fix the
+telescope on the different stars and then tell its disciples: Now look for
+what you please, ideas of _Ptolemy_ or _Copernicus_; _Aristotle's_ theory
+of the spheres or _Newton's_ theory of gravity; each has its points, but
+of none can it be said it is certain! Such an astronomy would probably be
+left to its deserved fate.
+
+In the most important points of religion mankind has ever, even in pagan
+times, recognized the truth, albeit imperfectly. This is evinced by the
+conviction that there exists a personal God and a hereafter; convictions
+which can be proved historically. God's revelation has provided those who
+desire to believe with a fuller knowledge of the truth: heaven and earth
+will pass away, but these words will not pass away. But what is already in
+our safe possession cannot be once more discovered by research. What has
+already been found is no longer an object of research. Mankind's lot would
+be a sad one indeed were this unprepossessed science in the right; if in
+the most important questions of life it were condemned forever to
+tantalizing doubt. God's providence has ordained matters more kindly for
+humanity.
+
+On the other hand, it is a poor science that has nothing to offer but an
+eternal query for the truth. A poor science, that with self-consciousness
+promises enlightenment and what not, but finally can give nothing but
+ceaseless doubt instead of truth, tormenting darkness instead of cheerful
+light. Why, then, research where nothing can be found? Why raise searching
+eyes to the sky when the stars do not show themselves? What kind of
+progress is this when science does nothing further than dig forever at the
+foundation? The great _St. Augustine_ has long also passed judgment on
+this kind of science: "Such doubting is abhorred by the City of God as
+false wisdom, because among the things which we grasp with our intellect
+and reason there is a knowledge, limited, it is true, because the soul is
+weighed down by a perishable body, as the Apostle says: _ex parte
+scimus_--but which has full certainty" (De Civitate Dei, XIX, 18).
+
+
+
+An Erroneous Supposition.
+
+
+The errors just dealt with, and the demand that scientific research must
+doubt everything, is based on a supposition often stated expressly as a
+principle, and which appears quite plausible even to a mind not trained in
+philosophy. It says: There is but one certainty, the scientific certainty;
+the certain possession of the truth can be obtained only by scientific
+research. To rid the world of error, we are told, "there is but one way,
+viz., scientific work. Only science and scientific truth are able to
+dispose of error" (_Th. Lipps_, Allgemeine Zeitung, Muenchen, August 4,
+1908). "Truth is scientific truth, based on criticism, hence the religion
+of modern man must also rest on critical truth.... There is no other
+authority but science" (_Masaryk_, Kampf um die Religion, 13).
+
+This sort of speech we hear from the college chair as the slogan for
+education and enlightenment: any one deficient in science or in education
+belongs more or less to the unthinking mass who have no convictions of
+their own, but submit blindly to impressions and authority.
+
+
+    Such unclarified conceptions, with their inferences, are even met
+    with where they would not be expected, for instance, we read:
+    "What the average individual needed was a good shepherd, a
+    shepherd's devotion and love, that uplifts and urges onward; it
+    was authority, Church-ministry and care of souls, that was needed.
+    The Church is an organized pastorate, for the average individual
+    likes to go with the flock. The chosen are they who feel within
+    themselves the great question of truth as the care of their heart
+    and task of their life, who experience its tremendous tension, and
+    who are struggling to the end with the intellectual battles
+    provoked by this question of truth. The average people, _i.e._,
+    the many, the great majority, need something steady to which they
+    can cling--persons and teachers, laws and practice." And why this
+    uncharitable distinction between people belonging to the flock and
+    the chosen ones, as if the Church and its ecclesiastical functions
+    were only appointed for the former? Particularly because "without
+    methodical scientific work man cannot attain to the truth" (_H.
+    Schell_, Christus, 1900, 125, 64).
+
+
+Thus science may summon everything before its forum, no one having a right
+to interfere; in the superiority bestowed by the right of autocracy it may
+sweep aside everything that is opposed to it, no matter by what authority.
+Hence science must be free to jolt everything, free to question the truth
+of everything, which it has not itself examined and approved. This is the
+fundamental supposition of modern freedom of science; also a fatal error,
+betraying a woeful ignorance of the construction of the human intellect,
+in spite of all its pretentiousness. As a rule we have a true certainty in
+most matters, particularly in philosophical-religious convictions, a
+certainty not gained by scientific studies; by aid of the latter we may
+explain or strengthen that certainty, but we are not free to upset it.
+
+We cannot avoid examining this point a little closer. There is a twofold
+certainty, one, which we shall call the _natural_ certainty, is a firm
+conviction based on positive knowledge, but without a clear reflexive
+consciousness of the grounds on which the conviction is actually resting.
+Reason recognizes these grounds, but the recognition is not distinct
+enough for reason to become conscious of them, to be able to state them
+accurately and in scientific formulas. _scientific_ certainty is a firm
+conviction, with a clear consciousness of the grounds, hence it can easily
+account for them. Natural certainty is the usual one in human life;
+scientific certainty is the privilege of but a few, and even they have it
+in but very few things.
+
+
+    Everybody has a positive intellectual certainty that a complicated
+    order cannot be the result of accident, and that for every event
+    there must be a cause, though not every one will be able readily
+    to demonstrate the truth of his certainty. But if the philosopher
+    should look for the proof, he would do so in no other way than by
+    reflecting upon his natural and direct knowledge, and by trying to
+    become conscious of what he has thus directly found out. To
+    illustrate by a few examples: We are all convinced of the
+    existence of an exterior world, and any one who is not an idealist
+    will call this conviction a reasonable certainty, and yet only a
+    few will be able to answer the subtle questions of a sceptic. This
+    certainty again is a natural but not a scientific one. How
+    difficult it is here also for reason to attain scientific
+    certainty, how easy it is to go astray in these researches, is
+    proved by the errors of idealism so incomprehensible to the
+    untrained natural mind. Let us ask, finally, any one: Why must we
+    say: "_Caesar_ defeated _Pompey_," but not "_Caesar_ defeated of
+    _Pompey_"? He will tell us this is nonsense; maybe he will add
+    that the genitive has another meaning. But should I ask further
+    how the meaning of the genitive differs from that of the
+    accusative, as both cases seem to have often the same meaning, I
+    shall get no answer. There is a certitude, but only a natural one.
+    Even if I should ask modern students of the psychology and history
+    of languages, like _Wundt_, _Paul_, or whatever their names may
+    be, I should not get a satisfactory answer either. The whole logic
+    of language, with its subtle forms and moods of expression--how
+    difficult for scientific research! And yet the mind of even a
+    child penetrates it, and not only a European child, but the
+    Patagonian and negro child, who is able to master by its
+    intellectual power complex languages, with four numbers, many
+    moods, fourteen tenses, etc.
+
+    These examples will suffice, though volumes of them could be
+    written. They show us clearly a twofold certainty. The difference
+    between the natural and scientific certainty is not that the
+    former is a blind conviction formed at random, but only that one
+    is not clearly conscious of the reasons on which it rests, whereas
+    this is the case in scientific certitude. We see further the
+    untrained power of the intellect manifest itself in natural
+    knowledge and certainty; for this purpose it is primarily created;
+    philosophical thought is difficult for it, and many have no talent
+    at all for it. It is also unfailing in apprehending directly
+    things pertaining to human life. Here the mind is free of that
+    morbid scepticism of which it too easily becomes a prey when it
+    begins to investigate and probe scientifically. What it there sees
+    with certainty cannot always be found here distinctly, and thus
+    the mind begins to doubt things it was hitherto sure of, and which
+    often remain instinctively certain to the mind despite its
+    artificial doubts. Now we can also understand why philosophers so
+    often have doubts which to the untrained look absurd, and why
+    philosophers differ in their opinions on most important things,
+    whereas mankind guided by its natural certitude is unanimous in
+    them.
+
+
+This certainty is destined to be the reliable guide of man through life.
+It precedes science, and can even exist without it. Long before there was
+a science of art and of jurisprudence the Babylonians and Egyptians had
+built their monuments, and _Solon_ and _Lycurgus_ had given their wise
+laws. And long before philosophers were disputing about the moral laws,
+men had the right view in regard to virtue and vice (cf. _Cicero_, De
+Oratore, I, 32). The same certitude is also destined to guide man in the
+more important questions, in the questions of religion and morality. The
+Creator of human nature and its destiny, who implanted instinct in the
+animal to guide it unconsciously in the necessities of life, has also
+given to man the necessary light to perceive with certainty truths without
+which it would be impossible to live a life worthy of man.
+
+It is just this natural knowledge and certitude that gives man certainty
+of divine revelation, after God vouchsafed to give it to mankind for its
+unfailing guidance and help. For revelation was not only intended for
+theologians, Bible critics, philosophers, and Church-historians, but for
+all. And God has taken care, as He had to do, that man has ample evidence
+that God has spoken, and that the Church is the authorized Guardian of
+this revelation, even without critical research in history and philosophy.
+We have elsewhere briefly stated this evidence in the words of the Vatican
+Council.
+
+
+    This evidence is seen in the invincible stability of the Church
+    and its unity of faith, the incontestable miracles never ceasing
+    within it, the grand figures of its Saints and Martyrs, virtue in
+    the various classes, a virtue increasing in proportion to the
+    influence the Church exerts, the spectacle that everything truly
+    noble is attracted by the Christian faith and the contrary
+    repulsed. In addition the intrinsic grandeur and harmony of the
+    truths of faith, above all the unique figure of Christ, with His
+    wonderful life and sufferings, also the calm and peace of mind
+    effected in the soul of the faithful by living and thinking in
+    this faith; all these tell him that here the spirit of God is
+    breathing, the spirit of truth. The natural light of his
+    intellect, further illuminated by grace, suffices to give him a
+    true intellectual certainty of his faith, based upon these motives
+    and similar ones, even without scientific studies. The calmness of
+    the mind that holds fast to this faith, the compunction and unrest
+    which follow defection from the faith, both so characteristic of
+    Catholics, prove that their minds embrace the truth in their
+    faith.
+
+    Hence it betrays little philosophical knowledge of the peculiarity
+    of man's intellectual life, if infidelity approaches an
+    inexperienced, believing student, perhaps even an uneducated
+    labourer, with the express assurance that his faith hitherto has
+    been but a blind belief, an unintelligent following of the lead of
+    a foreign authority, with the distinct admonition to turn his back
+    on the faith of his childhood.
+
+    What has been said above makes it clear why a Catholic is not
+    permitted to have a serious doubt about his faith under the
+    pretext that he ought first to form a certain conviction all for
+    himself by scientific investigation. He has it already, if we
+    presuppose sufficient instruction and normal conditions; he may
+    raise his natural certitude to a scientific one by study if he has
+    the time and talent for it, but he must not condition his assent
+    upon the success of his scientific investigations. He has
+    certitude; he has no right to demand scientific knowledge as a
+    necessary condition, because it is not required for certitude, and
+    also because it lies altogether outside of the conditions of human
+    life. It would amount simply to shaking off the yoke of truth. The
+    Church teaches as follows: "If any one says that the condition of
+    the faithful and of those who have not yet come to the only true
+    faith is equal, so that Catholics can have a just cause for
+    suspending their assent and calling in question the faith which
+    they have received by the ministry of the Church until they have
+    completed the scientific demonstration of the credibility and
+    truth of it, let him be anathema."
+
+
+How high this wisdom rises above the limited thought of a science that
+imagines itself alone to be wise! Sad indeed would be the lot of mankind
+could it attain to certain truth in the most important questions of life
+only by lengthy scientific investigations. The overwhelming majority of
+mankind would be forever excluded from the certain knowledge that there is
+a God, an eternity, liberty, that there are immutable moral laws and
+truths, on the value of which depends the woe and weal of humanity.
+
+
+    Behold the wisdom of the world that is put before us: "In order to
+    arrive at a definite conclusion by our own philosophical reasoning
+    (on the existence of God and the possibility of miracles) what a
+    multitude of things must be presupposed!" Thus we are informed in
+    a philosophical novel of modern times which aims at proving the
+    incompatibility of the Catholic duty to believe with the freedom
+    of the intellect [Katholische Studenten, by _A. Friedwald_ (nom de
+    plume). An explanation of the ideas contained in it is given by
+    the Academia 18, 1905-6, December and March. The ideas found in
+    the novel are also advanced by _A. Messer_, Einfuehrung in die
+    Erkenntnistheorie, 1909, p. 158 _seq._]. And Prof. _Rhodius_, who
+    put the ideas of the novel in formulas, teaches: "The question
+    whether our knowledge could penetrate beyond what we know by our
+    experience and even our senses, is answered, as you know, in the
+    negative by a noted philosophical school. Hence, before attacking
+    those metaphysical questions regarding the existence of God and
+    His relations to the world, we must first try to have definite
+    views as to the essence of human knowledge, of its criterion, its
+    scope, and of the degrees of its certainty. But these preliminary
+    questions of theoretic knowledge, how difficult and perplexing
+    they are! You probably have not the faintest idea into what a mass
+    of individual problems the main questions must be dissected, nor
+    what a multitude of heterogeneous views are struggling here
+    against one another" (p. 181).
+
+    Consider how shortsighted a wisdom is manifested by these words.
+    Is it seriously intended to summon the peasant from his plough,
+    the old grandmother from behind the stove, and lead them into the
+    lecture rooms of the university in order that they might there
+    listen to lectures on phenomenalism, and positivism, and realism,
+    and criticism, until their heads are swimming? Or else can they
+    not hope to arrive at the truth? Do they seriously think that the
+    truth asked for by every man, the truth in the most vital
+    questions of mankind, is the exclusive privilege of a few college
+    professors? And how very few. More than twenty-four hundred years
+    have elapsed since the days of _Pythagoras_, and yet modern
+    philosophy still stands before the first preliminary question in
+    all knowledge, whether a man can know what the eye does not see.
+    "Many views are at variance there." If this be the only way for
+    mankind to reach certain truth, then we are indeed in a pitiful
+    plight!
+
+    We esteem philosophy and its subtle questions, and we heartily
+    wish our Catholic young men in college to obtain a more thorough
+    philosophical training. But if, involved in theories, one will
+    lose his insight into the world and human life to such a degree as
+    to make of the "wisdom of the world" an isolated narrow
+    speculation which boasts of being alone able to discover the
+    higher truths, while withering in neurasthenic doubt--such wisdom
+    should be left to its deserved fate, sterility.
+
+    Or should it be possible to the ideal of Protestantism--and
+    therefore also of the modern spirit--to console mankind by pointing
+    out that the knowledge of the question which concerns us most
+    deeply, "the knowledge of God and the knowledge of good, remains
+    but a leading idea and problem, though we are confident of
+    advancing nearer to its solution"? Is thus mankind to be eternally
+    without light in the most important questions and problems? Every
+    little plant and animal is equipped by nature with everything it
+    needs--and man alone to be a failure? The young shoots of the tree
+    strive to bring forth blossoms and fruit, and succeed; the bird
+    flies off in the fall in quest of a new home, and finds it; hunger
+    and thirst demand food and get it; only the aim of the human mind
+    shall never be fulfilled--he alone shall ever pine without
+    hope!--_Dicentes se esse sapientes stulti facti sunt._ What a
+    difference between such principles and the grand thoughts of
+    Christianity! A difference like that between peace and eternal
+    restless doubt, like that between man's dignity and man's
+    degradation, between man's short-sightedness and the wisdom of
+    God.
+
+
+Hence the result of our discussion is: independent of science mankind has
+its positive convictions, independent of science it finds here rest and
+gratification in its longing for truth. Scientific study and research are
+for the purpose of setting these truths in a brighter light, of defending
+the patrimony of mankind. But the fosterer of science must not claim the
+freedom to ignore these positive convictions in himself and in others, to
+endanger the patrimony of mankind by doubts and attacks instead of
+protecting it, much less must he condemn the human mind to the eternal
+labour of _Sisyphus_, to the eternal rolling of a huge stone which,
+recoiling, must always be lifted anew.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter IV. Accusations And Objections.
+
+
+Among the notable facts in history one stands out prominently, it is more
+remarkable than any other, and evokes serious thought. It is the fact that
+the Christian religion, especially its foremost representative, the
+Catholic Church, concerning which every unbiassed critic is bound to admit
+that none has made more nations moral, happy and great than this Church;
+that nowhere else has virtue and holiness flourished more than in her;
+that no one else has laboured more for truth and purity of morals; that
+nevertheless there is not, and never was, an institution which has more
+enemies, which has been more persecuted, than the Catholic Church. This
+fact will suggest to every serious-minded critic the question, whether we
+have not here focussed that tremendous struggle, which truth and justice
+have ever waged in the bosom of mankind against error and passions--an
+image of the struggle raging in every human breast. The Church recognizes
+in this fact the fulfilment of the prophecy of her Founder: "And ye shall
+be hated by all men for my name's sake" (Luke xxi. 17). And the Church may
+add, that in her alone this prophecy is being fulfilled.
+
+
+
+The Enemy of Progress.
+
+
+In her journey through the centuries the Church has had to listen to many
+accusations because she, the keeper of the truth entrusted to her care,
+has refused to respond to the demand to accept unconditionally the ideals
+devised by existing fashions. _Cantavimus vobis et non saltastis_ (we have
+piped to you and you have not danced). Therefore the Church has been
+called reactionary; the heretics of the first centuries of Christianity
+denounced her as the enemy of the higher gnosis; a later period denounced
+her as an enemy of the genuine humanism, in the eighteenth century she was
+denounced as the enemy of enlightenment, to-day she is denounced as the
+enemy of progress. Again the Church is accused before the judicial bar of
+the children of the age. They desire to eat plentifully from the tree of
+knowledge, but the Church, they say, prevents them. They wish to climb the
+heights of human perfection, to ascend higher than any preceding
+generation, but the Church holds them back. She will keep them in the
+fetters of her guardianship. And with a keen, searching eye the smart
+children of our age have looked the old Church over, taking notice of
+everything, anxious to put her in the wrong.
+
+Their charges do not fail to make an impression, even on the Church
+herself. She wishes to justify herself before the plaintiffs, and still
+more before her own children who trust in her. Thus she has not hesitated
+in declaring loudly on most solemn occasions that _she is not an enemy of
+noble science_ and of human progress, and with great earnest she takes
+exception to this charge.
+
+No wonder, one might say, that the Church makes such assurances. It is
+time for her to realize that unless she can clear herself from it this
+accusation will be her moral ruin at a time when the banner of progress is
+held aloft, and when even the Catholic world shares in that progress.
+True, but let us not forget this: if there is anything characteristic of
+the Catholic Church it is her frankness and honesty. She is not afraid to
+proclaim her doctrines and judgments before the whole world; she leaves
+her Index and Syllabus open for inspection, openly avowing that she is the
+irreconcilable enemy of that emancipated freedom proclaimed by modern
+liberalism as the ideal of the age. It is the honesty which she inherited
+from her Founder, who told the truth to friend and enemy, to His disciples
+and to the Scribes, to _Nicodemus_, that lonely night, and to _Caiaphas_.
+With the same straightforwardness the Church declares that she feels not
+enmity but sympathy toward civilization. A fair-minded critic will admit
+here again that the Church is in earnest. "Far from opposing the fostering
+of human arts and sciences, the Church is supporting and promoting them in
+various ways," declares the Vatican Council. "The Church does not
+underrate nor despise their advantages for human life: on the contrary, it
+avows that they, coming as they do from God, the Master of the sciences,
+also lead to God by aid of His grace, when properly used" (Sess. III, c.
+4). The Church has put this accusation on the list of errors of the age
+condemned by _Pius X._ (Sent. 57). She feels the charge as an injury.
+
+
+
+The Testimony of History.
+
+
+Nevertheless, in anti-ecclesiastical circles it is taken very often for an
+established fact that the Roman Church has ever tried her best to hamper
+the progress of science, or has suppressed it, or at least scowled at it.
+How could it be otherwise? they say. How could she favour the progress
+made in enlightening reason or in advancing human knowledge? Must she not
+fear for its intellectual sway over men whom she keeps under the yoke of
+faith? Must she not fear that they might awaken from the slumber in which
+they were held prisoners by the suggestive force of her authority, held to
+be transcendental; that they might awaken to find out the truth for
+themselves? And what is the use of science? He that believes will be
+saved: hence faith suffices. If we wish to hear the accusation in the
+language of militant science, here it is: "Outside the monastic
+institutions no attempt at intellectual advancement was made (in the
+Middle Ages), indeed, so far as the laity were concerned, the influence of
+the Church was directed to an opposite result, for the maxim universally
+received was, that 'ignorance is the mother of devotion' " (_J. W.
+Draper_, History of the Conflict between Religion and Science).
+
+This is the train of thought and the result of anti-ecclesiastical
+a-priorism and its historical research. Are the plain facts of history in
+accord with it? The first and immediate task of the Church is certainly
+not to disseminate science: her task, first of all, lies in the province
+of morals and religion. But as she is the highest power of morality and
+religion, she stands in the midst of mankind's intellectual life, and
+cannot but come in contact with its other endeavours, owing to the close
+unity of that life. Hence, let us ask history, not about everything it
+might tell us in this respect, but about one thing only.
+
+We do not wish to show how the Church, headed by the Papacy, has become
+the mother of Western civilization and culture. Nor shall we enumerate the
+merits of the Church in art, nor point out the alertness she has certainly
+shown, in her walk through the centuries, by taking up the intellectual
+achievements of the time and assimilating them with her moral and
+religious treasure of faith, withal preserved unchanged. The old Church
+had done this with the treasures of ancient learning and science; "this
+spirit of Christianity proved itself by the facility with which Christian
+thinkers gathered the truth contained in the systems of old philosophy,
+and, even before that, by assimilating those old truths into Christian
+thought, the beginning of which had already been made in the New
+Testament. They were appropriated, without hesitating experiment, without
+wavering, and were given their place in a higher order" (_O. Willmann_,
+Gesch. des Idealismus, 2d ed., II, 1907, 67). This, she unceasingly
+continues to do, as proved by the high standard of Catholic life and
+Catholic science at the present, a fact not even disputed by opponents. We
+point only incidentally to _the foundation and the fostering of primary
+schools_ by the Church. It is an historical fact that public education
+began to thrive only with the freer unfolding of the Church.
+
+
+    The first elementary schools were those of the monasteries. Later
+    on there were established after their pattern the cathedral and
+    chapter schools, then the parish schools. Still later there came
+    the town and village schools--all of ecclesiastical origin, or at
+    least under the direction of the Church and in close connection
+    with her. As early as 774 we find an ecclesiastical school law, to
+    the effect that each Bishop should found an ecclesiastical school
+    in his episcopal town and appoint a competent teacher to instruct
+    "according to the tradition of the Romans." _Eugene II._ ordained
+    in 826 anew that efficient teachers should be provided for the
+    cathedral schools wherever needed, who were "to lecture on the
+    sciences and the liberal arts with zeal." "All Bishops should have
+    the liberal arts taught at their churches," was a resolution of
+    the Council held in Rome in 1079 by _Gregory VII._ We read in the
+    acts of the Lateran Synod of 1179: "Inasmuch as it behooves the
+    Church, like a loving mother, to see to it that poor children who
+    cannot count upon the support of their parents should not lack
+    opportunity of learning to read and make progress, there should at
+    every cathedral church be given an adequate prebend to the
+    teacher--who is to teach the clerics of this church and the poor
+    pupils gratuitously" (_E. Michael_, Gesch. des Deutschen Volkes
+    II, 1899, 370). School education flourished more and more; in the
+    thirteenth century it was in full bloom. In Germany even many
+    unimportant places, market towns, boroughs, and villages had their
+    schools at that time. In Mayence and its immediate neighbourhood
+    there were, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, seven chapter
+    schools; at Muenster at least four schools; the clerical schools
+    at Erfurt had an attendance of no less than 1,000 pupils. About
+    the year 1400 the diocese of Prague alone had 460 schools. In the
+    middle Rhine district, about the year 1500, many counties had an
+    elementary school for every radius of two leagues; even rural
+    communities with 500 to 600 inhabitants, like Weisenau near Mainz,
+    and Michaelstadt in Odenwald, did not lack schools. (_J. Janssen_,
+    Gesch. des Deutschen Volkes, 15th ed., 1890, 26; cf. Michael, 1.
+    c. 402, 417-419; _Palacky_, Gesch. v. Boehmen, III, 1, p. 186).
+    Even in far-off Transylvania there was, as early as the fourteenth
+    century, no village without a church and a school (_K. Th.
+    Becker_, Die Volksschule der Siebenbuerger Sachsen, 1894, y;
+    Michael, 430). There is no doubt that this flourishing state of
+    schools was due in the first place to the stimulus, support, and
+    unselfish effort of the Church.
+
+
+But we will not dwell longer on this subject. We wish, however, to point
+out more plainly something more closely related to our subject, viz., _the
+attitude of the Church towards the universities_, at a time when the most
+prominent nurseries of science were first coming into existence and
+beginning to flourish, when they began to exert their influence upon the
+civilization of Europe. Here, in the first place, it should become clear
+whether it be true that the Church has ever looked upon the progress of
+science with suspicion or even suppressed it. History teaches, in this
+instance again, that no one has shown more interest, more devotion, more
+readiness, to make sacrifices in promoting the establishment and growth of
+the university, than the Church.
+
+When, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, the thirst for knowledge,
+stronger than at any time in history, made itself felt in the Christian
+countries of Europe, there were erected in the universities great
+international homes of science, so as to gratify the deeply felt need of
+education. And thousands hastened to these places to acquire the knowledge
+of the period, overcoming all difficulties, then much greater than now. A
+recent writer remarks about this not without reason: "The academic
+instruction met on part of the thronging thousands with a psychic
+disposition more favourable than at any other time. In a way it was here a
+case of first love" (_W. Muench_, Zukunftspaedagogik, 1908, 337). At the
+universities of the Middle Ages there were taught theology, ecclesiastical
+and civil law, the liberal arts, and medicine. But not in the manner that
+all four faculties were everywhere represented. Theology especially was
+quite frequently lacking, though the aim was to have all sciences
+represented. What since the beginning of the thirteenth century was first
+of all understood by a university were _studia generalia_--then the usual
+name for universities, in contradistinction to _studium particulare_.
+Universities enjoyed the privilege of having their academic degrees
+honoured everywhere, and their graduates could teach anywhere. The
+universities were of an international character. Hence it happened that at
+the German universities there were sitting in quest of knowledge by the
+side of Germans also foreign youths, from Scotland, Sweden, and Norway,
+from Italy and France, all contending for academic honours--a moment which
+unquestionably contributed in no small degree to the improvement of
+education.
+
+Prior to the Reformation, universities were not state institutions, as
+they are at present in Europe, but free, independent corporations. They
+were complete in themselves, they made their own statutes, had their own
+jurisdiction, and many other privileges. The modern university enjoys but
+a small remnant of those ancient prerogatives. In a public speech, made in
+the presence of the Duke of Saxony, the Leipsic professor, _Johann Kone_,
+could say in 1445: "No king, no chancellor, has any right to interfere
+with our privileges and exemptions; the university rules itself, and
+changes and improves its statutes according to its needs" (_Janssen_, 1.
+c. 91).
+
+Up to the year 1300 there were no less than 23 universities established in
+Italy, 5 in France, 2 in England, 4 in Spain, and 1 in Portugal. "Had all
+intentions been realized, Europe would have had by the year 1400 no fewer
+than 55 universities, including Paris and Bologna. But of 9 of them there
+are extant only the charter deeds that were never executed. At any rate,
+there were 46 of them, of which 37 or 39 existed at the turn of the
+fourteenth century; a considerable number, which was not known till recent
+years" (_Denifle_). Germany, Austria, and Hungary shared in 8: Prague,
+Cracow, Vienna, Fuenfkirchen, Ofen, Heidelberg, Cologne, and Erfurt.
+Within fifty years, from 1460 to 1510, no less than 9 universities were
+founded in Germany--a clear proof of the generous enthusiasm for science of
+that period.
+
+By their fostering and founding of universities, secular princes have won
+the lasting gratitude of posterity, and so have the municipalities of a
+later period for showing an even greater zeal than those princes. But it
+was indisputably the Church that bestowed upon these homes of learning and
+culture the greatest benevolence and support for their foundation and
+maintenance.
+
+In the first place, history shows that the majority of them were founded
+by _Papal charters_. Since universities were understood to have the power
+of conferring degrees of international value, they had to be universally
+acknowledged; this could be effected only by an authority of universal
+recognition; hence by the Roman-German Emperor--as the supreme prince of
+the world-wide Christian monarchy, or by the Pope, who was considered in
+the first place. He was the general Father and Teacher of Christendom;
+this is why Papal charters were so zealously sought after, in addition to
+imperial charters. Of the 44 universities called into existence before the
+year 1400, 31 were founded by Papal charters. A similar condition
+prevailed in the fifteenth century and afterwards, up to the Reformation.
+This was no interference in foreign affairs: such an interpretation would
+have caused just surprise in the Middle Ages. That the highest spiritual
+power on earth should have the first claim in education was a matter of
+general concession. And certainly the manner in which the Church made use
+of this right, to speak with an historian of the universities, forms "one
+of the most important, and by no means least inglorious, parts of an
+activity so manifold and difficult" (_V. A. Huber_, Die Englischen
+Universitaeten, I, 1839, p. 14).
+
+These Papal charters breathe a warm _benevolence_ for science. Everywhere
+we find the wish expressed, that studies thrive in those places which are
+most suitable for the effectual spread of science, and that the different
+countries have a sufficient number of scientifically trained men.
+
+
+    Read, for instance, the charter given by Pope _Boniface VIII._ to
+    Pamiers and Avignon, or the Letter of Privileges granted to
+    Coimbra by _Clement V._ (apud _Denifle_, 793, 524), or _Pius
+    II.'s_ Bull founding the university of Basle. The Pope says here
+    about the aim of science: "Among the various blessings to which
+    man may by the grace of God attain in this mortal life, the last
+    place is not to be given to persevering study, by which man may
+    gain the pearl of the sciences, which point out the way to a good
+    and happy life, and by their excellence elevate the learned men
+    above the uneducated. Science makes man like to God, and enables
+    him to clearly perceive the secrets of the world. It aids the
+    unlearned, it elevates to sublime heights those born in the
+    lowliest condition." "For this reason the Holy See has always
+    promoted the sciences, given them homes, and provided for their
+    wants, that they might flourish, so that men, well directed, might
+    the more easily acquire so lofty a human happiness, and, when
+    acquired, share it with others." This was the longing desire that
+    led to the opening at Basle of "a plentiful spring of science, of
+    whose fulness all those may draw who desire to be introduced into
+    the study of the mysteries of Scripture and learning." Even prior
+    to this, the same Pope had written to the Duke _Louis of Bavaria_:
+    "The Apostolic See desires the widest possible extension of
+    science," which, "while other things are exhausted by
+    dissemination, is the only thing that expands the more the greater
+    the number of those reached by it" (apud _Janssen_, 1. c, p. 89).
+
+
+But the Church was not satisfied with granting charters. She also gave
+very _substantial material aid_ to most of the universities. The Popes
+maintained two universities at Rome, one of them connected with the Papal
+Curia, a sort of court-school. It was founded by _Innocent IV._, in order
+that the many who came to the Papal court from all parts of Christendom
+might satisfy also their thirst for knowledge. Theology, law, especially
+civil law, medicine, and languages, including Oriental languages, were
+taught there. Besides this there was another university at Rome, founded
+by _Boniface VIII._ for a similar purpose: it did not flourish long,
+though in 1514 it counted no less than eighty-eight professors. Many
+attempts to found or support universities would have proved abortive had
+not the Popes provided for the salaries of professors by prebends and
+stipends, and by allotting to that end a portion of the income of priests
+and churches. Bishops, too, proved themselves zealous patrons of the
+universities (_Paulsen_, Gesch. des gelehrten Unterrichts, 2d ed., I,
+1898, p. 27).
+
+
+    Thus, to cite a few examples of German universities, there was in
+    1532, with the consent of the Archbishop _Arnest_, a contribution
+    raised by the clergy for the endowment of the university of
+    Prague, to which the various cloisters and chapters, especially
+    those at Prague, contributed. With the money thus raised the
+    Archbishop purchased property, the income from which was to
+    provide salaries for the professors. Twelve professors received
+    from _Urban V._ the canonicates of the church of All Saints
+    (_Denifle_, 598). Erfurt university was given 4 canonicates,
+    Cologne 11, Greifswald still more. Similarly Tuebingen, Breslau,
+    Rostock, Wittenberg, and Freiburg were cared for (_Kaufmann_, Die
+    Gesch. der Deutschen Universitaeten, II, 1896, p. 34, _seq._).
+    Vienna found a benefactor in the pastor of Gars, who on October
+    13, 1370, founded a purse for 3 sublectors and 1 scholar.
+    Heidelberg received 10 canonicates. Its great benefactor was the
+    learned _Johann von Dalberg_, first curator of the university, and
+    later Bishop of Worms. Under him Heidelberg reached the zenith of
+    its lustre, and laid the foundation of almost all that has won it
+    the reputation it at present enjoys. By his co-operation the first
+    chair of Greek was founded; to him the foundation of the college
+    library is due, which later on gained world-wide fame under the
+    name of "Palatina." He further collected a private library, rich
+    in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew books, the use of which was open to
+    all scientists. "The Rhenish Literary Society" attained its
+    greatest prominence under his direction (_Janssen_, 1. c.
+    100-105). Ingolstadt, too, obtained its needed income by the
+    donation of rich church-prebends, to such an extent that the
+    "endowments netted the university about 2,500 florins," a very
+    large sum for that time (_Kaufmann_, 1. c. 38). _Prantl_ also
+    admits in regard to Ingolstadt: "The Papal Curia did its best to
+    furnish the university" (Gesch. der Ludwig-Maximilian in
+    Ingolstadt, 1872, I, 19, apud _Janssen_, 1. c. p. 9).
+
+
+It is true, the Church then owned much property. But it is just as true
+that she was ever ready to support science and colleges out of this
+property. Pope and clergy were also taking incessant pains to make it
+possible for _poor students_ to attend the university, not only for
+theological students, but for those of all the faculties, to give an
+opportunity to rich and poor alike to enjoy the advantages of higher
+education. Stipends and legacies of this kind are numerous. Even in our
+own days many a son of an _alma mater_ owes the stipend he enjoys to
+endowments made by the Church. In the course of time there were
+established at most of the universities so-called _colleges_ for the
+purpose of offering shelter and maintenance to poor students.
+
+
+    These colleges contributed essentially to the flourishing
+    condition of the university. Thus _Albrecht v. Langenstein_
+    suggested, at the founding of Vienna university, to the Duke,
+    _Albrecht of Austria_, the establishment of such colleges,
+    inasmuch as the continuance of the university was dependent on
+    them, and stated that Paris owed its prosperity to them
+    (_Denifle_, 624).
+
+    The Popes set here the best example. _Zoen_, Bishop of Avignon,
+    had provided in his testament that eight students from the
+    province of Avignon should be maintained at Bologna by his
+    successors from their estates at Bologna. These estates, however,
+    were sold later on. _John XXII._ then interfered in favour of the
+    students injured thereby and annulled the deed of purchase. The
+    income was set aside and increased to an amount sufficient for
+    thirty scholars; later on the Pope endeavoured to raise their
+    number to fifty. At the same celebrated academy, which, next to
+    Paris, had long been a beacon of science sought from near and
+    afar, _Urban V._ founded a home for poor students and directed the
+    appropriation of 4,000 gold ducats a year for it. From June 16,
+    1367, to June 15, 1368, the home received an appropriation of
+    5,908 ducats in gold and 155 baskets of cereals. His successor,
+    _Gregory XI._, set himself to the task of completing the work
+    begun. Out of the income of the Church he ordered appropriated in
+    the future 1,500 ducats a year for thirty students, of whom one
+    half were to study Canon Law, the other half Civil Law. He then
+    decreed the purchase of a home for 4,500 ducats in gold, and
+    ordered to pay out immediately 4,000 florins in gold for the next
+    school year. Besides the college named, _Urban V._ had founded one
+    at Montpellier for medical students, and another, which had its
+    seat at first at Trets, later at Monosque. During his pontificate
+    this Pope maintained no less than 1,000 students at various
+    institutions. Toulouse also had several colleges for poor
+    students, founded by high princes of the Church. In the year 1359
+    _Innocent VI._ devoted his own home at Toulouse with all its
+    possessions and its entire income to twenty poor students, ten of
+    whom were to study Canon Law and ten Civil Law. For their further
+    maintenance he ordered given to them, besides other things, 25,000
+    florins in gold "manualiter" (_Denifle_, 213 _seq._, 308 _seq._,
+    339).
+
+
+Finally, nearly all universities, whether they owed their existence to
+ecclesiastical or civil power, received many and far-reaching _privileges_
+from the Popes. Not the least one was for clerical students the
+dispensation to free them from the requirement of residence for the
+enjoyment of their benefices, which made it possible for them to study in
+remote university towns, where they were free to study not only theology,
+but other sciences as well. This dispensation was quite common.
+Furthermore, the Popes protected in the most energetic way the
+universities in their privileges and freedom every time they were applied
+to for aid.
+
+
+    This happened, for instance, at Bologna. The students there had
+    their free guilds. The municipal authorities began to restrict
+    their privileges by forbidding native students under heavy
+    penalties to study outside of Bologna, which was later on extended
+    to the alien students. The professors sided with the city.
+    _Honorius III._ in 1220 called upon the latter to repeal those
+    statutes; if they wanted to confine the students to the city, it
+    should be done by clemency, not with severity and coercion. The
+    city relented. But we see again in 1224 the students appeal, for
+    the third time since 1217, to the Pope, begging for protection.
+    The tension had grown; the city was actually beginning to use
+    force. _Honorius_ sharply rebuked the city for this action,
+    threatening excommunication if the authorities continued to
+    suppress freedom. The city yielded completely, and the freedom of
+    the students was saved, thanks to their protector. Later on the
+    Popes had to interfere again. _Clement V._ had already ordered the
+    Bishops to protect the students at Bologna. His successor, _John
+    XXII._, received complaints that privileges of students in Italy
+    were being violated by authorities and citizens of the city.
+    Against the Podesta of Bologna especially complaints were made.
+    The Pope, in 1321 and 1322, bade the Bishops and Archbishops to
+    take measures against those who _directe et indirecte impedire
+    dieuntur, ne ad praedictum studium valeant declinare contra
+    apostolica et imperialia privilegia_. He appointed at Bologna a
+    special protector and conservator of the university. Some years
+    after, when the Podesta declined to take the _juramentum de
+    observandis statutis ejusdem studiis factis et faciendis_, he was
+    commanded to take the oath.
+
+    At Orleans there was a flourishing law school; especially its _jus
+    civile_ was famous. Professors and students were granted by
+    _Clement V._ the privilege of an autonomous university with the
+    right of free corporation, with the power to suspend lectures in
+    case they could get no satisfaction for any wrong done them. These
+    privileges were a thorn in the eye of the city; its citizens even
+    allowed violence to be done the university. Then _Philip the Fair_
+    interfered, but in a way which indicates that he did not know
+    sufficiently the university life of the Middle Ages. Moreover, he
+    annulled the granted free fellowship, and put professors and the
+    students under civil supervision. But this was not tolerated in
+    those days. The king had at the same time given many privileges,
+    but they were disregarded. In 1316 professors and students left
+    Orleans and the university ceased to exist. The first act of _John
+    XXII._ upon ascending the Papal throne was to restore this school,
+    the French king himself having begged his support in the matter.
+    The king's suggestion to take the privilege of free fellowship
+    from the professors and students was rejected by the Pope. The
+    Pope reaffirmed all privileges granted to the university,
+    whereupon the professors and students returned, to inaugurate the
+    most brilliant epoch of their college.
+
+
+Considering these facts, one may subscribe to the judgment of _Denifle_
+which he pronounces at the conclusion of his thorough treatise on the
+universities of the Middle Ages: "So far as the foundation of the
+universities can be spoken of, its merit belongs to the Popes, to secular
+rulers, clergy, and laity. But that the lion's share belongs to the Popes
+every one must admit who has followed my presentment, which is exclusively
+based on documents, and who examines history with impartiality" (Ib. 792
+_seq._). Even _Kaufmann_, who is very unfavourably disposed towards the
+Church, cannot deny that "numerous Popes have shown warm interest for the
+fostering of sciences during those centuries, and were for the most part
+themselves prominent representatives of science" (Ib. 403).
+
+That the mediaeval universities in some points, though not in all, were
+inferior to modern universities, was not their fault. No good judge of
+human conditions could expect it to be otherwise. The experience and
+efficiency of the mature man is not attained at once, but only after the
+exertions and experiments made by him during the period of youth and
+development. At a time when all the experiences in the field of school
+legislation, which are the property of the present day, had yet to be
+collected, when the relation between lower and higher schools had not been
+regulated in all respects, at that time it was not possible to be in the
+position we are in to-day. Future critics of our times will see in our
+present educational systems many gross defects, which often are not hidden
+even to our own eyes. But it would be arrogance for them to belittle our
+efforts, the fruits of which they will once enjoy without any merit on
+their part. The university of yore conformed to the educational purposes
+of that period; it was the focus of intellectual life, perhaps to a larger
+degree than is the case to-day. This suffices. Moreover, the number of
+professors was quite considerable, that of the students even more so. In
+Bologna in 1388 the number of professors was 70, not including the
+theologians, among them 39 jurists; in Piacenza there were from the years
+1398 to 1402 71 professors; among them were 27 teachers of Roman law and
+22 teachers of medicine (_Denifle_, 209, 571).
+
+In regard to the zeal displayed by the Church in promoting universities,
+it might be objected that she was caring in the first place for
+_theology_, not for the other sciences, and that the universities then had
+chiefly been established for theological students. This, however, is not
+the case. The universities especially favoured by the Popes were first of
+all law schools, chiefly of civil law, or medical schools. Those at
+Bologna, Padua, Florence, and Orleans were principally law schools; in
+Italy, in general, chief attention was paid to jurisprudence, particularly
+to Roman law. Montpellier was essentially a medical college; it attained
+during the thirteenth century preponderance even over Salerno. The
+assertion has been made that the vigorous life at this medical college was
+owing to its independence of Rome (_Haeser_, Lehrbuch der Geschichte der
+Medizin, 1, 655. Cfr. _Denifle_, 342). But _Denifle_ has proved that
+"clerical organs have been the moving spirits of the medical college at
+Montpellier."
+
+Nor did the Papal charter deeds exclude any profane science. The common
+formula, which always prevails, authorizes to teach indiscriminately _in
+jure canonico et civili necnon in medicina et qualibet alia licita
+facultate_. Only one science was frequently excepted, and that was just
+theology. Of the forty-six high schools that had been established up to
+the year 1400, about twenty-eight, therefore nearly two-thirds, excluded
+by their charter the teaching of theology. At first a number of
+universities sprang up merely as law schools, others as medical schools,
+and there was then no need to include the science of theology in the
+schedule of studies. Furthermore, Paris was ever since the twelfth century
+looked upon as the home and the natural place for theology (_Denifle_, 703
+f.). Hence the benevolence of the Church towards the universities was not
+merely determined by selfish interest.
+
+Or was it, nevertheless? May the Church not have bestowed so much care on
+the homes of science in order to increase her own influence thereby, and
+also with an eye to the future? This assertion has been made. But this
+assertion is an injustice and it is against the testimony of history. The
+Popes very often issued their charter deeds only then, when request was
+made by worldly rulers and by the cities themselves. Hence there was no
+hurried self-assertion. And the Church has never denied the right to
+worldly powers to found their own high schools. The theologians of the
+thirteenth century expressedly declared it to be the duty of princes to
+provide for institutions of learning (Cfr. _Thomas of Aquin_, De regimine
+principum, I, 13; Op. contra impug. relig. 3).
+
+
+    Thus up to the year 1400 nine high schools had received no
+    charters at all, ten only imperial charters or charters from their
+    local sovereigns. If the Popes had cared only about their
+    influence, why then did they treat such colleges with the same
+    benevolence? Spain's first college was founded at Paleneia in the
+    years 1212-1214 by _Alfonso VIII._ without asking the Pope. When
+    soon afterwards it was in trouble it was _Honorius III._ who aided
+    _Alfonso's_ successor in restoring it, by assigning some
+    ecclesiastical income to its professors. When the college was
+    nearly wrecked and Rome once more applied to for help, _Urban IV._
+    lent an aiding hand because he did not want _ut lucerna tanta
+    claritatis in commune mutorum dispendium sic extincta remaneat_.
+    _Frederick II._ had founded a university of his own. When it
+    failed it was _Clement IV._ who urged _King Charles_ of Anjou to
+    re-establish it. _In eodem regno facias et jubeas hujusmodi
+    studium reformari_ (_Denifle_, 478, 459). This is not the language
+    and action of one who is only ruled by the passion to spread his
+    own influence, and not guided by benevolence for science.
+
+    But it is true, in supporting the higher schools the Church did
+    not aim at science as its ultimate object; it was her view that
+    science should serve the material welfare of man, but still more
+    the highest ethical and religious purpose of life. This in general
+    was the conception of the entire Middle Ages. At that time it
+    would have been considered curious to seek a science ultimately
+    for its own sake.
+
+
+And the universities repaid the Church by gratitude and devotion. The
+effort has been made to demonstrate that the modern separation of science
+from religion had already begun in the Middle Ages, and had showed itself
+everywhere; this tendency for autonomy "appeared at first only timidly and
+in manifold disguises" (_Kaufmann_, 14). How easy it is to find such
+disguises may be shown by an example. The university of Paris had after
+the death of _St. Thomas_ asked for his remains. _Kaufmann_ holds that the
+notion of the autonomy of science had found sharp expression in the
+memorandum wherein the university stated the motive of its request. Now
+how does this harmless document sound? "Quoniam omnino est indecens et
+indignum ut alia ratio aut locus quam omnium studiorum nobilissima
+Parisiensis civitas quae ipsum prius educavit nutrivit et fovit et post
+modum ad eodem doctrinae monumenta et ineffabilia fomenta suscepit ossa
+... habeat.... Si enim Ecclesia merito ossa et reliquias Sanctorum honorat
+nobis non sine causa videtur honestum et sanctum tanti doctoris corpus in
+perpetuum penes nos habere in honore." Evidently the university requests
+the relic for itself, or rather for the Parisiensis civitas, not in
+opposition to the Church, but in opposition to other cities, altera natio
+aut locus. I wonder if the Parisian admirers of St. Thomas ever dreamed
+that they would one day be put in the light of forerunners of liberal
+science, because of their pious application for the bones of their great
+teacher? This is tantamount to carrying one's own idea into the fact.
+_Denifle_, probably the most competent judge of the affairs of mediaeval
+universities, writes as follows: "If we weigh the different acts which
+suggest themselves to us in these various foundations, and if we compare
+them with one another, there is revealed to us, in the realm of history of
+the foundation of mediaeval universities, a wonderful harmony between
+Church and State, between the spiritual and material. This is the reason
+why the universities of the Middle Ages appear to us as the highest civil
+as well as the highest ecclesiastical teaching institutions.
+Fundamentally, they are the product of the Christian spirit which
+penetrated the whole, wherein Pope and Prince, clergy and laity, each held
+the proper position" (l. c. p. 795).
+
+One consequence of this relation between the universities and the Church
+was that "they attained their greatest prosperity as long as the unity of
+Church and faith remained unimpaired, and that, at the time of the
+Reformation, they all sided with the Church with the exception of two,
+Wittenberg and Erfurt. Torn away from their ecclesiastical and established
+basis only by violent means, they were led to the new doctrine, but really
+succumbed to it only when their freedom had been curtailed and they had
+been reduced to state institutions" (_Janssen_, l. c. p. 91). They had
+been, as the learned _Wimpheling_ wrote at the close of the sixteenth
+century, "the most favoured daughters of the Church, who tried to repay by
+fidelity and attachment what they owed to their Mother" (De arte
+impressoria, apud _Janssen_, l. c. 91).
+
+
+
+A False Progress.
+
+
+Hence history cannot subscribe to the accusation that the Church is the
+enemy of progress. How then does it happen that this accusation is made so
+frequently? The idea suggests itself that there may be here a different
+meaning given to the word "progress," that the Church opposes a certain
+kind of progress which her enemies call "the" progress. And this is the
+actual fact. If we examine the proofs which are to show the hostile
+attitude of the Church, we meet at every step _Galileo_, the Copernican
+system, the Syllabus, and Index. But this appears only on the surface,
+which hides beneath it something that is easily overlooked by the cursory
+glance. And this is the precise definition of scientific and civilized
+progress. Progress has ever been an ideal of powerful attraction. The
+noblest and best of men have ever displayed the most earnest endeavour
+onward and upward. In our times, however, this ideal comes forward
+differently garbed, in the name of the new view of the world, and
+resolutely censures as reactionary everything that will oppose it. What is
+this definition?
+
+Since the _theory of evolution_ of _Lamarck_ and _Darwin_ entered biology,
+it has also more and more invaded other branches of science. The principle
+is now that everywhere, in the organic or inorganic world and in the whole
+province of human life there is a gradual growth and change--nothing
+permanent, nothing definite and absolute. Uninterrupted evolution
+hitherto; hereafter restless development; especially in the greatest good
+belonging to human life, thought, philosophy, and chiefly religion. Here,
+too, there are no forms nor dogmas which evolution in its continual
+development does not evolve and elevate. This idea of evolution is
+supplemented by subjectivism with its _relativism of truth_: all views,
+especially philosophical and religious "Truths," are no longer the
+reproduction of objectively existing things, but a creation of the
+subject, of his inner experience and feeling; hence each age must proceed
+to new thought of _its own_.
+
+
+    "The methods of scientific research," we are told, "are determined
+    by the idea of evolution, and this applies not only to natural
+    sciences but also to the so-called intellectual sciences,--history,
+    philology, philosophy, and theology. The idea of evolution
+    influences and dominates all our thoughts; without it progress in
+    the field of scientific knowledge is quite impossible." We read,
+    for instance, in the modern history of philosophy: "The rise and
+    fall of a system is a necessary part of universal history; it is
+    conditioned by the character of its time, the system being the
+    understanding of that time, while this understanding of the time
+    is conditioned by the fact that the time has changed." At
+    _Roscellin's_ time the nominalists were intellectually inferior;
+    but where there is question of undermining the militant Church of
+    the Middle Ages the nominalists will be considered to have been
+    the greater philosophers. In this the realists "by the futility of
+    their struggle proved that the time for nominalism had arrived,
+    hence that whoever favours it understands the time better; that
+    is, more philosophically. After the beginning of the Renaissance
+    we notice an attempt at philosophizing in such a way as to ignore
+    the existence of divine wisdom taught by Christianity. The
+    pre-Christian sages had done so: to philosophize in their spirit
+    was therefore the task of the time, and those who had a better
+    understanding of the time philosophized that way better than by
+    the scholastic method; though their method may appear reactionary
+    to unphilosophical minds" (_J. E. Erdmann_, Grundriss der Gesch.
+    der Philosophie, 3d ed., I (1878), 4, 262, 434, 502). This is a
+    frank denial of any truth in philosophy: the more neological and
+    modern a thing is, the more truth there is in it! Realism was
+    right in _Roscellin's_ time, but a later period had to sweep it
+    away. The Christian religion was right for the Middle Ages, but
+    when the Greek authors began to be read again it was no longer
+    modern.
+
+    Apostasy from the faith is considered a mark of progress. "Italian
+    natural philosophy," we are told, "reached its pinnacle with
+    _Bruno_ and _Campanella_, of whom the former, though the older,
+    appears to be more progressive on account of his freer attitude
+    towards the Church" (_R. Falkenburg_, Gesch. der neueren
+    Philosophie, 5th ed. (1905), page 30, _seq._). Hence evidently
+    further development of Christianity, too, is demanded. According
+    to subjectivistic views it was hitherto only an historical product
+    of the human intellect: hence "onward to new and higher forms
+    corresponding to modern thought and feeling, onward to a new
+    Christianity without dogmas and authority!" "Break up those old
+    tablets," spoke _Zarathustra_.
+
+
+Such is progress in thought and science, for which the way must be opened.
+That the immutable dogmas of Christianity, that the task of the Catholic
+Church to preserve revelation intact, are incompatible with it, that the
+Church appears reactionary, and as an obstacle to this progress, is now
+self-evident. Here we have the _deeper contrast between progress, in the
+anti-Christian sense, and the essence of Christianity_ in general, and,
+especially, of the _Catholic Church_.
+
+
+    "It is frankly admitted that the issue is the struggle between the
+    two views of the world--between the Christian, conservative
+    dogmatism and the anti-dogmatic evolutionary philosophy" (Neue
+    Freie Presse, Jun. 7, 1908). Faith according to its very essence
+    is immutable and stationary, science is essentially progressive:
+    they had therefore to part in a manner which could not be kept a
+    secret. "A divine revelation must necessarily be intolerant of
+    contradiction, it must repudiate all improvement in itself" (_J.
+    Draper_, History of the Conflict between Religion and Science,
+    VI). "The great opposition between the rigid dogmatism of the
+    Roman Catholic Church and the ever progressing modern science
+    cannot be removed" (Academicus, l. c. 362). So say the opponents
+    of the Church.
+
+
+There is no error, says _St. Augustine_, which does not contain some
+truth, especially when it is able to rule the thought of many. Hence its
+capacity to deceive. The same is true in the present case.
+
+There is evolution and progress in everything, or at least there should
+be. The individual gradually develops from the embryo into a perfect form,
+though it becomes nothing else than what it had formerly been in its
+embryonic state. Mankind advances rapidly in civilization; we no longer
+ride in the rumbling stage-coach but in a comfortable express train, and
+the tallow candle has been replaced by the electric light. Thus we demand
+progress also in knowledge and science, and even in religion. Many things
+that were obscure to older generations have become clear to us; we have
+corrected many an error, made many discoveries which were unknown to our
+ancestors. Many doctrines of faith, also, appear to our eyes in sharper
+outlines than before; of many we have a deeper understanding, discovered
+new relations, meanings, and deductions. Thus there is progress and
+development everywhere.
+
+But it would be erroneous to conclude from all this that there cannot be
+any stable truths and dogmas, that progress to new and different views and
+doctrines is necessary. By the same right we might conclude that the main
+principles of the Copernican system cannot be immutable, because they
+would hinder the progress of science. Progress certainly does not consist
+in throwing away all certainty acquired, in order to begin anew. Or does
+it really belong to progress in astronomy to again give up _Copernicus_,
+to go back to _Ptolemy_ and let the sun and all the stars revolve again
+around the earth? Does not progress rather consist in our studying these
+astronomical results more closely, in building up the details, and, first
+of all, in trying to solve new problems?
+
+The champion of the faith will reply: Just as established results do not
+hinder the progress of science, just so do the doctrines of faith not form
+an obstacle to progress and evolution. The fixed doctrines of the faith
+themselves, in themselves and in their application to the conditions of
+life, offer rich material for the growth of religious knowledge. And there
+is the immense field for progress in the profane sciences. If any one
+should say that the believing scientist, who is bound by his dogmas, can
+do nothing further but reiterate his old truths, one might in turn argue:
+Then the astronomer bound by the fundamental rules of the Copernican
+system could have only the monotonous task of drawing over and over again
+the outlines of his system, while the mathematician who holds the
+multiplication table to be an unalienable possession would not be allowed
+to do aught but to repeat the multiplication table.
+
+Or the argument may be put thus: We have made great progress in the
+material province of civilization, in science and art; "can an old
+religion suffice under these new and improved conditions, a religion which
+originated at an age when these conditions did not exist? This
+contradiction is shocking.... Progress in culture demands progress in
+religion.... We want a more perfect religion, a higher religion"
+(_Masaryk_, Im Kampf um die Religion, 1904, 29). Note the logic of this
+demonstration. We no longer light our rooms by the dim light of a small
+oil lamp, we walk no longer at night through dark narrow lanes, but
+through brightly illuminated avenues, does it follow from this that it can
+no longer be true that Christ is the Son of God, nor that He has worked
+miracles, or founded a Church, and a new religion is therefore necessary?
+We have made progress in our knowledge of history; we know a good deal of
+Rome and Carthage, of the civilization of ancient Egypt and of Greece, and
+of their mutual relations; we have other fashions of life than our fathers
+had, we build and paint differently--our political life, too, has grown
+more complicated; does it follow from all this, that it cannot be true
+that we are created by God, that we must believe a divine revelation,
+hence a new religion is necessary? Progress and evolution to consist in
+ever abandoning the old and advancing to new and different views--this is
+_absurd_. Absurd, in the first place, because it is no _progress_ at all,
+but a retrogression, a hopeless alternation of forwards and backwards.
+There can be no progress if I am always withdrawing from my old position;
+progress is possible only by retaining the basis established and then
+advancing therefrom. And _evolution_ is not a continuous remodelling and
+shaping anew, but a continuance in growth. Evolution means that the embryo
+unfolds, and by retaining and perfecting the old matter gradually becomes
+a plant; evolution is in the progress from bud to blossom; but not in the
+changing mass of clouds, swept away to-day by the current wind and
+replaced to-morrow by other clouds. An absurdity, also, for the reason
+that it violates all laws of reason, that once there was a revelation of
+God to be believed, but that this is no longer true.
+
+Furthermore, the demand to follow always "the ideas of the period"
+suggests the question: Who is to represent the period? Who represented
+Greece, the sophists or _Plato_? Who was representative of the first days
+of Christianity, the Roman emperors or the martyrs? Will not the passage
+in _Goethe's_ Faust apply in most cases: "What they call the spirit of the
+times is but their own mind wherein the times are reflected"? True, if
+progress is taken to be the overstepping by human reason of the eternal
+standards of immutable truth and the barriers of faith, if it is to be the
+attempt at emancipation from God and religion, then there is no more
+resolute foe of progress than the Christian religion, than the Catholic
+Church. But this is not progress but loss of the truth, not higher
+religion but apostasy, not development of what is best in man, but
+retrogression to mental disintegration by scepticism.
+
+
+
+The Syllabus.
+
+
+In the eyes of many it is especially the Syllabus of _Pius IX._ by which
+the Catholic Church has erected a lasting monument to its enmity to
+civilization. It is the Syllabus, we are told, in which _Pius IX._ has "ex
+cathedra condemned the freedom of science" (_W. Kahl_,
+Bekenntnissgebundenheit und Lehrfreiheit, 1897, 10); "in which modern
+culture and science is being cursed" (_Th. Fuchs_, Neue Freie Presse, Nov.
+25, 1907); in which "the most general foundations of our political order,
+the freedom of conscience, are rejected" (_G. Kaufmann_, Die Lehrfreiheit
+an den deutschen Universitaeten, 1898, 34); "in which it has simply
+anathematized the achievements of the modern concept of right" (_F. Jodl_,
+Gedanken ueber Reformkatholizismus, 1902, 5); the Syllabus "strikes blows
+against the autonomy of human development of culture, it is a _non
+possumus_, I cannot make peace, I cannot compromise with what is termed
+progress, liberalism, and civilization." The Syllabus is a favorite stock
+argument of professional free-thinkers and agitators, and the one with
+which they like to open the discussion. For this reason we must say a few
+words about it.
+
+When a Syllabus is spoken of without any distinction, the Syllabus of
+_Pius IX._ is meant. It is a list of eighty condemned propositions which
+this Pope sent on December 8, 1864, to all the Bishops of the world,
+together with the encyclical letter "Quanta Cura." _Pius IX._ had, prior
+to this, and on various occasions, denounced these propositions as false
+and to be repudiated. They were now gathered together in the Syllabus.
+They represent the _program of modern liberalism_ in the province of
+religion and in politics in relation to religion. They are repudiated in
+the following order: Pantheism; liberal freedom of thought and of
+conscience as a repudiation of the duty to believe; religious freedom as a
+demand of emancipation from faith and Church; religious indifferentism;
+the denial of the Church and of her independence of the state; the
+omnipotence of state power, especially in the province of thought. The
+single propositions are not all designated as heretical, hence the
+contrary is not always pronounced to be dogma; they are rejected in
+general as "errors." It is not necessary to discuss here the question
+whether and to what extent the Syllabus is an infallible decision. Suffice
+it to say it is binding for believing Catholics.
+
+Has the Catholic any reason to be ashamed of the Syllabus?
+
+It was a resolute deed. A deed of that intrepidity and firm consistency
+which has ever characterized the Catholic Church. With her fearless love
+of truth the Church has in the Syllabus solemnly condemned the errors of
+the modern rebellion against the supernatural order, of the naturalization
+and declaration of independence of the human life. For this reason the
+Syllabus is called an attack upon modern culture, science, and education,
+upon the foundations of the state. Is this true?
+
+It is, and it is not. All that is good and Christian in modern culture is
+not touched by the Syllabus; it strikes only at what is anti-Christian in
+our times and in the leading ideas of our times. It does not condemn
+freedom of science, but only the liberal freedom which throws off the yoke
+of faith; it does not repudiate freedom of religion and conscience, but
+the _liberal_ freedom which will not acknowledge a divine revelation nor
+take the Church as a guide. Not the foundations of modern states are
+attacked, but only the liberal ideas of emancipation from religion, and of
+opposition to the Church. The Church proclaims to the world only what has
+been known to all Christian centuries, that, just as the single individual
+is bound to have the Christian belief and must lead a Christian life, so
+are nations and organized states; that the human creature is subject to
+the law of Christ in all its relations. Nor does she contend against
+genuine progress in science, education and in the material domain, but
+merely against liberal progress towards the irreligious materialization of
+life.
+
+This emancipation from the Christian faith poses mostly under the
+attractive and deceptive name of "modern progress." Indeed, it has ever
+been the pretension of liberalism to look upon itself as the sole
+harbinger of civilization, to claim the guidance of intellectual life for
+its aim, and to stigmatize as a foe of culture any one that opposes the
+dissemination of its anti-Christian humanism. It is also an expert in
+giving to words a charm and an ambiguous meaning that deceive.
+Emancipation from religion is "progress" and "enlightenment." Everything
+else is reactionary. Its infidelity is freedom of conscience and thought.
+Everything else is "bondage." Only its secular schools, its civil
+marriage, its separation of Church and State are "modern." Everything else
+is obsolete, hence no longer warranted. For the Church to defend her
+rights is arrogance; when the Church uses her God-given authority for the
+good of the faith, she practises intellectual oppression; the Catholic who
+lets himself be guided by his Church is called unpatriotic, bereft of his
+civil spirit.
+
+What striking contrast to the honesty in which the Church presents her
+doctrines frankly before the whole world, without disguise or artifice.
+The reason is that she has sufficient interior strength and truth to
+render it unnecessary for her to take refuge in disguise or present the
+truth in ambiguity.
+
+
+    The clearest evidence of the Church's hostility to culture is the
+    condemnation of the 80th thesis of the _Syllabus_, so it is said.
+    It is the thesis that the Pope can and must reconcile himself to,
+    and compromise with, progress, liberalism, and modern
+    civilization. This is a condemned proposition, hence the contrary
+    is true: the Pope of Rome cannot, and must not, reconcile himself,
+    nor compromise with, liberalism and modern civilization. Here we
+    have the frankly admitted hostility against progress, education,
+    and science--it is the watchword of the Papacy.
+
+    This conclusion can be arrived at only by pushing aside all rules
+    of scientific interpretation. What progress is this, with what
+    civilization can the Papacy not be reconciled? The progress of
+    modern liberalism. The heading of the paragraph containing this
+    proposition states expressly that "errors of modern liberalism"
+    are to be condemned. This becomes clear by the Allocution
+    "Jamdudum cernimus" of March 18, 1861, from which this
+    condemnation is taken. There it is stated: "It is asked that the
+    Pope of Rome reconcile himself with progress, to liberalism as
+    they call it, to the new civilization, and compromise with
+    them.... But now we ask of those inviting us to be reconciled with
+    modern civilization, whether the facts be such as to tempt the
+    Vicar of Christ on earth ... to connect himself with the
+    civilization of to-day without the greatest injury to this
+    conscience ... a civilization that has caused the dissemination of
+    numerous despicable opinions, errors, and principles in conflict
+    with the Catholic religion and its doctrines." Of course a
+    civilization cut off from any true Christianity by education and
+    science, by family life and political life, a progress, trying to
+    stop the activity of the Church in every sphere and attacking her
+    in their speech, in newspapers, and in schools, cannot demand of
+    the Papacy to join hands with them. No Christian, whether Catholic
+    or Protestant, can profess this "progress." We have here at the
+    same time a specimen of how they proceed in interpreting the
+    propositions of the Syllabus in order to discover in them all
+    possible absurdities. Many propositions are short sentences taken
+    from the work of an author, or from previous Papal declarations.
+    Hence they must be understood in the sense of those sources.
+    Furthermore, attention must be paid to what is specially
+    emphasized. Then, again, we must remember that by repudiating a
+    proposition only the contradictory is asserted, but not the
+    contrary; to conclude this would be to conclude too much. For
+    instance, the seventy-seventh condemned proposition reads: "In our
+    times it is no longer to any purpose that the Catholic religion
+    should be the sole religion of the state to the exclusion of all
+    other confessions." According to some, _e.g._, _Frins_, the
+    contradictory is thus formulated: "In our times also it is still
+    to the purpose...." According to others, however, _e.g._,
+    _Hoensbroeeh_ and _Goetz_: "In our times also it is
+    beneficial...." Thus while _Hoensbroech_ and _Goetz_ make the
+    ecclesiastical doctrine appear to read that it would be beneficial
+    to hold fast to the Catholic as the sole religion of the state
+    under all circumstances even to-day, the actual opposite is the
+    doctrine, that this may be yet to the purpose under certain
+    circumstances. While no reasonable man could object to the latter,
+    the former is eagerly exploited against the Church (_Heiner_, Der
+    Syllabus, 1905, p. 31, _seq._; cf. _Frins_, Kirchenlex, 2d ed.,
+    XI, 1031; _Hoensbroech_, l. c. 25; _Goetz_, Der Ultramontanismus,
+    1905, 148).
+
+
+Of course it may be taken for granted that the Syllabus is distasteful to
+modern liberalism, which is branded there as one of the errors of the day.
+Yet the Church cannot be censured for not becoming unfaithful to her
+vocation of preserving the patrimony of Christianity to mankind, or for
+acting as the invincible defender of the Christian religion in the
+universal struggle between truth and error, even though the latter pose
+with great assurance.
+
+
+
+The Condemnation of Modernism.
+
+
+The great excitement caused in intellectual circles by the Syllabus of
+_Pius IX._ was aroused again, though not with the same intensity, when
+some years ago the news of another Syllabus was circulated through the
+world, and the excitement increased when the rumour was followed by the
+publication of the encyclical "Pascendi Dominici gregis." Indeed, the new
+event was not very unlike the former: in the 60's Rome's sentence was
+directed against the Modernism of that period, which called itself
+liberalism. The excitement caused by its condemnation was more intense,
+because it struck directly at the principles governing the liberal
+politics against the Church, which principles were claimed to be the
+foundation of the modern state. Now the Modernism repudiated by the
+Church's voice was nothing more than the old humanistic, fundamental,
+errors of liberalism, but put in the form of a religious and philosophical
+view of the world, and in Catholic garb: it meant man detached from
+everything supernatural, and dependent alone on himself in his
+intellectual life, more especially in his religious life.
+
+Now, as then, similar charges were raised: The Church is the
+irreconcilable foe of modern achievements and the opponent of them; "the
+encyclical aims at modern intellectual life in all its phases and forms"
+(XX. Jahrh., 1908, 568). Now, as then, we have the same ambiguity of the
+terms "modern" and "progress."
+
+What was condemned by the Church? The document "Lamentabili sane exitu,"
+issued by the teaching authority of the Church on July 3, 1907, is
+entitled "A Decree of the Holy Congregation of the Roman and General
+Inquisition or the Holy Office," which has to watch over the unadulterated
+preservation of the faith. The decree soon was christened the "New
+Syllabus," because of its similarity with the Syllabus of _Pius IX._ In a
+similar way it condemns sixty-five propositions against the inspiration
+and the historical character of Holy Scripture, against the divine origin
+of revelation and of faith, against the divinity of Christ, His
+Resurrection and His atoning death, against the Sacraments, and against
+the Church. These are component parts of the philosophical religious
+system of thought which soon after was set forth and condemned by the
+encyclical "Pascendi," of September 8, 1907.
+
+Modernism is essentially philosophy, combining modern _agnostic-autonomous
+subjectivism_ with _evolutionism_, and applied to the Christian religion,
+which thereby becomes disfigured beyond recognition. Its chain of thought,
+excellently stated by the encyclical, starts with the proposition that the
+supernatural is beyond the knowledge of man, and hence man cannot know
+anything of God. The faith which unites us to God is nothing but a
+feeling, born of a blind impulse, which may be considered a divine
+revelation. If this religious feeling is expressed in forms, the result is
+"doctrines of faith"; for Christian "dogmas" are this and nothing more,
+images and symbols of the noble and divine, hence they are of human origin
+and are changeable according to the disposition and the degree of learning
+of the individual, as well as of the times. There is no dogmatic
+Christianity, in the sense of an immutable religious doctrine, nor is
+there any absolutely true religion, for religion is but a variable
+feeling, that has nothing to do with cognition and knowledge. For this
+reason they never can come in conflict. The Christian religion originally
+was nothing else but the religious experience of Christ, who was not God
+but a man; in the course of time it has undergone changes which are
+reflected in the shaping of Christian dogma. Holy Scripture is, similarly,
+the expression of the religious experience of its human authors; the
+Sacraments are symbols, arousing religious sentiments; the Church is not
+founded by God, and only has the task of regulating the development of
+Christianity, and of sanctioning at any time whatever religious
+experiences the changeable spirit of progressive civilization may produce.
+
+This is Modernism, as represented chiefly in France, Italy, and to an
+extent also in England; in Germany it did not appear as a system, but even
+there its spirit became quite apparent. Thus, Modernism is nothing else
+but the systematic arrangement of those ideas which we have hitherto met,
+in various places, as the fundamental principles of modern religious
+thought opposed to Christianity. It is subjectivism with its autonomy of
+the human subject, its agnosticism, its relativism of truth, sailing under
+the name of "historical method of thought" and "progress," and, finally,
+with its freedom of thought and conscience which rejects all authority. It
+is _Kant_ in the robe of a Catholic theologian. Ultimately it is nothing
+else but the shocking negation of everything supernatural, hence complete
+apostasy. "The salient point is recognized," says _Troeltsch_, "the enemy
+is the modern historical method of thought, the concept of evolution, the
+theory of inner experience and relativism as applied to religion, the
+negation of supernaturalism as taught by the old Church" (l. c. 22).
+Hence, was it not manifest that the Church had to take measures against
+this positive denial of Christianity as a whole, the more so as the
+uneducated could be easily deceived by it? Every organism will throw off
+excrescences, the more energetically the stronger it is. Any religion
+lacking this strength is doomed. That the Papal declaration aroused such
+opposition must not be wondered at; it hit once more the central idea of
+the anti-Christian view of the world. The judgment was not passed against
+modern intellectual life, but only against the grave errors inherent in
+it; the Church did not condemn progress, nor the increase and deepening of
+knowledge of the truth; not the enrichment of the life of the mind, of
+feeling, and the will, but only pretended progress; she did not condemn
+the historical method nor the idea of evolution, but their false
+application, which dissolved anything and everything in growth, purely
+natural growth at that, without acknowledging a revelation of absolute
+truths.
+
+
+    Orthodox Protestants have openly praised this bold deed of the
+    Pope as highly meritorious for the preservation of the Christian
+    faith. Thus the South African Church Quarterly Review (Episcopal)
+    of January, 1908, said: "The Syllabus and Encyclical of _Pius X._
+    against Modernism are deserving of the respectful consideration of
+    all Christians.... At the present stage of history the opposing
+    factors are driving with great speed towards a fierce and resolute
+    struggle between Christ and anti-Christ. All who sincerely love
+    Christ, our Lord, must rally under one flag.... Narrow-minded
+    hostility towards the Pope must give way to the desire to be
+    united with the great community which is fighting so valiantly for
+    the old faith of our fathers.... One must be blind, to misjudge
+    the tremendous influence exerted by the last deed of the Pope in
+    favour of the faith."
+
+    Even the Evangelical "Kirchenzeitung" admitted that the encyclical
+    is "directed chiefly against the more or less unchristian modern
+    views of the world ... which we must combat.... Undoubtedly it is
+    not only the Pope's right to lay bare the unchristian tendency of
+    these ideas and their incompatibility with the Christian faith,
+    but it is also his duty and his merit" (November 29, 1908, n. 48).
+
+
+Puny men, entangled in the ideas of their time and surroundings, are
+easily led to take for their standard the thoughts and actions of their
+age. They often imagine that they possess not a little strength and
+independence, when they are intellectually entirely dependent and unable
+to rise above their time. "It is the fashion, others think that way,
+therefore I must think so, too"; these are often the principles of their
+wisdom, and they ask the Church to do likewise. The Church, however, looks
+back upon a long history, and numerous ideas and opinions she has seen
+arise and vanish. And whoever can look back upon a great experience, and
+moreover carries in himself the call to lead the times, feels no restless
+impulse to be carried away by changing doctrines.
+
+
+
+The Index.
+
+
+Whenever the subject of Rome's enmity to science and progress of culture
+is discussed, there invariably appears on the scene, beside Syllabus and
+_Galileo_, also the Index. The latter is held by many to be Rome's
+permanent means of hindering the progress of humanity in general, and the
+free scientific activity of the Catholic in particular, and to annihilate
+the freedom of teaching and learning (_Hoensbroech_, Die Kath. theol.
+Fakultaeten, 1907, 40 _seq._). They say "the Congregation of the Index has
+no pity nor consideration for the classical works of literature, and
+condemns in the name of religion the most admirable products of the human
+intellect" (Grande Dict. univ. du XIX. siecle, IX, 640, apud _J. Hilgers_,
+Der Index der Verb. Buecher, 1904, 166; much of what we shall say on this
+topic is taken from this work by _Hilgers_).
+
+
+    This statement again reminds that the accusations against the
+    Catholic Church and her institutions are to be considered with
+    caution, because of the ignorance of her opponents in Catholic
+    things. This is especially true of the Index. Thus the above
+    assertion is false. _Dante's_ "Divina Commedia" (the work referred
+    to) is neither forbidden nor needs approval nor correction: of the
+    classical literature of the world little or nothing is forbidden;
+    even morally offensive books, that are considered classical, may
+    without ecclesiastical permission be read for the sake of their
+    elegant diction, whenever their reading is required by one's work
+    or duty of teaching.
+
+    A few examples of the _incredible ignorance_ alluded to will
+    suffice. In the "Grande Dictionnaire Universel du XIX. Siecle" it
+    is actually stated that the works of _Albert the Great_ were
+    condemned by a decree of April 10, 1666. What does the Index
+    really forbid? It states: "_Alberto __ Magno, diviso in tre libri,
+    nel primo si tratta della virtu delle herbe, nel secondo della
+    virtu delle pietre, e nel terzo della virtu di alcuni
+    animali._--Albert the Great, in three parts: the first treats of
+    the virtue of plants; the second, of the virtue of stones; and the
+    third, of the virtue of some animals." It is the title of a little
+    superstitious book, attributed to "Albert the Great" by an unknown
+    author.
+
+    The first edition of the Index of _Leo XIII._ in 1900 was sold out
+    in less than a year; a second edition followed in 1901, and, like
+    the first, could be had at all booksellers, at a very moderate
+    price. In December, 1901, there appeared in the Anglo-American
+    weekly, "The Roman World," an article which says that it is
+    difficult to obtain this list of notorious books forbidden to
+    Catholics, unless one be a Church official, since only a few
+    copies are printed and even these are not handled by general
+    book-dealers; hence that no details could be given about the
+    purchase of the copy referred to; but it was quite evident that it
+    had commanded a good price. "The copy in question, a model of fine
+    printing, might be worth about $40 to $50, but owing to its
+    rareness, it had undoubtedly cost $400. The history of this famous
+    Index is interesting. The one who first hit upon the idea was
+    _Charles V._ of Spain, about 1550. The first compilation of the
+    book-list was made by the university of Louvain in 1564, Pope
+    _Paul IV._ assuming the direction of the edition. It remained for
+    357 years in the hands of the Pope." Every one of these statements
+    is false. And just as false is the statement that the "Syllabus
+    condemns not only a book written by a Pope, but by Pope _Leo
+    XIII._ himself." Still it could not surprise us, since even
+    David's psalter is on the Index! When the Index of _Leo XIII._ was
+    published, Dr. _Max Claar_ wrote from Rome to the "Neue Freie
+    Presse" of Vienna: "On the old Index we find among other things
+    the Psalms of King David and the Divina Commedia of _Dante_." We
+    have already stated that the latter was never on the Index. But
+    how in the world could this man find Holy Scripture condemned on
+    the Index? Perhaps he found this passage: "Il salmista secondo la
+    biblia" and "Salmi (sessanta) di David." The first is a
+    superstitious booklet, the second is a translation of sixty Psalms
+    of David by the heretic, _Giovanni Diodati_. The learned doctor in
+    all seriousness mistook them for the Psalms of David (_Hilgers_,
+    167, _seq._).
+
+
+What then is the Index, and how is it to be judged?
+
+Ever since the Apostle of the Nations had at Ephesus the superstitious
+books burned under his eyes, the Holy Fathers, Bishops, and Councils since
+the first centuries of Christianity have been careful to keep from the
+faithful writings hurtful to faith and morals. Thus even in the olden time
+we find several catalogues of forbidden books, then followed the Indices
+of the Middle Ages. In the year 1571 a special Congregation of Cardinals
+was formed, the "Congregation of the Index," which has ever since had
+charge of the ecclesiastical book-laws. The last edition of the Index,
+obligatory for the whole Church, emanated from _Leo XIII._ The title of
+the work now in force reads, "The Index of Forbidden Books, revised and
+published by order of and in the name of Leo XIII. 1900." It is divided
+into two parts. The first and shorter part contains the general book
+regulations, giving in short paragraphs the rules on various classes of
+forbidden books, the permission required for reading them, the examination
+to be made previous to the publication of certain books. The second part
+enumerates the writings forbidden by special decree--the Index in the
+particular sense, and the part most often considered. But it is second in
+importance to the first, because by far not all books dangerous to faith
+and morals are named in it. Most such books are forbidden by the general
+laws contained in the first part, without mentioning the many which are
+forbidden by mere common sense.
+
+Ecclesiastical legislation on books is composed of two factors: first, the
+previous censorship--certain books must be examined by ecclesiastical
+authority before their publication. Second, the prohibition of books
+already published.
+
+The previous scrutiny in general is delegated to the Bishop; all books
+dealing with morals and theology must be submitted. The license to print
+the book is to be given if the book is in accord with the teaching of the
+Church, in so far as determined by ecclesiastical authority, the decision
+based on it rests solely with the censor; if the author of the book should
+fail to see that the passages objected to need revision he may try to
+clear himself by stating his reasons; however, he is also free to submit
+his work to another Bishop and to look for a printer in the latter's
+diocese. If one looks over the numerous books bearing the ecclesiastical
+imprimatur, he will readily notice how much freedom is given, if the
+author keeps within the doctrine of the Church.
+
+The _condemnation_ of a book never strikes at the person of the author,
+nor at what he has intended to express by the passages objected to;
+judgment is passed only upon what is actually expressed in them. Hence it
+is not necessary to give to the author himself a hearing, or a chance to
+explain. The reason is that the judgment is rendered on the sense of the
+passages, not on the meaning of the author. In general those books and
+periodicals are forbidden which are likely to do serious damage to faith
+and morals. The isolated cases of indicting the works of Catholic authors
+in the nineteenth century--we may mention _Lamennais_, _Hermes_,
+_Guenther_, _Loisy_, and _Schell_--show that the Church proceeds but slowly
+and with consideration against the author involved.
+
+To appreciate the Index properly, one must try to grasp without prejudice
+the _purpose_ the Church has in view. This purpose is to protect the
+faithful from error and from moral contagion, and to preserve the faith
+intact. "What is more precious than souls, what more precious than the
+faith? But both suffer damage from such reading." Such was the judgment of
+the Council of Ephesus when it drew up its book-decrees; such was the
+judgment of an _Augustine_, of _Leo the Great_, and of the Holy Fathers;
+such is still the judgment of the Church. Books and writings that offend
+against morals are a menace to her faithful. They become infected with
+wrong ideas; they are as a rule not in a position to distinguish by
+themselves the false from the true, and for the most part they are not
+morally strong enough to resist the allurements of error. It may also
+happen that certain thoughts are true in the abstract, yet for the time
+being would be a danger for many. Now, it is the right and duty of any
+social authority, beginning with the head of the family and up to the
+government, to protect with strong hand the precious possessions of its
+subjects.
+
+The state keeps under control the sale of poison and dynamite, keeps out
+contagious diseases from its boundaries--it protects the possessions of its
+subjects. European states have for centuries claimed the right to censure
+books, and have used it much more rigorously than the Church ever did, to
+say nothing of the censures of the Protestant Church of former times (see
+abundant proof apud _Hilgers_, 206-402). The modern state also, despite
+the great freedom granted to the press, cannot entirely forego its sense
+of responsibility. It restricts the freedom of the press by censorship,
+and by preventive measures often not less drastic than the censure itself,
+and it always regards the confiscation of particularly dangerous writings
+to be a matter of course. It puts under censure school-books, political
+posters, and theatrical plays, and does not tolerate any socialistic
+literature in the soldiers' barracks. And do we not take it as a matter of
+course if a father forbids his child to associate with dangerous
+playmates, and takes bad books from its hands? We cannot find fault with
+the Church if she seeks to protect her children, if she represses the
+promiscuous dissemination of false ideas and doctrines, and if she takes
+dangerous books under her control. "Feed my lambs, feed my sheep," was the
+command given to the Church.
+
+The objection should therefore not be made that "such precaution is proper
+when dealing with children but not with men; especially since the thinking
+elements among the Catholics of the Germanic tongue or origin are too
+profound and firm in their faith to warrant a fear of the effects of
+unrestricted free research" (from the petition of the so-called
+"Index-league" of Muenster). This perusal may become dangerous even for
+highly educated men, else how could Modernism break so forcefully into the
+Church? Manifestly only because learned theologians did not possess that
+firmness of Catholic faith and Catholic knowledge which would prevent them
+from being deceived by the misleading ideas of modern philosophy, and of
+the new Protestant theology. Moreover, all forbidden books may be read
+upon obtaining the necessary permission.
+
+"Preserve the deposit of faith," the Church has been told. She cannot look
+on silently when her doctrines are being falsified and denied, when the
+most venerable sphere of theology is made the stamping ground for immature
+minds and a laboratory for all kinds of experiments. When _Zola's_ novel,
+"Rome," had been put on the Index, the atheistic literary critic,
+_Sarcey_, made the following comment: "If my own criticisms of literature
+are regarded by many people as highest decisions, why should a positive
+criticism be looked upon as monstrous just because it comes from the Pope?
+It is my aim to guard good taste in literature, and it is the aim of the
+Pope to guard the true faith" (Allgemeine Rundschau, 1908, 828). Every
+social authority must interfere when its foundations are attacked. A
+church that tolerates false doctrines cannot be the teacher that Christ
+sent to the nations. As a matter of fact the Index has from the first
+helped in no small degree to keep the Catholic doctrine pure, to induce
+caution in reading certain authors, and to keep awake in the faithful that
+aversion against immoral and irreligious writings which is the
+characteristic of Catholics, and which has rescued the faith for
+thousands.
+
+To judge the Index fairly one must be convinced that the preservation of
+true Christian doctrine is its highest aim. Then the zeal of the Catholic
+Church will be intelligible. Of course, he who thinks that the true weal
+of mankind consists in the speedy emancipation from all Christian dogma,
+he who holds the task of science to be the establishment of a new
+"scientific view of the world," he who no longer knows faith, will see in
+the Index nothing but restraint. But, whoever is of a different view will
+not take offence at the restriction of the freedom of writing and reading
+when it is productive of higher good. Freedom of science cannot be
+unrestricted, especially in regard to teaching; the welfare of humanity
+must be considered. Moreover, the Index concerns almost exclusively
+theology and some branches of philosophy, the rest of the profane sciences
+but little or not at all; the scientific works prohibited, however, are
+not removed from scientific perusal: only permission is necessary, and
+this is granted without difficulty and without cost.
+
+It is true, an error on the part of the Church authorities is not
+impossible. We know of such a case, putting on the Index the writings of
+_Copernicus_, in 1616. But just the circumstance that history knows of but
+one such case of importance is a clear testimony to the Holy Ghost's
+direction of the teaching office even when it is rendering non-infallible
+decisions. Besides, the damage that might result from a few mistakes would
+not be so great as the damage resulting if everything were allowed to be
+written and read.
+
+The Catholic scientist who appreciates the supernatural mission of his
+Church will _yield to her guidance in humble confidence_, he will practise
+this submission to the Church by requesting permission for reading
+forbidden books, and by this spirit he will obtain God's blessing on his
+work.
+
+
+    In doing so he may recall to mind the edifying words of _St.
+    Francis of Sales_, in the preface to his treatise on the errors of
+    the Lutherans and Calvinists, where he gives the assurance of
+    having conscientiously asked for and received permission to read
+    their writings. "We fervently request our Catholic readers,"
+    writes the Saint, "not to let an evil suspicion against us arise,
+    as if we had read the forbidden books in spite of the prohibition
+    of holy Church. We are able to assure them in all truth of having
+    done nothing forbidden to a good Christian, and of having taken
+    every precaution due in a matter of so vast importance, so as not
+    to incur in any way the very just censures of the Church, nor in
+    any manner to violate the profound reverence we owe to her." The
+    permission granted him, dated July 16, 1608, is still extant;
+    likewise one asked by _St. Charles Borromeo_.
+
+
+The Catholic scientist also will readily ask the ecclesiastical Imprimatur
+for certain of his works. If a careful author before publishing a work
+submits the proofs to a friend of his profession, taking his comment for a
+guide, why should we deem it intellectual bondage if the Catholic
+scientist, in matters of faith and morals, submits his work to the formal
+approval of his Church, which to him is a higher authority than any other?
+and does this willingly, as in consistency with his Catholic
+conviction?(5)
+
+_Via stulti recta in oculis ejus, qui autem sapiens est audit consilia_,
+says the Wise Man. It is characteristic of the fool to be wise in his own
+eyes, and stubbornly to cling to his own judgment; but the prudent man
+seeks advice, and suffers his attention to be called to his mistakes.
+
+The believing scientist, too, will submit to correction; should the rare
+case fall to his lot to have the Church condemn his work, he will know how
+to be generously obedient. Splendid examples are blazing the way for him.
+"Were we to draw up a list of the scientists, who, in a similar critical
+position as _Fenelon_, found strength in the virtue of obedience, and on
+the other hand a list of all those whose subjective scientific views did
+not allow them to submit, then we should perceive at a glance that their
+proud persistence in their own opinion has been injurious to true wisdom
+in the same degree as humble submission proved a benefit to science"
+(_Hilgers_, 412). Finally, he who is convinced that the Christian faith is
+the greatest heritance of truth from the past, which must be preserved in
+him, he will take no offence if the Church is not impressed even by names
+like _Kant_, _Spinoza_, _Schopenhauer_, _Strauss_, men much featured as
+the captains of modern science and philosophy. In the eyes of the Church
+nothing is genuine and true science that is contrary to the testimony of
+God, and errors are errors even then when their perpetrator is receiving
+cheers and applause. Just as the state prohibits the physician from
+designedly assisting any one to commit suicide, even though the physician
+be a noted scientist, just so the Church opposes any one who assaults
+God's truth, be he journalist or philosopher.
+
+
+    Frequently the _great number of forbidden books mentioned by the
+    Index_ is pointed out. The Index of 1900 contains about 5,000
+    titles belonging to the last three centuries; of these about 1,300
+    belong to the nineteenth century. Quite a small number,
+    considering the immense literature of the world. Yet it will look
+    even smaller when compared, for instance, with the censure of
+    books by the _Prussian state_.
+
+    In the year 1845 there appeared the following catalogue: "Index
+    _librorum prohibitorum_, Catalogue of the books forbidden in
+    Germany during 1844-1845, first volume." The second volume was
+    issued in 1846. The list is not complete: it does not contain, for
+    instance, the names of prohibited newspapers and periodicals. Yet
+    it contains 437 writings, forbidden by 570 decrees, _i.e._, two or
+    three times as many as the entire number of German books of the
+    nineteenth century enumerated by name in the Roman Index. The
+    "Historisch-Politischen Blaetter" of 1840 contain an article
+    beginning thus: "_Veritas odium parit._ In Prussia there are now
+    prohibited nearly all Catholic journals and periodicals, and in
+    order to begin the matter _ab ovo_ they have grasped a welcome
+    opportunity to throw interdicts at wholesale against works not yet
+    published, or to render their circulation difficult to a degree
+    amounting to prohibition."
+
+    How the Prussian censorship proceeded in those days may be
+    illustrated by another example. "At the time of the Vatican
+    Council a publisher, _Joseph Bachem_, came to Dr. _Westhoff_,
+    rector of the Seminary of Cologne, a man of venerable years, and
+    told him of his misgivings about the dogma of the infallibility.
+    In his youth he had been taught the maxim that that is Catholic
+    which has been taught always, everywhere, and by everybody; yet he
+    had until recently never found the doctrine of Papal Infallibility
+    taught, neither in schools nor in text-books. Then the reverend
+    old rector took the visitor by the hand and led him into the
+    library of the seminary, where he showed him not less than sixteen
+    catechisms that had been in use in the Archdiocese of Cologne
+    during the eighteenth century, and which stated without exception,
+    clearly and convincingly, the doctrine of Papal Infallibility in
+    matters of faith and morals. The publisher in utter astonishment
+    then asked how it was that this doctrine was not taught in later
+    editions. Dr. _Westhoff_ referred him to the Prussian censure,
+    enforced until 1848, which had expunged this doctrine from all
+    Catholic catechisms. From that moment _Bachem_ no longer wavered
+    in his opinions" (Koelnische Volkszeitung, September 7, 1893).
+
+    One may also remember _Bismarck's_ press-campaign during the
+    _Kulturkampf_. Professor _Friedberg_, Prussian court canonist,
+    instigated this campaign, and in many ways devised the plan of
+    attack. This much-praised liberalism--how tyrannically it proceeded
+    against the Catholic press! The Frankfurter Zeitung in those days
+    took a census of convictions due to the press law. According to
+    the census, which "does not by far claim to be complete," there
+    were of newspaper editors sentenced in 1875--21 in January, 35 in
+    February, 29 in March, 24 in April; in four months 137 newspaper
+    writers were either fined or sent to jail. During the same period
+    30 newspapers were confiscated (Staatslexikon, IV, 550). This is
+    not all. "We could mention at least three instances," says _P.
+    Majunke_ in his History of the Kulturkampf, "where agents of the
+    Berlin secret police have succeeded in obtaining a position on the
+    editorial staff of Catholic papers, staying for a year or more.
+    Besides serving as spies these fellows had to perform the task of
+    _agents provocateurs_, viz., to incite the editors of Catholic
+    papers to extreme utterances, similar to the denunciations
+    suggested to correspondents of foreign Catholic organs for their
+    papers." This happened in a civilized state, despite its
+    constitutional freedom of the press, by order of the same
+    liberalism which always pretends to be full of righteous
+    indignation when the Church prohibits books and puts them on the
+    Index.
+
+    Towards the end of the last century, again with the aid of
+    liberalism, laws against the socialists were drawn up. After they
+    had been passed war was waged against socialistic literature. In
+    the year 1886 there appeared a real Index Librorum Prohibitorum,
+    its title read, "Social Democratic publications and societies
+    prohibited by the imperial law against the dangerous designs of
+    Social Democracy," which law had then been in force eight years. A
+    supplementary list was published two years later, in 1888.
+    _Hilgers_ makes this comment on it: "How many additional pamphlets
+    have been condemned in the time from March 28, 1888, to September
+    30, 1890, we cannot state." According to the foregoing official
+    statement the average is 130 a year. Hence we assume that the
+    printed matter prohibited during the twelve years that the law was
+    in force amounted to between 15,000 and 16,000. This number of
+    social democratic pamphlets forbidden within twelve years exceeds
+    by far the number of all books prohibited by the Roman Index in
+    the course of the entire nineteenth century--books that are the
+    products of all countries in the world and dealing with all
+    branches; the number of these German prohibitions is ten times
+    that of Roman prohibitions. Indeed, in the course of a year and a
+    half the new German Empire prohibited more writings of Germans
+    than Rome had prohibited during the entire past century. We may
+    mention here _Goethe_. In the atheism dispute, at the end of the
+    eighteenth century, decision was rendered upon _Goethe's_ advice
+    against the philosopher _Fichte_; _Fichte_ was discharged in spite
+    of petitions and mediations in his favour. The liberal Grand Duke
+    _Karl August of Saxony Weimar_ granted in 1816, after the French
+    conqueror had been overthrown, freedom of the press. Professor
+    _Oken_ of Jena availed himself of this privilege, and printed in
+    his "Isis" contributions complaining about the government.
+    _Goethe_ had to advise what should be done against it. He thought
+    that the paper should have been suppressed by the police at its
+    very first announcement; "the measure neglected at the beginning
+    is to be taken immediately and the paper is to be prohibited. By
+    prohibiting the 'Isis' the trouble will be stopped at once"
+    (Briefwechsel des Grossh. _Karl August v. Sax.-Weimar-Eisenach_
+    mit _Goethe_, II, 1863, 90). And this was done, in spite of the
+    freedom granted the press.
+
+    _Frederick II._ is called the Royal Free-thinker; and yet the
+    general introduction of the book censure into Prussia occurred
+    precisely during his reign. The first general censure edict was
+    issued in 1749 and remained in force till the death of the king.
+    All books, even those printed in foreign tongues, were subject to
+    the censure. Even all episcopal and Papal proclamations were
+    subjected to the royal censure. That the leaders in the
+    Reformation and their successors were not prevented by their
+    avowal of the principle of free research from exercising rigorous,
+    often tyrannical, censure, not only against the Catholics but also
+    against their fellow reformers, is well known.
+
+    _M. Lehmann_ writes in the Preuss. Jahrb. 1902: "It claims to be
+    infallible, this Papal Church, it wants to be to the faithful
+    everything, in science and even in nationality. It offends every
+    nation. The Index in the shape given it in 1900 by the present
+    Pope proscribes the 'Oeuvres du Philosophe de Sanssouci,' _Kant's_
+    'Critique of Pure Reason,' _Ranke's_ 'History of the Popes,' the
+    greatest German king, the greatest German philosopher, and the
+    greatest German historian" (1902, no. 8).
+
+    As to _Frederick II._, his own works appeared only after his death
+    in 1788, and even then only in part; later on there were other
+    editions. None of these is put on the Index. On this list we find
+    since 1760 the "Oeuvres du Philosophe de Sanssouci." Under this
+    title appeared at first three volumes, in but a few copies,
+    intended for the most intimate friends of the king. The first
+    volume he soon withdrew and had it burned of his own accord; it
+    contained the "Palladion" an imitation of Voltaire's "Pucelle," a
+    salacious work throughout. In 1762 a new edition was issued. It
+    also contains a philosophical treatise denying the immortality of
+    the soul; this treatise was also published separately and
+    specially prohibited in 1767. A third work put on the Index is a
+    spurious attack on the Popes published by order of King _Frederick
+    II._, with a preface by him. Its author is said to have been the
+    French abbe _Jean Martin De Prades_, reader to the king. These are
+    the indicted works of _Frederick II._, all written in French and
+    in substance French Voltairianism. Thus came the greatest German
+    king on the Index!
+
+    _Ranke's_ "Roemische Paepste" is on the Index, because the book
+    belittles the constitutions and doctrines of the Catholic Church:
+    not because of the true things the author says about Popes. _Von
+    Pastor's_ "History of the Popes" is not on the Index,
+    notwithstanding the bitter truths he writes about Popes _Alexander
+    VI._ and _Leo X._
+
+    He who knows even the fundamental ideas of _Kant's_ "Kritik der
+    reinen Vernunft" will see that not only the Catholic Church, but
+    every Christian denomination, might forfeit its existence if it
+    showed itself indifferent towards it. Heresies are especially
+    dangerous to the uneducated when they bear the names of authors of
+    scientific repute. But the Church willingly grants the permission
+    to read them when there is reason for it. Moreover, it was not
+    Rome alone that took steps against _Kant_. This was done by the
+    Prussian king _Frederick II._ also. One may recall his cabinet
+    order, under minister _Woellner_, against Kant's "Religion
+    innerhalb der Grenzen der blossen Vernunft." Similarly the works
+    of _Spinoza_ were proceeded against, whereas his indictment by
+    Rome now calls forth protest because he has since been assigned a
+    prominent place among philosophers. _Freudenthal_ registers a list
+    of 500 sharp prohibitions issued against _Spinoza's_ works during
+    the years 1556-1580: they were condemned by the states of Holland,
+    by the court, by synods and magistrates. Those judgments were
+    passed during a period when the competent authorities had views
+    different from those of to-day; when the state deemed it its duty
+    to oppose the undermining of Christianity. The state's judgment
+    has changed in many ways, Rome's judgment has remained the same.
+    But the works of _Kant_ and _Spinoza_ likewise have remained the
+    same, and so is Christianity, against which they occupy an
+    irreconcilable position, still the same.
+
+
+"In the moral world nothing can support that cannot also resist" is a
+truthful saying of _Treitschke_: it is also the principle of the Catholic
+Church. Without ever surrendering to the unchristian tendency of a time,
+she opposes error with unsubdued courage. If this be intolerance, it is
+not intolerance towards erring men but towards their errors, it is the
+intolerance that the gardener shows in uprooting harmful weeds, it is the
+intolerance of the physician towards disease. Obedience to the Index makes
+high moral demands upon the Catholic. But it has been characteristic of
+the Christian religion and of its faithful children never to shrink before
+any moral action where it appeared demanded. And if the preservation of
+moral purity exacts conscientious discipline, this is also true of the
+preservation of the pure faith, especially at a time when a neo-paganism
+in league with an uncontrolled mania for reading is threatening in many
+forms.
+
+
+
+Galileo, and Other Topics.
+
+
+_Galileo Galilei_--but few names have achieved equal fame. Men like
+_Alexander_ and _Caesar_, like _Homer_ and _Dante_, have scarcely succeeded
+in writing their names with a sharper pencil on the tablet of history than
+the astronomer of Pisa. His grand discoveries in natural science have done
+little to crown his temples with the wreath of immortality--it was the fate
+of his life that did it. And one may add: if this fate had been caused by
+the French government, or by a Protestant General Assembly, he would never
+have obtained his position in history; but since this lot came to him by
+the human limitation of a Roman Church authority, his name is not only
+entered on the calendar of the anti-Roman journalist, it also stands
+surrounded with the halo of a Martyr in the esteem of serious scientists,
+who see in _Galileo_ and in the consequent condemnation of the Copernican
+system the proof that dogma and science cannot agree, that the Catholic
+Church assumes a hostile attitude toward science. Whenever this theme is
+mentioned, _Galileo's_ ghost is paraded. For this reason we cannot pass by
+this fact of history. To a son of the Church they are unpleasant
+recollections, but this shall not keep us from looking history firmly in
+the eye.
+
+There are some other charges brought forth from history, but the _Galileo_
+case overshadows them all. We shall touch upon them but briefly, and then
+return to _Galileo_.
+
+Attention is called to the Church's condemnation of the _doctrine of
+Antipodes_. The Priest _Vigilius_ was accused in Rome, in 747, of having
+taught that there exists another world under the earth, and other people
+also, or another sun and moon (_quod alius mundus et alii homines sub
+terra sint seu sol et luna_). Such was his doctrine as stated by Pope
+_Zacharias_ in his reply to _Boniface_, the Apostle of Germany, in which
+he said that he had cited _Vigilius_ to Rome in order that his doctrine be
+thoroughly investigated: if it should turn out that this had really been
+taught by him, he would be condemned. Further particulars of his teaching
+are unknown, because it is mentioned only in the above passage. The
+assertion ascribed to him is that there is another world besides this one,
+with other inhabitants and with another sun and moon--an assertion
+scientifically absurd and dogmatically inadmissible, as this might call in
+question the common descent of mankind from one pair of parents. The
+anxiety and rebuke of the Pope is directed solely against the latter
+point. The condemnation of _Vigilius_ has never taken place, for he
+remained in his office, won great respect, was elevated to the bishopric
+of Salzburg, and later canonized by _Gregory IX._ Had a condemnation of
+his particular doctrine taken place, this would not have involved the
+condemnation of the antipodean theory, in the sense that the side of the
+globe opposite to us is also inhabited by human beings, a proposition
+which does not conflict with any doctrine of faith. The doctrine described
+above has another tendency. The entire case is hidden in obscurity
+(_Hefele_, Conc. Gesch., 2d ed., III, 557 _seq._).
+
+Furthermore, it has been said that at the time when the universities were
+in close union with the Church, medical science could not advance because
+the Church had prohibited human _anatomy_ (Prof. _J. H. van't Hoff_, Neue
+Freie Presse, December 29, 1907). In amplification it was said: "_Boniface
+VIII._ had forbidden every anatomical dissection of a body" (_O.
+Zoeckler_, Theologie und Naturwissenschaft, 1877, I, 342). What is true of
+this assertion?
+
+
+    In the first place, _Boniface VIII._ did not forbid anatomy. He
+    merely prohibited in 1299 and 1300 the hideous custom then
+    prevailing regarding the bodies of noblemen who had died away from
+    home: they were disembowelled, dissected, and boiled, for the
+    purpose of removing the flesh from the bones so that the latter
+    could be transported the more easily. This process had nothing to
+    do with anatomy. The wish to possess the bones of the dead did not
+    seem to the Pope a sufficient reason for treating the human body
+    in such a way (Cfr. _Michael_, Gesch. des deutschen Volkes III,
+    1903, 433). Nor does history know of any other prohibition of
+    anatomy by the Church. It tells us, however, that _Frederick II._
+    in his excellent rules for the benefit of his Sicilian kingdom in
+    the regulation of medical science among other things emphasizes
+    the study of surgery: he ordered that no one be allowed to
+    practise surgery who could not show by attestation of his
+    professors that he had studied surgery for at least one year,
+    especially that he had learned at school how to dissect bodies; a
+    physician must be perfect in anatomy, else he may not undertake
+    operations (_Michael_, l. c. 430). This was done and practised
+    under the eyes of the Church. The accusers also seem ignorant of
+    the fact that bodies of those executed were given to universities
+    for dissection. In the year 1336 the medical students of
+    Montpellier, the famous medical school under the immediate
+    direction of the Church (see above, page 154) were granted the
+    privilege of obtaining once a year an executed criminal's body for
+    dissection. The same privilege was extended to the medical
+    students of Lerida by King _Juan I._ on June 3, 1391, who decreed
+    that the delinquent should be drowned _pro speriencia seu anatomia
+    fienda_ (_Denifle_, Die Universitaeten des Mittelalters, I, 1885,
+    507).
+
+    The story is also circulated that the fourth Lateran Council in
+    1215 prohibited monks from studying natural sciences and medicine
+    (Deutschoester. Lehrerzeitung 15th Dec., 1909). It will suffice to
+    quote this particular decree of the Lateran Council: "No clergyman
+    is allowed to pronounce capital sentence, nor to execute it, nor
+    to be present at its execution. No clergyman is allowed to draw up
+    a document concerning a death sentence: at the courts this should
+    be done by laymen. No clergyman is allowed to assume command of
+    Rotarians (freebooters), of archers or any others who shed human
+    blood; no subdeacon, deacon, or priest is allowed to practise that
+    part of surgery by which cutting and burning is done, nor must any
+    one pronounce a benediction at an ordeal" (_Hefele_, Koncil.
+    Gesch., 2d ed., V, 1887, 887). This will thoroughly dispose of
+    that charge.
+
+    Just as briefly may we settle the story of _Columbus_ having been
+    excommunicated because of his intention to discover new lands. It
+    is said that the "Spanish clergy denounced his plans as against
+    the faith, and that the Council of Salamanca excommunicated him"
+    (_W. Draper_, ibid. 163). This is a fairy tale. The truth is, that
+    King _Ferdinand_ and Queen _Isabella_ referred the plans of the
+    bold Genoese to a council of scientists and ecclesiastical
+    dignitaries, which was held in the Dominican Monastery of
+    Salamanca, _Columbus_ being present. There never was a Council of
+    Salamanca. _Weiss_ writes in his "History of the World": "Much has
+    been surmised concerning the objections and their refutation. It
+    is only certain that the majority rejected the plan as impossible
+    of execution, and that _Columbus_ won over a minority of them,
+    especially the priests, among whom the learned Dominican _Deza_
+    deserves mention" (Weltgesch. VII, 187). _Denthofen_, in his
+    biography of _Columbus_, says: "The Dominican Fathers supported
+    him during the long time the conference lasted, and even defrayed
+    the expenses of his journey. Father _Diego de Deza_, chief
+    professor of theology, was convinced by the reasons of _Columbus_,
+    and in turn convinced the more learned of his confreres. The
+    majority, however, thought the idea but a phantom, while others
+    deemed it impracticable. The conference adjourned without coming
+    to any definite decision" (Christof Columbus, Eine biographische
+    Skizze ..., 1878, 21). _Columbus_ found his warmest friend in the
+    learned Father _Juan Perez_, Guardian of the Franciscan Monastery
+    of St. Maria de la Rabida. Within the quiet walls of this cloister
+    _Columbus'_ plans were disclosed for the first time in Spain, and
+    admired and resolved upon. _Perez_ spoke untiringly to Isabella in
+    favour of the plan, and even aided _Columbus_ in gathering men for
+    his crew. This is the fact about the anathema the Church is paid
+    to have pronounced on _Columbus_.
+
+    But let us return to _Galileo_.(6)
+
+
+_Galileo Galilei_, the great Italian physicist, was born in 1564, at Pisa.
+At first he was professor in his native town, then at Padua, where he
+taught the doctrine of _Ptolemy_, although at that time there was no
+obstacle to accepting the Copernican system. In 1611 he became
+mathematician at the court of _Cosimo II._ at Florence. His talents and
+happy discoveries soon won fame. In general he was more of a physicist
+than an astronomer; his astronomical discoveries were, almost without
+exception, of a kind that did not presuppose a thorough astronomical
+training. As is known, he was not the original inventor of the telescope,
+though with its aid he achieved some of the most important of his
+discoveries; for instance, that of the satellites of Jupiter. The
+telescope was invented in Holland.
+
+When he went to Rome, in 1611, he was received with great honour. In one
+of his letters from there he wrote: "I have received marked favours from
+many Cardinals and prelates here, and from several princes. They wanted to
+hear of my inventions, and were all well pleased." The Jesuits gave a
+special reception in his honour at the Roman College. This shows in what
+esteem science was then held at Rome. But five years later _Galileo_
+returned to the Eternal City under quite different circumstances. What had
+happened? In 1612 he had issued a treatise on "The History and Explanation
+of the Sun-spots," in which he declared unreservedly for the Copernican
+system. And this caused the change. True, _Copernicus_ himself was a
+Catholic Priest, and had dedicated his principal work to Pope _Paul III._
+But it was generally supposed that he had brought forward the doctrine
+only as an hypothesis, only to illustrate and facilitate calculations, not
+claiming for it absolute certainty. This assumption was based on the
+preface of the first edition of his book, containing assurance to that
+effect. That preface, however, was not the work of _Copernicus_, but had
+been smuggled into the book by the Protestant publisher _Osiander_,
+without the author's knowledge, because _Osiander_ feared _his own_ church
+authorities.
+
+_Galileo_ spoke in quite another tone. He defended the doctrine as true.
+He soon aroused opposition. Men standing for the geocentric theory were
+opposed by others, siding with _Galileo_ for the solar system, such as the
+learned Benedictine, _Castelli_. _Galileo's_ great bitterness and sarcasm
+in dealing with his opponents aggravated the quarrel with the "partisans
+of _Aristotle_." Extreme irritability and love of praise were prominent
+traits of _Galileo's_ character.
+
+It was the custom of that time to bring Scripture into controversies about
+nature. This was done also in _Galileo's_ case. Passages were quoted
+against him, referring to the "rising and setting sun," to the "earth that
+never moves," of _Joshua's_ "commanding the sun to stand still." This
+prompted _Galileo_ to cross over into the field of theology himself. In a
+letter to _Castelli_ in 1613 he says: "Holy Writ can never lie nor err; on
+the contrary, its sayings are absolute and incontestable truth; but its
+interpreters are liable to err in various ways, and it is a fatal and very
+common mistake to stop always at the literal sense" (_Kepler_, even prior
+to _Galileo_, had interpreted the respective passages of the Scriptures
+properly and with surprising skill; especially in his introduction to his
+"Astronomia nova." Cfr. _Anschuetz_, Johannes Kepler als Exeget.
+Zeitschrift fuer katholische Theologie, XI, 1887, 1-24).
+
+Correct as these arguments were, it was nevertheless imprudent for the
+court mathematician to trespass upon grounds regarded by theologians as
+their own, instead of furnishing natural scientific proofs. Thus the
+matter was brought to Rome before the Congregation of the Inquisition.
+_Galileo_, worrying about his case, went voluntarily to Rome, in 1615. He
+failed to assuage the opposition against his theory, though he says he was
+received favourably by the princes of the Church. Moreover, heedless of
+the admonition of his friends, he pursued the matter with indiscreet zeal,
+with vehemence and impetuosity, practically provoking a decision. Cardinal
+_Bellarmin_ opposed the haste with which the matter was being pressed; the
+Jesuit _Grienberger_ thought that _Galileo_ should first set forth his
+proofs, and then speak about the Scriptures. Had scientific proofs been
+brought forth, theological difficulties would have been easily cleared
+away; but scientific proof was lacking, and what there perhaps was of it,
+_Galileo_ failed to offer.
+
+The right of the Congregation to take up the matter can hardly be denied,
+for although the matter was one of natural sciences, yet, by introducing
+theology and Scripture, it had assumed the character of theology and
+exegesis. _Galileo_ personally was dealt with very leniently. During the
+discussions of 1616 he was never cited before the bar of the Inquisition,
+nor was his exterior freedom in any way restricted. Only one thing was
+done: he was cautioned by Cardinal _Bellarmin_, "by order of the Holy
+Congregation," not to adhere to, nor teach any longer, the Copernican
+theory. The documents of the case say that "_Galileo_ submitted to this
+order and promised to obey." The Congregation of the Index prohibited,
+March 5, 1616, all books defending the Copernican theory, declaring the
+doctrine to be against Holy Scripture. Even the work of _Copernicus_ was
+prohibited _donec corrigatur_--until it be corrected. A decision of the
+year 1620 declared which passages should be corrected. They are those in
+which the author speaks of his theory not as an hypothesis but as of an
+established truth: _non ex hypothesi, sed asserando_. The Protestant
+_Kepler_, upon hearing this, wrote: "By their imprudent acts some have
+caused the work of _Copernicus_ to be condemned, after it had been left
+unmolested for nearly eighty years; and the prohibition will last at least
+till the corrections are made. I have been assured, however, by competent
+authority, both ecclesiastical and civil, that the decree was not intended
+to put any hindrance in the way of astronomical research" (_A. Mueller_,
+J. Kepler, 1903, 105). The reproach of imprudence was intended for
+_Galileo_.
+
+To teach the doctrine as an hypothesis was permitted even to _Galileo_,
+and this left the way clear for the development of the hypothesis, because
+whatever showed the usefulness of the hypothesis was sure to increase its
+value as a truth, but _Galileo_ would not keep within these limits.
+Instead of showing in a Christian spirit a submission to Providence, which
+even an erring authority may demand, he openly violated his promise and
+disobeyed the command he had received. In the spring of 1632 there
+appeared at Florence his "_Dialogue on the two most important systems of
+the world_." It contained an open, though by no means victorious, defence
+of the Copernican system--seeking to hide under a confidence-inspiring
+mask. It contained many passages of caustic sarcasm, with the evident
+intention of arousing public opinion against the attitude of the Roman
+Congregations. It was a flagrant _violation of the command given him
+personally_.
+
+The Pope under whom the proceedings against _Galileo_ took place was
+_Urban VIII._, who, when a Cardinal, had followed _Galileo's_ discoveries
+with enthusiasm, though never partial to the system of _Copernicus_, and,
+in accord with the custom of the age, he had written an ode to _Galileo_.
+
+Cited to Rome, _Galileo_ came only after repeated urging, on February 14,
+1633. The story of his having been imprisoned and tortured on this second
+visit to Rome is false. _Galileo_ wrote on April 16 of that year: "I live
+in an apartment of three rooms, belonging to the Fiscal of the
+Inquisition, and am free to move in many rooms. My health is good." This
+stay in the apartment belonging to the Inquisition lasted but twenty-two
+days; after that _Galileo_ was allowed to live in the palace of the
+Ambassador of Tuscany. During his whole life _Galileo_ was never even for
+an hour in a real prison.
+
+_Galileo's_ demeanour before the Inquisition bespeaks little truthfulness
+and manliness. It makes a painful impression. Many other events in his
+life cast dark shades of insincerity upon his character, especially his
+relations with _Kepler_. While in his dialogue he openly defended the
+truth of the Copernican system, while he had written, time and again, that
+the theory had been demonstrated by "forceful, convincing arguments,"
+whereas nothing but insignificant reasons could be pleaded for the
+contrary, he now assumes the attitude before the Inquisition of denying
+that he had championed that theory, at least not consciously; that he had
+never taught that doctrine otherwise than hypothetically. And this he
+asserts although he had taken the oath to say nothing but the truth. We
+even hear him declare that he considers the doctrine to be false, and that
+he was ready to refute it at once.
+
+The judges were convinced of the untruthfulness of the defendant. In those
+times, in order to obtain further confessions, especially when the accused
+had been previously convicted of guilt, torture was resorted to. This
+regrettable practice was then in vogue at every European court; the
+Inquisition, too, had adopted it, but strict rules were laid down to guard
+against abuses. Very old persons were exempt from the rack; they were only
+threatened with it. This happened also in _Galileo's_ case, he was never
+actually put on the rack. Moreover, one can safely presume that this
+threat did not terrify him much. His reading must have enlightened him on
+this point, and even without it he must have known the practice by his
+active intercourse with those theologians of the Curia who were friendly
+to him. In fact, he clung obstinately to his denial, to the very end of
+the hearing, although it must be surmised that he would not have
+aggravated his case by confession. The commissioner of Inquisition,
+_Macolano_, at the first stages of the trial had expressed his hope that
+in this event "it would be possible to show indulgence to the guilty, and
+whatever the result might be, he would realize the benefit received, apart
+from all other consequences to be expected from a desired mutual
+satisfaction" (Letter to Cardinal _Fr. Barberini_, April 28, 1633).
+
+On June 22 _the final verdict_ was rendered: it told the defendant: "Thou
+art convicted by the Holy Congregation of being suspected of heresy, to
+wit, to have held for true, and believed in, a false theory, contrary to
+Holy Writ--which makes the sun the centre of the orbit of the earth,
+without moving from east to west, and which lets the earth, on the other
+hand, move outside the centre of the world, and to have believed that an
+opinion may be considered probable and be defended, though it had been
+expressly declared to be contrary to the Scripture." _Galileo_ was
+declared suspect of heresy, because, in the opinion of the judges, he had
+assumed that a doctrine in contradiction to the Scriptures might be
+defended. _Galileo_ retracted by oath. That upon retraction he arose and
+exclaimed, stamping with his foot, "_Pur si muove!_" ("and yet it does
+move!") is a fable. He was sentenced to be jailed in the Holy Office. But
+already the next day he was allowed to go to the palace of the Grand Duke
+of Tuscany and to consider that palace his prison. Soon after he departed
+for Siena, "in the best of health," according to the report of the Tuscan
+ambassador, _Niccolini_, and there took up his abode with his friend the
+Archbishop _Piccolomini_. After a lapse of five months he was allowed to
+return to his villa at Arcetri, near Florence, where he remained, with the
+exception of occasional visits to Florence, till his death. Two of his
+daughters were nuns in the nearby cloister of S. Matteo. His literary
+activity was not suppressed by the surveillance of the Inquisition. His
+lively and fertile mind, cut off from polemics, turned to the completion
+of his researches in other directions. His lively intercourse with friends
+and disciples, of whom many belonged to various Orders, proved beneficial
+to him. In the year 1638 he published his "Dialogue on the New Sciences,"
+which he rightly pronounced to be his best effort, and by which he became
+the founder of dynamics. His productiveness continued until he became
+blind.
+
+We may say without fear of contradiction that, apart from their
+theoretical error, the Roman Congregations had shown the greatest
+indulgence towards one guilty of having broken his pledge, and doubtless
+they would have been still more lenient had _Galileo_, confirmed by
+flattering friends in his anger at the supposed intrigues of his enemies,
+not himself made this impossible; if he had not continued to propagate
+secretly his views, verbally and in writing, which was bound to be
+discovered. Considering all this, Rome's proceeding in the case appears to
+be quite indulgent. Here the position was taken that the spread of the
+doctrine would mean an imminent danger to the purity of the faith. The
+unfortunate scientist died on January 8, 1642, at the age of seventy-eight
+years, fortified by the holy Sacraments. _Urban VIII._ sent him his
+blessing. Undoubtedly _Galileo_ had nothing in common with the champions
+of that unbelieving freedom of science, which now tries to lift him upon
+its shield; notwithstanding his later bitterness he remained to his death
+steadfast in his Catholic faith.
+
+
+
+Comments on the Galileo Case.
+
+
+The above is a brief history of _Galileo's_ conviction, and of the
+occurrences leading to it. An event regrettable to all, a stumbling-block
+for not a few; for others a welcome event to make the Church appear in the
+light of an enemy of science. Let us now give more particulars of the
+merits of the case.
+
+We have before us two decisions of Roman Tribunals: the Index decree of
+1616, announcing the rejection of the Copernican doctrine and prohibiting
+books maintaining it, and the conviction of _Galileo_ in 1633 by the
+Congregation of the Inquisition. It is freely admitted that these Roman
+Tribunals committed an _error_ in advocating an interpretation of the
+Bible which was false in itself, and is to-day recognized as false.
+
+Well, _does this confute the infallibility of the Church?_ It does not.
+The matter in point is merely an error of the Congregations, of bodies of
+Cardinals, who were responsible for the transactions and decisions. The
+Congregations, however, are not infallible organs. There is no Bull or
+Papal decree designating the Copernican doctrine as false, much less is
+there extant a decision ex cathedra. Neither in 1616 nor in 1633, nor at
+any other time, has the Holy See ever manifested its intention of
+declaring, by a peremptory, dogmatic decision, the new system to be
+against Scripture.
+
+
+    It was thus the general understanding of that age that in the
+    present case there was no irrevocable dogmatic decision given. For
+    instance, the Jesuit _Riccioli_, wrote not long after the
+    decision: "Inasmuch as no dogmatic decision was rendered in this
+    case, neither on the part of the Pope nor on the part of a Council
+    ruled by the Pope and acknowledged by him, it is not made, by
+    virtue of that decree of the Congregation, a doctrine of faith
+    that the sun is moving and the earth standing still, but at most
+    it is a doctrine for those who by reason of Holy Writ seem to be
+    morally certain that God has so revealed it. Yet every Catholic is
+    bound by virtue of obedience to conform to the decree of the
+    Congregation, or at least not to teach what is directly opposed to
+    it" (Almagestum novum, 1651, 162). _Descartes_, _Gassendi_, and
+    others of that time expressed themselves similarly (_Grisar_, 165,
+    _seq._). There is an interesting letter of the Protestant
+    philosopher _Leibnitz_, written to the Landgrave _Ernest of
+    Hessia_, 1688, begging him to work for the repeal of the
+    condemnation of the Copernican theory, because of the growing
+    verification of this theory: "If the Congregation would change its
+    censure, or mitigate it, as one issued hastily at a time when the
+    proofs for the correctness of the Copernican theory were not yet
+    clear enough, this step could not detract from the authority of
+    the Congregation, much less of the Church, because the Pope had no
+    part in it. There is no judicial authority which has not at times
+    reformed its own decisions."
+
+
+But have we here not at least a _wilful attack on science_? or a
+manifestation of the Congregation's narrow-mindedness and ignorance, which
+are bound to deprive it of all respect and confidence of sober-minded
+people?
+
+This harsh judgment overlooks two points. In the first place, the error of
+the judges was quite _pardonable_. Could the liberal critics of to-day,
+who so harshly denounce the Cardinals of the Congregation, be suddenly
+changed into ecclesiastical prelates, and transferred back to the years of
+1616-1633, and placed in the chairs of the tribunal which had to decide
+those delicate questions, it may be feared that, did they carry into the
+decision but a part of the animosity they now show, they would disgrace
+themselves and compromise the Church even more than the judges of
+_Galileo_ did. It is true that were we to judge the handling of the
+question by the knowledge of to-day, we might be astonished at the
+narrow-mindedness of the judges, trying to uphold their untenable views
+against the established results of scientific research. But it would be
+altogether unhistorical to look at the matter in that way. When the
+Copernican theory entered upon the battlefield, it was _by no means
+certain and demonstrated_.
+
+
+    The real arguments for the rotation of the earth were not then
+    known. There were no direct proofs for the progressive revolution
+    of the earth around the sun. _Galileo_ advanced three main
+    arguments for his theory. First, he advanced the argument from the
+    phenomenon of the tides, which, he said, could not be accounted
+    for but by the rotation of the earth: an argument rejected as
+    futile even at that time. Next he argued from certain observations
+    of the spots on the sun: another worthless argument, which others,
+    like _Scheiner_, looked upon as proof of the older theory. The
+    third argument was that the new theory simplified the explanation
+    of certain celestial phenomena; but the scope of this argument,
+    valid though it was in the abstract, could not be expressed or
+    grasped at the time, especially since the corrections of _Tycho de
+    Brahe_ had removed the greatest objections to the Ptolemaic
+    system. The Copernican theory could not be considered certain till
+    the end of the seventeenth century, after _Newton's_ work on
+    gravitation.
+
+    Then there were difficulties, the greatest of which was probably
+    the old idea of inertia, which at that time meant only that all
+    bodies tend to a state of rest; hence it seemed impossible that
+    the earth could ceaselessly execute two movements at the same
+    time, around the sun and around its own axis. This notion of
+    inertia had not been doubted in 1616; even _Kepler_ adhered to it.
+    Later on _Galileo_ came very near to the new idea of inertia: that
+    bodies tended to retain their state of repose or motion. But this
+    new notion, like everything else new, gained ground but slowly.
+    Then it was only with great difficulty that he could dispose of
+    the objection that were the earth to speed through space, as the
+    new theory claimed, the atmosphere would take a stormlike motion.
+    Lastly, the philosophical objection had to be met: the sun and
+    other celestial bodies, as far as we can know by observation, are
+    moving; if they do not move, then we must admit that we can know
+    nothing by observation.
+
+    Thus the new doctrine was not at all proven at that time, as could
+    be easily shown by its opponents; although it cannot be denied
+    that they did not always enter into the discussion with
+    impartiality. The astronomer, _Secchi_, testifies that "none of
+    the real arguments for the rotary motion of the earth was known at
+    _Galileo's_ time, also direct proofs for the progressive movement
+    of the earth around the sun were lacking at that time" (_Grisar_,
+    30). Another famous astronomer, _Schiaparelli_, writes: "In the
+    sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the Ptolemaic as well as the
+    Copernican system could serve for the description of phenomena;
+    geometrically they were equivalent to each other and to _Tycho's_
+    eclectic system" (_Schiaparelli_, Die Vorlaeufer des Copernicus im
+    Altertum (German, 1876), 86).
+
+    Hence no direct evidence could be pleaded against the decision of
+    the Congregation, not even _Galileo_ had that evidence. At any
+    rate no judge who observed his demeanour at the trial could have
+    suspected _Galileo_ of coming in conflict with his conscience by
+    swearing off the theory.
+
+
+For this reason it would be wrong to call _Galileo_ a martyr for science,
+because he did not suffer any martyrdom. He has seen neither rack nor
+prison. But he was not a martyr chiefly for the reason that he could not
+have had any scientific conviction, apart from the fact that he did not
+claim any such conviction, even denied it expressly.
+
+No wonder, then, that the heliocentric system had considerable opponents
+at that time; no wonder the opposite view was even the prevalent one. _A.
+Tanner_ wrote in 1626: "_Ita habet communis ac certa omnium theologorum ac
+philosophorum naturalium sentia_" (Theol. Schol. I, disp. 6, q. 4., dub.
+3). Had valid argument been brought forth there never would have been a
+_Galileo_ case. In this respect a passage from a letter of _Bellarmin_
+deserves attention: "If it could be really demonstrated that the sun be in
+the centre of the world ... then we would have to proceed quite cautiously
+in explaining the apparently opposite passages in the Scriptures, we would
+rather have to say that we do not understand them, than to say of things
+demonstrated that they are false" (to _Foscarini_, April 12, 1615). The
+Cardinals of that time could not be expected to anticipate the knowledge
+of a later period. They had to consult the judgment of their
+contemporaneous savants. When seeing the majority of them sharply
+rejecting the new theory and refuting the arguments of their opponents, it
+is little wonder that the Cardinals could not overcome their theological
+scruples.
+
+The scruples arose from the opinion, then prevalent, that the Holy
+Scripture taught that the earth stood still and the sun moved; that the
+words of the Scripture must be taken literally till the contrary is
+demonstrated. The unanimous explanation of the Christian centuries was
+also cited. As a matter of fact, however, the Christian past had not
+taught this to be the only true sense of the words, but at that time the
+words were understood that way, because no one could arrive at any other
+sense in those days.
+
+Under these circumstances, an error was hardly avoidable, if a decision
+was required. And a decision seemed to be urgent, and this is the second
+point we must not overlook, if we wish to judge fairly. It was a time
+eager for innovations, full of anti-religious ideas. A renaissance,
+sidling off into false humanism, was combating religious convictions,
+false notions were invading philosophy; in addition, Protestantism was
+trying to invade Italy. All this caused suspicion of any innovation apt to
+endanger the faith; interpretations of the Scriptures deviating from the
+accustomed sense were particularly distrusted. The _Galileo_ quarrel
+happened at an inopportune time. Indeed a sudden spread of the Copernican
+theory might have been accompanied by great religious dangers. Even now,
+after nearly three hundred years, the leaders of the anti-Christian
+propaganda are still pointing out that the progress of natural science has
+proved Holy Scripture to be erroneous, and many are impressed by the
+argument; many thousands would have been confused in those days by the
+sudden collapse of old astronomical views that were connected with
+unclarified religious ideas--dreading that victorious science might shatter
+all religious traditions. Now, if one is convinced that the damage to
+religion is to be estimated greater than any other, then one may also have
+the conviction that it was better for the nations of the new era to have
+their scientific progress a little delayed, than to have their most sacred
+possession endangered. Of course considerations of this kind will have no
+weight with representatives of the naturalistic view of the world. Then it
+can only be emphasized that a science that has no appreciation of the
+supernatural character of the Catholic Church cannot be in a position to
+render a fair judgment on many facts in the history of that Church.
+
+What we have said shows sufficiently that the condemnation of _Galileo_
+was not due to any hostility to science.
+
+
+    The idea that the Church's attitude towards _Galileo_ and the
+    Copernican theory was a result of her antipathy to science is
+    entirely in contradiction with the character of that strenuous
+    period. In Catholic countries, especially in Italy, intellectual
+    life was zealously promoted by the Popes and their influence. It
+    was developing and flourishing even in the natural sciences. When
+    reading the correspondence of _Galileo_ one must be surprised to
+    see how popular astronomical, physical, and mathematical studies
+    were in the educated circles of the period. These studies belonged
+    to the curriculum of a general philosophical education, and it was
+    a matter of honour for many ecclesiastical dignitaries to remain
+    philosophers in that sense, notwithstanding their official duties.
+    We recall to mind the scientific discussion carried on with
+    _Galileo_ in Rome in 1611 and 1616, by Cardinals _Del Monte_,
+    _Farnese_, _Bonzi_, _Bemerio_, _Orsini_, and _Maffeo Baberini_,
+    and by clergymen like _Agucchi_, _Dini_, and _Campioli_. Similarly
+    in France we meet with names like _Mersenne_, _Gassendi_, and
+    _Descartes_. And in Italy, after _Galileo_ and at his time, we
+    meet with a long list of eminent naturalists like _Toricelli_,
+    _Cassini_, _Riccioli_, and others. In 1667 _Gemiani Montanari_
+    could write that in Italy there were continually forming new
+    societies of scientists. The advance in knowledge of truth was
+    made on safe grounds; at Naples, Rome, and elsewhere science was
+    enriched by a great variety of new experiences, inasmuch as the
+    scientists were making progress in the observation and the
+    investigation of nature. _Targioni-Tozzetti_ writes: "Astronomy
+    with us, about the middle of the sixteenth century, was a very
+    diligently cultivated branch of science" (Galileistudien (1882)
+    338 f.). The Church was by no means hostile to this newly awakened
+    life, not even holding aloof from it; on the contrary, it
+    flourished especially in ecclesiastical circles; a proof that
+    narrow-minded disappreciation of natural science did not prevail,
+    and that there was a different explanation for the _Galileo_ case.
+
+
+
+Copernicus on the Index till 1835.
+
+
+And what of the fact that _Copernicus_ remained on the Index until the
+nineteenth century? Does it not show a rigid adherence to old, traditional
+method and opposition to progress? The fact is true: The work of
+_Copernicus_, and other Copernican writings, remained on the Index until
+1835. But it is also true that a great deal connected with this fact is
+not generally known or ignored. Let us mention here some of these facts.
+
+
+    To begin with, it must not be forgotten that we owe the new world
+    system, and with it the turning-point in astronomy, first of all
+    to representatives of the Catholic clergy. After the learned
+    Bishop _Nicholas Oresme_ had expressed with fullest certainty the
+    most important point of the Copernican system as early as 1377 (in
+    a manuscript hitherto unknown, discovered a short time ago by
+    _Pierre Duhem_ in the National Library at Paris. Cfr. Liter.
+    Zentralblatt (1909), page 1618), and after the learned Cardinal
+    _Nicholaus von Kues_ (d. 1474) adopted a rotary motion of the
+    earth in his cosmic system, it was _Copernicus_, a canon of the
+    diocese of Ermland, who became the father of the new theory, in
+    his work "De evolutionibus orbium coelestium." He published it at
+    the urgent request of Cardinal _Nikolaus Schoenberg_. But the most
+    zealous promoter of his work was Bishop _Tiedemann Giese_ of Kulm.
+    Enthusiastic over the novel idea, he incessantly urged his friend
+    to publish his work, took care of its publication, and sent a copy
+    to Pope _Paul III._, who accepted its dedication. Again, it was a
+    prince of the Church, Bishop _Martin Kromer_, who, in 1851,
+    dedicated a tablet in the cathedral at Frauenberg to "The Great
+    Astronomer and Innovator of Astronomical Science." All these men
+    knew that _Copernicus_ defended his work not as an hypothesis or
+    as fiction, but as true. Before _Copernicus_ issued his great
+    work, _Clement VIII._ showed a lively interest in his system and
+    had it explained to him by the learned _Johann Widmannstadt_ in
+    the Vatican Gardens (_Pastor_, Gesch. der Paepste, IV, 2 (1907)
+    550).
+
+    The first attack against the new system, as being contrary to Holy
+    Writ, came not from Catholic but from Protestant circles. Among
+    the latter the opposition against _Copernicus_ was being agitated,
+    while peaceful calm reigned among the former. Twelve Popes
+    succeeded _Paul III._, and not one interfered with this doctrine.
+    _Luther_, even in _Copernicus'_ time, hurled his anathema against
+    the "Frauenberg Fool," and six years after the publication of
+    _Copernicus'_ chief work, _Melanchthon_ declared it a sin and a
+    scandal to publish such nonsensical opinions, contrary to the
+    divine testimony of the Scriptures. In fear of his religious
+    community the Protestant publisher _Osiander_ smuggled in the
+    spurious preface already mentioned, "On the hypothesis of this
+    work." The Protestant _Rheticus_, a friend and pupil of
+    _Copernicus_, got into disfavour with _Melanchthon_ and had to
+    discontinue his lectures at Wittenberg. The genial _Kepler_,
+    finally, was prosecuted by his own congregation, because of his
+    defence of the theory. And when on the Catholic side the Index
+    decree of 1616 was already beginning to be regarded as obsolete,
+    Protestant theology still held to the old view even up to the
+    nineteenth century: a long list of names could be adduced in
+    proof.
+
+    Certainly no fair-minded person can see wilful hostility against
+    astronomy in this procedure. Likewise there should not be imputed
+    dishonourable intentions to Catholics, if in the course of history
+    they rendered tribute to human limitation.
+
+
+But did not the decrees of 1616 and 1633 do _great harm to research_? Not
+at all. That this was hardly the case with _Galileo_ himself we have shown
+above. Soon after we find in Italy a goodly number of distinguished
+scientists; the Church in no way opposed the newly awakened life, nor even
+held aloof from it. _Galileo_ himself was honoured in ecclesiastical
+circles. Soon after _Galileo's_ conviction the Jesuit _Grimaldi_ named a
+mountain on the moon after him.
+
+Nor was there any considerable harm done to the development of the
+Copernican theory. Although after _Galileo_ the occasions were not
+lacking, still no further advocate of his theory was ever up for trial.
+Nor was any other book on the subject prohibited. Freedom was quietly
+granted more and more. In the edition of the Index of 1758, the general
+prohibition of 1616 of Copernican writings was withdrawn; it was an
+official withdrawal from the old position. But not until 1822 were the
+special prohibitions repealed, although they had long since lost their
+binding force. The occasion was given by an accidental occurrence. The
+Magister S. Palatii of the time intended to deny the Imprimatur to a book
+on the Copernican theory, on account of the obsolete prohibition. An
+appeal was made, which brought about the formal repeal of the prohibition.
+Of course there had been no hurry to revoke a decision once given. But
+according to the astronomer _Lalande's_ report of his interview with the
+Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation of the Index, in 1765, the removal
+from the Index of _Galileo's_ Dialogue had been postponed only on account
+of extraneous difficulties. _Leibnitz_, while in Rome, worked for a repeal
+of the decree. According to Emery, there are extant statements of
+_Leibnitz_ vouching for the fact that he very nearly succeeded (_Emery_,
+Pensees de Leibnitz, 1, 275). The name of _Copernicus_, too, was omitted
+in the next edition of the Index, which appeared in 1835.
+
+But even while the prohibition was still in force, the works of _Galileo_
+and _Copernicus_ were read everywhere. As early as 1619 _John Remus_ wrote
+from Vienna to _Kepler_ that the Copernican writings may be read by
+scientific men who had received special permission, and that this was done
+in all Italy and in Rome itself. Besides, it was allowed at any time to
+make use of the doctrine as an hypothesis. Thus it advanced continually
+nearer and nearer to the position of an established truth.
+
+Soon after the publication of the decree, according to the report of
+_Kepler_, it was the general conviction in ecclesiastical and civil
+circles of Austria "that the censure was no obstacle to the freedom of
+science in the investigation of God's work." In 1685 we are assured by the
+Jesuit _Kochansky_, that any Catholic was free to "look for an
+irrefutable, mathematical, and physical demonstration of the movement of
+the earth." It was also known that the condemnation of the theory had been
+aided by the supposition that there were no valid arguments in support of
+the new theory. Hence the Congregation's decree had in the eighteenth
+century for the most part lost its force. The Jesuit _Boscovich_, a
+celebrated physicist and astronomer, wrote in 1755: "In consequence of the
+extraordinary arguments offered by the consideration of _Kepler's_ laws,
+astronomers no longer look upon his theory as a mere hypothesis, but as an
+established truth" (Grisar, 347, 350).
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+Thus in the light of history the condemnation of the Copernican theory
+appears quite differently from the picture presented by the superficial
+accusation that Rome up to the nineteenth century condemned this theory.
+There is no trace of callousness and oppression, but only submission to
+legitimate authority, in so far and as long as one deemed himself obliged.
+It was a science enlightened by Christianity, which, in questions not yet
+clearly decided, laid down upon the altar of the Giver of all wisdom the
+tribute of humble submission, for the sake of higher interests.
+
+We shall have to class with _St. Augustine_ the uncertainty of human
+judgments and tribunals among the "troubles of human life," and say with
+him: "It is also a misery that the judge is subject to the necessity of
+not knowing many things, but to the wise man it is not a fault" (De Civ.
+Dei, IX, 6). May we therefore infer that the teaching authority is an
+evil? Were that true, we should have to abolish the authority of the state
+and of parents, because they also make mistakes. We should have to
+conclude that there had better be no authority at all on earth. Where men
+live and rule, mistakes will certainly be made. The physician makes
+mistakes in his important office, yet patients return to him with
+confidence. Every pedagogue, every professor, has made mistakes, yet they
+still command respect. The state government is subject to mistakes, yet
+none but the anarchist will say that it must therefore be abolished. "That
+the judge is subject to the necessity of not knowing many things, is a
+misery, but to the wise man not a fault."
+
+
+
+
+Chapter V. The Witnesses of the Incompatibility Of Science And Faith.
+
+
+
+The Objection.
+
+
+We shall not go wrong in presuming that the reader, who has patiently
+followed our deductions, has had for some time in his mind the question:
+How about the representatives of scientific research themselves? Do not a
+large majority of them, perhaps virtually all, stand alien and repellant
+to Christian faith and its fundamental truths? We do not refer to our
+modern philosophers, for of them it might be said that their researches
+yield questionable speculations of individualistic stamp, rather than
+exact results. But there are the representatives of the more exact
+sciences, especially of the most exact of all, natural science. They may
+be considered the legitimate representatives of modern science, since
+their results are the most accurate, their methods the most strictly
+scientific; and are they not, every one of them, opposed to Christian
+faith, especially to its fundamental dogma? Is not _Haeckel_ right when he
+states in the final summary of his "Weltraetsel," in which he so strongly
+insists on the incompatibility of religion and natural science: "I am
+supported by the accord of nearly all modern naturalists who have the
+courage to express their convictions"? Is it not true that _A. von
+Humboldt_ is considered the prince of German naturalists? and yet in his
+voluminous "_Kosmos_" he not once mentions the name of God? Have not, with
+few exceptions, German naturalists, under _Humboldt's_ influence, turned
+against Christianity? (_W. Menzel_, Die letzten hundertzwanzig Jahre der
+Weltgeschichte, VI, 1860, p. 70; cfr. _Pohle_, P. Angelo Secchi, 1904, p.
+6). Here indeed the antagonism between true scientific spirit and the
+faith seems to take shape in tangible reality, and to invalidate every
+argument to the contrary.
+
+Thus runs the speech that is ever recurring in the literature of the day,
+in newspapers and magazines no less than in books. And this speech makes
+an impression on its hearers. Indeed, why should it not? After describing
+how these heroes of science in recent times marched on triumphantly from
+victory to victory, how they renewed the face of the earth, and became the
+pioneers of human progress, how can they fail to make a deep impression if
+in the same breath they state that these discoverers of truth have, almost
+to a man, broken with the ancient teachings of the Christian religion?
+
+Without doubt the suggestive effect of such speculation must be very
+considerable with those who lack sufficient historical knowledge. The case
+is different with those better acquainted with the history of the natural
+sciences. They know that it is not true to state that the leading natural
+scientists, for the most part, or even unanimously, have rejected and
+denied Christian religion, that it is a _lie_ and a falsification of
+history.
+
+Let us illustrate it briefly. We do not, of course, mean to say, that _if_
+it were true that all the leading naturalists were infidels, the inference
+would necessarily follow that Christianity is untenable, and incompatible
+with science. Not at all. First of all, natural scientists who oppose
+Christianity could hardly ever come forward in the capacity of experts in
+this matter. For by venturing the assertion that world-matter and
+world-force are eternal and uncreated, that they develop by force of
+natural causality, by unending evolution, and not by the power and
+direction of an intelligent cause, they leave their own province and
+trespass on the domain of philosophy. These and similar questions are not
+solved by natural science research, by experiment, observation, or
+calculation, but are the subjects of philosophical speculation. Atheism,
+materialism, the denial of the soul's immortality or of eternal
+destination, all these are philosophical matters, and a natural science
+theory of the world is a misconception about as absurd as a Swiss England
+or a Bavarian Spain.
+
+As it is impossible to review here all scientists of the past centuries,
+to probe their bent of mind, we shall restrict ourselves in the following
+to scientists of the first rank, for to them the assertion above mentioned
+must chiefly refer. First of all, they were possessed of that spirit of
+scientific research claimed to be incompatible with the faith; and they,
+more than others, should have been conscious of this contradiction. It is
+plain that if they did not know anything of the claimed antagonism between
+the theories of evolution and of creation, between physical facts and
+spirituality of soul, between natural law and miracles; if it be shown
+that many of them were actually orthodox Christians, believing in the
+supernatural and yet enthusiastic friends of science, fathoming the laws
+of nature and yet unshaken in their faith, then the fact that inferior
+minds talk of a contradiction unknown to these great ones can no longer
+make much of an impression.
+
+Therefore let us look over the long list of great scholars of the last
+centuries, those great men to whom we owe knowledge and discoveries that
+are our joy to this very day. Among them we shall find many who, in their
+life and thought, have plainly confessed themselves faithful Christians;
+we shall find that others were at least the opponents of atheism and
+materialism, that they clung to the fundamental truths of the Christian
+faith, and that is a matter of moment when the antagonism between natural
+science and faith is under discussion.
+
+We shall not go back to the ancient representatives of natural science,
+men like _Pythagoras_, _Aristotle_, _Archimedes_, _Albert the Great_,
+_Roger Bacon_, and others of past ages, partly because there is no doubt
+about the religious views of those men, partly because research at their
+time was imperfect. We begin at the rise of modern natural science.
+
+
+
+The Old Masters.
+
+
+At the threshold of modern natural science there stands the man who solved
+the riddle that had puzzled centuries before him, the father of modern
+astronomy, _Nikolaus Copernicus_. He had studied at the universities of
+Cracow, Bologna, Ferrara, and Padua, and while he was one of the foremost
+historians of his time, it was astronomy that had engaged his enthusiastic
+devotion from his youth. He was a Catholic priest, a Canon of Frauenberg.
+"If recent representatives of the Roman Church," so writes the Protestant
+theologian, _O. Zoeckler_, "praise this Frauenberg Canon as a faithful son
+of their Church, this fact must be granted by Protestants, despite the
+frankness with which he opposed the Aristotelian and Ptolemaic theories
+taught by the scholastics, and despite his friendship with the Protestant
+_Rheticus_" (Gottes Zeugen im Reiche der Natur, 1906, p. 82). _George
+Joachim_, a native of Feldkirch, surnamed _Rheticus_, and a Protestant
+professor at Wittenberg, came to _Copernicus_ at Frauenberg, and was
+cordially received. His praise for "his teacher" is unreserved. He speaks
+in the same admiring terms of _Tiedemann Giese_, in those days Bishop of
+Kulm.
+
+For nearly forty years _Copernicus_ sat in the modest observatory which he
+had erected at Frauenberg, studying and collecting the material for his
+book. Even after all this time this deliberate scholar, despite the urging
+of his friends, especially Bishop _Tiedemann Giese_ and Cardinal
+_Schoenberg_, Archbishop of Capua, hesitated for ten years longer before
+publishing his discoveries. The work was entitled _De revolutionibus
+orbium caelestium, libri VI_, and was dedicated to Pope _Paul III._ The
+author himself could enjoy his achievement but very little. The first copy
+sent by the printer reached _Copernicus_ on his deathbed, and a few hours
+later he breathed his last, on May 24, 1543.
+
+In the introduction to his work this devout Christian scientist wrote:
+"Who would not be urged by the intimate intercourse with the work of His
+hands to the contemplation of the Most High, and to the admiration for the
+Omnipotent Architect of the universe, in whom is the highest happiness,
+and in whom is the perfection of all that is good?"
+
+Without _Copernicus_ there could have been no _Kepler_, without _Kepler_
+no _Newton_. These three men, in the words of a recent astronomer, belong
+inseparably together, they support and supplement one another. It might be
+fittingly asked, after which of these three the celestial system should be
+named; and were it possible to ask these three men for their opinion in
+this matter, they would probably all give the answer that has been
+ascribed to one or the other of them: Not my system, but God's Order. Like
+_Copernicus_, so _Kepler_ and _Newton_ were profoundly religious men.
+
+_Johann Kepler_, born of Protestant parents in Wuerttemberg in 1571, was
+raised a Lutheran. In 1594 he was appointed professor of mathematics at a
+school in Graz, and after that he dwelt for the most time in Austria,
+which country became his second home. From Graz he was called to Prague to
+be mathematician at the imperial court, and from there to Linz to be
+professor at the college there. His last years were passed at Sagan and
+Ratisbon, where he died in 1630. Even after having left Austria he
+gratefully remembered the _clementia austriaca_ and the _favor
+archiducalis_. _Kepler's_ astronomical achievements are known to
+everybody, especially his laws of the planets. With an untiring spirit of
+research he combined beautiful traits of character, cheerfulness,
+kindness, and modesty, but chiefly a profoundly religious mind. However,
+he was in difficult circumstances as far as his religious life was
+concerned. Quite early he came in conflict with the religious authorities
+of his confession, particularly for the reason that they considered
+_Kepler's_ Copernican views as against the Bible, a fact which the learned
+astronomer could not see. There were also other differences. The conflict
+became more and more aggravated. It cannot be denied that the Lutheran
+Church-authorities proceeded against _Kepler_ with a lack of consideration
+never shown by Rome against men like _Galileo_. _Kepler_ was expelled from
+the Lutheran Church, and despite his efforts to be reinstated the ban was
+never lifted.
+
+
+    Like _Kepler_, so was his predecessor at the Catholic court of
+    Prague, the Danish astronomer _Tycho Brahe_ (died 1601), a devout
+    Protestant, but the trials of _Kepler_ were spared him. His
+    erroneous idea that the Copernican system conflicted with Holy
+    Writ kept him from subscribing to it: it led him to devise a
+    system midway between _Copernicus_ and _Ptolemy_. His religious
+    sentiment is evidenced by a passage from a letter of his, written
+    at his father's death, "Although there are many consolations for
+    me, of a religious nature based on Holy Writ, and of a
+    philosophical kind drawn from the contemplation of the fate of all
+    men and of the inconstancy of everything under the moon, it is a
+    special comfort for me that my father departed so sweetly and
+    piously from this valley of misery to the heavenly eternal home,
+    where, according to _St. Paul_, we shall find a lasting abode."
+
+
+But let us return to _Kepler_. There is evidence that at various times in
+his life he wavered between his Lutheran confession and the Catholic
+faith, but that is as far as he went. He was of the opinion that the
+fundamental truths of both were in accord, and he would not presume to
+judge of the differences; he had taken a view-point of his own, from which
+he could not be made to recede. On the other hand, he was shocked when his
+fellow-Lutherans in Styria were on two occasions severely dealt with,
+although he personally had been treated with especial consideration.
+Otherwise his opinions on Catholic matters and the "wisdom" of the
+Catholic Church were eminently fair; he censured his co-religionists for
+their invidious attacks on Rome, and for their hesitancy in adopting the
+Gregorian reform of the calendar. He had friendly relation with many a
+Catholic scientist, was in correspondence with many Jesuits, was even
+frequently their guest, receiving stimulus, commendation, and scientific
+communications from them.
+
+To _Kepler_ the study of astronomy became largely a prayer; the finest of
+his scientific works he was wont to conclude with the doxology of the
+Psalmist, "Great is our Lord, and great is His power, and of His wisdom
+there is no number: praise Him ye Heavens; praise ye Him, O Sun, and Moon,
+ye Stars and light, and praise Him in your language. Thou, too, praise
+Him, O soul of mine, thy Lord, thy Creator, as long as it is granted to
+thee" (_Harmonices Mundi_, v. 9). His name and work is commemorated in the
+Keplerbund in Germany, which aims at the promotion of scientific knowledge
+in the sense of _Kepler_, in opposition to the misuse of natural science
+for purposes of materialism and atheism.
+
+The work, begun so happily by _Copernicus_ and _Kepler_, was completed by
+the great Englishman, _Newton_ (died 1727). It was he who in his immortal
+work, _Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica_, laid bare the law of
+the universe, which compels the heavenly bodies to revolve about one
+another. Therewith the laws of _Kepler_, and consequently the Copernican
+hypothesis, became established. When, in 1727, this scientist, at the age
+of eighty-five, died, his mortal remains were entombed in Westminster
+Abbey, the Pantheon of the British nation. Lofty science and the reverent
+worship of his Creator were combined in the noble mind of this great
+Briton. In an appendix to his master-work, referred to above, he cited his
+proofs for the existence of God, and stated that "the entire order, as to
+space and time of all things existing, must have necessarily proceeded
+from the conception and will of an existing Being," that "the admirable
+arrangement of sun, planets, and comets could only emanate from the decree
+and the design of an All-wise and Omnipotent Being," that "we admire Him
+for His perfections, we adore and worship Him as the ruler of the world,
+we, the servants of the great Sovereign of the Universe." According to
+_Voltaire_, it was stated by _Newton's_ disciple, _Clarke_, that his
+master invariably pronounced the name of God with reverent attitude and
+expression.
+
+
+    Inseparably connected with the history of the Copernican system
+    there is the name, which recalls harsh accusations and painful
+    memories, the name of _Galileo_. That he had nothing in common
+    with the aims of those who have broken with faith and
+    Christianity, nor with that hostility against his Church for which
+    his name is so often misused, has been made evident by what we
+    have said on another page (see page 189). Not only during his
+    early life was his religious turn of mind evidenced, but also
+    later on and up to the end of his life he continued to observe
+    faithfully the duties of his religion.
+
+
+One of the greatest physicists of recent times was _Christian Huygens_,
+who died in 1695 at his native city, The Hague. To him we owe the
+epoch-making discovery of the undulation of light, while _Newton_ had held
+light to be a matter of emission. But while _Huygens_ advanced over
+_Newton_ in this respect, he paid tribute to human limitation by remaining
+prejudiced against _Newton's_ theory of gravitation, which he rejected.
+_Huygens_ was a believing Christian.
+
+
+    In his philosophic dissertation "Kosmotheoros," a posthumous work,
+    he says in regard to the possibility of the celestial bodies being
+    inhabited: "How could the investigator look up to God, the Creator
+    of all these great worlds, otherwise but in the spirit of deepest
+    reverence? Here it will be possible for us to find manifold proofs
+    to demonstrate His providence and wonderful wisdom; likewise will
+    our contemplation contend against those who are spreading false
+    opinions, such as attributing the origin of the earth to the
+    accidental union of atoms, or of the earth being without a
+    beginning and without a creator."
+
+
+Religious fervour is still more pronounced in _Huygens'_ contemporary,
+_Robert Boyle_ (died 1692), a son of Ireland. While he had made
+considerable achievements in physics, his chief fame lies in chemistry: he
+inaugurated the period in which chemistry became gradually an independent
+science. Although working in a different field of research, he is similar
+to _Newton_ in many respects: like _Newton_ and _Huygens_, his love of
+scientific studies induced him to remain unmarried, like _Newton_ he found
+his last resting place in Westminster Abbey, but chiefly he is like
+_Newton_ because of his pious, religious mind. He was much occupied with
+theological studies, and in them the demonstration from nature of the
+existence of God, and the author's reverence for the Scriptures are most
+conspicuous: "In relation to the Bible," he writes, "all the books of men,
+even the most learned, are like the planets that receive their light and
+brightness from the sun." On his deathbed he made a foundation for
+apologetic lectures: the Boyle-lectures are held to this very day.
+
+
+    We shall have to pass by others. We might point to the English
+    philosopher and statesman, _Francis Bacon_ of Verulam (died 1626),
+    who won his place in the history of natural science by his urging
+    of the empiric method; we might point to _W. Harvey_ (died 1658),
+    the discoverer of the blood-circulation, a man of earnest and
+    simple piety; we might mention the pious _Albrecht von Haller_
+    (died 1777), _J. Bernouilli_ (died 1728) the co-inventor of
+    integral calculus, the man of whom his great disciple _Euler_
+    relates that this _Bernouilli_, co-inventor of the most difficult
+    of all calculations, this great mathematician, expressed regret in
+    his old age that he had devoted so many years to science, and only
+    few hours to religion, and that on his deathbed he admonished
+    those around him to adhere to the Word of God because that alone
+    is the word of life.
+
+
+We shall name but one more, a son of northern Sweden, the famous botanist,
+_Karl Linne_ (died 1778). He, too, found God in the living nature which he
+studied so diligently.
+
+
+    In commenting on his _Systema naturae_ he writes: "Man, know
+    thyself; in theological aspect, that thou art created with an
+    immortal soul, after the image of God; in moral aspect, that thou
+    alone art blessed with a rational soul for the praise of thy
+    sublime Creator. I ask, why did God put man equipped thus in sense
+    and spirit on this earth, where he perceives this wonderfully
+    ordered nature? For what, but to praise and admire the invisible
+    Master-builder for His magnificent work."
+
+
+These are the great masters and reformers of recent natural science, the
+men who opened up the paths which natural science of the present day is
+still pursuing; most of these savants were of a Christian mind, many of
+them even pious. There were but few indifferent or irreligious, such as
+_E. Halley_ (died 1742), who computed the cycle of the comet since named
+after him, and _G. de Buffon_ (died 1788): but they are a small minority.
+The period of highest achievement in modern natural science bears the
+stamp of religion; indeed, to a great extent it bears the halo of devotion
+and fervour. An incompatibility of research and faith, a solidarity of
+science and anti-Christian tendency, was never known to the mind of these
+great masters.
+
+"Any one who has grasped even the elements of natural science, the unity
+of natural forces and their rigid conformity to laws, becomes a monist if
+he has the faculty for clear reasoning, and as to the others, there is no
+help for them anyway" (_L. Plate_, Ultramontane Weltanschauung und moderne
+Lebenskunde, 1907, 11). This sort of argument is shouted at us in manifold
+variations. How does that statement look in the light of history? Men like
+_Copernicus_, _Kepler_, _Newton_, _Linne_, _Boyle_, thus knew nothing of
+the elements of natural science, nothing of the conformity to laws of
+natural forces: because they were neither monists nor atheists, but
+worshippers of the Creator of heaven and earth! A more painful contrast
+cannot be imagined than to see these great masters and pioneers rated as
+lesser minds, ignorant of real natural science, by those who trail far
+behind them and who are seeking their footsteps. The religious conviction
+of the natural scientists of a past age is sufficient proof that, not the
+research in natural science, but other causes lead minds to infidelity.
+
+
+
+Modern Times.
+
+
+We turn to the nineteenth century. Does the picture perhaps change
+essentially in the century that has shown its children so much progress,
+that has disclosed so many secrets of nature, but has also taught
+irreligion to thousands of men? Does it become true now that natural
+science and Christian fundamental truths are opposed to each other in
+hostile attitude? Claims to this effect are not lacking. In fact, the
+number of those who refuse assent to the Christian religion is increasing.
+But even at this time we do not find such to be the majority of eminent
+scientists, and our inquiry is about eminent scientists, those who make
+the science of a period, not those who can hardly expect to have their
+names known by posterity. A considerable number, indeed the majority, of
+the master minds of natural science, even in the nineteenth century,
+reject materialism and atheism, and not infrequently they are pious
+Christians; another proof that just upon the deeper and more serious minds
+religion exercises a stronger power of attraction.
+
+Let us commence with the astronomers.
+
+"The sciences and their true representatives," so states the renowned
+_Maedler_ of Dorpat, "do not deserve the reproaches and imputations heaped
+upon them from a certain side, that they would estrange man from God, even
+turn him into an atheist ... we hope to show of astronomy especially that
+just the contrary is taking place" (Reden und Abhandlungen ueber
+Gegenstaende der Himmelskunde, 1870, 326).
+
+The greatest astronomer of the nineteenth century, and one of the greatest
+discoverers of all ages, was undoubtedly _William Herschel_ (died 1822).
+His son _John Herschel_ (died 1871) became his "worthy successor, almost
+his peer, who won a fame nearly equal to that of the inherited name" (_R.
+Wolf_, Geschichte der Astronomie, 1877, 505). While not hostile to
+religion, the father had been so engrossed in his restless research, that
+religion received little attention, but religious thought and sentiment
+played a prominent part in the son. Time and again he opposed with zeal
+the materialistic-atheistic explanation of the universe. "Nothing is more
+unfounded than the objection made by some well-meaning but undiscerning
+persons, that the study of natural science induces a doubt of religion and
+of the immortality of the soul. Be assured that its logical effect upon
+any well-ordered mind must be just the opposite" (Preliminary Discourse on
+the Study of Natural Philosophy, 1830, 7).
+
+It was _Leverrier_ (died 1877), Director of the Paris Observatory, who by
+calculations ascertained the existence and exact position of the remotest
+planet Neptune even before it was discovered. When eventually _Galle_ of
+Berlin really found the planet in the position indicated, _Leverrier's_
+name became famous. But greater still were the achievements of this
+indefatigable investigator in respect to the known planets. When he
+presented to the French Academy the final part of his great work, the
+calculations of Jupiter and Saturnus, he said: "During our long labours,
+which it took us thirty-five years to complete, we needed the support
+obtained by the contemplation of one of the grandest works of creation,
+and by the thought that it strengthened in us the imperishable truths of a
+spiritualistic (_i.e._, non-materialistic) philosophy." He was an orthodox
+Catholic, known as a Clerical. A newspaper complained of him that "Under
+the empire he was a clerical Senator, concerned with the interests of the
+altar no less than with those of the throne" (_Kneller_, Das Christenthum
+und die Vertreter der neueren Naturwissenschaft, 1904, 96. In the
+following pages we have made frequent use of the material gathered in this
+sterling work. See also _James J. Walsh_, Makers of Modern Medicine
+(1907); and the same author's Catholic Churchmen in Science, I (1909), II
+(1910)).
+
+One year after the death of _Leverrier_ another scientist of the first
+rank died. It was _A. Secchi_ (died 1878). Member of nearly all the
+scientific academies of the world, he was not only a faithful Christian,
+but also a priest: for forty-five years, and until his death, he wore the
+garb of the Society of Jesus. As an astronomer he has been named, not
+without good cause, the father of astrophysics: he ascertained the
+chemical composition of about 4,000 stars and classified them into what is
+known as _Secchi's_ four types of stars. As a physicist he wrote an
+important work on The Unity of Natural Forces. He was also an eminent
+meteorologist.
+
+
+    At the second International Exposition at Paris his meteorograph
+    was quite a feature. The _Koelnische Zeitung_ wrote, on March 2,
+    1878: "Visitors of the Italian Exhibition, at the second World's
+    Fair in Paris, could see the marvellous instrument which does the
+    work of ten observers and surpasses them in accuracy. At the same
+    time they could obtain all needed information about details and
+    scope of the meteorograph from the exhibitor himself; for _Secchi_
+    was there daily, devoting several hours to answering questions in
+    any of the civilized languages of Europe. It is peculiarly
+    interesting to observe the silent movement of the hands working
+    day and night like registrars of the natural forces, and recording
+    for every quarter of an hour with the utmost accuracy all changes
+    in temperature, in humidity, every variance of the wind, any
+    movement of the mercury in the barometer. Even the force of the
+    wind and the time of rain is registered by this wonderful
+    instrument." The inventor, out of 40,000 art exhibitors, was
+    awarded the great golden medal. He also received the insignia of
+    an officer of the French Legion of Honor, while the Emperor of
+    Brazil appointed him an officer of the "Golden Rose."
+
+    The French scientist _Moigno_ writes of _Secchi_: "_Secchi_ was
+    very pious, and as a worker he knew no limits. He was ever ready
+    to evolve new scientific plans, to enter into new and long
+    campaigns of observation. The mere list of his 800 works reveals
+    him as one of the most intrepid workers of our century. And let
+    this be considered: every one of these writings, no matter how
+    brief, was the result of subtle and difficult researches and
+    observations. And after devoting the day to arduous writing, he
+    passed the night searching the skies" (_Pohle_, P. Angelo Secchi,
+    1904, 191).
+
+    In the nineteenth century, too, astronomy has not failed in its
+    mission of leading to God. A long list could be named of believing
+    astronomers of great achievements. For instance, the Roman
+    astronomer _Respighi_ (died 1889), a resolute Catholic. And
+    _Lamont_, Director of the Observatory of Munich, whose Catholic
+    orthodoxy was generally known. _Heis_ (died 1877) likewise was a
+    zealous Catholic: when he had finished his map of the sky, after
+    27 years of hard work, he sent one of the first copies to _Pius
+    IX._ The astronomers _Bessel_ and _Olbers_ speak in their letters
+    of God, of the hereafter and Providence, in a way that has nothing
+    in common with materialism.
+
+    _Secchi_ was not the only priest and monk among the astronomers of
+    the nineteenth century. The very first day of the century was made
+    notable by the astronomical achievement of a monk. _Joseph
+    Piazzi_, a member of the Theatine order (died 1826), discovered on
+    that day the first asteroid, Ceres. The great mathematician
+    _Gauss_ named his first born son Joseph, in _Piazzi's_ honor.
+
+    It is, indeed, a remarkable fact, testifying strongly against the
+    incompatibility of natural science and faith, that just the
+    Catholic clergy, the prominent representatives of religion and
+    faith, have contributed a large contingent to the number of
+    natural scientists. _Poggendorf's_ Biographical Dictionary of the
+    Exact Sciences contains, down to 1863, according to preface and
+    recapitulation, the names and biographical sketches of 8,847
+    natural scientists. Of these, 862 are Catholic priests, amounting
+    to 9.8 per cent. To appreciate these 10 per cent it must be taken
+    into account that most of them were not connected with natural
+    science by their position, but only through their personal
+    interest, and most of them were engaged in other duties.
+
+
+Mathematics, although not natural science proper, is inseparably connected
+with it. For this reason we may extend our consideration to
+mathematicians. We only point to the three greatest, _Euler_, _Gauss_, and
+_Cauchy_, and all three were religious men. _Euler_ (died 1783 at
+Petersburg) has no peer in the recent history of science in prolific
+activity: ten times he was awarded the prize by the Paris Academy of
+Sciences. _Cantor_ says of him: "Like most great mathematicians, _Euler_
+was profoundly religious, though without bigotry. He personally conducted
+every evening the private devotions at his home, and one of the few
+polemical books he wrote was a defence of revelation against the
+objections of free-thinkers." Its publication at Berlin in 1747, in close
+proximity of the court of _Frederick the Great_, presupposed a certain
+moral courage. In this book he refers to the difficulties found in all
+sciences, even in geometry, adding: "By what right then can the
+free-thinkers demand of us to reject at once Holy Writ in its entirety,
+because of some difficulties which frequently are not even so important as
+those complained of in geometry?" _Gauss_ (died 1855) is perhaps the
+greatest mathematician of all times. It sounds incredible, yet it is well
+attested, that as a child of three years, when in the workshop of his
+father, a plain mechanic, he was able to correct the father if he made a
+mistake in figuring out the wages paid to his journeymen. His biographer,
+_Waltershausen_, says of him: "The conviction of a personal existence
+after death, the firm belief in an ultimate Ruler of things, in an
+eternal, just, all-wise and all-powerful God, formed the foundation of his
+religious life, which, with his unsurpassed scientific researches,
+resolved itself into a perfect harmony." _Cauchy_ (died 1857) was a man of
+most extraordinary genius, whose creative genius knew how to discover new
+paths everywhere, and almost at every weekly meeting of the Paris Academy
+_Cauchy_ had something new to offer. In addition he was a dutiful
+Catholic, and a member of St. Vincent's Society. When, shortly before the
+February revolution, an onslaught upon the Jesuit schools was made, he
+defended them in two pamphlets.
+
+
+    One of them contains the following confession of faith: "I am a
+    Christian, that is, I believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ,
+    with _Tycho __ Brahe_, _Copernicus_, _Descartes_, _Newton_,
+    _Fermat_, _Leibnitz_, _Pascal_, _Grimaldi_, _Euler_, _Guldin_,
+    _Boscovich_, _Gerdil_; with all great astronomers, all great
+    physicists, all great mathematicians of past centuries. I am also
+    a Catholic, with the majority of them, and if asked for my
+    reasons, I would enumerate them readily. By them it would be made
+    clear that my conviction is not the result of inherited
+    prejudices, but of profound inquiry. I am a sincere Catholic, as
+    _Corneille_, _Racine_, _La Bruyere_, _Bossuet_, _Bourdaloue_,
+    _Fenelon_ were, and such as were and still are a large portion of
+    the most eminent men of our times, among them those who have
+    achieved most in the exact sciences, in philosophy and literature,
+    and who have most prominently adorned our Academy" (_Valson_, Vie
+    de Cauchy, I, 173). When near death, and told that the priest
+    would bring the Holy Sacrament, he ordered the finest flowers of
+    his garden used in the reception of the Lord.
+
+
+We now come to the physicists. To begin with the most prominent
+representatives of the science of optics, which was developed especially
+during the first half of the century, there are to be named chiefly
+_Fresnel_, _Frauenhofer_, _Fizeau_, _Foucault_. _A. Fresnel_ (died 1827),
+the originator of the modern theory of light, clung to his conviction of
+the spirituality and immortality of the soul. _Frauenhofer_ (died 1826)
+showed himself to be a man of refinement and of kindness, which only
+occasionally was disturbed by natural irritability: he was much devoted to
+his religion, so that even his guests while at his house had to observe
+the abstinence prescribed by the Church; this was quite significant,
+considering the indifference of his times in this respect. _Fizeau_ (died
+1896), too, was a staunch Catholic, who fearlessly testified to his
+belief, even before the Paris Academy. Though his work was of the first
+rank, France's chief marks of honour passed him by, and little notice was
+even given to his death. A significant fact. "These circumstances," so
+writes _Kneller_, "induced us to inquire for particulars; and through the
+services of friends we obtained information in Paris from most reliable
+source that _Fizeau_ was a faithful Christian, who fulfilled his religious
+duties. For this very reason his name had been stricken, at the Centenary
+of the Academy, from the list of candidates for the cross of the legion of
+honor, notwithstanding the fact that, on the strength of his scientific
+achievement, he should long have been Commander and even Grand Officer of
+this order." _Cornu_ was the only one to protest against this slight.
+_Foucault_ (died 1868) had, in the time of his restless scientific work,
+taken an unsympathetic attitude towards the Catholic religion. In his last
+illness he returned, step by step, to his Creator and Redeemer, in whom he
+found his comfort, and he breathed his last in peace with God and the
+Church.
+
+_Foucault's_ great countryman, _Ampere_ (died 1836), the celebrated
+investigator in the fields of electricity, was also estranged from the
+Christian religion, but, after passing through torturing doubts, he
+regained undisturbed possession of his Catholic faith, and was a pious
+Christian at the time of his brilliant discoveries. He had frequent
+intercourse with _A. F. Ozanam_, and the discussion almost without
+exception turned to God. Then _Ampere_ would cover his forehead with his
+hands, exclaiming: "How great God is! Ozanam! how great God is, and our
+knowledge is as nothing." "This venerable head," _Ozanam_ relates of his
+friend, "covered with honours and full of knowledge, bowed down before the
+mysteries of the faith; he knelt at the same altars where before him
+_Descartes_ and _Pascal_ worshipped humbly, beside the poor widow and the
+small child, who perhaps were less humble than he" (_A. F. Ozanam_,
+Oeuvres Completes, X, 37, and VIII, 89). As he was dying, and _M.
+Deschamps_, director of the college of Marseille, began to read aloud some
+passages from the "Imitation of Christ," the dying man remarked that he
+knew the book by heart.
+
+Another great discoverer in the domain of electricity, who had preceded
+_Ampere_, was _Volta_ (died 1827). Like his great fellow countryman,
+_Galvani_ (died 1798), who did not disdain to be a member of the third
+order of St. Francis, _Volta_ was a staunch Catholic; every day he recited
+the rosary.
+
+At Como, his home, he was daily seen to go to holy Mass and, on holidays,
+to the Sacraments. Those who passed his house on Saturdays saw a small
+lamp burning before the picture of the Blessed Virgin Mary over his door.
+If the servant forgot to light the lamp, _Volta_ did it himself. On Feast
+days, when visiting the parish church, the great electrician could be seen
+among the children, explaining the catechism to them.
+
+
+    A friend of _Volta_, the Canon _Giacomo Ciceri_, once was
+    endeavoring to convert a dying man, who, however, refused to hear
+    him, on the ground that whereas religion might be good for the
+    common people, scientists did not need it, and he reckoned himself
+    among them. _Ciceri_ thereupon reminded him of _Volta_. This made
+    an impression upon the dying man, who declared that if _Volta_ be
+    seriously religious, and not only as a matter of convention, he
+    would consent to receive the Sacraments. The Canon then requested
+    _Volta_ to write a few lines. _Volta_ replied as follows: "I do
+    not understand how anybody can doubt my sincerity and constancy in
+    the religion which I profess, and which is that of Catholic,
+    Apostolic, Roman Church, wherein I was born and raised, and which
+    I have professed all my life, inwardly and outwardly.... Should
+    any misdemeanor on my part have prompted any one to suspect me of
+    unbelief, then I will declare, for the purpose of making
+    reparation ... that I always have believed this Holy Catholic
+    religion to be the only true and infallible one, and that I still
+    think so, and I thank our dear Lord incessantly for having given
+    me this belief, in which to live and to die is my resolution, in
+    the firm hope of gaining the eternal life. It is true, I
+    acknowledge this belief to be a gift of God, a supernatural
+    belief; yet, I have not neglected human means to fortify myself in
+    this belief, and to drive away all doubts that may arise to tempt
+    me. For this reason, I have studied the faith diligently in its
+    foundations, by reading apologetic and controversial writings,
+    weighing the reasons for and against; a way, which supplies the
+    strongest proof, and makes it most credible for the human reason
+    to such a degree, that any noble mind, not perverted by sins and
+    passions, cannot help embracing and loving it. I wish this
+    profession, for which I was asked and which I willingly make,
+    written and signed by my own hand, to be shown at will to any one,
+    because I am not ashamed of the Gospel. May my writing bear good
+    fruit.
+
+    _Alexander Volta._
+
+    MILAN, January 6th, 1815.
+    (_C. Grandi_, Alessandro Volta, 1899, 575.)"
+
+
+He who, for the first time, is made aware of the religious confession of
+the greatest natural scientists may perhaps be astonished. Hitherto, he
+had heard little of the Christian mind of these men, but a great deal
+about their alleged indifference for religion, and about their materialism
+and atheism. Now, suddenly, he sees a large number of them to be the
+enemies of atheism, many, indeed, to be zealous Christians.
+
+This is due to the biographers: they dwell largely on the scientific
+achievement of a man, likewise on his human qualities, but his religion is
+often not mentioned at all. When, in 1888, a monument was erected to
+_Ampere_ in his native city, Lyons, not a word in the speeches referred to
+the fact that he was a faithful Catholic. Nay, more; on one of the books
+seen on his monument is chiselled in bold letters the word "Encyclopedie."
+Those unaware of the facts would infer that _Ampere_ had been one of the
+Encyclopaedists. His actual relation to this infamous work was that he had
+read it in his youth, but abhorred it in his later age.
+
+The English physicist, _Faraday_ (died 1867), according to _Tyndall_ and
+_Du Bois-Reymond_ the greatest experimentist of all times, was, like
+_Volta_ and _Ampere_, of religious mind.
+
+
+    In a letter to a lady he wrote: "I belong to a small and despised
+    Christian sect, known by the name of Sandemanians. Our hope is
+    based upon the belief which is in Christ." In 1847, he concluded
+    his lectures at the Royal Institution with the following words:
+    "In teaching us those things, our science should prompt us to
+    think of Him whose works they are." At a later lecture, he
+    declared: "I have never encountered anything to cause a
+    contradiction between things within the scope of man, and the
+    higher things, relating to his future and unconceivable to
+    (unaided) human mind" (_Jones_, The Life and Letters of Faraday).
+
+
+Of the same bent of mind was _Faraday's_ fellow countryman, _Maxwell_
+(died 1879), known to every one who has studied the development of the
+theories of electricity. This ingenious theoretician of electrics,
+professor of experimental physics at Cambridge, was deeply religious.
+Every evening he led in the family prayer; he regularly attended divine
+service, and partook of the monthly communion of his denomination. Those
+more intimately acquainted with _Maxwell_ agree, that he was one of the
+worthiest men they ever met.
+
+
+    Nothing could better illustrate his religious sentiment than the
+    splendid prayer found among his posthumous papers: "Almighty God,
+    Thou who hast created man after Thy image and hast given him a
+    living soul, that he should search Thee and rule over Thy
+    creatures, teach us to study the works by Thy hands that we may
+    subject the earth for our use, and strengthen our reason for Thy
+    service, and let us receive Thy holy word thus, that we may
+    believe in Him whom Thou hast sent us to give us the knowledge of
+    salvation and the forgiving of our sins, all of which we pray for
+    in the name of the same Jesus Christ, our Lord"
+    (_Campbell-Garnett_, The Life of J. C. Maxwell).
+
+
+_Maxwell's_ devout mind is especially significant here, because, like
+_Ampere_ and _Volta_, he occupied himself much with philosophical and
+theological questions. Every Sunday upon return from church he is said to
+have buried himself in his theological books.
+
+Many others might be mentioned of English physicists of the past century,
+who combined religious belief with great knowledge. The peculiar trait of
+the English character to respect and preserve with piety the inherited
+institutions of the past, as against radicalism and the craze for
+innovation, manifests itself also in the absence of the immature and
+frivolous juggling with the great truths of the Christian past, not
+infrequently met with elsewhere. Let us mention but one more of England's
+great men who have died in recent years. In December, 1907, the papers
+reported the death of _William Thomson_, latterly better known as _Lord
+Kelvin_. He lived to the age of 83 years, up to his death incessantly busy
+with scientific work. As early as 1855, _Helmholtz_ described him as "one
+of the foremost mathematical physicists of Europe.(7)" The Berlin Academy
+of Science expressed high praise and admiration in its address
+felicitating _Thomson_ on his Golden Jubilee. Undoubtedly, he merited this
+admiration also by stoutly defending from the viewpoint of science the
+necessity of a Divine Creator.
+
+
+    "We do not know," he wrote, "at what moment a creation of matter
+    or of energy fixed a beginning beyond which no speculation based
+    on mechanical laws is able to lead us. In exact mechanics, if we
+    were ever inclined to forget this barrier, we necessarily would be
+    reminded of it by the consideration that reasoning, resting
+    exclusively upon the law of mechanics, points to a time when the
+    earth must have been uninhabited, and it also teaches us that our
+    own bodies, like those of all living plants and animals, and
+    fossils, are organized forms of matter for which science can give
+    no other explanation than the will of a Creator, a truth, in
+    support of which geological history offers rich evidence" (On
+    Mechanical Antecedent of Motion, Heat and Light, 1884). "The only
+    contribution of dynamics to theoretical biology consists in the
+    absolute negation of an automatic beginning and automatic
+    continuance of life" (Addresses and Speeches).
+
+    On May 1, 1902, the Rev. Prof. _G. Henslow_, according to the
+    _London Times_, spoke at University College, before a big audience
+    with the President of the University as chairman, on the subject
+    "The Rationalism of To-day, an Examination of Darwinism." On
+    conclusion of the speech the venerable octogenarian, _Lord
+    Kelvin_, arose and proposed a resolution of thanks to the speaker.
+    While fully subscribing to the fundamental ideas of Prof.
+    _Henslow's_ lecture, _Lord Kelvin_ said, he could not assent to
+    the proposition that natural science neither affirms nor denies
+    the origin of life by a creative force. He stated that natural
+    science _does_, positively, assert a creative force. Science
+    forces every one to recognize a miracle within himself. That we
+    are living, and moving, and existing, is not due to dead matter,
+    but to a creating and directing force, and science forces us to
+    accept this assumption as a tenet of faith. _Lord Kelvin_
+    subsequently amplified these remarks in an article that appeared
+    in the _Nineteenth Century_, of June, 1903. It concludes with the
+    admonition, not to be afraid to think independently. "If you
+    reason sharply, you will be forced by science to believe in God,
+    who is the basis of all religion. You will find science to be, not
+    an opponent of religion, but a support" (_Times_, May 8 and 15,
+    1903).
+
+
+Such were the views of those to whom, in the first place, the
+establishment of natural science and its progress are due. It is not
+science and strong reasoning that lead away from God, but the lack of true
+science. _Bacon_ said: _Leviores gustus in philosophia movere fortasse
+animum ad atheismum, sed pleniores haustus ad Deum reducere_. Another
+thing must be observed. Among those earnest men, earnest in the
+investigation of nature, and earnest in the consideration of questions of
+a supernatural life, there are many who made the religious question the
+subject of mature study, and who were well acquainted with the objections
+against religion and Christianity. But they cling to their religious
+persuasion only the more firmly. We may be reminded of men like _Volta_,
+_Cauchy_, _Ampere_, and _Maxwell_.
+
+To speak of authorities, what comparison is there between these great
+scientists and discoverers, and those who are satisfied with the general
+assurance that "any one who has grasped the elements of natural sciences
+must become a monist," and "that the supernatural exists only in the brain
+of the visionary and ignorant," that, "in the same measure in which the
+victorious progress of modern knowledge of nature surpasses the scientific
+achievements of former centuries, the untenableness of all mystical views
+of life that tend to harness the reason in the yoke of so-called
+revelation has been made clear" (_Haeckel_), and who in such assurance
+find perfect intellectual gratification. They recall an incident at the
+Congress of English natural scientists, held at Belfast in 1874, when
+_Tyndall_ delivered from the platform a materialistic lecture, and among
+the audience sat _Maxwell_, his superior in scientific research, who put
+down the lecture in doggerel rhyme, in a humorous vein, of course, but not
+without deserved sarcasm.
+
+We proceed on our way, trying to make haste, and omitting many names that
+might be mentioned, limiting ourselves to the most prominent ones.
+
+Among the chemists we name _Lavoisier_. A martyr to his science, he died
+under the guillotine of the Revolution in 1794; he had remained true to
+his Christian faith. The Swede, _J. Berzelius_ (died 1848), openly
+professed his belief in God. _Thenard_ (died 1859), the discoverer of
+boron, of a blue dye named after him, and of many other chemicals, was a
+staunch Catholic. The pastor of St. Sulpice could testify at his funeral
+as follows: "He attended church every Sunday, eyes and heart fixed on his
+prayer-book, and on solemn Feast days he received Holy Communion.... With
+_Baron Thenard_ one of the greatest benefactors of my poor people is gone"
+(_Kneller_).
+
+_Dumas_ (died 1884), who is esteemed by his pupil _Pasteur_ as the peer of
+_Lavoisier_, was also a practical Catholic, as was his compatriot
+_Chevreul_ (died 1889). This great man had the rare good fortune to be
+present at his own centenary in 1886. At this great celebration he
+received an address by the Berlin Academy, stating that his name had a
+prominent place on the list of the great scientists who had carried the
+scientific repute of France to all quarters of the globe. When, in view of
+the mundane character of the celebration, the liberal press endeavoured to
+rank him among the representatives of unbelieving science, and this
+question being discussed in public, _Chevreul_ felt himself constrained to
+proclaim his religious persuasion openly in a letter to _Count de
+Montravel_, in which he said: "I am simply a scientist, but those who know
+me, know also that I was born a Catholic, that I lead a Catholic life, and
+that I want to die a Catholic" (Civilta Cattolica, 1891, 292).
+
+Two Germans may conclude the list of chemists, _Schoenbein_ (died 1868)
+and _J. Liebig_ (died 1873).
+
+
+    In his diary, "Menschen und Dinge," 1885 (page 29), _Schoenbein_
+    writes: "There are still people who fancy in their limited mind
+    that, the deeper the human intellect penetrates the secrets of
+    nature, the more extensive its knowledge, the wider its conception
+    of the exterior world, the more it must forget the cause of all
+    things. Many have gone even so far as to assert that natural
+    science must lead to the denial of God. This view is without all
+    foundation. He, who contemplates with open eyes, daily and hourly,
+    the doings and workings of nature, will not only believe, but will
+    actually perceive, and be firmly convinced, that there is not the
+    smallest place in space where the divine does not reveal itself in
+    the most magnificent and admirable way." And in a similar strain
+    _Liebig_ writes: "Indeed, the greatness and infinite wisdom of the
+    Creator of the world can be realized only by him who endeavours to
+    understand His ideas as laid down in that immense book,--nature, in
+    comparison to which everything that men otherwise know and tell of
+    Him, appears like empty talk" (Die Chemie in ihrer Anwendung).
+
+
+Now let us turn to the geographers. We merely mention _Ritter_ (died
+1859), the man who raised geography to the dignity of a science; he was a
+faithful Protestant, while biassed against the Catholic Church. In spite
+of this, a Catholic historian, _J. Janssen_, has sketched his life, in
+which we read: "Firm in his belief in the living God, and in the Incarnate
+Son of God, His Redeemer, he furnishes a clear and convincing proof that
+this faith, far from being a contradiction to natural science ... alone
+enables man to acquire an extensive and deep knowledge of nature." We give
+only passing notice to the founder of scientific crystallography, _R.
+Hauy_ (died 1822), who was a dutiful Catholic priest. The geologists now
+will get a hearing.
+
+
+    Among them we meet, in the first place, the noted geologist and
+    zooelogist, _Cuvier_ (died 1832), a faithful Protestant: also the
+    foremost French geologist of his time, _L. De Beaumont_ (died
+    1874), "a Christian in all things and a steadfast Christian ...
+    which he remained through his whole life;" so _Dumas_ testifies of
+    him in his obituary (Comptes Rendus, 1874). Then there is _J.
+    Barrande_, the untiring explorer of the antediluvian strata of
+    Bohemia. He came in 1830 to Bohemia with the banished royal
+    family, as _Chambord's_ teacher, and died 1883 at Frohsdorf near
+    Vienna. He was a pious Catholic. The volumes of his works are
+    nearly all dated on Catholic feasts. The recently deceased French
+    geologist, _A. De Lapparent_, was a practical Catholic, and such
+    were the two Belgian geologists, _J. d'Omalius_ (died 1875), and
+    _A. Dumont_ (died 1857), to both of whom Belgium owes its
+    geological exploration. The English geologists, _Buckland_ (died
+    1856), _Hitchcock_ (died 1864), and _A. Sedgwick_ (died 1872),
+    were ministers of the English Church. _J. Dwight Dana_ (died
+    1895), the foremost geologist of North America, begins his
+    celebrated text-book of geology with a homage to his Creator, and
+    concludes it by paying tribute to Holy Writ. _W. Dawson_ (died
+    1899) the worthy geological explorer of his native land, Canada,
+    published several apologetic dissertations on the Bible and
+    Nature. A kindred sentiment animated the German scientists,
+    _Bischof_ (died 1870), _Quenstedt_ (died 1898), the geologist of
+    Suabia _Pfaff_ (died 1886), _Schafhaeutl_ (died 1890), and the
+    equally pious as learned Swiss geologist _O. Heer_ (died 1883).
+    They all have much to say about the greatness of their Creator,
+    but not a word of any insolvable contradictions between the Bible
+    and geologic research.
+
+
+As a last division of an imposing phalanx, there are now the biologists
+and physiologists. Modern biology, as the science of life, has in the eyes
+of many accomplished the bold deed of demonstrating the superfluity of a
+soul distinct from matter. Claim is made that it has sufficiently
+explained the sensitive and mental life by the sole agency of physical and
+chemical forces, and thus to have removed the boundary between live and
+dead matter. It is said, further, that biology in conjunction with zooelogy
+and botany has furnished proof that the wonderful organic forms of life
+may be explained by purely natural causes, without having to assume as an
+ultimate cause the act of a higher intelligence; that a never ceasing
+evolution is the sole ultimate cause,--creation is made superfluous by
+evolution. Biology is thus claimed to have refuted the old dualism of soul
+and matter, of world and God, and to have awarded the palm to monism.
+
+Are the eminent representatives of this science really the materialists
+and monists they would have to be, if all this were true? The foremost
+physiologist of the nineteenth century was _J. Mueller_ (died 1858), buried
+in the Catholic cemetery at Berlin. He was a decided opponent of
+materialism; he not only contended for the existence of a spiritual soul,
+but also for an immaterial vital force in plants. _Th. Schwann_ (died
+1882) is the founder of the cellular theory. In the year 1839 he accepted
+a call to take the chair of anatomy at the Catholic University of Louvain.
+One of the most prominent physiologists of the nineteenth century was _A.
+Volkmann_ (died 1877). He was a stout champion of the spirituality and
+immortality of the soul, of purposive cause in animated beings, and an
+opponent of _Darwin's_ theory. _G. J. Mendel_ (died 1884) became by his
+work on _Experimenting with Hybrid Plants_ the pioneer of the modern
+theory of hereditary transmission, adopted by modern biology; and
+scientists like _H. de Vries_, _Correns_, _Tschermak_, and _Bateson_
+followed his lead. "His important laws of hereditary transmission are the
+best so far offered by the research in this field" (_Muckermann_,
+Grundriss der Biologie). He was a Catholic priest, and the abbot of the
+Augustinian Monastery at Old-Bruenn. _Karl von Vierordt_ (died 1884) is
+well known by his "Manual of Physiology," still in demand as a reference
+book in the libraries of universities. In 1865 he delivered a speech at
+the Tuebingen University on the unity of science, concluding with this
+appeal to the students: "Until your religious notions become clear by a
+mature insight, trust in the well-meant assurance that the belief in the
+divinity of the religion of Jesus has not been put falsely into your
+heart. True piety is equally remote from narrow pietism as from
+freethinking indifference; it leaves to reason its full rights, but it
+also assures to us the faculty to be aware, in joyful confidence in
+Almighty Providence, of an immaterial and for us eternal destiny." _Ch.
+Ehrenberg_ (died 1876) is the explorer of the world of little things: of
+infusoria and protozoa. He did not countenance _Haeckel's_ materialism nor
+_Darwin's_ denial of teleology: to him they were fantastic theories and
+romances. A friend of his, and of the same mind, was _K. von Martius_, who
+admired God's wisdom in the wonders of the world of vegetation. Long
+before his death he ordered his burial dress to be made of white cloth
+embroidered with a green cross,--"a cross because I am a Christian, and
+green in honour of botany." Another renowned name may be mentioned, that
+of the Austrian anatomist _J. Hyrtl_ (died 1894).
+
+
+    In the years when materialism was flourishing, _Hyrtl_ was
+    painfully grieved to see science fall into disrepute through the
+    fault of individuals. He gave vent to his indignation on the
+    occasion of the fifth centenary of the Vienna University (1864),
+    when, having been elected Rector, and being considered the
+    greatest celebrity at that college, he delivered his inaugural
+    speech on the materialistic tendency of our times. Summing up he
+    said: "I am at a loss how to explain what scientific grounds there
+    are to defend and fortify a revival of the old materialistic views
+    of an _Epicurus_ and a _Lucretius_, and to endeavour to insure to
+    it a permanent rule.... Its success is due to the boldness of its
+    assertion and to the prevailing spirit of the time, which
+    popularizes teachings of this sort the more willingly, the more
+    danger they seem to entail for the existing order of things." It
+    was the same protest made some years later by another famous
+    scientist against "the dangerous opinion that there were dogmas of
+    natural science in inimical opposition to the highest ideals of
+    the human mind." He stated that "it would be a desirable reward
+    for the efforts of our foremost naturalists to erect with the aid
+    of anthropology a barrier to this error which is so demoralizing
+    for the people" (_J. Ranke_, Der Mensch, 1894).
+
+    _Hyrtl's_ speech at once aroused a storm of indignation in the
+    liberal press of Vienna, and the great scientist, until then
+    honoured and extolled, became the object of denunciation and
+    sneer. Thus was the freedom of science understood in those
+    circles.
+
+    _Haeckel_ was much vexed by two fellow scientists, _M. von Baer_
+    (died 1876) and _G. J. Romanes_ (died 1894). _Baer_ was prominent
+    in the science of evolution. He was led to theism by his studies.
+    _Romanes_, a friend of _Darwin_, had been an adherent of
+    materialism, but through serious study he returned to the belief
+    in God and Christianity. His posthumous work, "Thoughts on
+    Religion, a scientist's religious evolution from Atheism to
+    Christianity," furnishes a brilliant voucher thereof. _Romanes's_
+    conversion was a sad blow for _Haeckel_. However, he constructed
+    an explanation to give himself comfort. "When the news of this
+    conversion," he wrote, "was first circulated by a friend of
+    _Romanes_, a zealous English Churchman, the assumption suggested
+    itself to me that it was all a mystification and invention, for it
+    is known that the fanatical champions of ecclesiastical
+    superstition have never hesitated to pervert the truth to save
+    their dogma. Later on, however, it was found that it was really an
+    instance (analogous to the case of old _Baer_) of one of those
+    interesting psychological metamorphoses with which I have dealt in
+    Chapter 6 of my book. _Romanes_ was in his last years a sick man.
+    It was pathological debility. The first condition, however, of an
+    unbiassed, pure conception of reason is the normal condition of
+    its organ. His phronema was not in a normal condition." _Haeckel_
+    will have to rank among those whose phronema is not in a normal
+    condition a good many other natural scientists; indeed, most of
+    those of higher standing.
+
+
+Every one knows the celebrated name of _Louis Pasteur_ (died 1895), the
+discoverer of various bacteria, of whom _Huxley_ says that his manifold
+inventions have repaid to French industry the five billion francs
+indemnity which France had to pay to Germany after the war. It is equally
+well known that _Pasteur_ was to his death a staunch Catholic. "As his
+soul departed, he held in his hands a small cross of brass, and his last
+words were the confession of faith and hope" (La Science Catholique, X,
+1896, 182). The story is told that one of his pupils asked him how he
+could be so religious after all his thinking and studying. _Pasteur_
+replied: "Just because I have thought and studied, I remained religious
+like a man of Brittany, and had I thought and studied still more, I would
+be as religious as a woman of Brittany" (Revue des Questions
+Scientifiques, 1896, 385).
+
+
+    In the year 1859 great commotion was caused in the world of
+    thought by the appearance of _Darwin's_ book on the "Origin of
+    Species." It stated that the various species had gradually evolved
+    from most simple, primordial forms, and this by natural selection;
+    not, therefore, in the sense that the Creator had put the laws of
+    evolution into nature, but that in the struggle for existence the
+    survival of the fittest was the result of natural selection. Soon
+    it was claimed that man, too, in his rational life, was the result
+    of an evolution from animal stages; indeed, the whole universe had
+    arisen by the survival of the accidentally fittest. Evolution was
+    to be substituted for creation. In Germany, _E. Haeckel_ was the
+    man who considered it the task of his life to spread those ideas
+    as the established result of science. In our own time a belated
+    high tide is sweeping over the intellectual lowlands.
+
+    _Darwin_ himself was an agnostic; to begin with, he lacked all
+    religious training; his mother had died early, his father was a
+    free-thinker, and his education at school was rationalistic. The
+    doubt of all higher truths, and finally, according to his own
+    confession, the doubt respecting the power of reason, were his
+    companions through life. Yet he confesses: "... I never was an
+    atheist in the sense that I would deny the existence of God. I
+    think, in general (and more so the older I grow), but not at all
+    times, agnostic would be a more accurate description of my state
+    of mind" (_F. Darwin_, The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin, I,
+    304). Remarkable, however, is the following passage at the end of
+    _Darwin's_ chief work: "It is a great belief, indeed, of the
+    Creator having breathed the embryo of all life surrounding us into
+    a few forms, or in but one single form, and an endless row of most
+    beautiful, most wonderful forms having evolved and are still
+    evolving from such a simple beginning, while our planet, following
+    the laws of gravitation, has steadily revolved in its circle."
+    What _Darwin_ was lacking in a high degree was a philosophical
+    training of the mind.
+
+    In itself the _theory of evolution_, which asserts the variability
+    of species of animals and plants, is by no means opposed to
+    religious truths. It neither includes a necessity of assuming the
+    origin of the human soul from the essentially lower animal soul,
+    nor is it an atheistic theory. On the contrary, such an evolution
+    would most clearly certify to God's wisdom in laying such a
+    wonderful basis for the progress of nature, provided this theory
+    could be proved by scientific facts; indeed, for an evolution
+    within narrow limits, circumstantial evidence is not lacking. That
+    there is no contradiction between the theory of evolution and the
+    fundamental tenets of Christian Creed is sufficiently shown by the
+    representatives of the theory. _Lamarck_ (died 1829) and
+    _Saint-Hilaire_ (died 1844), both of them representatives of the
+    theory of evolution long before _Darwin_, believed in God. There
+    were, prior to _Darwin_, two celebrated Catholic scientists, to
+    wit, _Ampere_ and _d'Omalius_, who had decidedly taken the part of
+    _Saint-Hilaire_ in his controversy with _Cuvier_. And also after
+    _Darwin_, a number of Christian and Catholic scientists have
+    contended for the idea of evolution, as, for instance, the pious
+    Swiss geologist, _Heer_; also _Quenstedt_, _Volkmann_, and the
+    American geologist, _Ch. Lyell_. More recently Catholic scientists
+    have expressed themselves in favour of the theory of evolution;
+    for instance, the noted zooelogist, _E. Wasmann_, and the
+    geologists _Lossen_ and _W. Waagen_, both of whom had to bring
+    bitter sacrifices in their career on account of their Catholic
+    faith.
+
+
+
+Mature Science Respects Faith.
+
+
+There have now passed in review the great natural scientists of the past,
+those living at the present time we shall leave to the judgment of the
+future. Is it true, then, that the foremost representatives of natural
+science had the conviction that science and faith are incompatible? No! On
+the contrary, most of them, and the greatest of them, have professed the
+fundamental truths of religion, or have even been devout Christians
+themselves.
+
+
+    "Theism in natural science, or, if you prefer, in natural
+    philosophy," so says a modern scientist, "rests upon the basis of
+    a fundamental view which an old formula has clothed in words as
+    simple as they are sublime: 'I believe in God, the Almighty
+    Creator of Heaven and of Earth.' This confession does not cling to
+    theistic scientists like an egg-shell from the time of
+    unsophisticated childhood faith; it is the result of their entire
+    scientific thought and judgment. This conviction has been
+    professed by the most discerning natural scientists of all ages"
+    (_J. Reinke_, Naturwissenschaft und Religion).
+
+
+Still it cannot be denied that some of the great scientists were of
+different mind, men like _R. von Virchow_, _Tyndall_, _A. von Humboldt_,
+_Du Bois-Reymond_. Nor shall it be disputed that, at the present time, a
+large number of men of average learning are on the side of unbelief.
+However, it must not be forgotten that unbelief is more frequently
+pretended to the outside world for appearance's sake than it really dwells
+in the heart. This is, to a great extent, due to human respect, to public
+opinion, and the prevailing tendency of science. Then again, it must be
+remembered, that religiously minded scientists are often crowded out from
+the schools of science, with the natural result that the others
+predominate. Another point to be borne in mind is that the atheistic
+representatives of science are doing more to get themselves talked about;
+they are seeking more diligently the attention of public opinion. Men like
+_Tyndall_, _Vogt_, _Moleschott_, _Haeckel_, are known in larger circles
+than men like _Faraday_, _Maxwell_, _Ampere_, _Volta_, _Pasteur_, who,
+engaged in serious work, gave no time to making propaganda, as the others
+did by lecturing and popular writing for materialistic and monistic views
+in the name of science; they had no desire for the limelight of attention,
+and for posing as personified science.
+
+All this does not change the fact that a very large number, indeed the
+largest number, of natural scientists of first rank were believers in God,
+or of pious, Christian mind. And that is of the greater importance. To do
+pioneer work in the field of science, to give impetus, to make progress,
+requires a penetrating and, at the same time, an independent mind, one
+that can rise above conventional commonplace. The fact that such men have
+largely been very religious, that they never belittled religion, weighs
+much more in the balance than the disparagement of inferior minds.
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+These, then, are the often-cited witnesses for the incompatibility of
+science and faith. While only taken from the province of natural science,
+they may in our case be deemed representative of science in general. For
+natural science is generally regarded the most exact of all, and as the
+one which, more than any other, has the scientific spirit said to be
+incompatible with faith, and which, by many, is believed to have brought
+about in the modern world of thought the irreconcilable conflict between
+faith and science. This is not so! Such antagonism does _not_ exist. It
+cannot exist, because it is certain from the outset that both faith and
+science unfold the truth. Truth, however, can never be in conflict with
+truth. Nor has that antagonism ever existed historically in any of the
+great representatives of science. This antagonism is fictitious, it is
+false in its very essence. It is fabricated, either by distorting faith
+into a blind belief of absurd things, or else by distorting the human
+faculty of conception into infallible omniscience, or, the other extreme,
+by denying its faculty for a higher perception.
+
+Faith has nothing to fear from a mature science that has arrived at the
+conviction of its cognitions, nor has it anything to fear from the great
+intellects who reason profoundly and seriously. But it has to fear
+mock-science and ignorance, and those small and superficial minds that aim
+at stretching their pseudo-knowledge to a gigantic infallibility.
+
+
+
+
+
+THIRD SECTION. THE LIBERAL FREEDOM OF RESEARCH.
+
+
+
+
+The Yoke of the Sun.
+
+
+The gifted Danish writer and convert, _J. Joergensen_, tells a parable
+which is pregnant with thought. "In the midst of a large rye-field," he
+relates, "there stood a tall poplar, with other trees standing nearby. One
+day the poplar turned to the other trees and plants, and thus began to
+speak: 'Sisters and brothers! To us, the glorious tribe of plants, belongs
+the earth, and everything upon it is dependent on us. We fertilize and
+feed ourselves, while beasts and men are fed and clothed by us. Indeed,
+the earth itself feeds upon our decaying leaves, upon our boughs and
+branches. There is only one power in the world our existence and growth is
+said to depend on; I refer to the Sun. I purposely used the words, "is
+said," because I am sure that we do not depend on the Sun. This doctrine
+of sunlight being a necessity and a benefit to our plant life is nothing
+but a superstition, which at last ought to give way to enlightenment.'
+Here the poplar paused. From some old oaks and elms in the neighbouring
+grove there came signs of disapproval, but the inconstant rye-field
+muttered assent. Thus encouraged and raising its voice the poplar
+continued: 'I know well that there is a musty faction amongst us which
+clings obstinately to obsolete views. However, I have confidence in the
+independence of the younger generation of plants. They will realize the
+baseness of continuing to do homage to an absurd superstition. Our
+freeborn heads shall never bow to a yoke, not even to the yoke of the Sun.
+Down, therefore, with that yoke! And free from restraint there will arise
+a free and beautiful generation that will astonish the world.' The poplar
+paused for the second time, and now the applause was long and loud, the
+fields cheered and the groves gave boisterous applause, so that the
+disapproval of a few old trees could not be heard. The following days
+looked upon an odd spectacle. At daybreak, when the Sun ascended and cast
+its first rays over the landscape, the flowers closed their cups and
+denied admission, as if asleep; the leaves no longer turned toward the
+Sun. But when the dispenser of warmth and light had gone down behind the
+hills, the gayly coloured flowers opened in the dim starlight, as if now
+the time had come for them to grow and blossom.
+
+"Alas, how sad was the fate of these poor rebels! The rye soon began to
+languish till it lay prone on the ground; green leaves turned yellow, the
+flowers drooped, faded and withered. Then the plants began to grumble at
+the poplar. There it stood, its leaves a seared yellow. 'What simpletons
+you are, brothers and sisters!' it said. 'Can't you see that now you are
+much more like yourselves than under the rule of the Sun? Now you are
+refined, independent beings, well rid of the sluggish health of yore.'
+There were some who still believed what the poplar said. 'We are
+independent, we are unfettered,' they clamoured, till the last spark of
+life was gone. Not long after the poplar, too, stood there with its
+branches bared,--it had died. The farmers, however, complained about the
+failing of the crop, and consoled themselves by hoping for better success
+the next year."
+
+A parable of deep meaning! It may serve as an illustration for the facts
+stated, and for those yet to be dealt with.
+
+According to the Christian view, man is dependent on his Creator, from
+whom he receives life and light, and, in the same way, his mind depends on
+truth, by which it lives as the plants live, by the light and the warmth
+of the sun. To many generations this was self-evident, and withal they
+felt themselves free, because they looked for the freedom only of the
+dependent creature. And, keeping within these bounds, they had a cheerful
+existence in the happy possession of their faith, contented and serene in
+the possession of truth; their higher spiritual life throve and
+flourished, promoted by the Eternal Giver of light and warmth, who held
+out to them the prospect of completing their mental life in the
+contemplation of His eternal truth.
+
+What the fathers deemed self-evident has now become a problem to their
+sons. What to their fathers was lofty and revered, the things to which
+they ascribed their ennoblement, have become to the sons an obstacle to
+free development. They have forgotten what they are. They demand
+independence and freest realization of their own individuality, in which
+they see the sole source of greatness and progress. In every dependence
+they perceive a hampering of their natural development.
+
+We have in previous chapters become acquainted with this _liberal
+freedom_, particularly in reasoning and in scientific research, the child
+of the philosophy of humanitarianism and subjectivism, the philosophy that
+emancipates man from God's rule, from the immutable religious truths, and
+which sees in this emancipation perfect freedom. We have listened to the
+arguments in behalf of this position, especially arguments against the
+duty to believe. All that we have set forth hitherto was to prove that
+such a freedom is not required. In the faithful adherence to God's
+revelation and to His Church there is no degradation of reason, an
+exaltation rather; because to join in the eternal reason of its Creator is
+not bondage but a privilege.
+
+We proceed. We shall demonstrate that this freedom is not only not
+required, but that it is entirely untenable and ruinous; that it is
+especially so because it is urged and demanded in the name of truth and
+proper order, in the name of uplift of human intellectual life, and of
+progress towards real enlightenment. We shall see that this freedom is not
+a liberation from mean fetters, but simply a revolt against the natural
+order, an apostasy from God and the supernatural which one shuns. Hence,
+not the natural and orderly development of the human individual, but a
+principle of negation under the garb of freedom, the severance of man from
+the sources of his greatness and strength, the perversion of true science;
+not the only admissible scientific method, but an altogether unscientific
+method. We shall show that it becomes thereby the principle of mental
+pauperization and decay, a principle of mental decadence, which in the
+sphere of idealism will reduce mankind to beggary. Thereby public
+testimony is given that in the midst of mankind there is needed an
+intelligent force that preserves, with conscientious earnestness and
+unyielding firmness, the intellectual inheritance of mankind, the ideal
+treasures of truth and of morality.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter I. Free From The Yoke Of The Supernatural.
+
+
+
+Ignoramus, We Ignore.
+
+
+The liberal principle of research rests on the basis of the humanitarian
+view of the world, which makes man autonomous, and causes him to turn his
+eyes from above and downward, and to fix them upon his earthly existence.
+To remain true to its own idea, this liberal science will feel the
+necessity to sever itself gradually from the restraining powers of the
+world beyond, and to shun the thought of God and of His divine influence
+and supremacy over the world and human life. It must resent such truths as
+a burdensome yoke that oppresses human freedom.
+
+And to this thought it remains faithful, if not in all its
+representatives, then at any rate in a good many of them. With unremitting
+persistency it enforces in all its domains the demand: _Science must not
+reckon with supernatural factors_. Ignoramus is its watchword, "we do not
+know it" in the sense of its usual agnosticism, but "we ignore it" in the
+spirit of the impulse which dreads the loss of its freedom through higher
+powers. Creation and miracles, divine revelation and the God-imposed duty
+of belief, it does not know. A moral law, as given by God, does not exist
+for this science. It wants nothing to do with a religion that worships a
+personal God, much less with a supernatural religion, with mysteries,
+miracles, and grace. It praises all the higher that modern religion of
+sentiment, without dogmas and religious duties, which sovereign man
+creates for himself, a poetical adornment of his individuality, a religion
+he need not ask what he owes it, but rather what it offers him. All
+connection with the world beyond is cut off. Man is now free in his own
+house. We shall show this in detail, by the testimony chiefly of men
+generally accepted as foremost representatives of modern science. We do
+not assert, however, that all representatives of modern science belong
+here. Far be it from us to sit in judgment as to the good intentions of
+the champions of liberal science. We know very well that an education
+indifferent to religion, early habitual association with the ideas of a
+sceptical, naturalistic philosophy, the acquisition of prejudices and
+unsolved difficulties, a continuous stay in an intellectual atmosphere
+foreign and inimical to religious belief--all this, we well understand,
+will gradually rob the mind of all inclination and unbiassed judgment for
+religious truth, and thus make for apostasy from religion. Nor do we
+assert that the idea of God and Christianity are extinct in the hearts of
+the representatives of liberal science, but we do assert that their
+_science_ no longer wants to know God and His true religion, that only too
+often it is in the grip of a Theophobia, which slinks past God and His
+works, with its eyes designedly averted.
+
+At the same time the _unprepossession of this science_ will be made clear.
+"A feeling of degradation pervades the German university circles," so the
+learned _Mommsen_ expressed himself some years ago when Strassburg was to
+get a Catholic chair of history; therefore a Catholic who takes his
+Catholic view of the world as his guide cannot be unprepossessed, hence
+cannot be a true scientist. We have become used to this reproach;
+nevertheless it is very painful to a Catholic, especially when he devotes
+his life to scientific work. The other side claims very emphatically to
+have a monopoly on unprepossession and truthfulness; it gives most solemn
+assurances of not desiring anything but the truth, of serving the truth
+alone, with persevering unselfishness, unaffected by disposition and party
+interest, and that it has its unbiassed spiritual eye turned only to the
+chaste sunlight of truth. Hence, we may be permitted to inquire whether
+these assurances square with the facts. As they demand belief, we may also
+demand proofs; and if those assurances are accompanied by sharp
+accusations, the accused will have even a greater right to examine the
+deeds and records of this assertive science.
+
+What about the unprepossession of liberal science, especially in the
+province of philosophy and religion? It cannot be our intention to explore
+the whole territory in every direction. We shall keep to the central and
+main road, the road to which chiefly lead all other roads of life, we mean
+the attitude of this school of research towards the world beyond. We find
+this attitude to be one of persistent ignoring! Science cannot acknowledge
+the supernatural; this presumption, unproved and impossible of proof, it
+never loses sight of, it is even made a scientific principle, which is
+called:
+
+
+
+The Principle of Exclusive Natural Causation.
+
+
+This principle demands that everything belonging to nature in its widest
+sense, consequently all objects and events of irrational nature and of
+human life, must be explained by natural causes only; supernatural factors
+must not be brought in. To assume an interposition by God, in the form of
+creation, miracle, or revelation, is unscientific; he who does so is not a
+true scientist. A presumption, a mandate of truly stupendous enormity! How
+can it be proved that there is no God, that creation, miracles, the
+supernatural origin of religion, are impossible things? And if they are
+possible, why should it be forbidden to make use of them in explaining
+facts which cannot otherwise be explained?
+
+However, it is readily admitted that the principle is merely a postulate,
+an _unproved_ presumption.
+
+
+    "The postulate of exclusive natural causation tells us that
+    natural events can have their causes only in other natural events,
+    and not in conditions lying outside of the continuity of natural
+    causality"; so _W. Wundt_. This is a "postulate, accepted by
+    modern natural science partly tacitly, partly by open profession."
+    "Even where an exact deduction is not possible, natural science
+    nevertheless acts under this supposition. It never will consider a
+    natural event to be causally explained, if it is attempted to
+    derive that event from other conditions than preceding natural
+    events."
+
+    Professor _Jodl_ protests against alliance with the Catholic
+    Church, for the reason that the latter does not acknowledge the
+    fundamental presumption of all scientific research, namely, the
+    uninterrupted natural causation, and because the Church is
+    essentially founded on supernatural presumptions. Prof. _A.
+    Messer_ thinks he has proved sufficiently the untenableness of the
+    Catholic faith by the simple appeal to this presumption: "Natural
+    sciences rest upon the presumption that everything is causally
+    determined. This means, that the same causes must be followed by
+    the same effects, and all natural events take their course
+    according to invariable laws. It is against this presumption that
+    the Church exacts a belief in miracles, in immediate divine
+    manifestations, not explainable by natural causes. _God_ is not a
+    causal factor in the eyes of natural science, because everything,
+    and for that very reason, nothing, could be explained through
+    Him." We see that the principle is expressly admitted to be a mere
+    presumption. "I concede readily," says _Paulsen_, "that the law of
+    natural causation is not a proven fact, but a demand or
+    presumption with which reason approaches the task of explaining
+    natural phenomena. But this postulate ... is the hard-fought
+    victory of long scientific effort.... Gradually there were
+    eliminated from the course of nature demoniacal influence and the
+    miraculous intervention of God, and in their stead the idea of
+    natural causation was installed."
+
+
+It is merely another expression for the same thing if one calls, with
+_Paulsen_, the unbroken causal connection "the fundamental presumption of
+all our natural research"; or concludes, with _A. Drews_, that the
+assumption of a transcendental God, beyond the visible, and in causal
+relation to the world, destroys the universal conformity to laws in the
+world, the self-evident presumption of all scientific knowledge; or one
+may say, with _F. Steudel_, "The theory of unbroken causal connection has
+become the fundamental presupposition of all philosophical explanation of
+world happenings. This finally disposes of a transcendental God, together
+with his empiric correlative, the miracle, as a philosophical explanation
+of the world." The same result is achieved by declaring evolution from
+natural factors as the universal world-law.
+
+"_I Know not God the Father, Almighty Creator of Heaven and of Earth_"
+
+With inexorable persistency this principle is now applied wherever science
+meets with God and the world beyond. Hence, let us proceed on our way and
+halt at some points to watch this science at work.
+
+The unbiassed reasoning of the mind shows that this world, limited and
+finite, in all its phenomena accidental and perishable, cannot have in
+itself the cause of its existence, hence, that it demands a supernatural
+creative cause. This solution of the question is by no means demonstrated
+by liberal science as untenable, it is simply declined.
+
+
+    "Natural science, once for all, has not the least occasion to
+    assume a supernatural act of creation"; this we are told by the
+    famous historian of materialism, _F. A. Lange_. "To fall back upon
+    explanations of this sort amounts always to straying from
+    scientific grounds, which not only is not permissible in a
+    scientific investigation, but should never enter into
+    consideration." And _L. Plate_ states: "A creation of matter we
+    cannot assume, nor would such an assumption be any explanation at
+    all; at most, it would be tantamount to exchanging one question
+    mark for another. We natural scientists are modest enough, as
+    matters now stand, to forego a further solution of the question."
+    They will subscribe to _Du Bois-Reymond's_ "ignoramus" rather than
+    assume the only solution of the question, an act of creation. This
+    scientist, asking himself the question, from where the
+    world-matter received its first impulse, argues: "Let us try to
+    imagine a primordial condition, where matter had not yet been
+    influenced by any cause, and we arrive at the conclusion that
+    matter an infinite time ago was inactive, and equally distributed
+    in infinite space. Since a supernatural impulse does not fit into
+    our theory of the universe, an adequate cause for the first action
+    is lacking."
+
+
+Thus they frankly violate the scientific method that demands acceptance of
+the explanation demonstrated as necessary, and violate it only for the
+reason to dodge the acknowledgment of a Creator. This is not science, but
+politics.
+
+But let us ask, Why should it be against science to reckon with
+supernatural factors? Is it because we cannot disclose with certainty the
+other world? Are they not aware that such a principle is opposed by the
+conviction of all mankind, that always held these conceptions to be the
+highest, and therefore not to be considered illusions? Do they not see,
+moreover, how they involve themselves in flagrant contradictions? Does not
+science by means of its laws of reasoning, especially on the principle of
+causality, constantly infer invisible causes from visible facts? From
+physical-chemical facts ether and physical atoms, which no man has ever
+seen, are deduced: from falling stones and the movement of astral bodies
+is inferred a universal gravitation, undemonstrable by experience; from an
+anonymous letter is deduced an author. The astronomer deduces from certain
+facts that fixed stars must have dark companions, visible to no one; from
+disturbances in the movements of Uranus _Leverrier_ found by calculation
+the existence and location of Neptune, then not as yet discovered. Hence,
+what does it mean: "to fall back upon explanations of this sort always
+amounts to straying away from scientific ground"? Let us imagine a noble
+vessel on the high seas to have become the victim of a catastrophe. It
+lies now at the bottom of the sea. Fishes come from all sides and stop
+musingly before the strange visitor. Whence did this come? Was it made out
+of water? Impossible! Did it creep up from the bottom of the sea? No! At
+last a fish reasons: "What we see here has undoubtedly come down to us
+from a higher world, far above us, and invisible to us." The speech meets
+with approval. But another fish objects: "Nonsense! To fall back upon
+explanations of this sort always amounts to straying away from the
+scientific grounds on which we fish must stand. We cannot assume such a
+world to exist, because this would offend against the first principle of
+our science, the principle of the exclusive natural causation of sea and
+water." With these words the speaker departs, wagging his tail, his speech
+having been received with stupefaction rather than with understanding.
+
+To this philosophy may be applied the word of the Apostle: "Beware lest
+any man cheat you by philosophy and vain deceit" (Col. ii. 8). No, it is
+not the spirit of true science that opposes the belief in supernatural
+factors, but it is the desertion of the traditions and the spirit of a
+better science. To the representatives of paganism, to _Plato_ and others,
+the highest goal of human quest of truth was to find God and to worship
+Him. For the great leaders in recent natural science, _Copernicus_,
+_Kepler_, _Newton_, _Linne_, _Boyle_,_ Volta_, _Faraday_, and _Maxwell_,
+the highest achievement was to point to God's wisdom in the wonderful
+works of nature; their science ended in prayer. A principle of unbroken
+natural causation, as a boycott of the Deity, was to them not a postulate
+of science but an abomination. They were carried by a conviction expressed
+by a later scientist, _W. Thomson_, in the following words: "Fear not to
+be independent thinkers! If you think vigorously enough, you will be
+forced by science to believe in a God, Who is the basis of all religion";
+and expressed by _R. Mayer_ in the following words: "True philosophy must
+not and cannot be anything else but the propaedeutics of the Christian
+religion."
+
+But let us proceed. We have before us an astonishing _order_, we behold
+uncounted wonders of well-designed purpose in the world. The question
+suggests itself: Whence this Order? The watch originates from the
+intelligence of a maker, an accident could not have produced it; hence
+also the great world-machine must have had an intelligent maker. This is
+the logic of unbiassed reason. But the principles of liberal research
+object to the acceptance of this explanation. What is theirs?
+
+
+    There have been some scientists endeavouring to discover the
+    purposeless in nature, and they have gleaned various things.
+    _Haeckel_ invented for them the name Dysteleologists; and this is
+    now the name they go by. Why the destruction of so many living
+    embryos? What is the purpose of pain, of the vermiform appendix?
+    "To what purpose is the immense belt of desert extending through
+    both large continents of the Old World? Could the Sahara not have
+    been avoided?... Indeed, numerous forms of life we cannot look at
+    but with repugnance and horror; for instance, the parasitical
+    beings." ... (_F. Paulsen_). Hence the order claimed for the world
+    does not exist, on the contrary, "it is beyond doubt that the most
+    essential means of nature is of a kind which can only be put on a
+    level with the blindest accident" (_F. A. Lange_). But they do not
+    feel satisfied with this. They feel that even if all these things
+    were actually purposeless, they would amount only to a few drops
+    in the immense ocean of order which still has to be explained. At
+    most, they would form but a few typographical errors in an
+    otherwise ingenious book,--errors that evidently are no proof that
+    the whole book is a mass of nonsense and not dictated by reason.
+
+
+There appears to them, like a rescuing plank in a shipwreck, _Darwin's_
+Natural Selection. The artistic forms in the kingdom of plants and animals
+arose, says _Darwin_, by the fact that, among numerous seemingly tentative
+formations, there were some useful organs or their rudiments which
+survived in the struggle for existence and became hereditary in the
+offspring, while others disappeared. It was seen very soon, and it is even
+better understood to-day, that this enormous feat of "natural selection"
+is contrary to the facts, and would be, above all, an incredible accident.
+Nevertheless _Darwin_ has become the rescuing knight for many who became
+alarmed about the threatening Supernaturalism.
+
+
+    _Du Bois-Reymond_ speaks very frankly: "Albeit, in holding to this
+    theory we may feel like a man kept from drowning only by holding
+    firmly to a plank just strong enough to keep him afloat. But when
+    we have to choose between a plank and death, the preference will
+    decidedly be with the plank." The same idea is expressed somewhat
+    more gracefully by _W. Ostwald_: "That the quite complicated
+    problem concerning the purposiveness of organism loses its
+    character of a riddle, at least in principle, and assumes the
+    aspect of a scientific task, all by virtue of this simple thought
+    ... is a gain that cannot be sufficiently appreciated." With
+    vehement plainness _H. Spitzer_ maintains: "Purposiveness in
+    nature, which was feared by positive research like a ghost,
+    because it really seemed only to be due to the intervention of
+    ghosts in the course of the world, has now been traced by _Darwin_
+    to its origin from natural causes, and he thereby made it a fit
+    object for the science that is at home only in the sphere of
+    natural causes." "To the height of this point of view," _D. F.
+    Strauss_ boasts, "we have been led by modern natural research in
+    _Darwin_."(8)
+
+    At any rate one thing is settled: "The theological explanation
+    must be rejected," as _Plate_ puts it. "It sees in adaptation the
+    proof for the love and kindness of a Creator, who has ordered all
+    organisms most conformable to their purpose. Natural Science
+    cannot accept such an explanation."
+
+
+Is this the boasted spirit of truthfulness, which desires only the
+truth,--but is evading it persistently? Is this that unbiassed eye that
+seeks only the truth? Truly, it seems to be unsound, since it cannot bear
+the rays of truth. Let us go to another workshop of liberal science. It is
+known now that our earth has once been a ball of glowing fluid, with a
+temperature in which no living being could exist. Consequently the latter
+must have appeared at a later stage of evolution. As a fact, palaeontology
+does not show any remnants of organisms in the lower strata of the earth.
+Now again a question suggests itself to the scientist, _Whence did the
+first life come from?_ We have the choice of only two explanations: either
+it has risen by itself, out of unorganic, dead matter, or it was produced
+by the hand of a Creator: either by _generatio aequivoca_ or the act of
+creation. Now there has never been observed a _generatio aequivoca_, as is
+testified to by natural science itself, and never has it been accomplished
+in the laboratory. Therefore, inasmuch as the natural laws of olden times
+cannot have been any different from those of the present, there has never
+been a primordial genesis. Do they perhaps give the Creator his due here,
+where the case is so obvious? Let us see.
+
+
+    The noted zooelogist, _R. Hertwig_, writes: "Inasmuch as there has
+    doubtless been a time when the prevailing temperature of our globe
+    made any life impossible, there must have been a time when life on
+    it arose either by an act of creation or by primordial genesis.
+    If, conformable to the spirit of natural sciences, we are relying
+    only on natural forces for an explanation of natural phenomena,
+    then we are necessarily led to the hypothesis of primordial
+    genesis," although it contradicts all experience. But the
+    deduction is only brought forth as a "logical postulate": there
+    "must" be such genesis after creation is eliminated. "We natural
+    scientists say," states _Plate_, "that all living beings must have
+    originated some time in former geological periods ... from dead,
+    unorganic matter; to assume a creation would be no explanation at
+    all, exactly as it would be no explanation to assume the creation
+    of matter." Which philosophy teaches that it is not an explanation
+    of a fact to assume for it the only reasonable cause? But just
+    this cause they do not want. _Virchow_ says in this respect: "If I
+    do not wish to assume a creative act, if I desire to explain the
+    matter in my way, then it is clear that I must resort to
+    _generatio aequivoca_. _Tertium non datur._ There is nothing else
+    left, if one once has said: 'I do not accept creation, but I want
+    an explanation of it.' If this is the first thesis, the second
+    thesis is, ergo, I accept the _generatio aequivoca_. _But we have
+    no actual proof of it._" Hence _Haeckel_ only follows the lead of
+    others when he writes: "We admit that this process (_primordial
+    genesis_) must remain a pure hypothesis, as long as it is not
+    directly observed or duplicated by experiment. But I repeat that
+    this hypothesis is indispensable for the entire coherence of the
+    history of natural creation. Unless you accept the hypothesis of
+    primordial genesis at this one point in the theory of evolution,
+    you must take refuge in the miracle of a supernatural creation."
+
+
+Is this science, or is it not rather Theophobia? Does the freedom of
+science consist, first of all, in the privilege of emancipating one's self
+from truth, whenever truth is not to one's taste? True, liberal science
+will then be free from distasteful truths, but all the more shackled by
+its irreligious prejudices.
+
+In modern times, the _theory of evolution_ is in high favour. On earth we
+do not only see life, but life in a great variety of forms, from plant to
+man. The question, whence this variety, admits in its turn only of the
+alternative: either it was immediately created by God's hand, or it is the
+result of a slow evolution from common original forms. Whether there has
+been an evolution within the vegetable and animal kingdom is a problem for
+natural science. But it is a philosophical question, whether the
+essentially superior human soul, endowed with spirituality and reason,
+could have evolved from the inferior animal soul. Philosophy must answer:
+No, just as impossible as to evolve ten from two, or a whole book from a
+single proofsheet. Faith says the human soul is created by God. We do not
+intend to discuss the problem here any further, but shall only point out
+how science here, too, expressly or tacitly, is determined very
+energetically by the presumption of the exclusive natural causation; this
+is applied to the entire theory of evolution, but especially in regard to
+man.
+
+
+    "The notion of the evolution of the living world on earth," thus
+    states _Weismann_ quite significantly, "extends far beyond the
+    provinces of individual sciences, and it influences our entire
+    range of thoughts. This notion means nothing less than the
+    elimination of miracle from our knowledge of nature, and the
+    classification of the phenomena of life on an equal footing with
+    the rest of natural events." The guiding motive is plainly in
+    evidence.
+
+
+The aim to eliminate the "miracle of creation" is manifested even more
+conspicuously in the question about the origin of man: man with his entire
+equipment, intellectual as well as cultural, must have evolved upward from
+the most imperfect rudiments; this is regarded as a self-evident
+proposition.
+
+
+    _M. Hoernes_, for instance, writes: "The Cosmogonies, _i.e._, the
+    theories of creation, of all nations ascribe the origin of man to
+    a supernatural act of creation, whereby the Creator is imagined as
+    a human being, because at the intellectual stage corresponding to
+    these notions something created could only be conceived as
+    something formed, something constructed." Thus the theory of
+    creation, and the Christian doctrine of the genesis of man, is
+    disposed of as a notion of the lower intellect. "On the contrary,
+    we are taught by science to look upon the highest mammals as our
+    nearest blood-relatives." This "we are taught by science,"
+    although it is confessed: "We know the fact of the existence of
+    the man of the fourth, or glacial, period, but we have not a
+    solitary fact that would throw light upon his origin and his
+    previous existence."
+
+    "The theory of miracles can be given up only when we shall cease
+    to contemplate man as a creature apart from the rest of creation,
+    and look upon him as a being developed within creation to what he
+    is now. Then, however, reason and language, as well as man
+    himself, are the products of a continuous evolution," says _Wundt_
+    in his "Psychology of Nations." _Fr. Mueller_, in a text-book on
+    the science of language, argues: "According to _Darwin_ and to
+    modern natural science, man was not created but has evolved from a
+    lower organism during a process of thousands and thousands of
+    years.... For this reason, we must (?) assume that the first
+    language of primitive man could not have ranked above the speech
+    by which animals living in families communicate with each other."
+
+    On the basis of this truly dogmatical presumption, that the
+    "miracle theory" of creation must not be accepted, they proceed
+    then to construe one hypothesis upon another, of the origin of
+    language, of thought, of conscience, of religion, according to the
+    method of _Darwin_ and _Spencer_, hypotheses of utmost
+    arbitrariness, and frequently most fantastic. "Ethnographical
+    researches," so we are told by _E. Lehmann_, "made by travellers,
+    representatives of science and of practical life, in all parts of
+    the globe, ... are starting to-day, almost without exception, from
+    the tacit presumption that the civilization of peoples living in
+    the primitive state represent an early and low stage in a
+    historical chain of evolution."
+
+
+All these are suitable commentaries upon the trite proposition that
+natural science, or more generally science, is incompatible with religious
+belief. Of course research, like that described above, does not agree with
+Faith. But the fault lies in its unscientific method, rather than in its
+scientific character, in its latent atheistic presumption which prevents
+an unbiassed conception of truth.
+
+
+    In February, 1907, the well-known biologist and priest of the
+    Jesuit order, _E. Wasmann_, gave three lectures in Berlin on the
+    theory of evolution, before a large audience; they were followed
+    on the fourth evening by a discussion, in the course of which
+    eleven opponents voiced for nearly three hours their objections
+    and attacks, to which _Wasmann_ replied briefly at midnight, but
+    little time having been allotted to him for this purpose.
+    _Wasmann_, as well as his chief opponent, Prof. _Plate_ of Berlin,
+    have published the arguments on both sides with notes, comments,
+    and supplements. The report of Prof. _Plate_ lays stress upon the
+    assertion, which had also formed the refrain of all opposing
+    speeches, viz., "the discussion has shown, in the first place,
+    that true research in natural science is impossible for those
+    taking the position of the Roman Catholic Church; secondly, the
+    glaring and irreconcilable opposition of the scientific theory of
+    the world to the Orthodox-Christian view was sharply manifested."
+    In examining how this was demonstrated by this particular natural
+    science, one meets with a painful surprise.
+
+    Even the facts concerning the arrangements for the discussion make
+    an unpleasant impression. It is true, _Plate_ accused _Wasmann_ of
+    calumny on account of the latter's complaint. However, upon
+    comparing closely the statements of both, the following facts
+    remain undisputed. _Wasmann_ notified _Plate_ that he desired to
+    speak twice during the discussion, and that the entire discussion
+    should not last much over two hours. _Plate_ promised to arrange
+    matters accordingly. But on the forenoon of February 18th, the
+    opponents held a meeting, _Plate_ presiding, and they resolved,
+    without the least notification to _Wasmann_, that there should be
+    eleven speakers against _Wasmann_, and that the latter should
+    reply but once, at the end. Only just before the beginning of the
+    discussion, the same evening, _Plate_ informed _Wasmann_ of the
+    arrangement, making it practically impossible for the latter to
+    change the situation. Furthermore, upon _Plate's_ proposal, an
+    intermission of five minutes before the appearance of the tenth
+    speaker was decided upon, "in order to give those in the audience,
+    who might find the session too exhausting, a chance to leave."
+    Thus the audience was to be subjected for three long hours to the
+    influence of heated attacks on Theism, Christianity, and the
+    Church, and without hearing the reply unless they held out from
+    half-past eight in the evening to half-past twelve in the morning.
+
+    _Plate's_ Monism rejects principally everything metaphysical:
+    "Monism is the short term for the natural science view of the
+    world, that rejects all preternatural and supernatural ideas."
+    Solutions, not given by the natural sciences, simply do not exist
+    for him; for him the sun sets on the horizon of his natural
+    science. "Natural laws comprise all that we are able to fathom:
+    what is behind them, or what is living in them and operates in
+    them, is the ultimate question for philosophy, and there one
+    thinks this way, another that way" (_Plate_). Nevertheless, he
+    knows that "Out of nothing can come nothing: hence matter is
+    eternal," and he is certain that there is no personal God, no
+    angel nor devil, no beyond nor immortality. Whoever fails to think
+    the same way is no scientist, he is not even a man of sound
+    reason: because "he who has grasped even the elements of natural
+    science, the unity and strict conformity to law of the natural
+    forces, and has a head for sound reasoning, will become a monist
+    all by himself, while the rest are past help, anyhow."
+
+    "The Polytheism of the orthodox Church," he says further,
+    referring to the mystery of the Trinity, "is irrational"; for
+    "Common Sense says that 3 is not equal to 1, nor 1 to 3," and this
+    is sufficient for _Plate_. "Trinity, the Incarnation of the Son of
+    God, Christ's Ascension and His descent into hell, Original Sin,
+    Redemption from sin by Christ's sacrifice, Angels and Devils, the
+    Immaculate Conception, the Infallibility of the Pope, all these
+    and many other doctrines of the orthodox Church are thrown to the
+    winds by anybody convinced of the permanence and imperviousness of
+    the natural laws." This again is sufficient for him. "The question
+    whether God is personal or impersonal," says he, in another place,
+    "should never be raised: it is just as preposterous as the
+    question whether God has eyes or not." Another of his arguments
+    reads: "If the body after death can become dust by natural means,
+    then there must have been conditions under which the dust became
+    by natural means a body." An analogous argument would be: "If a
+    book can of itself finally wear away into withered and loosened
+    leaves, then there must be conditions under which the perfect book
+    could originate all by itself, and without Prof. _Plate_, out of
+    withered, loose leaves."
+
+    _Plate_ assures us: "I do not know anything about metaphysics." We
+    do not want to dispute that. It is regrettable that so many
+    scientists of our times are betraying a pitiable lack of
+    philosophical training, a lack which becomes a social danger if
+    they, nevertheless, yield to the temptation to invade the domain
+    of Philosophy. Even the Protestant scientist _G. Wobbermin_ in
+    referring to the above-mentioned discussion remarked: "_Wasmann's_
+    opponents on that evening have betrayed without exception a really
+    amazing lack of philosophical training." In glaring contrast with
+    this ignorance stands their intolerance for any different theory
+    of the world. Because he thinks as a Christian, _Wasmann_ is
+    peremptorily expelled from the ranks of natural scientists.
+    "_Father Wasmann_ is not a true natural scientist, he is not a
+    true scholar." With this crushing verdict Prof. _Plate_ concluded
+    his speech. He repeats this finding on the last page of his book
+    in conspicuous type: "_Father Wasmann_, S. J., no true natural
+    scientist, no true scholar." That his opponent, in answer to
+    questions that go beyond mere natural science, is giving
+    philosophical replies, in accord with the doctrine of
+    Christianity, is explained by "his voluntary or involuntary
+    submission to the Church," "natural science bows to Theology." He
+    therefore lacks "the freedom of thought and of deduction."
+    Sophistical stunts in the service of intolerance! But let us
+    proceed on our way.
+
+
+The compulsory dogma of the inadmissibility of a supernatural order of the
+world, and of its operation in the visible world, becomes most manifest
+when liberal science comes in contact with the miracle. Forsooth, it
+shirks this contact. But time and again, now and in the past, it is
+confronted by clearly attested facts and it cannot avoid noticing them.
+However, it is determined from the outset that miracles are impossible. Of
+course, this cannot be proved except by the presumption that there is no
+supermundane God. Even the agnostic _Stuart Mill_ admits that if the
+existence of God is conceded, an effect produced by His will, which in
+every instance owes its origin to its creator, appears no longer as a
+purely arbitrary hypothesis, but must be considered a serious possibility
+(Essays, 1874). Generally, however, liberal science does not try hard to
+demonstrate in a scientific way the impossibility.
+
+
+    "It is my unyielding conviction," so speaks _A. Harnack_, and his
+    is perhaps the most telling expression of this dogmatic mood,
+    "that anything that happens within time and space is subject to
+    the laws of motion. Hence, that in this sense, _i.e._, of
+    interrupting the natural connection, there cannot be any
+    miracles." One simply does not believe such things. "That a
+    tempest at sea," thus _Harnack_ again, "could have been stilled by
+    a word we do not believe, nor shall we ever again believe it."
+    Similarly reads _Baumgarten's_ declaration regarding the
+    resurrection of Christ: "Even if all the reports had been written
+    on the third day, and had been transmitted to us as a certainty
+    ... nevertheless modern consciousness could not accept the story."
+    And _W. Foerster_ writes: "The supposition that such interferences
+    do not occur, and that everything in the world is advancing
+    steadily and in accordance with fixed laws, forms the
+    indispensable presumption of scientific research." And _H. von
+    Sybel_ holds "An absolute concord with the laws of evolution, a
+    common level in the existence of things terrestrial, forms the
+    presumption of all knowledge: it stands and falls with it."
+
+
+This is the presumption, from which is drawn the most extravagant
+conclusion, which, though so manifestly improper, is made the basis for
+rejecting the entire supernatural religion of Christianity. Because God's
+Incarnate Son, in a small town of Palestine, once turned water into wine,
+will the Christian housewife lose her confidence in the stability of
+water? When it was suddenly discovered that the orbit of the planet Uranus
+was not a perfect ellipsis, as required by the law of _Kepler_, was it
+thought that these deviations are impossible because there must not be any
+exception to the law of perfect elliptical movements? Happily, this law
+continued to be accepted without deeming an irregularity impossible, and
+shortly afterwards Neptune was discovered and found to be the cause of the
+disturbance. But anything miraculous, no matter how well proven, must be
+considered unacceptable by reason of such unsound presumption.
+Philosophical a-priorism is superior to facts.
+
+
+    Thus _St. Augustine_ tells in his work "De civitate Dei" (1. xxii.
+    c. 8) of a number of miracles happening in his time, of which he
+    had knowledge either as eye-witness or by authentical reports from
+    eye-witnesses. _E. Zeller_ renders judgment on the historical
+    value of the statement as follows: "The narrator is a
+    contemporary, and partly even an eye-witness, of the events
+    reported: by virtue of his episcopal office he is particularly
+    commissioned to closely investigate them; we know him as a man
+    overtowering his contemporaries in intellect and knowledge, second
+    to none in religious zeal, strong faith, and moral earnestness.
+    The wonderful events happened to well-known persons, sometimes in
+    the presence of big crowds of people; they were attested and
+    recorded by official order." Hence the statement must be accepted
+    without objection. But must it not also be believed? is the query
+    of an unbiassed listener. Not in the judgment of one who is in the
+    tyrannical yoke of his presumptions. "What are we to say about
+    it?" continues _Zeller_, and finds that "in this unparalleled
+    aggregation of miracles we can after all see nothing else but a
+    proof of the credulity of that age." The report is incontestable,
+    but it must not be believed!
+
+    In our times _Lourdes_ has become the scene of events which are
+    founded on facts, and the miraculous character has been proven at
+    least of some of them. _Bertrin_, in his "Histoire critique des
+    evenements de Lourdes," deals with the attitude of the physicians
+    toward the miracles. The believing physician can enter upon his
+    investigation without prejudice: not so the unbelieving physician
+    and scientist, who is shackled by his prejudice against the
+    possibility of miracles. Of this a few examples:
+
+    "How did you get cured?" was the question put by a physician to a
+    young woman who, after having suffered for four years from a
+    suppurating inflammation of the hip joints, complicated by caries,
+    had a few days previously suddenly regained her full health. Pains
+    and sores had disappeared. "By whom was I cured? By the Blessed
+    Virgin!" "Never mind the Blessed Virgin," replied the physician.
+    "Young woman, why don't you admit that you had been assured in
+    advance that you would get well. You were told that, once in
+    Lourdes, you would suddenly rise from the box wherein you were
+    lying. That sort of thing happens--we call it suggestion." The girl
+    replied, unhesitatingly, that it did not happen this way at all.
+    Finally the physician offered her money if she would admit having
+    really been cured by suggestion. The girl declined the
+    offer.--Another girl arrived in Lourdes, with a physician's
+    attestation that she was a consumptive. She is cured after the
+    first bath. At the bureau of verification her lungs were found to
+    be no longer diseased. Her physician's statement having been very
+    brief, a telegram was sent to him as a matter of precaution,
+    asking him for another statement without, however, informing him
+    of the cure. The physician immediately wired back: "She is a
+    consumptive." This was also the opinion of other physicians who
+    had treated the girl. The girl joyfully returns home, and hurries
+    to her physician, requesting him to certify to her cure. He does
+    so quite reluctantly. Upon reading his certificate, she discovers
+    that it said she had been cured, but only of a _cough_. The case
+    of consumption of his original testimonial had changed into a
+    cough. His dread of a miracle had induced this physician to commit
+    a falsehood.
+
+    _A. Rambacher_, as he relates in a pamphlet, sent the scientific
+    treatise on Lourdes by Dr. _Boissarie_ to Prof. _Haeckel_, with
+    the request to read it, in order to gain a better notion of the
+    existence of a supernatural world. After some urging he finally
+    received the following reply, which speaks volumes for the
+    attitude of the natural scientist towards facts: "With many thanks
+    I hereby return the book by Dr. _Boissarie_ on the Great Cures of
+    Lourdes which you sent me. The perusal of the same has convinced
+    me anew of the tremendous power of superstition (glorified as
+    'pious belief') of naive credulity (without critical examination),
+    and of contagious collective suggestion, as well as of the cunning
+    of the clergy, exploiting them for their gain.... The physicians,
+    said to testify in behalf of the 'miracles' and the supernatural
+    phenomena, are either ignorant and undiscerning quacks, or
+    positive frauds in collusion with the priests. The most accurate
+    description of the gigantic swindle of Lourdes I know of, is that
+    of _Zola_ in his well-known novel.... With repeated thanks for
+    your kindness ... _Ernst Haeckel_." Against all the facts in
+    evidence this dogmatic scientist was safely intrenched behind the
+    stone wall of his presumptions. He knew in advance that everything
+    was superstition or the fraud of cunning priests, that all
+    physicians who certified to cures were quacks and cheats. _Zola's_
+    tendentious romance considered the best historical source! Mention
+    should be made here how this celebrated novelist dealt with facts
+    at Lourdes. In the year 1892, the time of the great pilgrimage,
+    _Zola_ went to Lourdes. He wanted to observe and then tell what he
+    had seen. An historical novel it was to be; time and again he had
+    proclaimed in the newspapers that he would tell the whole truth.
+    At Lourdes all doors were opened to him; he had admittance
+    anywhere; he could interview and obtain explanations at will. How
+    he kept his promise to report the truth may be shown by a single
+    instance: _Marie Lebranchu_ came to Lourdes on August 20, 1892,
+    suffering from incurable consumption. She was suddenly cured, and
+    never had a relapse. One year after her cure she returned to the
+    miraculous Grotto. The excellent condition of her lungs was again
+    verified. Now, what does _Zola_ make of this event? In his novel
+    the cured girl suffers a terrible relapse upon her first return
+    home, "a brutal return of the disease which remained victorious,"
+    we read in _Zola's_ book. One day, the president of the Lourdes
+    Bureau of Investigation introduced himself to _Zola_ in Paris, and
+    asked him "How dare you let _Marie Lebranchu_ die in your novel;
+    you know very well that she is alive and just as well as you and
+    I." "What do I care," was _Zola's_ reply, "I think I have the
+    right to do as I please with the characters I create." If a
+    romancer desires to avail himself of this privilege he certainly
+    has not the right to proclaim his novels as truthful historical
+    writings, much less may others see in such a novel the "most
+    accurate description of the events at Lourdes."
+
+    _Renan_ at one time said: "Oh, if we just once might have a
+    miracle brought before professional scientists! But, alas! this
+    will never happen!" He borrowed this saying from _Voltaire_, with
+    the difference that the latter demanded God to perform a miracle
+    before the Academy of Sciences, as if there were need for miracles
+    in a physical or chemical laboratory. Those who desire in earnest
+    to investigate miracles ought to go where they are performed. And
+    even there, where the eyes can see them, it also takes good will
+    to acknowledge them. In this respect an interview is instructive
+    which _Zola_ once had with an editor. The latter asked: "If you
+    were witness to a miracle, that would occur under strictest
+    conditions suggested by yourself, would you acknowledge the
+    miracle? Would you then accept the teachings of the faith?" After
+    a few moments of serious thought, _Zola_ replied: "I do not know,
+    but I do not believe I would" (_Bertrin_). On April 7, 1875, there
+    came to the Belgian sanctuary, Oostacker, a Flemish labourer, by
+    name _Peter de Rudder_, whose leg had eight years before been
+    broken below the knee, and who was then suffering from two
+    suppurating cancerous sores, that had formed at the place of the
+    fracture and on the foot. He suddenly was entirely cured. The case
+    was investigated in a most exact way. In 1900 a treatise
+    concerning the case was published by three physicians. _E.
+    Wasmann_ had as early as 1900 published a short extract of it in
+    the "Stimmen aus Maria Laach." In February, 1907, when, at Berlin,
+    he delivered his lectures which were followed by a discussion, his
+    opponents, headed by Prof. _Plate_, did not know of this article.
+    When they learned of it, some time afterwards, he was put under
+    the ban because he "had degraded himself to the position of a
+    charlatan by vouching with his scientific repute for the happening
+    of a miraculous cure"; and they said "they would fight him in the
+    same way as they would fight every quack, but as a scientist he
+    was discarded." _Plate_ had on the evening of the discussion asked
+    of the assembled scientists the question: "Have we ever observed
+    anything like a suspension of the natural laws? The reply to it is
+    an unconditional 'we have not'; consequently Theism becomes
+    inadmissible to the natural scientist." Here, in the _de Rudder_
+    case, is found the required instance. But _Plate_ knows, in
+    advance of any investigation, that it is a fairy tale, believed
+    without critical examination. And Prof. _Hansemann_, another
+    opposing speaker of that evening, subsequently sent word to
+    _Wasmann_ that: "One can pretty well judge what to think of a
+    natural scientist who publishes such stuff. For this reason I now
+    declare that I shall never in future, no matter how or where,
+    enter into discussion of matters of natural science with Mr.
+    _Wasmann_." When on a certain occasion _Hegel_ was advised that
+    some facts did not agree with his philosophical notions, he
+    replied: "The more pity for the facts."
+
+
+The English natural scientist, _W. Thomson_, once said before the British
+Society at Edinburgh: "Science is bound by eternal honour to face
+fearlessly every problem that can be clearly laid before it." The equally
+famous _Faraday_, in the name of empirical research, demands of its
+adherents the determination to stand or to fall with the results of a
+direct appeal to the facts in the first place, and with the strict logical
+deductions therefrom in the second. In general these principles are
+adhered to so long as religious notions are not encountered. But as soon
+as these are sighted, the engine is reversed, and all scientific
+principles are forgotten.
+
+A science led by this spirit will set out to emancipate man's moral
+conduct of life from God and religion. Indeed, the first postulate of
+modern ethics directs that _morality_ must be _independent of religion_.
+That God and eternal salvation is the end of man, the ultimate norm of his
+moral life, that God's Command is the ultimate reason of the moral
+obligation, and divine sanction its strongest support, it does not want to
+acknowledge. Here, too, we find the principle of natural causality in
+operation. "As in physics God's will must not be made to serve as an
+explanation, so likewise in the theory of moral phenomena. Both the
+natural and the moral world, as they exist, may point beyond themselves to
+something transcendental. But we cannot admit the transcendental ... a
+scientific explanation will have to be wholly immanent, and
+anthropological" (_Paulsen_). According to this approved principle of
+ignoration, the supreme aim and law of a morality without religion is
+_man_, his earthly happiness, and his culture.
+
+
+    Its aims, according to Prof. _Jodl_, one of its noted champions,
+    are: "Promotion of moral life, fostering of a refined humanity,
+    development of a true fellow-feeling, without the religious and
+    metaphysical notions upon which mankind hitherto has mostly built
+    its ethical ideals." _Kant_ was the pioneer here: "In so far as
+    morality is based on the conception of man as a free, being, it
+    requires neither the idea of a superior being to make him
+    cognizant of his duties, nor any motive but the law itself in
+    order to observe it ... hence morality for its own sake does not
+    by any means need religion." This is the viewpoint of the
+    autonomous man, who is his own law. "From the viewpoint of
+    authority," so tells us _E. von Hartmann_, "autonomy does not mean
+    anything else but that in ethical matters I am for myself the
+    highest court without appeal.... The God, Who in the beginning
+    spoke to His children from a fiery cloud ... has descended into
+    our bosom, and, transformed into our own being, speaks out of us
+    as a moral autonomy." _Diis extinctis successit humanitas._
+
+
+"Although an individual representative of science may be a believer in God
+in his private life," so argues the English philosopher, _W. James_, "at
+any rate the times have passed when it could be said that the heavens
+announce to science the glory of God, and that the heaven shows the works
+of His hands." The flight from divinity, atheism open or disguised, is the
+psychological effect of the liberal principle. Free thought aims to free
+man of all authority, it aims at severing from religion his entire
+existence, marriage, state, schools, and likewise science. "It is
+undeniable," we hear from the lips of champions of modern man, standing on
+the pinnacle of religious liberalism, "that there is a certain
+forsakenness in this existence of man, as compared to a life brightened by
+the idea of a God," but that forsakenness is not purchased too dearly, for
+"it is the solitude of autonomy, a possession so precious that no price
+for it could be too high" (_Carneri_).
+
+Indeed, these modern men use even plainer language: science is applauded
+for having at last freed man from God. With _Kant's_ principle that we
+cannot know anything of the supernatural, we are told, there "were thrown
+overboard the cosmogonic notions of the Semitic races, notions that have
+so severely oppressed our science and religion, and are still oppressing
+them.... By this insight an idol is smashed. In a previous chapter I
+called the Israelites the worshippers of abstract idols; now, I believe, I
+shall be fully understood." Indeed, we understand. It means: Away with
+God. "This German metaphysics frees us from idolatry and reveals to us the
+living divinity in our own bosom" (_Chamberlain_).
+
+This is the manner in which this free thought, within science and without,
+is fulfilling the earnest admonition of the Psalmist: "Seek ye the Lord
+and be strengthened: seek His face evermore" (Ps. civ. 4), and it turns
+into irony the words: "This is the generation of them that seek Him, of
+them that seek the face of the God of Jacob" (Ps. xxiii. 6).
+
+
+
+"I Know not Jesus Christ, His Only Begotten Son, Our Lord."
+
+
+Where the thought of independence and of this world enslaves the minds,
+and holds them captive in harsh aversion to the supernatural, an objective
+judgment on the nature and history of the Christian religion, to say
+nothing of the Catholic Church, can hardly be hoped for. What may be
+expected is that we will also meet here with a science which, with its
+hands held before the eye that fears the light, wards off and combats
+everything that is specifically Christian. It is to be feared only that it
+will turn light into darkness regarding the view of life, as also the
+doctrine and history, of the Christian religion.
+
+Regarding the Christian view of life we need only read the superficial and
+yet so arrogant discussions of Christian philosophy, as found in
+_Paulsen_, _Wundt_, or _E. von Hartmann_. From this judicial bench the
+wisdom of Him, of Whom it is said "And we saw His glory, full of grace and
+truth," we see condemned, if not even treated with subtle ridicule.
+
+Let us for instance take _Paulsen's_ presentment of the "View of Life
+under Christianity." Whoever reads it, and believes it, to him the
+teaching of Jesus Christ can only be, what the Apostle said it was to the
+heathens, foolishness. No longer can he have adoration for its Founder,
+but rather the pity that one has for an enthusiastic visionary devoid of
+any knowledge of the world and men. The wisdom taught by Christ is
+distorted into a sombre grimace, while side by side with it the conception
+of life of Hellenic paganism is transfigured into a beautiful ideal.
+
+
+    We are told there: "While classical antiquity saw as the task of
+    life the perfect development of the natural powers and talents of
+    man, ... Christianity with clear consciousness makes the contrary
+    the goal of life." "The cultivation and exercise of intellectual
+    faculties was of great importance to the Greeks.... Primitive
+    Christianity looks upon reason and natural cognition with
+    indifference, even with suspicion and contempt ... indeed, natural
+    reason and knowledge are an obstacle for the kingdom of God.
+    Christianity at first was indifferent, even inimical, not only to
+    philosophy and science, but also to art and poetry. It cuts off
+    not only sensual but also aesthetical gratification," because _St.
+    John_ condemned the gratification of the eyes (which means
+    something quite different from aesthetical gratification)
+    Christianity is said to reject "the arts of the Muses and
+    athletics: they belong to that sowing of the flesh of which the
+    harvest is perdition." "What the Christians valued highly was not
+    erudition and eloquence, but silence. Silence is the first thing
+    recommended by _Ambrose_" (and he the great and renowned
+    representative of early Christian eloquence!). There is more: "In
+    the primitive view the first virtue was valour, especially valour
+    in war; indeed, in Greek and Latin speech the word 'virtue' meant
+    valour; the Christian's virtue, however, is patience and
+    endurance. He does not draw the sword; to him are expressly
+    forbidden not only anger, hatred, and private revenge, but even
+    litigation."
+
+    In this tendentious strain _Paulsen_ continues, with exaggerations
+    and misrepresentations that have nothing in common with science.
+    According to the Greek view, he says, high-mindedness was a great
+    virtue, but, naturally, the Christian is not allowed to have it;
+    "the virtue of the Christian is humility," _i.e._, in _Paulsen's_
+    sense low-mindedness; this is "the starting point of
+    Christianity." True, the author assures us that Christianity of
+    to-day is no longer the one he is describing; it has adapted
+    itself more to the world. But it is sad to have this gloomy,
+    visionary fanaticism described to us as the one which was taught
+    by the words of Jesus Himself.
+
+    The adherent of this Christianity looks upon governments and their
+    aims as something essentially foreign to it, even to be an
+    official "would doubtless have been felt as a contradiction"; but
+    a sudden change is said to have taken place under _Constantine_.
+    Earthly joys and benefits, the holy ties of the family, those that
+    Jesus in person blessed at Cana, they were, according to _St.
+    Paul_, so we are told, in the spirit of Christ things to avoid and
+    condemn.
+
+    And how are these theological discoveries proven, what sources are
+    quoted in substantiation? By some arbitrarily selected passages of
+    the Scriptures, that one must hate father and mother, wife and
+    child, brother and sister; that the poor in spirit are blessed,
+    that the lust of the eye is sinful, that evil should not be
+    resisted; and in quoting these passages all scientific
+    interpretation is carefully avoided, all the writers who have
+    amply explained them are ignored. And what the scriptural passages
+    fail to prove must be demonstrated by some extreme statement
+    borrowed from _Tertullian_, who is generally prone to
+    exaggeration. As a matter of course, gloomy Christianity then
+    seems inferior to the brilliancy of Greek paganism; Christianity
+    is directly a danger to civilization; it may be good enough for
+    those tired of life. "The objection has been made that the
+    fulfilment of this command would destroy our entire civilization.
+    Most probably this would be the case. But where is it written (in
+    Holy Writ) that our civilization must be preserved?" We have here
+    the picture formed of the doctrine of Christ by the world, whereof
+    the Lord has predicted: the world will hate you. _Paulsen_ admits
+    frankly: "Whence this hatred? Because the Christian despises that
+    which to the world is the highest good. There can be no better
+    reason for hating any one...."
+
+    It is easy to understand that one who has for a long time mentally
+    abandoned his Christian faith, cannot carry in mind its picture as
+    undistorted as he did in his better days, and as would conform to
+    reality. But it is reprehensible to exhibit in public this
+    picture, without having previously and conscientiously examined
+    the main lines, to see whether they are not caricatures. And they
+    are caricatures, traced by a hand that is led by the mood of a
+    secret anti-Christianity.
+
+
+A treatment identical with that of its view of life is accorded to the
+_doctrine and history of the Christian religion_. Not science and
+uncorrupted truthfulness, but antipathy, presumption, harsh denial of
+everything divine, only too often point the way. Let us listen again to
+the author named above, since he knows to express modern thought with a
+clearness and precision almost unequalled by any one else.
+
+
+    It made a painful impression to find in the Christmas number,
+    1908, of the liberal-theological "Christliche Welt" a posthumous
+    article by _Fr. Paulsen_: "What think you of Christ: Whose Son is
+    He?" The article was without doubt one of the last he had written.
+    It contains the program of modern liberal science. "With the
+    seventeenth century," we read there, "begins the reorganization of
+    the theory of the universe by science. Its general tendency may be
+    described by the formula: Elimination of the supernatural from the
+    natural and historical world." "Consequently, no miracles in
+    history, no supernatural birth, no resurrection, no revelation, in
+    fact no interference by the Eternal in temporal events." Hence,
+    the man who "thinks scientifically _in this wise_ can have no
+    doubt that the old ecclesiastical dogma cannot be reconciled with
+    scientific thought." This, of course, amounts to a complete
+    renunciation of positive Christianity.
+
+    This scientific thought, in the words of _Baumgarten_, "rejects
+    any projection of the supernatural into tangible reality";
+    especially is "the metaphysical genesis and nature of the Saviour
+    highly offensive to our ethical consciousness," even "absolutely
+    unbearable." The Christian religion can no longer be permitted to
+    overtower other religions by its supernaturalness. "The
+    distinction between a revealed and a natural religion becomes an
+    impossibility," says _W. Bousset_. And _Wundt_ declares:
+    "Christianity, as an 'absolute' or a 'revealed' religion, would
+    stand opposed to all other religious development, as an
+    incommensurable magnitude. This point of view, evidently, cannot
+    be competent for our speculations."
+
+
+Having become the ruling mode of thought, these presumptions determine
+from the outset the results to be obtained by "research," and they force
+it to violate its own method, so that it may be dragged along the by-ways
+and false ways of a mistaken, philosophical a-priorism, thereby making
+freedom of science a mockery. From the abundant material at our disposal
+let us take only one example, viz., the _Modern Criticism of the Gospels_.
+
+The Gospels contain many records of facts of a supernatural character, of
+miracles and prophecies. That these records are necessarily false is the
+first principle of the historical, or critical, method, as it is called.
+"As a miracle of itself is unthinkable, so the miracles in the history of
+Christianity, and in the Christianity of the New Testament, are likewise
+unthinkable. Hence, when miracles are nevertheless narrated, these
+narratives must be false, in as far as they report miracles: that is,
+either the relation did not happen at all, or, if it did, there was a
+sufficient natural explanation"; "the historian must under all
+circumstances answer, 'No,' to the question whether the report of a
+miracle is worthy of belief" (_T. Zeller_). Thus instructed,
+"unprejudiced" research proceeds to construct its results of the
+investigation of the genuineness, time and date, of the writing of the
+Gospels and of the Acts, as well as of their credibility. Let us see how
+this is done.
+
+The tradition of the early Church, as well as intrinsic evidence, testify
+that the first Gospel was really written by the Apostle _Matthew_, and
+this certainly before the destruction of Jerusalem. Liberal-Protestant
+criticism, however, assigns its origin to a time after the year 70,
+chiefly for two reasons: First, the striking prophecy of the destruction
+of Jerusalem, conforming so accurately to the actual event, could have
+been written only after the year 70; otherwise it would have amounted to a
+real prophecy subsequently fulfilled, a conclusion that cannot be
+accepted. The second reason is this: The contents of _St. Matthew's_
+Gospel is already wholly Catholic, hence it must have been written during
+a later, Catholic, period. For as there can be no influences from above,
+and as everything is evolved in a natural way, the principle must govern:
+that the more supernatural and the more dogmas, so much later the period
+in question; at first there could have been only a religion of sentiment
+without dogma, which gradually developed into Catholic dogmatism. Similar
+are the presumptions which direct modern research in respect to the
+genuineness of the other Gospels and the Acts. A few proofs:
+
+
+    Prof. _Juelicher_ thinks that, "While we cannot go prior to the
+    beginning of the second century, because of external testimony, we
+    cannot on the other hand maintain a later date. The most probable
+    time for our Gospel is the one shortly before the year 100...."
+    Why? "Because the ill-fitting feature in the parable of the
+    wedding feast, that the king in his wrath, because his invitation
+    had been made light of, sent forth his armies and destroyed those
+    murderers and burned up their city, could hardly have been
+    invented before the conflagration of Jerusalem"--a prophecy,
+    namely, of the coming destruction of Jerusalem cannot be admitted.
+    "But to my mind, the decisive point is found in the religious
+    position of _Matthew_. Despite his conservative treatment of
+    tradition, he already stands quite removed from its spirit; he has
+    written a Catholic Gospel.... To _Matthew_ the congregation, the
+    Church, forms the highest court of discipline, being the
+    administrator of all heavenly goods of salvation; his Gospel
+    determines who is to rule, who to give laws: in its essential
+    features the early Catholicism is completed."
+
+    _Juelicher_ arrives at a similar conclusion in his research on _St.
+    Luke's_ Gospel: "That _Luke's_ Gospel was written sometime after
+    the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., is proven beyond any
+    doubt, by xxi. 22-24, where the terrible events of the Jewish war
+    are 'foretold.'... All arguments in favor of a later date of
+    writing concerning _Matthew_ hold good also of _Luke_." Even more
+    unreserved is _O. Pfleiderer_, until recently a prominent
+    representative of liberal-Protestant theology at Berlin: "In this
+    Gospel we find the elements of dogma, morals, the constitution of
+    the developing Catholic Church. Catholic is its trinitarian
+    formula of christening, this embryo of the Creed and of the
+    apostolic symbol. Catholic is its teaching of Christ ... Catholic,
+    the doctrine of Salvation ... Catholic are the morals ...
+    Catholic, finally, is the importance attached to _Peter_ as the
+    foundation of the Church and as the bearer of the power of the
+    key." In regard to this latter point _Pfleiderer_ remarks
+    expressly: "In spite of all attempts of Protestants to mitigate
+    this passage (Matt. xvi. 17-20) there is no doubt that it contains
+    the solemn proclamation of _Peter's_ Primacy." The unsophisticated
+    reader thereupon would be likely to deduct: If the oldest Gospel
+    is already Catholic, then it must be admitted that earliest
+    Christianity was already Catholic. In so reasoning he might have
+    rightly concluded, but he would have shown himself little
+    acquainted with the method of liberal science. This infers
+    contrariwise: early Christianity must not be Catholic, hence the
+    Catholic Gospel cannot be so old, it must be the fraudulent
+    concoction of a later time; "hence the origin of the Gospel of
+    _Matthew_ is to be put down not before the time of _Hadrian_; in
+    the fourth century rather than in the third."
+
+    _A. Harnack_ fixes the date of the Gospel at shortly after 70,
+    because "_Matthew_, as well as _Luke_, are presupposing the
+    destruction of Jerusalem. This follows with the greatest
+    probability from Matt. xxii. 7 (the parable of the marriage
+    feast)." This is to be held also of _Luke's_ Gospel. "This much
+    can be concluded without hesitation: that, as now admitted by
+    almost all critics, _Luke's_ Gospel presupposes the destruction of
+    Jerusalem."
+
+    Remarkable is _Harnack's_ latest attitude towards the Acts; it
+    shows again that the results of modern biblical criticism are less
+    the results of historical research than of philosophical
+    presumptions. In his "Acts of the Apostles" _Harnack_ admits:
+    "Very weighty observations indicate that the Acts (hence also the
+    Gospels) were already written at the beginning of the sixties." In
+    substantiation he cites not less than six reasons which evidently
+    prove it: they are based upon the principles of sound historical
+    criticism. "These are opposed solely by the observation that the
+    prophecy about the catastrophe of Jerusalem in some striking
+    points comes near to the actual event, and that the reports about
+    the Apparition and the legend of the Ascension would be hard to
+    understand prior to the destruction of Jerusalem. It is hard to
+    decide.... But it is not difficult to judge on which side the
+    weightier arguments are" (viz., on the part of the contention for
+    an earlier date). Yet _Harnack_ is loath to accept the better
+    scientific reasons: they must suffer correction by presumptions.
+    He formulates his final decision in the following way: "_Luke_
+    wrote at the time of _Titus_, or during the earlier time of
+    _Domitian_ (?), but perhaps (only _perhaps_, in spite of decisive
+    arguments) already at the beginning of the sixties." (Recently
+    _Harnack_ recedes to the time before the destruction of Jerusalem
+    without, however, acknowledging a divine prophecy of this
+    catastrophe.) Similar is this theologian's proof that the fourth
+    Gospel could not have been written by _John_, the son of
+    _Zebedee_; because xxi. 20-23 (I will that he tarry till I come)
+    cannot be a prophecy, but must have been written down after the
+    death of the favourite disciple. "The section xx. 20-23 obviously
+    presupposes the death of the beloved disciple; on the other hand
+    he cannot be left out of the 21st Chapter. This 21st Chapter,
+    however, shows no other pen than that which had written Chapters
+    1-20. This proves that the author of Chapter 21, hence the author
+    of Chapters 1-20, could not have been the son of _Zebedee_, whose
+    death is there presupposed." The whole argument again rests upon
+    the refusal to hold possible a prophecy from the lips of Jesus.
+
+    The main reason, however, for disputing the genuineness of the
+    fourth Gospel, although external tradition and internal criterions
+    testify to it as the writing of _St. John_, is, because it teaches
+    so clearly the _divinity of Christ_: and this must be denied.
+    Significant are, for instance, the words in which _Weizsaecker_
+    sums up his objections to this gospel: "That the Apostle, the
+    favorite disciple according to the Gospel, who sat at the table
+    beside Christ, should have looked upon and represented everything
+    that he once experienced, as the living together with the
+    incarnate divine Logos, is rather a puzzle. No power of faith and
+    no philosophy can be imagined big enough to extinguish the memory
+    of real life and to replace it by this miraculous image of a
+    divine being ... of one of the original Apostles, it is
+    unthinkable. Upon this the decision of this point will always
+    hinge. Anything else that may be added from the contents of the
+    Gospel is subordinate." This means, Christ cannot be admitted to
+    be a Divine Being--impossible. An eye-witness could not take Him
+    for it: therefore, this "miraculous picture of a Divine Being"
+    cannot have been the work of an eye-witness.
+
+
+Like the _genuineness_ of the Gospels, so is also their _credibility_
+beyond a doubt. Two of them are written by Apostles, the two others by
+Disciples of the Apostles: they also have all the marks peculiar to
+writings of eye or ear witnesses, or of persons who have heard the
+narratives directly from the lips of eye-witnesses. Nor would any one
+doubt their credibility if they did not report supernatural facts. But,
+this being the case, infidel research is bound to arrive at the opposite
+result.
+
+The writers were frauds--this was long ago the hypothesis of the
+superficial Hamburg Professor, _Samuel Reimarus_, whose "Fragments" were
+published by _Lessing_. But even to a _D. F. Strauss_ "such a suspicion
+was repulsive." The Heidelberg Professor, _H. E. Paulus_, sought his
+salvation in trying to reduce the reports of miracles to a natural sense,
+by doing painful violence to the text: for instance, the Lord did not walk
+_upon_ the sea, but only _along_ the sea; the miracle of the wine at Cana
+was only a wedding joke. Then came _D. F. Strauss_ (died 1874), and he
+tried it in a different way. "If the Gospels are really historical
+documents, then the miracle cannot be removed from the life of Jesus."
+Hence, it is to remain? Indeed not! The Gospels must not be accepted as
+historical sources. They are products of purposeless poetic legends, the
+miracles are garlands of religious myths, gradually twined around the
+picture of Jesus. Myths, however, need time for their formation, hence
+_Strauss_ fixes the date of the Gospels within the second century. He
+openly admits that his hypothesis would fall to the ground if but a single
+Gospel has been written in the first century. As a fact, more recent
+rationalistic criticism has found itself constrained to drop this
+hypothesis. _F. Ch. Baur_ (died 1860) fell back upon the fraud-hypothesis
+of a _Reimarus_. It, too, has been laid among the dead. Thus they have
+exhausted themselves in the attempt to shake off the burdensome yoke of
+truth.
+
+Influenced by _Strauss_, _Baur_, and other German critics, _E. Renan_
+(died 1892) wrote his "Life of Jesus," a frivolous romance. Quite frank
+are the words he wrote down in the preface to the thirteenth edition of
+his "Vie de Jesus" (1883): "If miracle has any reality, then my book is
+nothing but a tissue of errors.... If the miracle and the inspiration of
+certain books are real things, then our method is abominable." But he
+silences all doubts by the phrase: "To admit the supernatural is alone
+sufficient to place one's self outside of science."
+
+The newer "historical-critical" school, while having disposed of many
+contentions of the old schools, is nevertheless in its research bound just
+as energetically by the postulate of conformity to natural laws. The
+fourth Gospel is pushed aside: in the others all miraculous occurrences
+are expounded away, till the "historically credible core" is reached.
+
+The books of the Old Testament fare even worse, if possible.
+
+
+    "Does Genesis relate history or a legend?" asks Prof. _Gunkel_,
+    and continues: "this is no longer a question to the historian."
+    Well, a legend, then. But how does the historian know this? From
+    his own pantheistic philosophy, which recognizes no God differing
+    from this world: "The narratives of Genesis being mostly of a
+    religious nature, they continuously speak of God. The way,
+    however, in which narratives speak of God is one of the most
+    reliable standards to judge whether they are meant historically or
+    poetically. Here, too, the historian cannot do without a world
+    philosophy. We believe that God acts in the world as the latent,
+    hidden motive of all things ... but He never appears to us as an
+    acting factor _jointly with others_ (the italics are the
+    author's), but always as the ultimate cause of all things. Quite
+    different in many narratives of Genesis. We are able to understand
+    these narratives of miracles and apparitions as the artlessness of
+    primitive people, but we refuse to believe them."
+
+
+Analogous to Bible-criticism is the research in other branches of
+theology. The _origin of Christianity_, this wonderful power which so
+suddenly made its appearance in history and speedily vanquished a whole
+world, must of course not be a work of Heaven. Hence its origin must be
+explained at any cost in a natural way, or "historically," as they put it.
+The religious notions of Christianity must not be conceded a supernatural
+certainty over all other religions; and "to understand an event
+historically means: to conceive it by its causal connection with the
+conditions of a given place and at a certain time of the human life. Hence
+science cannot consider such a thing as the appearance of a supernatural
+being upon the earth" (_Pfleiderer_).
+
+And then they proceed to show that Christianity is a natural, evolutionary
+product of the Israelite religion, of Greek philosophy, of Oriental myths,
+and Roman customs. That it is far superior to all these, and that it is
+the opposite to them in various ways, is carefully hushed up. The
+inadequacy and impossibility of such an explanation is adroitly concealed.
+Nor could the Israelite religion of the Old Covenant, according to the
+naturalistic principle of liberal theology, have had its origin in
+revelation and the prophets; hence it comes from Babylon, as the product
+of natural evolution from Oriental myths and customs. Any old and new
+analogies, hypotheses, and fancies are good enough then to demonstrate
+this as "historical."
+
+
+
+The Truth is not in Them.
+
+
+We pause here. We might thus continue for a long time; but it is enough.
+The patient reader, who has accompanied us on the tedious way to this
+point, may begin to feel tired. May he excuse the detailed recital for the
+reason that we had to do some extensive reconnoitring, through the
+precincts of modern philosophical-religious research, to avoid the
+reproach that we were making accusations without furnishing proofs. Our
+contention was, that liberal science is trying to shake off the yoke of
+religious truth, and to explain it away by its self-made presumptions. We
+believe that we have proved our contention.
+
+We are confronted by a science that boasts of monopolizing the spirit of
+truthfulness; as a matter of fact, we see that it uses all scientific
+devices to shirk the truth and to disguise its effort. In loquacious
+protests it rejects the "rigid dogmatism," the "fixed views," of the
+Christian faith, and it proclaims experience and reason as the sole
+criterions of scientific cognition; yet it always stands upon the platform
+of rigid presumptions, that are derived from no experience, and which no
+reason can prove. It clamours for research free from presumption, and,
+without winking an eye, substitutes its own presumption, secretly or
+openly. It is _dishonest_.
+
+It promises to preserve for man the highest ideals and blessings for which
+his mind is yearning, yet it has no religion and no God. It recalls to
+mind the words spoken by _St. Augustine_ of the philosophers whom he had
+followed in the false ways of his youth: "They said: truth, and always
+truth, and talked much of truth, but it was not in them.... Oh, truth,
+truth, how deeply my inmost spirit sighed after thee, while they filled my
+ears incessantly with thy bare name and with the palaver of their bulky
+volumes." Free it wants to be, this science. One of its disciples boasted:
+"It has taught its disciples to look down without dizziness from the airy
+heights of sovereign scepticism. How easy and free one breathes up there!"
+Aye, it has made itself free,--from the yoke of unpalatable truth. So much
+more firmly is it fettered, not with the holy bonds of belief in God, but
+by the more burdensome mental yoke of a disbelief that weakens and blinds
+the eyes against the cognition of the higher truth:--and bound by the
+chains of public opinion, which threatens anathema to every one who fails
+to stop at the border of the natural. Truly free is only the science that
+enjoys a clear and free perception for the truth. Unfree is a science that
+restrains the mental eye with the blinkers of theophoby. Our age seeks for
+the lost happiness of the soul, it seeks longingly God and the
+supernatural that have been removed from its sight. But science, so often
+its leader, loathingly dodges God, and refuses to fold the hands and pray.
+As long as our age does not break with a science that refuses to know a
+God and a Saviour, so long will it hopelessly grope about without result,
+and look in vain for an escape from the wretched labyrinth of doubt.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter II. The Unscientific Method.
+
+
+The efforts of liberal science, to remove more and more from its scope the
+supernatural powers, show clearly that man may feel the truth to be a
+yoke, and that he may attempt to free himself from this yoke by opposing
+the truth and by substituting postulates for knowledge. Sceptical,
+autonomous subjectivism, the philosophy of liberal free thought, has
+changed the nature of human reasoning, and its relation to truth, and
+perverted it to its very opposite. No longer is the human mind the vassal
+of Queen Truth, as _Plutarch_ put it, but the autocratic ruler who
+degrades truth to the position of a servant. Thus liberal freedom of
+thought becomes the principle of an unscientific method, because it loses,
+by false reasoning and false truth, the first condition of solid and
+scientific research; furthermore, by treating the highest questions with
+consequent levity, it betrays a lack of earnestness which again renders it
+unfit for scientific research in serious matters.
+
+
+
+False Reasoning.
+
+
+"The philosophical thinkers of to-day," says an admirer of _Kant_, _A.
+Sabatier_, "may be divided into two classes, the pre-Kantian and those who
+have received their initiation and their philosophical baptism from
+_Kant's_ Critic."
+
+The Christian philosophy of a _St. Thomas_, which is, as even
+representatives of modern philosophy are constrained to admit, "a system
+carried out with clear perception and great sagacity" (_Paulsen_),
+contains many a principle, the intrinsic merit of which will be fully
+appreciated only when contrasted with the experiments of modern
+philosophy. An instance is the principle of the old school, that cognition
+is the likeness of that which is cognized. Apart from the cognition by
+sense, we are given here the only correct principle, coinciding with the
+general conviction that reasoning is the mental reproduction of an
+objective order of existence, independent of us, even in our conception of
+the metaphysical world. Thinking does not create its object, but is a
+reproduction of it; it is not a producer, but a painter, who copies the
+world with his mental brush within himself, sometimes only in the
+indistinct outlines of indefinite conception, often, however, in the sharp
+lines of clear cognition.
+
+If, according to its nature, thinking is subject to standards and laws
+given it by an objective world, then subjective arbitrariness, a method of
+thought which, while pretending to be a free producer of truth, yet
+determines it according to necessity or desire; and, even more so, a
+method of thought which feels itself justified to hold an opinion upon the
+same question in one way to-day, and another and entirely opposite one
+to-morrow, is wholly incomprehensible: just as incomprehensible as if a
+draughtsman, attempting to draw a true picture of St. Peter's Church,
+would not follow the reality but prefer to draw the picture at random,
+according to his fancy and mood.
+
+We have stated these fundamental principles already at the beginning of
+our book, we have also set forth how greatly liberal freedom of thought is
+lacking the first presumption of any proper science, namely, the clear
+perception that there is an objective truth in philosophical-religious
+questions, to which we must submit, there, in fact, most of all.
+
+No! We also want autonomy of thought, especially in questions of
+metaphysics, where, anyway, there can only be postulates! so shouted
+_Kant_ to the modern world on the threshold of the nineteenth century.
+There are no stable truths, everything is relative and changing, adds the
+modern theory of evolution. At last there is freedom for thought and
+research, freedom from the yoke of absolute truth! Behold the aberrations
+of an unbridled rush for freedom which moves the world of to-day. This
+unruly hankering for a freer existence than allowed by their nature and
+position, makes unbearable to many modern children of man the idea of iron
+laws of truth and marked boundaries of thought. Revelling in the
+consciousness of their sovereign personality, they want to measure all
+things by their individuality, even religion, philosophy, truth, and
+ethics. Only that what is created and experienced by them within the
+sanctuary of their personality, only what is made important and legitimate
+by their sentiment, is truth and of value to them. _Autonomism_ thus
+changes unnoticeably into _individualism_; the own individuality, in its
+peculiar inclinations, moods, and humours, its exigencies and egotistical
+aims, its infirmities and diseases--they have, under the name of
+_individual reason_, become the law of thinking and reasoning.
+
+
+
+Without Knowledge of the Human Nature.
+
+
+"Varied, according to character, are the demands made by heart and mind,"
+assures us a representative of modern philosophy, "corresponding to them
+is the image of the world to which the individual turns by inner
+necessity. He may waver hither and thither, uncertain as to himself; at
+last, however, his innermost tendency of life will prevail and press him
+into the view of the world corresponding to his individuality. Upon its
+further development worldly and local influences will play a very
+important part. But the deciding factor in giving the direction is
+personality." "And," continues Prof. _Adickes_, "the sharper and more
+one-sided a character type is brought to expression, the more it will be
+urged into a certain metaphysical or religious tendency, and this man will
+find no rest, nor feel himself at home in the world, until he has found
+the view of life that fits him. Nor does man assemble his metaphysics with
+discrimination on the grounds of logical necessity, choosing here,
+rejecting there, but it grows within himself by that inner compulsion
+identical with true freedom." Hence, not unselfish yielding to truth, no,
+the inclinations of heart and mind, the "personality" must form the view
+of the world. Let every type of character therefore develop itself sharply
+and one-sidedly, let every one get the view of the world corresponding to
+himself, without regard to objective truth and logical necessity. This
+precisely is the "true freedom." "For when is a man more free, than when
+he chooses and does--without any compulsion, even resisting compulsion--what
+his innermost soul is urging him to choose and do? How could he be more
+true to himself, more like himself?" With such a freedom "the outer
+compulsion" of an absolute truth, to say nothing of the duty to believe,
+will not agree. "The core of one's very being," so _Harnack_ informs us,
+"should be grasped in its depths, and the soul should only know its own
+needs and the way indicated by it to gratify them." "According to my
+character," says _Adickes_ again, "is the world reflected within myself by
+intrinsic necessity just as my creed represents it, and no opponent is
+able to shake my position by arguments of reason or by empirical facts."
+
+Hence it is not only true, as has been known from the beginning, that the
+inclinations of the heart are trying to prevail upon reason to urge their
+desires, and to oppose what displeases them, and that reason must beware
+of the heart--no, inclination and character are now directly called upon to
+shape our religion and view of the world. Every type of man, every period,
+may construct its own philosophical system, or, if this is beyond it, at
+least its own ideas; it may also shape its own Christianity, according to
+its experience. As the individual chooses his clothes, and puts his
+individuality into them, in like manner may the individual put on the view
+of life that fits him.
+
+These principles represent the apostasy from objective truth, and, at the
+same time, the apostasy from the _principles of true science_: their first
+demand, the proper understanding of truth, is perverted into its very
+opposite. A necessary quality of scientific research is exactness;
+exactness, however, demands most conscientious cleaving to truth; scale
+and measure are its instruments. The reverse of exactness is to cast away
+scale and measure, to turn eye and ear, not toward reality, but toward
+one's self, so as to observe personal wishes and inclinations, and then
+shape the results of the "research" accordingly. This may be a method of
+freedom, but it cannot be the method of science. The very thing that true
+research would eliminate in the first place, viz., to have the decision
+influenced by hobbies and moods, is most important in the method of
+individualism; objectiveness, deemed by true science the highest
+requirement, is to that method the least one: what true science first of
+all insists on, namely, to prove that which is claimed, this method knows
+but little of. It recalls the method of the gourmet who selects that which
+gratifies his taste: it may be likened to the dandy picking frock-coat and
+trousers that suit his whim. True research, with a firm hand at the helm,
+aims to direct its craft so as to discover new coasts, or at least a new
+island; the exploring done by liberal research is like casting off the
+rudder to be tossed by the waves, for its task is only to hold to the
+course which the waving billows of individual life give to it. True
+science, finally, seeks for serious results, able to withstand criticism:
+the research by individualism produces results which, as individualism
+itself confesses, must not be taken seriously. They are the subjective
+achievements of amateurs, creations of fashion, cut to the pattern of the
+ruling principle: _nihil nisi quod modernum est_. A science that professes
+such a method is beyond a doubt unfit to play a beneficial part in the
+endeavour of mankind.
+
+Do not say: but it is not claimed that religion and view of life are
+matters of scientific research: on the contrary, they are always
+distinguished from science. It is true, this is not infrequently claimed.
+But it is also known how energetically just these matters are appropriated
+by science. Is it not exactly this sphere in which free research is to be
+active? Is it not its aim to construct a "scientific view of the world,"
+as opposed to the Christian belief? Is there not the conviction that
+science has already carried much light and enlightenment into this very
+sphere, that it has upset the old tenets of faith?
+
+And what an amount of _ignorance of human nature_ underlies these
+principles! It is the same complete misconception that has always
+characterized liberalism, and which it has also manifested in economical
+matters. There, too, it demanded boundless freedom for all economic
+sources, ignoring man's disordered inclinations that will work disorder
+and destruction if not restrained by laws. In a similar manner they dream
+that man, if left to the unrestrained influence of his personality, will
+soar without fail to the heights of the pure truth. They know no longer
+the maxim once engraved by the wisdom of the ancient world upon Delphi's
+sanctuary: "Know thyself"! They no longer know the beguiling and benumbing
+influence exerted upon reason by inclination, how it fetters the mind.
+_Amor premit oculos_, says Quintilian. The thing we like, we desire to
+establish as true; favourable arguments are decisive, counter arguments
+are ignored or belittled, inclinations guide the observation, determine
+the books and sources drawn from. If we meet with something unsympathetic,
+something that interferes with the liberties we have grown fond of, it
+takes a rare degree of unselfishness to love the painful truth more than
+one's self. It is easy to leave cool reason in control in mathematical
+speculations: they seldom affect the heart; quite different, however, in
+questions of philosophy and religion that often have vexatious
+consequences.
+
+
+    We have to concede that _D. F. Strauss_ was right when he wrote:
+    "He who writes about the Rulers of Nineveh or the Pharaohs of
+    Egypt, may pursue a purely historical interest: but Christianity
+    is a power so alive, and the question of what occurred at its
+    origin is involved in such vast consequences for the immediate
+    present, that the inquirer would have to be dull-witted to be
+    interested only in a purely historical way in the solution of
+    these questions." But we must also regret that this personal
+    interest has misled him, for one, into pernicious ways.
+
+    In view of the frequent assurances of the noted historian, _Th.
+    Mommsen_, that he hates the sight of old Christian inscriptions(9)
+    we may perhaps welcome it in the interest of history that he
+    refrained from writing the fourth volume of his Roman history,
+    wherein the Origin of Christianity was to be treated. One of his
+    biographers asserts that the downfall of paganism through
+    Christianity was a fact not to _Mommsen's_ liking, that "a
+    description of the decomposition of all things ancient, and the
+    substitution therefor of the Nazarene spirit would not have been a
+    labour of love."(10) And again, when we see the well-known
+    historian of philosophy, _F. Ueberweg_, in a letter to _F. A.
+    Lange_, denouncing from the bitterness of his heart "the miserable
+    beggar-principle of Christianity," and the "surrendering of
+    independence and of personal honour in favour of a servile
+    submission to the master, who is made a Messiah, nay, even the
+    incarnate _Son of God_," then we may well dread the historical
+    objectivity of a man of such notions in writing about the religion
+    of Jesus Christ.
+
+    With reference to the chief subject of psychology, the noted
+    psychologist, _W. James_, writes with utmost frankness: "The soul
+    is an entity, and truly one of the worst kind, a scholastic one,
+    and something said to be destined for salvation or perdition. As
+    far as I am concerned, I must frankly admit that the antipathy
+    against the particular soul I find myself burdened with, is an old
+    hardness of heart, which I cannot account for, not even to myself.
+    I will admit that the formal disposition of the question in
+    dispute would come to an end, if the existence of souls could be
+    used for an explanatory principle. I admit the soul would be a
+    means of unification, whereas the working of the brain, or ideas,
+    show no harmonizing efficacy, no matter how thoroughly
+    synchronical they be. Yet, despite these admissions, I never
+    resort in my psychologizing to the soul."
+
+
+If we read such statement, if, in addition, we remember the
+popular-philosophical science of men like _Haeckel_, particularly perhaps
+the literature which he recommends for information about Christianity, and
+of which he himself makes use; if we have read _Schopenhauer_,
+_Nietzsche_, or the "Philosophy of Races" of a _Chamberlain_,--we can no
+longer be at a loss what to think of the "rule of reason" and of the
+"search for pure truth." Observe, also, the restless haste of those who,
+having turned their back upon the Catholic Church, now proceed to attack
+her, observe their agitated work and incitement, how they rummage and
+ransack the nooks and corners of the history of the Church in quest of
+refuse and filth, and if the find is not sufficient how they even help it
+along by forgery, all this to demonstrate to the world that the grandest
+fact in history is really absurdity and filth;--then one will understand
+what instincts may be found there to guide "reason and science." How even
+sexual impulses are trying to shape their own ethics we shall not examine
+here. _F. W. Foerster_ relates: "I once heard a moral pervert expound his
+ethical and religious notions; they were nothing but the reflection of his
+perverse impulses. But he thought them to be the result of his reasoning."
+Is there not known in these days the inherited disorder of the human heart
+as characterized by the Apostle in the words: "But I see another law in my
+members, fighting against the law of my mind, and captivating me in the
+law of sin (Rom. vii. 23)"? The Ancients knew it. The wisdom of _Plato_
+knew it, who speaks of the "pricks of sin, sunk into man, coming from an
+old, unexpiated offence, giving birth to wickedness." The wise _Cicero_
+knew of it: "Nature has bestowed upon us but a few sparks of knowledge,
+which, corrupted by bad habits and errors, we soon extinguish, with the
+result that the light of nature does nowhere appear in its clearness and
+brightness." Truth is often disagreeable to nature. And if not subdued and
+ruled by strong discipline, nature proceeds to oppose the truth. Only to
+lofty self-discipline and purity of morals is reserved the privilege of
+facing the highest truths with a calm eye. "Blessed are the pure in heart,
+for they shall see God."
+
+
+
+Mental Bondage.
+
+
+Of this wisdom the admirer of liberal freedom knows little. Instead of
+distinguishing the good from the evil in man, of unfolding his inner
+kernel, the pure spirit, and making it rule; instead of demanding, like
+_Pythagoras_, discipline as a preparatory school for wisdom, he has
+learned from _Rousseau_, the master of modern Liberalism, that everything
+in man is good. Depravity of nature, original sin, are unsympathetic
+things to his ear. Even _Goethe_ wrote to _Herder_, when _Kant_ had in his
+religious philosophy found a radical Evil in man: "After it has taken
+_Kant_ a lifetime to clean his philosophical gown of many filthy
+prejudices, he now outrageously slabbers it with the stain of the radical
+Evil, so that Christians, too, may be enticed to come and kiss the seam."
+Instead of exhorting for a redemption from internal fetters, as the sages
+of all ages did, the principle of wisdom now proposed is to quietly let
+individuality develop, with all its inclinations. They call this freedom.
+Is it not the freedom whereof the slave of sensuality avails himself to
+form his theory of life? It, too, "grows up in man with that inner
+compulsion which is identical with true freedom" (_Adickes_).
+
+Freedom this may be. But _only external freedom_, the only freedom they
+often know. They are unaware that they forfeit thereby the real, the inner
+freedom. "Thou aimest at free heights," admonishes even the most impetuous
+herald of freedom, "thy soul is athirst for stars. But also thy wicked
+impulses are athirst for freedom. Thy wild hounds want to be free, they
+bark joyfully in their kennel when thy spirit essays to throw open all
+dungeons."(11) They think to be free and speak of the self-assurance of
+individual reason, and they cannot see that the mind is in the fetters of
+bondage.
+
+Else how is it that the atheistic free science, considered in general,
+arrives with infallible regularity at results that obviously tend to a
+morally loose conduct of life? How is it, that it tries throughout to
+shirk the acceptance of a personal God, and is at home only in open or
+disguised atheism? that it so persistently avoids the acceptance of
+anything supernatural? Why does it in its researches never arrive at
+theism, which has as much foundation at least as pantheism and atheism?
+Why does it, nearly without exception, deny or ignore the personal
+immortality of the soul and a Beyond; why does it never reach the opposite
+result which, in intrinsic evidence, ranks at least on a par with it? Why
+is it not admitted, that the will is free and strictly responsible for its
+acts, although this fact is borne out by the obvious experience and
+testimony of mankind? Why does it so regularly arrive at the conclusion
+that the Christian religion has become untenable, and needs development;
+that its ethics, too, must be reformed, more especially in sexual matters?
+Why does it not defend the duty to believe, but reject it persistently? A
+striking fact! The matters in question here concern truths that impose
+sacrifices upon man, whereas their opposites have connections of intimate
+friendship with unpurged impulses. It may be noted also that this same
+science, that announces to the world these results of research, meets with
+the boisterous applause from the elements that belong to the morally
+inferior part of mankind.
+
+
+    _St. Augustine_ prays: "Redeem me, O God, from the throng of
+    thoughts, which I feel so painfully within my soul, which feels
+    lowly in Thy presence, which is fleeing to Thy mercy. Grant me
+    that I may not give my assent to them; that I may disapprove of
+    them, even if they seek to delight me, and that I may not stay
+    with them in sleepiness. May they not have the power to insinuate
+    themselves into my works; may I be protected from them in my
+    resolution, may my conscience be protected by Thy keeping." It is
+    the realization of the want of freedom of the human reason, the
+    only way to the liberation from the fetters of our own
+    imperfection. He, who has seriously begun to take up the struggle
+    with his inner disorders, will, by his own experience, pray as
+    _St. Augustine_ prayed.
+
+
+Recognizing this fact, man will try to rise above himself, to cleave to a
+superior Power and Wisdom, who, in purer heights, untouched by human
+passions, holds aloft the truth, in order to rise thereby above his own
+bondage; he will understand the necessity of an authority clothed with
+divine power and dignity, so that it may hold in unvanquished hands the
+ideal against all onslaughts of human passions. He will without difficulty
+find this power in the religion of Jesus Christ and in His Church: in Him,
+who could not be accused of sin, who by His Cross has achieved the highest
+triumph over flesh and sin, who has surrounded His Church with the bright
+throng of saints. And if he sees this religion and Church an object of
+persecution, he will behold in it the signature of its truth. For truth is
+a yoke despised by sensualism and pride, and the spiritual power that
+contends for purity and truth will be hated.
+
+
+
+Without Earnestness.
+
+
+The regrettable conception of truth proper to the modern freedom of
+thought, leads to that flippancy with which our time is prone to treat the
+highest questions. Why conscientiousness and anxious care? All that is
+needed is to form one's personal views; there is no certain, generally
+valid, truth in religious matters. Hence there is often in this sphere of
+scientific research a method wholly different from that in use anywhere
+else. In history, philology, natural science, there is a striving for
+exactness, but in these matters exact reasoning is replaced only too often
+by discretionary reasoning, by loose forming of ideas; in the very domain
+which has ever pre-eminently been called the province of the wisdom of
+life, there is now in vogue the method of flippancy.
+
+True wisdom is convinced that reason has not been given to man to grope in
+the dark in respect to the most momentous questions of life; that reason,
+though limited and liable to err, is given him to find the truth. True
+wisdom knows its difficulties when the matter in quest is metaphysical
+truth: it knows how, in this case, more than in any other, reason is
+exposed to the influence of inclinations from within, and to the power of
+error and of public opinion from without; that in these matters, least of
+all, reason is not in the habit of taking the truth by assault. True,
+there are intuitions, and inspiration by genius--they have their rights,
+but they are the exceptions. The ordinary, and only safe, way is to
+advance cautiously, by discoursive thinking, from cognition to cognition,
+otherwise there is danger of a sudden fall from the steep path.
+
+In the early Christian ages this insight led to careful cultivation and
+application of certain methodical means of thinking and terms of
+expressions, to definitions, distinctions, and forms of syllogism, with
+that "insulting lucidity," in the words of a modern philosopher, which
+gives to them the stamp of scrupulousness. The same insight into the
+cognitive weakness of reason leads to the noble union between science and
+modesty.
+
+What, however, do we see in modern philosophic-religious thinking? Often
+unsolidity, with hardly a remnant of the principles of the serious pursuit
+of knowledge.
+
+The autonomous freethinker of these days lacks chiefly humility and
+modesty. The ancient Sage of Samos once declined the name of "sage,"
+saying that God alone is wise, while man must be content to be
+wisdom-loving ({~GREEK SMALL LETTER PHI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER LAMDA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON WITH OXIA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER SIGMA~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER PHI~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER OMICRON~}{~GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA~}). Not always so the sages of modern times.
+
+
+    _Kant_ believed of his system: "Critical philosophy must be
+    convinced that there is not in store for it a change of opinions,
+    no improvement nor possibly a differently formed system, but that
+    the system of criticism, resting on a fully assured basis, will be
+    established forever, indispensable for all coming ages to the
+    highest aims of mankind." _Hegel_, in turn, was no less convinced
+    of the indispensability of his doctrine. In the summer term of
+    1820 he began his lectures with the words: "I would say with
+    Christ: I teach the truth, and I am the truth." Yet, to
+    _Schopenhauer_ _Hegel's_ philosophy is nonsense, humbug, and
+    worse. _Schopenhauer_ knew better, and was convinced that he had
+    lifted the veil of truth higher than any mortal before him; he
+    claimed that he had written paragraphs "which may be taken to have
+    been inspired by the Holy Ghost." Shortly before his death he
+    wrote: "My curse upon any one, who in reprinting my works shall
+    knowingly make a change; be it but a sentence, or a word, a
+    syllable or a punctuation point." _Nietzsche_ held: "I have given
+    to the world the most profound book in its possession." To the
+    eyes of this philosophy, modesty and humility are no longer
+    virtues. _B. Spinoza_, a leader in later philosophy, states
+    expressly: "Humility is no virtue; it does not spring from reason.
+    It is a sadness, springing from the fact that man becomes aware of
+    his impotence."
+
+
+An arrogant mind is not capable of finding the higher truth with
+certainty; conscientious obedience to truth, unselfish abstention from
+asserting one's ego, and one's pet opinion, can dwell only in the humble
+mind. Here applies what _St. Augustine_ said of the Neoplatonists: "To
+acquiesce in truth you need humility, which, however, is very difficult to
+instil into your minds."(12)
+
+When God's authority steps before scientists and earnestly demands faith,
+they will talk excitedly about their human dignity that does not permit
+them to believe; about reason being their court of last resort that must
+not know of submission; and if the Church, in the name of God, steps
+before them, they become abusive.
+
+Men who have scarcely outgrown their minority often feel it incumbent upon
+themselves to furnish humanity with new thought and to discard the old.
+_D. F. Strauss_, a young under-master of twenty-seven years, writes his
+"Life of Jesus, critically analyzed" (1835); he tells the Christian world
+that everything it has hitherto held sacred is a delusion and a snare; he
+feels the vocation to "replace the old, obsolete, supernatural, method of
+contemplating the history of Jesus with a new one," which changes all
+divine deeds into myths. Hardly out of knickerbockers and kilts, they feel
+experienced enough to come forth with novel and unheard-of propositions on
+the highest problems. In business and office, as in public service,
+sober-mindedness and maturity are demanded; but to work out the ultimate
+questions of humanity, inexperience and lack of the deeper knowledge of
+life do not disqualify in our time. If _Schiller's_ complaint of the
+Kantians of his time was that, "What they have scarcely learned to-day,
+they want to teach to-morrow," what is to be said of those who teach even
+before they have learned? And what superficial thinking do we meet in the
+philosophy of the day! Lacking all solid training, they proceed to
+construct new systems, or at least fragments of them. As regards their
+competence, one is often tempted to quote the harsh words of a modern
+writer: "I believe _Schopenhauer_ would have formed a better opinion of
+the human intellect, had he paid less attention to authors and
+newspaper-writers, and more to the common sense evinced by men in their
+work and business" (_Paulsen_).
+
+It would be highly instructive to take a longer journey through the realm
+of modern philosophy, in so far as it touches upon questions concerning
+the theory of the world, or even liberal Protestant theology, so as to
+subject to a searching criticism the untenable notions and attempts at
+demonstration even of acknowledged representatives of this science,
+whereby they generally do away with God and miracles, the soul and
+immortality, freedom of the will, the divine moral laws, the Gospel, the
+divinity of Christ, and so much more, and show what they offer in place of
+all this. It would disclose an enormous lack of scientific method: instead
+of assured results they offer questionable, even untenable theories; in
+place of proofs, emphatical assertions, imperatives, catch phrases; or
+else arguments which under the simplest test will prove miscarriages of
+logic. These philosophers vault ditches and boundaries with ease, and
+derive full gratification from imperfect and warped ideas. Of course,
+exactness in philosophical thinking is not a fruit to be plucked while out
+taking a walk; it is the product of serious mental work, of sterling
+philosophical training, which, alas, is wanting to-day in large circles of
+scientists.
+
+As an instance, we point to the method described in a previous chapter, by
+which all supernatural factors are rejected by the arbitrary postulate of
+"exclusively natural causation," without valid proofs, based only upon the
+arbitrary decision of so-called modern science--in the gravest matter an
+unscientific process that cannot be outdone.
+
+Another instructive instance, of serious matters treated with levity, is
+furnished in the unscrupulous way in which the Catholic Church, her
+teaching, institutions, and history, are passed upon in judgment by those
+having neither knowledge nor fairness.
+
+
+
+Without Reverence.
+
+
+True wisdom accepts advice and guidance. It feels reverence for sacred and
+venerable traditions, for the convictions of mankind on the great
+questions of life, and greater reverence still for an authority of faith
+that has received from God its warrant to be the teacher of mankind, and
+which has stood the test of time. True wisdom is convinced that continuity
+in human thinking and in knowledge is necessary. Life is short, and gives
+to the individual hardly time to attain mental maturity. Philosophy, and
+this is the matter before us at present,--philosophy can never be the work
+of a single person; it is the achievement of centuries; succeeding
+generations, with searching eye and careful hand, building further upon
+the achievement for which past ages have laid the foundations. By nailing
+together beams and boards the individual may erect a house good enough for
+a short time to serve his sports and pleasures; and if wrecked by the
+first storm, it may be replaced by another. But the building of massive
+and towering cathedrals that last for ages required the work of
+generations. And only skilful and experienced hands may do the work; haste
+is out of place here. The ancient sages of Greece, _Plato_, _Pythagoras_,
+and _Aristotle_, had this reverence for the philosophical and religious
+traditions of the past. These representatives of true wisdom did not
+consider philosophy and theology as the product of individual sagacity,
+they did not attempt to be free rulers in the realm of thought; on the
+contrary, they looked upon wisdom as the patrimony of the past, which it
+was their duty to preserve.
+
+
+    They pointed to their venerable traditions, however meagre they
+    were. "Our forefathers," says _Plato_, "who were better than we
+    are, and stood nearer to the gods than we, have handed down to us
+    this revelation."(13) That the testimony of the great sages, to
+    the effect that the most essential elements of their philosophy
+    had their origin in religious traditions, is based upon truth and
+    not on fancy has been proven by _O. Willmann_, whose knowledge of
+    ancient civilization was very extensive, in his monumental
+    "History of Idealism." Delhi, the home of mysteries, the
+    generations of priests in ancient Egypt, the doctrinal traditions
+    of the Chaldeans, the Magi of Medes and Persians, and the wisdom
+    of the Brahmins of ancient India are witnesses to the fact. "The
+    Ancients were correct," says _Willmann_, "in tracing their
+    philosophy to earliest traditions ... they knew what they owed to
+    their forefathers better than we do. They direct our astonished
+    eyes to a very ancient reality, to a towering remoteness of living
+    thought." This fact is very much against the taste of our
+    times.... An inherited wisdom, springing from an original
+    revelation, adapted to the nations, shining with renewed
+    brightness in true philosophy, is quite the opposite to a
+    philosophy that seeks the source of mental life only in isolated
+    thinking; that thinks its success to be conditioned upon
+    unprepossession; that holds the refutation of tradition to be the
+    test of its strength.
+
+
+Unfortunately this latter view is widespread in our time. Research is
+often directed, not by reverence for the wisdom inherited from many
+Christian centuries, but by the mania, unwise and fatal alike, of seeking
+new paths. "Love of truth," so we are told, "is what urges on the great
+leaders of humanity, the prophets and reformers, to seek new and untrodden
+paths of life. 'Plus ultra' is the rallying-cry of these pathfinders of
+the future, who are clearing the way for the mental life of mankind. No
+authority can restrain them, no prejudice, however holy: they are
+following the light which has dawned upon their soul" (_Paulsen_).
+
+And a multitude discover this light in their souls, and join the prophets
+and pathfinders! Everybody goes abroad looking for untrodden paths; from
+all directions comes the cry: Here and there, to the right, to the left,
+is the right way! Do we not only too often see self-willed and
+self-satisfied thinkers, whose shortsighted conceit gets within the four
+walls of their study puffed up against God and religion, offer us for holy
+truth the fanciful products of their narrow brains? Do we not see, only
+too often, champions of shallow reasoning, without discipline of thought
+and without ethical maturity, recommending their undigested efforts as the
+wisdom of the world? Youthful thinkers there are in numbers, each of whom
+claims that he at last has succeeded in solving the world riddle; they
+offer us new theories of the world, new ideas on ethics, on law and
+theology, for a few dollars per copy or less. The holy abode of truth has
+become the campus for saunterers, each eager to displace the other so that
+he may be sole proprietor, or at least a respected partner. Day by day new
+solutions of "problems," "vital questions," or at least "outlines" of
+them; new "views of the world"; new forms of religion and of Christianity
+for the "modern man"; "reforms" of marriage and of sexual ethics, and so
+on. Truth had not been discovered until the newcomer puts his pen to the
+paper. Every one is free to join in. Yea, more, he may not only join in,
+but lash those who do not applaud him. According to this notion, nothing
+has a right to exist, no "sacred prejudice" may be claimed once this
+self-appointed representative of science takes the field for "research."
+Behold the Christian truth, it has stood the test of centuries: but it
+cannot resist these scientific freebooters, they rush over it with banners
+flying.
+
+Severe speech would here be in order. A painful spectacle, these doings of
+modern thought in the sacred precincts of truth. "Put off the shoes from
+thy feet; for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground," we imagine
+to hear; yet this sanctuary of truth has been made a profane place of
+bartering.
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+While still a pagan, but moved by his desire for truth, the philosopher
+_Justin_ went to the schools of his day to seek the solution of his doubts
+and queries. First he turned to a Stoic, but as he taught nothing of God,
+_Justin_ was unsatisfied. He next went to a Peripatetic teacher, then to a
+Pythagorean, but failed to find what he desired. The Platonist at last
+gave him something. Walking alone along the beach, and musing over
+_Plato's_ principles, he met an old man who referred him to the truth of
+Christianity, to the Prophets and the Apostles: "They alone have seen the
+truth and proclaimed it unto man, they were afraid of no one, knew no
+fear; yielded to no opinion; filled with the Holy Ghost, they spoke only
+what they saw and heard. The Scriptures are still extant, and he who takes
+them up will find in them a treasure of information about principles and
+ultimate things, and all else the philosopher must know, if he believes
+them."(14) And _Justin_ found truth and peace, and bowed to the yoke of
+the doctrine of Jesus Christ.
+
+What a striking contrast between this serious love of truth in the days of
+passing heathendom, and the uncontrolled thinking of so many in our
+Christian age! To them truth is no longer a sacred treasure, a yoke to be
+assumed in reverence; it has become the plaything of their impressions and
+inclinations. Indeed, they consider it a burden to accept the old
+Christian truth, with which they meet on all their ways.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter III. The Bitter Fruit.
+
+
+
+The Vocation of Science.
+
+
+Science is, and ever was, an influential factor operating upon the
+thought, aims, and actions of man. Hence science must remain conscious of
+its vocation. First of all it is to hold aloft and preserve the _spiritual
+possessions of mankind_. True, science must also progress; but progress
+means growth, which presupposes the preservation of what has been received
+from of old. This applies pre-eminently to the philosophical-religious
+patrimony of the past; no error could be more fatal than to presume that
+each generation must start from the beginning, that the foundations, which
+have safely supported human life for centuries, must be obsolete because
+human nature is suddenly considered changed.
+
+What are these foundations? They are the tested religious and moral
+convictions of mankind, and, for our nations particularly, the divine
+tenets of Christianity, that have been their highest ideals for centuries,
+and have produced serenity and a high standard of morality. If science
+aims to be the principle of conservation and not of destruction, it must
+look upon the safeguarding of those possessions of the nations as its
+sacred task. Indeed, it would perform this task but poorly were it to
+waste this patrimony piece by piece, or to shatter it with wicked fist,
+instead of respecting and honouring it, or to set fire to the sanctuary
+where mankind hitherto has dwelled in peace and happiness. A science of
+this kind would not only cease to be a bulwark for the mental life of
+mankind, but turn into a positive danger.
+
+In as far as it follows the principles of liberal freedom of research,
+present-day science does present this danger. This cannot be denied, the
+facts speak too plainly. By its very nature it _must_ become such danger.
+For it recognizes no belief, neither in God nor in the Church; no dogmas,
+no "prejudices," no traditions, however sacred, are to be respected; it is
+fundamental unbelief, the principle of opposition to the Christian
+religion. Its autonomous Subject emancipates himself from the yoke of
+objective truth which he cannot procreate free out of himself. It
+confesses the principle that there are neither truths nor values that
+endure; _plus ultra!_ always new ideas! _Quieta movere_, hitherto the
+watchword of unwisdom, is this science's maxim. And liberal freedom of
+research is what its nature compels it to be. Can it do any more than it
+has done, to prove itself a principle of mental pauperism? We shall not
+demand a list of the things it has thrown aside and shattered. Let us
+rather ask, _what it has left whole_ of the sacred institutions of truth,
+inherited from a Christian past. Alas, it has cast off and denied
+everything; it has lost not only the things a Christian age has treasured,
+but even those a higher paganism had revered. Let us examine this sad work
+of negation and annihilation. It is a more melancholy spectacle than any
+war of extermination that was ever waged against Europe's Christian
+civilization by a people bent on trampling down every flower of Christian
+culture, and on razing every castle to the ground.
+
+
+
+Are We Still Christians?
+
+
+This was the question proposed some scores of years ago by _D. Strauss_ to
+himself, and to those of his mind. With this question we will begin. To
+our forefathers, especially of the German nation, nothing was more sacred
+than the Christian religion; no people like the German has absorbed it so
+fully, has been so permeated with it. But now, wherever liberal
+science--here especially modern Protestant theology that brings liberal
+freedom of research into full application--wherever it has made the
+Christian religion a subject of its study, one treasure after another has
+been lost; of the whole of Christendom nothing remains but an empty name
+and a formal homage, reminding of the courtesy paid to deposed rulers.
+
+In the first place, there has been dropped the fundamental thesis of the
+_divinity of Christ_, whereupon rests the entire structure of
+Christianity. Man's modern emancipation from everything supernatural has
+been accomplished also with respect to the person of Christ: the man
+Christ is divested of His divinity and of everything miraculous; His birth
+by the virgin, His miracles and prophecies, His resurrection and
+ascension, once the subjects of exalting feasts, have fallen a victim to
+unbelieving science. It is true, they exert themselves to keep His person
+in view, they want the purely human Jesus to hold His old position of God
+and man in the believing consciousness, to conceal the mental
+pauperization. But this trick is failing more and more. The Son of God
+sees Himself gradually placed among the great men of history; we are
+becoming accustomed to find in the "Biographies of Celebrated Men," among
+"Religious Educators," side by side with _Confucius_, _Buddha_,
+_Augustine_, _Mohammed_, _Luther_, _Kant_, and _Goethe_, also the name of
+Jesus. The lustre of the past belief in His divinity is paling. In the
+eyes of unbelieving science He has ceased to be the infallible,
+all-surpassing Authority, and the basis of the faith. The teaching of
+Jesus has become the subject of an analyzing and eliminating criticism,
+and whenever deemed advisable His authority is simply ignored; He was
+human, affected by the views and errors of His age.
+
+
+    Thus they know, as does _H. Gunkel_, that "Jesus and the Apostles
+    evidently have taken those narratives (the miracles of Genesis) to
+    be reality and not poetry"; "the men of the New Testament on such
+    questions take no particular attitude but share the (erroneous)
+    opinions of their times." They also know "that in regard to
+    persons possessed with demons Jesus shared the erroneous notions
+    of his time" (_Braun_), and _Fr. Delitzsch_ informs us that it was
+    "particularly a Babylonian superstition," in consequence of which
+    "the belief in demons and devils assumed such importance in the
+    imagination of Jesus of Nazareth and of his Galilean disciples."
+    Thus the word is fulfilled literally: "He is a sign which will be
+    contradicted."
+
+
+No one knows really _who Jesus was_. His person is the football of
+opinions. "If any one desiring reliable information, as to who Jesus
+Christ was, and what message He brought, should consult the literature of
+the day, he would find buzzing round him contradictory voices.... Taken
+all in all, the impression made by these contradicting opinions is
+depressing: the confusion seems past hope," admits Prof. _Harnack_.
+
+
+    Also _E. V. Hartmann_ remarks: "Thus, according to some, Jesus was
+    a poet, to others a mystic visionary, a third sees in him the
+    militant hero for freedom and human dignity, to a fourth he was
+    the organizer of a new Church and of an ecclesiastical system of
+    ethics, to a fifth the rationalistic reformer ... to the eleventh
+    a naturalistic pantheist like _Giordano Bruno_, to the twelfth a
+    superman on the order of _Nietzsche's_ Zarathustra...." A chaos of
+    opinions agreeing only in the one aim of rejecting His divinity.
+    _A. Schweitzer_, himself a representative of liberal Protestant
+    research, says, "Nothing is more negative than the result of the
+    research concerning the life of Jesus." And knowing Jesus's person
+    no longer, they no longer know anything certain about His
+    teaching, as is clear from the above. According to _I.
+    Wellhausen_, from the "unsufficient fragments at hand we can get
+    but a scanty conception of the doctrine of Jesus."--The fathers
+    were rich, the children have grown poor. _Dissipaverunt
+    substantiam suam!_
+
+    To many even the _existence of Jesus_ has become doubtful; and
+    this not only to men of an irreligious propaganda, like Prof. _A.
+    Drews_, who, carried away by the corroding tendency of a radical
+    age, journeyed from town to town in order to proclaim, in the
+    twentieth century of Christian reckoning, the scientific discovery
+    of the "Myth of Christ"; but even to others the existence of Jesus
+    has become doubtful or at least valueless. The task now is to do
+    away entirely with the person of Jesus, and to solve the problem
+    of preserving a Christian faith without a Christ. In this sense
+    Prof. _M. Rade_ writes: "Serious and gifted men having asserted
+    that Jesus never existed (or, what amounts to the same, that, if
+    He ever lived, nothing is known of Him; hence, His existence is of
+    no historical importance), we dogmatists almost have to be
+    grateful to them for having helped us to put a very concrete
+    question no longer in general terms: how does religious certainty
+    face historical criticism? but quite specifically: how does
+    religious certainty (of the Christian) regard the
+    historic-scientific possibility of the non-existence of the
+    historical Jesus?" They frankly assert that they could entirely
+    forego the person of Christ. Thus Prof. _P. W. Schmiedel_
+    declares: "My innermost religious conviction would not suffer
+    injury were I to be convinced to-day that Jesus never lived.... I
+    would know that I could not lose the measure of piety that has
+    become my property long since, even if I cannot derive it any
+    longer from Jesus." "Neither does my piety require me to see in
+    Jesus an absolutely perfect type, nor would it disturb me were I
+    to find someone else actually surpassing Him, which undoubtedly is
+    the case in some respects." For him to whom Christ is no longer
+    God but a man and capable of error, His person and existence have
+    necessarily lost their value.
+
+
+Thus we have arrived at a _Christianity without a Christ_. As yet the
+person of the Lord is usually surrounded by a halo: it is the after-effect
+of a faithful past, the last rays of a setting sun. That this last
+glimmer, too, will pale and give way to darkness is but a question of
+time, when with more honesty expression will be given to the conclusion
+necessarily arrived at. If Christ is not what He claimed to be, God and
+Messiah, then the belief in His being the Son of God and the Messiah, in
+His right to abrogate the religion of the Old Testament and to found a new
+religion, commanding its acceptance under penalty of damnation--all this
+can be nothing but the result of religious fanaticism and mental
+derangement. And science is, in all seriousness, preparing to turn into
+this direction.
+
+
+    It is true, many are hesitating to draw these fearful conclusions
+    and to utter them; arriving at this point, they cautiously stop:
+    so _Harnack_. "How Jesus could arrive at the consciousness of His
+    unique relation to God as His Son, how He became conscious of His
+    power as well as of the obligation and task involved in this
+    power, that is His secret, and no psychology will ever disclose
+    it.... Here, all research must halt." It is the silence of
+    embarrassment, but equally of unscientific method. Having arrived
+    at untenable conclusions, when question upon question is
+    impetuously suggested, they stop suddenly and have nothing to say
+    but a vague word about inscrutableness.
+
+    But there are those who actually speak the word so horrible to a
+    Christian heart: Jesus was demented, a subject for pathology.
+    _Strauss_ indicated this cautiously: "One who expects to return
+    after his death in a manner in which no human being had ever
+    returned, he is to us ... not exactly a lunatic, but a great
+    visionary." Others speak more plainly. _Holtzmann's_ answer to the
+    question: Was Jesus an Ecstatic, is an emphatic: "Yes, He was."
+    _De Loosten_ considers him insane. _E. Rasmussen_ thinks Him an
+    epileptic, but grants to physicians the right to reckon him among
+    paranoiacs or lunatics. To _A. Juelicher_ Jesus is a visionary, "a
+    mystic, not satisfied to dream of his ideals, but who lived with
+    them, worked with them, even saw them tangibly before his eyes,
+    deceiving himself and others." Thus the supernatural has become
+    madness; Jesus Christ, for whose divinity the martyrs went to
+    their death, wears now, before the forum of a false science,
+    Herod's cloak of foolishness.
+
+
+With the fall of this fundamental dogma there must necessarily fall all
+other specific truths of Christianity, and they have fallen. The Holy
+Writ, once the work of the Holy Ghost, has now become a book like the
+Indian Vedda, to some perhaps even more unreliable; original sin,
+Redemption and grace, the Sacrifice of the Mass and the Sacraments, have
+been dropped or changed into symbols, of which every one may think what he
+pleases. They have tried to make Christianity "acceptable to our times,"
+to "bring it nearer to the modern idea." There is really nothing left to
+offend modern man, nothing that could get in conflict with any idea. The
+essence of Christianity is depreciated and emptied until it has become
+only a vague sentiment, without thought; a few names, without ideas.
+"Christianity as a Gospel," so teaches _Harnack_, "has but one aim: to
+find the living God, that every individual may find Him as his God,
+gaining strength and joy and peace. How it attains this aim through the
+centuries, whether with the Coefficient of the Jewish or the Greek, of
+flight from the world or of civilization, of Gnosticism or
+Agnosticism--this all is of secondary consideration." Of secondary
+consideration it is, then, whether one is convinced of the existence of
+God or whether he doubts with the agnostics, whether he believes in a
+personal God or not. To-day even the pantheist who does not acknowledge a
+Creator of Heaven and Earth may be a Christian; and so can he who no
+longer believes in personal immortality and in a hereafter; for, we are
+informed, "this religion is above the contrasts of here and the beyond, of
+life and death, of Reason and Ecstatics, of Judaism and Hellenism"
+(_Harnack_). Thus there is no thought which could not be made to agree
+with this despoiled Christianity. For, we are told further, "much less
+does the Gospel presuppose, or is joined to, a fixed theory of nature--not
+even in a negative sense could this be asserted" (_Harnack_). Materialism
+and Spiritualism, Theism and Pantheism, Belief or Negation of Creation,
+everything will harmonize with a Christianity thus degraded to a thing
+without character or principle.(15)
+
+All that is left is a word of love, of a kind Father, of filiation to God,
+and union with God: words robbed of their true meaning; a shell without a
+kernel, ruins with the name "Christianity" still inscribed thereon,
+telling of a house that once stood here, wherein the fathers dwelt, but
+long since vacated by their children. _Dissipaverunt substantiam suam!_
+
+
+    As to God and divine filiation, everybody is welcome to his own
+    interpretation. He may form with _O. Pfleiderer_ the
+    "Neoprotestantism" which, "after breaking with all ecclesiastical
+    dogmas, recalled to mind the truths of the Christian religion,
+    hidden beneath the surface of these dogmas, in order to realize,
+    more purely and more perfectly than ever before, the truth of
+    God's incarnation in the new forms of autonomous thought and of
+    the moral life of human society." Christianity and God--the symbols
+    of autonomous man! Or he may follow _Bousset_, to whom nature is
+    God, and in this way combines harmoniously Christianity and
+    Atheism. "This is the forceful evolution of Christian religion,"
+    says he, "the notion of redemption, the Dogma of the divinity of
+    Christ, the trinity, the idea of satisfaction and sacrifice,
+    miracles, the old conception of revelation--all these we see
+    carried off by this wave of progress." "What is left? Timid people
+    may think: a wreck. But to our pleasant surprise we found stated
+    at many points in our inquiry: what is left is the simple Gospel
+    of Jesus." And what does this simplified Gospel contain? "Of
+    course we cannot simply accept in full the Gospel of Jesus....
+    There is the internal and the external. The external and
+    non-essential includes the judgment of the world, angels,
+    miracles, inspiration, and other things." All this may be
+    disregarded. "But even the essentials, the internal of the Gospel
+    cannot be simply subscribed to. They must be interpreted." What,
+    then, is this essential, this internal of the Gospel, and what is
+    its interpretation? "The belief of the Gospel in the personal
+    heavenly Father; to this we hold fast with all our strength. But
+    we carry this belief in God into our modern thought." And what
+    becomes then of "God"? "To us, God is no longer the kind Father
+    above the starry skies. God is the Infinite, Omnipotent, who is
+    active in the immense universe, in infiniteness of time and space,
+    in infinitely small and in infinitely large things. He is the God
+    whose garb is the iron law of nature which hides Him from the
+    human eye by a compact, impenetrable veil." We see the belief of
+    the Gospel has dwindled down to atheistic Monism.
+
+    As early as 1874 _Ed. von Hartmann_, in his book "Die
+    Selbstzersetzung des Christentums," came to the conclusion that
+    "liberal Protestantism has in no sense the right to claim a place
+    within Christendom." In a later book his keen examination
+    demonstrates how the speculation of liberal Protestantism has
+    changed the Christian religion step by step into pantheism: "Not a
+    single point in the doctrine of the Church is spared by this
+    upheaval of principle, every dogma is formally turned into its
+    very opposite, in order to make its religious idea conform to the
+    tenet of divine immanence."
+
+    This is called the development of Christianity. It is this
+    "religious progress," the same "free Christianity," that they are
+    now trying to promote by international congresses. The invitation
+    to the "World's Congress for free Christianity and religious
+    progress" at Berlin, in 1910, was signed by more than 130 German
+    professors, including 47 theologians. We have here the development
+    of the dying into the lifeless corpse, the progress of the strong
+    castle into a dilapidated ruin, the advance of the rich man to
+    beggary.
+
+
+We began our inquiry with the question proposed some years ago by _D.
+Strauss_ to his brethren-in-spirit: Are we still Christians? We may now
+quote the answer, which he gives at the conclusion of his own
+investigation: "Now, I think, we are through. And the result? the reply to
+my question?--must I state it explicitly? Very well; my conviction is, that
+if we do not want to make excuses, if we do not want to shift and shuffle
+and quibble, if yes is to be yes, and no to remain no, in short, if we
+desire to speak like honest, sincere men, we must confess: we are no
+longer Christians."
+
+This is the bitter fruit of autonomous freedom of thinking, which,
+declining any guidance by faith, recognizes no other judge of truth than
+individual reason, with all the license and the hidden inclinations that
+rule it. Protestantism has adopted this freedom of research as its
+principle; in consistently applying it, Protestantism has completely
+denatured the Christian religion. If anything can prove irrefutably the
+monstrosity and cultural incapacity of modern freedom of research, it is
+the fate of Protestantism. Any one capable of seriously judging serious
+things must realize here how pernicious this freedom is for the human
+mind.
+
+
+
+Reduced to Beggary.
+
+
+But the loss is even greater. The better class of paganism still clung to
+the general notion of an existing personal God, of a future life, of a
+reward after death; it was convinced of the existence of an immortal soul
+and a future reward, of the necessity of religion, of immutable standards
+for morals and thought. Has liberal science at least been able to preserve
+this essential property of a higher paganism? Alas, no! It has lost nearly
+everything.
+
+No longer has it a personal God. While belief in God may still survive in
+the hearts of many representatives of this science, it has vanished from
+science itself. It begs to be excused from accepting any solution of
+questions, if God is a factor in the solution. The opinion prevails that
+_Kant_ has forever shattered all rational demonstrations of the existence
+of God. Yet _Kant_ permits this existence as a "postulate," which,
+according to _Strauss_, "may be regarded as the attic room, where God who
+has been retired from His office may be decently sheltered and employed."
+But now He has been given notice to quit even this refuge. There must be
+nothing left of Him but His venerable name, which is appropriated by the
+new apostasy in the guise of pantheism or a masked materialism. Monism is
+the joint name for it: this is the modern "belief in God." In days gone by
+it was frankly called "atheism."
+
+
+    This disappearance of the old belief in God is noted with
+    satisfaction by modern science: "It is true," says _Paulsen_, "the
+    belief in gods ... is dying out, and will never be resurrected.
+    Nor is there an essential difference whether many or only one of
+    these beings are assumed. A monotheism which looks upon God as an
+    individual being and lets him occasionally interfere in the world
+    as in something separate from and foreign to him, such a
+    monotheism is essentially not different from polytheism. If one
+    should insist on such conception of theism, then, of course, it
+    will be difficult to contradict those who maintain that science
+    must lead to atheism."
+
+
+Therefore God, as a personal being, is dead, and will never come to life
+again. While there is an enormous exaggeration in these words, they
+nevertheless glaringly characterize the ideas of the science of which
+_Paulsen_ is the mouthpiece. It does not want directly to give up the name
+of God; it serves as a mask to conceal the uncanny features of pantheism
+and materialism.
+
+
+    "The universe," we hear often and in many variations, "is the
+    expression of a uniform, original principle, which may be termed
+    God, Nature, primitive force, or anything else, and which appears
+    to man in manifold forms of energy, like matter, light, warmth,
+    electricity, chemical energy, or psychical process.... These
+    fundamental ideas of monism are by no means 'atheistic.' Many
+    monists in spite of assertions to the contrary believe in a
+    supreme divine principle, which penetrates the whole world, living
+    and operating in everything. Of course, if God is taken to mean a
+    being who exists outside of the world ... then it is true we are
+    atheists" (_Plate_). We have already seen that one can even be a
+    Protestant theologian and yet be satisfied with a "God" of this
+    description.
+
+
+In the place of God has stepped _man_, with his advanced civilization,
+radiant in the divine aureole of the absolute as its highest incarnation.
+But what has liberal research done even to him? According to the Christian
+idea, man bears the stamp of God on his forehead: "after My image I have
+created thee"; in his breast he carries a spiritual soul, endowed with
+freedom and immortality--_gloria et honore coronasti eum_. Liberal science
+pretends to uplift and exalt man; but in reality it strips him of his
+adornments, one after the other. He is no longer a creature of God because
+this would contradict science. His birthplace and the home of his
+childhood are no longer in Paradise, but in the jungles of Africa, among
+the animals, whose descendent man is now said to be. Liberal science,
+almost without exception, denies the freedom of will which raises man high
+above the beast, and as a rule it calls such freedom an "illusion": of a
+substantial soul, of immortality, of an ultimate possession of God after
+death, it frequently, if not always, knows nothing.
+
+
+    Let us take up a handbook of modern _Psychology_ of this kind,
+    Wundt's, for instance. We see at a glance that it is a very
+    learned work. The thirty lectures inform us in minute
+    investigations of the various methods and resources of
+    psychological research. The reader has reached the twentieth
+    lecture, and he asks, how about the soul? The title of the book
+    states that the chapters would treat of the human soul, but so far
+    not a word has been said about it. But there are ten lectures
+    more; he continues to turn over the leaves of the book. He finds
+    beautiful things said about expression and emotions, about
+    instincts in animal and man, about spontaneous actions and other
+    things. At last, the third before the last page of the book, there
+    arises the question, what about the soul, and what does the reader
+    learn? "Our soul is nothing else, but the sum total of our
+    perception, our feeling and our will." The conviction he held
+    hitherto, that he possessed a substantial, immortal soul, which
+    remains through changing conceptions and sentiments, he sees
+    rejected as "fiction." The reader learns that, though he may still
+    use the term "soul," he has no real soul, much less a spiritual
+    soul, least of all an immortal soul. In its stead he is treated to
+    some learned statements about muscular sensations and such things,
+    by way of compensation. _Jodl_, too, speaks of the "illusions,
+    based upon the old theories about the soul," and he rejects the
+    dualistic psychology which "mistook an abstract thought, the soul,
+    for a real being, for an immaterial substance"; and which defended
+    this notion "with worthless reasons."
+
+    It is manifest that, together with the substantial soul,
+    immortality is also disposed of. True, here too the word is
+    cautiously retained; but by immortality is now understood
+    perpetuation in the human race, in the ideas of posterity, in
+    "objective spirit," in the "imperishable value of ethical
+    possessions," for which the individual has laboured. Some fine
+    words are said about it, as roses are used to cover a grave. Yet,
+    it is only the immortality of the barrel of Regulus, or the
+    Gordian knot in history, the immortality of which the printers'
+    press may partake in the effect of the books it prints. To quote
+    _Jodl_ again: "The fact of the objective spirit, together with the
+    organic connection of the generations to one another, form the
+    scientific reality of what appears in popular, mythological tenets
+    of faith as the idea of personal immortality ... and which has
+    been defended by the dualistic psychology with worthless, invalid
+    arguments." The refutation of these arguments does not bother him.
+    "A refutation of these scholastic arguments is as little needed as
+    a refutation of the belief in the miracles and demons of former
+    centuries is needed by a man standing on the ground of modern
+    natural science." This reminds one of _Haeckel's_ method. The
+    latter nevertheless found it worth while in his "Weltraetsel" to
+    dispose in thirteen lines of six such arguments, and then to
+    assure the reader that "All these and similar arguments have
+    fallen to the ground." That the matter in question is an idea that
+    has been the foundation of Christian civilization and ethics for
+    thousands of years, that has led millions to holiness; an idea,
+    indeed, that has been the common property of all nations at all
+    times--this seems to count for very little.
+
+    This technique of a superficial speculation, which, devoid of
+    piety, casts everything overboard, finds no trouble in disposing
+    of the entire _spiritual world_. "No one is capable," says _Jodl_
+    again, "of imagining a purely spiritual reality." This is disposed
+    of. "Since the war between the Aristotle-scholastic and the
+    mechanical method has been waged, spiritual powers have never
+    played any other part in the explanation of the world than that of
+    an unknown quantity in equations of a higher degree, which,
+    unsolvable by methods hitherto prevalent, are only awaiting the
+    superior master and a new technique (_sic_) in order to disappear"
+    (p. 77 _seq._).
+
+
+With the denial of a personal God and of the immortality of the soul, true
+_religion_ is abandoned. Of course, there is much said and written about
+religion in our days: the scientific literature about it has grown to
+tremendous proportions--to say nothing of newspapers, novels, and plays.
+One might welcome this as a proof that this world will never entirely
+satisfy the human heart. But it is also a sign that religion is no longer
+a secure possession, but has become a problem--that it has been lost. Even
+on the part of free-thought it is not denied that "only unhappy times will
+permit the existence of religious problems; and that this problem is the
+utterance of mental discord." Yet they do not want to forego religion
+entirely, for they feel that irreligion is tantamount to degeneration. But
+what has become of religion? It has been degraded to a vague sentiment and
+longing, without religious truths and duties, a plaything for pastime.
+
+
+    For _Schleiermacher_ religion is a feeling of simple dependence,
+    though no one knows upon whom he is dependent: according to
+    _Wundt_ religion consists in "man serving infinite purposes,
+    together with his finite purposes, the ultimate fulfilment whereof
+    remains hidden to his eye," which probably means something, but I
+    do not know what. _Haeckel_ calls his materialism the religion of
+    the true, good, and beautiful; _Jodl_ even thinks, "As the realm
+    of science is the real, and the realm of art the possible, so the
+    realm of religion is the impossible." Religion having been
+    degraded to such a level, it is no longer astonishing that
+    religion is attributed even to animals, and in the words of _E.
+    von Hartmann_, "we cannot help attributing a religious character,
+    as far as the animal is concerned, to the relation between the
+    intelligent domestic animals and their masters."
+
+
+What, finally, has become of the old standard of _morals_? A modern
+philosopher may answer the question.
+
+
+    _Fouillee_ writes: "In our day, far more so than thirty years ago,
+    morality itself, its reality, its necessity and usefulness, is in
+    the balance.... I have read with much concern how my
+    contemporaries are at fundamental variance in this respect, and
+    how they contradict one another. I have tried to form an opinion
+    of all these different opinions. Shall I say it? I have found in
+    the province of morals a confusion of ideas and sentiments to an
+    extent that it seemed impossible to me to illustrate thoroughly
+    what might be termed contemporaneous sophistry" (Le Moralisme de
+    Kant, etc.).
+
+
+Where is left now to liberal science a single remnant of those great
+truths on which mankind has hitherto lived, and which it needs for
+existence? There was a God--but He is gone. There was a life to come, and a
+supernatural world; they are lost. Man had a soul, endowed with freedom,
+spirituality, and immortality; he has it no longer. He had fixed
+principles of reasoning and laws of morals; they are gone. He possessed
+Christ, full of grace and truth, he possessed redemption and a Church;
+everything is lost. Burnt to the ground is the homestead. In the blank
+voids, that cheerful casements were, sits despair; man stands at the grave
+of all that fortune gave!
+
+The names alone have survived; now and then they speak of God and
+religion, of Christianity and faith, immortality and freedom; but the
+words are false, pretending a possession that is lost long since. They are
+patches from a grand dress, once worn by our ancestors; ruins of the
+ancestral house that the children have lost. They are still cherished as
+the memories of better times. People thus acknowledge the irreparable
+forfeiture which those names denote, without realizing how they pronounce
+their own condemnation by having destroyed these possessions.(16)
+_Dissipaverunt substantiam suam._
+
+The son came to his father. In his heedless anxiety for freedom he would
+leave the father's house, to get away from restraining discipline and
+dependence. "Father, give me the portion of the goods that falleth to me."
+And he departed into a far country. Soon he had spent all and had nothing
+to appease his hunger.
+
+
+
+Despairing of Truth.
+
+
+These, then, are the achievements liberal research can boast of in the
+fields of philosophy and religion: Negations and again negations; temples
+and altars it has destroyed, sacred images it has broken, pillars it has
+knocked down. Free from Christianity, free from God, free from the life to
+come and the supernatural, free from authority and faith--it is rich in
+freedom and negation. But what does it offer in place of all the things it
+has destroyed? What spiritual goods does it show to the expectant eyes of
+its confiding followers? The most hopeless things imaginable, namely,
+despair of all higher truth, mental confusion, and decay. One other brief
+glance at the consequences and we shall be competent to judge of the
+fitness of liberal freedom of thought for the civilization of mankind.
+
+As far as it is inspired by philosophy, modern science confesses the
+principle: "No objective truth can be positively known, at least not in
+metaphysics"; restless doubt is the lot of the searching intellect. We
+have amplified this elsewhere in these pages. This result of the modern
+doctrine of cognition is not infrequently boasted of. It was good enough,
+say they, for the ancients to live in the silly belief of possessing
+eternal truth; they were simple and unsuspecting; we know there is in
+store for man only doubt and everlasting struggle for truth.
+
+
+    "We confess that we do not know whether there are for mankind as a
+    whole, and for the individual, tasks and goals that extend beyond
+    this earthly existence" (_Jodl_). "There is no scientific
+    philosophy of generally recognized standard, but only in the form
+    of various experiments for the purpose of defining and expressing
+    the harmony and the idea of the active principle; consequently
+    there cannot be a final philosophy, it must be ready at all times
+    to revise any point that previously seemed to have been
+    established" (_Paulsen_). "Only to dogmatism," says another, "are
+    the various theories of the world contradictory; to science they
+    are hypotheses of equal value, which, as they are all limited, may
+    exist side by side, the theistic as well as the atheistic, the
+    dualistic, the monistic, and whatever their names may be. Man, who
+    conceives these hypotheses, is master over them all and makes use
+    of them, here of one, there of another, according to the kind of
+    the problem he is occupied with at the time. Thus, he is
+    independent of any view of the world" (_L. von Sybel_). Again we
+    are told: "There has been formulated a free variety of
+    metaphysical systems, none of them demonstrable.... Is it our
+    task, perhaps, to select the true one? This would be an odd
+    superstition; this metaphysical anarchy is teaching, as obviously
+    as possible, the relativity of all metaphysical systems" (_W.
+    Dilthey_). Therefore, nothing but impressions and opinions, and
+    not the truth; indeed, for the cognition of transcendental,
+    metaphysical truths, they often have only words of disdain.
+
+    "The fact should be emphasized," says _G. Spicker_, "that
+    philosophy really is devoid of any higher ideal; that, through its
+    doubt of the objective cognizability of things above us, outside
+    and inside of us, it has fallen prey to scepticism, even if
+    philosophers do not admit it and try to evade the issue with the
+    phrase 'theory of cognition.' "
+
+
+A science cannot sink to a lower level than by the admission that it has
+nothing to offer and nothing to accomplish. It is tantamount to
+bankruptcy. This science undertakes to nourish the human mind, but offers
+stones instead of bread; it wants to uplift and to instruct, and confesses
+that it has nothing to tell. _Amphora coepit institui, currente rota
+urceus exit._ In the beginning a proud consciousness and the promise to be
+everything to mankind; at the end mental pauperism and scepticism, a
+caricature of science.
+
+This, then, is the terminal at which the free-thought of subjectivism has
+arrived: the loss of truth, without which man's mind wanders restlessly
+and without a goal. That is the penalty for gambling boldly with human
+perception, the retribution for rebelling against the rights of truth and
+for the vainglorious arrogance of the intellect, which would draw only
+from its own cisterns the water of life, while alone those lying deep in
+the Divine may offer him the eternal fountains of objective truth.
+Scepticism is gnawing at the mental life of the world. A scepticism
+cloaked with the names of criticism and research, and of positivism and
+empiric knowledge, but which, nevertheless, remains what it is, an ominous
+demon, liberated from the grave into which has been lowered the Christian
+spiritual life, the spirit of darkness now pervading the world.
+
+
+
+In All Directions of the Compass.
+
+
+They have lost their way, puzzled by mazes and perplexed with error they
+are in hopeless confusion; a correlative of individualistic thinking. If
+the absolute subject and his experiences of life are the self-appointed
+court of last resort, the result must be anarchy and not accord. This is
+manifest; moreover, it is frankly admitted by the spokesmen of
+freethought.
+
+
+    This anarchy is described in vivid words by Prof. _Paulsen_,
+    recently the indefatigable champion of freest thought: "We no
+    longer have a Protestant philosophy, in the sense of a standard
+    system. _Hegel's_ philosophy was the last to occupy such a
+    position. Anarchy rules ever since. The attempted rally around the
+    name of _Kant_ failed to put an end to the prevalent anarchy, or
+    to the division into small fractions and individualisms. Then
+    there is the mental neurasthenia of our times, the absolute lack
+    of ideas, especially noticeable among so-called educated
+    people.... Billboard art has found a counterpart in
+    billboard-philosophy. Here, there, and everywhere we meet the cry:
+    here is the saviour, the secret ruler, the magic doctor, who cures
+    all ills of our diseased age.... After a while, the mob has again
+    dispersed and the thing is forgotten" ("Philosophia Militans").
+
+    "There is no uniform philosophic theory of the world, such as we,
+    at least to a certain extent, used to have," says _Paulsen_
+    elsewhere, "the latest ideas are diverging in all directions of
+    the compass." When one buildeth up, and another pulleth down, what
+    profit have they but the labour? (Ecclus. xxxiv. 28). "We have no
+    metaphysics nowadays," says _R. Eucken_ in the same strain, "and
+    there are not a few who are proud of it. They only would have the
+    right to be so if our philosophy were in excellent shape, if, even
+    without metaphysics, firm convictions ruled our life and actions,
+    if great aims held us together and lifted us above the smallness
+    of the merely human. The fact is an unlimited discordance, a
+    pitiful insecurity in all matters of principle, a defencelessness
+    against the petty human, and soullessness accompanied by
+    superabounding exterior manifestation of life."
+
+
+This is the status of modern philosophy and also of liberal, Protestant,
+theology. Of views of the world, of notions and forms of Christianity, of
+ideas, essays and contributions to them, there is choice in abundance.
+Here, materialistic Monism is proclaimed, warranted to solve all riddles.
+There, spiritualistic Pantheism is retailed in endless varieties. Yonder,
+Agnosticism is strutting: no longer philosophy, but facts and reality, is
+its slogan. Then comes the long procession of ethical views of life:
+"Contemplations of life; theories of human existence surround us and court
+us in plenty; the coincidence of ample historical learning with active
+reflection induces manifold combinations, and makes it easy for the
+individual to draw pictures of this kind according to circumstance and
+mood; and so we see individual philosophies whirling about promiscuously,
+winning and losing the favour of the day, and shifting and transmuting
+themselves in kaleidoscopic change" (_Eucken_). _Hegel_, although he
+lectured with great assurance on his own system, lamented: "Every
+philosophy comes forth with the pretension to refute not only the
+preceding philosophy, but to remedy its defects, to have at last found the
+right thing." But past experience shows, that to this philosophy, too, the
+passage from Holy Writ is applicable: "Behold, the feet that will carry
+thee away are already at the threshold." Indeed, often it has come to pass
+that these philosophers themselves bury their ideas, preparatory to
+entering another camp. Consider the changes that men like _Kant_,
+_Fichte_, _Schelling_, _Strauss_, _Nietzsche_, have essayed in the short
+course of a few decades, and we are justified in assuming that they would
+again have changed their last ideas had death not interfered.
+
+Now and then such confusion of opinions is considered an advantage, the
+advantage of fertility. To be sure, it is fertility,--the fertility of
+fruitless attempts, of errors, and of fancies, the fertility of disorder
+and chaos. If this fertility be a cause of pride for science, then
+mathematics, physics, astronomy, and other exact sciences, are indeed to
+be pitied for having to forego this fertility of philosophy, and the
+privilege of being an arena for contradictory views.
+
+
+
+Without Peace and without Joy.
+
+
+After the hopeless shipwreck of the modern, godless thought, can we wonder
+at meeting frequently the despondency of _pessimism_? Is not pessimism the
+first born of scepticism? At the close of the nineteenth century we read,
+again and again, in reviews of the past and forecasts of the future, how
+the modern world stands perplexed before the riddles of life, confessing
+in pessimistic mood that it is dissatisfied and unhappy to the depth of
+its soul. With proud self-consciousness, boasting of knowledge and power
+of intellect, they had entered the nineteenth century, praising themselves
+in the words: How great, O man, thou standest at the century's close, with
+palm of victory in thy hand, the fittest son of time! With heads bowed in
+shame these same representatives of modern thought make their exit from
+the same century.
+
+
+    Of the number that voiced this sentiment we quote but one, Prof.
+    _R. Eucken_, who wrote: "The greatness of the work is beyond
+    doubt. This work more and more opens up and conquers the world,
+    unfolds our powers, enriches our life, it leads us in quick
+    victorious marches from triumph to triumph.... Thus, it is true,
+    our desired objects have been attained, but they disclosed other
+    things than we expected: the more our powers and ideas are
+    attracted by the work, the more we must realize the neglect of the
+    inner man and of his unappeased, ardent longing for happiness.
+    Doubts spring up concerning the entire work; we must ask whether
+    the new civilization be not too much a development of bare force,
+    and too little a cultivation of the being, whether because of our
+    strenuous attention to surroundings, the problems of innermost man
+    are not neglected. There is also noticeable a sad lack in moral
+    power: we feel powerless against selfish interests and
+    overwhelming passions: mankind is more and more dividing itself
+    into hostile sects and parties. And such doubts arouse to renewed
+    vigour the old, eternal problems, which faithfully accompany our
+    evolution through all its stages. Former times did not finally
+    solve them, (?) but they were, at least to a degree, mollified and
+    quieted. But now they are here again unmitigated and unobscured.
+    The enigmatical of human existence is impressed upon us with
+    unchecked strength, the darkness concerning the Whence and
+    Whither, the dismal power of blind necessity, accident and sorrow
+    in our fate, the low and vulgar in the human soul, the difficult
+    complications of the social body: all unite in the question: Has
+    our existence any real sense or value? Is it not torn asunder to
+    an extent that we shall be denied truth and peace for ever?...
+    Hence it is readily understood why a gloomy pessimism is spreading
+    more and more, why the depressed feeling of littleness and
+    weakness is pervading mankind in the midst of its triumphs."
+
+    Similar, and profoundly true, are the words spoken some years ago
+    by a noted critic in the "Literarische Zentralblatt" (1900): "A
+    painful lament and longing pervades our restless and peaceless
+    time. The bulk of our knowledge is daily increasing, our technical
+    ability hardly knows of difficulties it could not overcome ... and
+    yet we are not satisfied. More and more frequently we meet with
+    the tired, disheartened question: What's the use? We lack the one
+    thing which would give support and impetus to our existence, a
+    firm and assured view of the world. Or, to be more exact, we have
+    found that we cannot live with the view of the world which in this
+    century of enlightenment has stamped its imprint more and more
+    upon our entire mental life. Materialism, in coarser or finer
+    form, has penetrated deeply our habits of thought, even in those
+    who would indignantly protest against being called materialists;
+    the name seemed to imply scientific earnestness and liberal views.
+    However, there was still left a considerable fund of old,
+    idealistic values, and as long as we could draw upon them we saw
+    in materialism only the power to clear up rooted prejudices, and
+    to open the road for progress in every field. To the newer
+    generation, however, little or nothing is left of this old fund,
+    hence, having nothing else but materialism to depend upon, they
+    are confronted by an appalling dreariness and emptiness of
+    existence. And ever since the man on the street has absorbed the
+    easy materialistic principles, and looks down from the height of
+    his 'scientific' view of life contemptuously upon all
+    reactionaries, we have become aware of the danger that imperils
+    everything implied by the collective word 'humanism.' This
+    explains the plethora of literature which in these days deals with
+    the questions of a world philosophy." Who is not reminded after
+    reading this mournful confession of the words of _St. Augustine_:
+    "Restless is our heart, till it finds rest in Thee"?
+
+
+If it be true, then, that philosophical thought stands in closest
+connection with civilization, determining the latter in its loftier
+aspects, then the freedom of thought of modern subjectivism has proved its
+incompetence as a power for civilization; it can produce only a
+sham-civilization, it can incite the minds and keep them in nervous
+tension, until, tired of fruitless endeavour, they yield to pessimism.
+However painful it may be to admit it, this freedom of thought is and
+remains the principle of natural decadence of all the higher elements of a
+culture that is not determined by the number of guns, by steam-engines,
+and high-schools for girls, but which consists, chiefly, in a steadfast,
+ideal condition of reason and will, from which all else obtains
+significance and value. What further proof of intellectual and cultural
+incompetence can be demanded which this principle has not furnished
+already?
+
+If this be the fact, then it follows in turn that in the life of higher
+culture, where the health of the soul and the marrow of mental life is at
+stake, there can rule but a single principle, the _objectivism of
+Christian thought_, the principle of absolute submission, without variance
+and change, to a truth against which man has no rights. The submission of
+Christian thought to a religious, teaching authority, recognized as
+infallible in all matters pertaining to its domain, while not an
+exhaustive presentment of this principle, is its perceptive and concrete
+effect.
+
+
+
+A Rock in the Waters.
+
+
+The history of human thought of all ages, but especially of the last
+centuries, proves how necessary a divine revelation is to man; viz., the
+clear exposition of the highest truths in the view of world and of life,
+emphasized by a divine authority, which links the human mind to the one
+immutable truth; not only in ignorant nations, not only in the man of the
+common people, but also, and more especially, in the educated man and in
+the scientist, he, namely, who, through the moderate studies of a small
+intellect, has collected a little sum of knowledge that is apt to confuse
+his limited understanding and to rob him of modesty. It is just as
+manifest that revelation alone does not suffice, that there is needed also
+the enduring forum of a teaching Church, which in the course of centuries
+gives expression to truth with infallible, binding authority.
+
+The full truth of this is felt even by those unfavourably disposed toward
+this authority. A recent champion of autonomous freedom of thought, the
+Protestant theologian, _F. Troeltsch_, makes this concession in the words:
+"The immediate consequence of such autonomy is necessarily a steadily more
+intensified individualism of convictions, opinions, theories, and
+practical ends and aims. An absolute supra-individual union is effected
+only by an enormous power such as the belief in an immediate,
+supernatural, divine, revelation, as possessed by Catholicism, and
+organized in the Church as the extended and continued incarnation of God.
+This tie gone, the necessary sequel will be a splitting up in all sorts of
+human opinions."(17)
+
+This is to the Catholic a caution to appreciate the ministry of his Church
+ever more highly, and to cleave to it still closer. He will not agree with
+those who think that in our time the principle of Authority must retire.
+The more his eyes are opened by the present situation, the more clearly he
+realizes where thought emancipated from faith and authority has led, the
+more he will affirm his conscious belief in authority. His foothold upon
+the rock of the Church will be the firmer the more restless the billows of
+unsafe opinions rise and roll about him. The Catholic of mature, Catholic,
+conviction would consider it folly to abandon the rock for the restless
+and turbulent play of the waves. Many, indeed, who are looking for a safe
+place of truth, we see for this reason taking refuge in a strong Church;
+many are impressed by the stability of Catholic authority.(18)
+
+The present situation is similar socially to that of the ancient world at
+its close, and also in regard to the spiritual life. Then, as now, there
+was learning without idealism, corroded by scepticism, without harmony and
+cheer. Then, as now, there was but one power to offer rescue. Faith and
+Church. A longing for help is now also prevailing in the world. It feels
+its helplessness. If they only had the conviction of a _St. Augustine_,
+who prayed for deliverance from his errors: "When I often and forcefully
+realized the agility, sagacity, and acumen of the human mind, I could not
+believe that truth was hidden completely from us--rather only the way and
+manner how to discover it, and that we must accept these from a divine
+authority" (_De utilit. credendi_, 8).
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+It was a solemn hour, pregnant with profound significance, when at
+midnight at the beginning of this century all the churchbells of the
+Catholic globe were ringing, and, while everything around was silent,
+their blessed sound was resounding alone over the earth, over villages and
+cities, over countries and nations. Grandly there resounded into the whole
+world, over the heads of the children of men about to enter upon a new
+century of their history, that the Catholic Church is the Queen in the
+realm of mind, that she alone preserves infallibly the truths and ideals
+of which mankind is in quest, by which they are raised above earthly
+turmoil--those truths and ideals in which the heart and mind of earthly
+pilgrims find rest and peace on their long journey to the goal of time.
+Since she assumed the mission of Him who said, "I am the Way and the
+Truth," and, "I am with you all days, even unto the consummation of the
+world," the Church has travelled a long way through the centuries, has
+withstood hard times and fierce storms. And she has faithfully preserved
+for mankind the precious patrimony from God's hand. And now, at the dawn
+of new times, her bells proclaimed that she is still alive, holding the
+old truths in a strong hand. And after another century the bells of the
+globe will ring again, they will, so we hope--ring more loudly and more
+forcefully, over the nations. And these bells will also ring over the
+graves of this present generation, over fallen giants of the forest and
+over collapsed towers, over mouldy books, and the wreckage left by a
+culture that the emancipated, fallible human mind created, but which truth
+did not consecrate. And again the bells will proclaim to a new century
+that God, and the world's history, are thinking greater thoughts than the
+puny child of man is capable of thinking within the narrow compass of his
+years and of his surroundings.
+
+
+
+
+
+FOURTH SECTION. FREEDOM OF TEACHING.
+
+
+
+
+Preliminary Conceptions and Distinctions.
+
+
+Acquisition and distribution, labour and communication of the fruits of
+labour, are the two factors that determine the progress of mankind. Thus
+the precious metal is mined and brought to the surface by the labourer,
+whence it speeds through the world; thus the faithful missionary journeys
+into remote countries, to disseminate there the mental treasures acquired
+by study and hard religious effort. And thus science desires to work, and
+should work, for the culture and progress of mankind, and this work is
+pre-eminently its task. To properly pursue this vocation science demands
+freedom, _freedom in research and teaching_. There is, as we have already
+pointed out, an important distinction between the two. Although research
+and teaching are mostly joined, the former only attaining its chief end in
+teaching, there is a real difference between the two elements; and not
+unfrequently they are separated. It makes quite a difference whether some
+one within the four walls of his room studies anarchy, or whether he
+proceeds to proclaim its principles to the world; it is quite different
+whether a man embraces atheism for his personal use only, or whether he
+makes propaganda for it from the pulpit; it makes also a world of
+difference whether a man is personally convinced that materialism is the
+sole truth, or whether he proclaims it as a science, and is able to affirm
+that of the German edition of "Weltraetsel" 200,000 copies have been sold,
+of the English edition about as many, and that a dozen other translations
+have spread the fundamental notions of monism broadcast through the world
+(_E. Haeckel_, Monismus u. Naturgesetz). Teaching must be viewed from a
+different point. Research is a personal function, whereas Teaching is a
+social one. This fact, of itself, makes it evident that teaching cannot be
+allowed the same measure of freedom as research, hence that teaching must
+be confined within narrower limits.
+
+But Freedom is demanded not only for research, but also for teaching, in
+most cases even an unlimited freedom. It is demanded as an inalienable
+right of the individual, it is demanded in the name of progress, which can
+be promoted only by new knowledge. Some countries grant this freedom in
+their constitutions. Before discussing this demand and its presumptions,
+we shall have to make clear some preliminary conceptions.
+
+First, the meaning of _freedom of teaching_. How is it precisely to be
+understood? Freedom in teaching in general means, evidently, exemption
+from unwarranted restraint in teaching. Teaching, however, to use the
+words of a great thinker of the past, means _Causare in alio scientiam_,
+to impart knowledge to some one else (_Thomas Aquinas_, Quaest. disp. De
+verit. q. XI al.). Thus the pious mother teaches the child truths about
+God and Heaven, the school-teacher teaches elementary knowledge, the
+college-professor teaches science. Teaching is chiefly understood to be
+the instruction by professional teachers, from grammar school up to
+university. Hence freedom in teaching does not necessarily refer to
+scientific matters only; we may also speak of a freedom of teaching in the
+elementary school. As a rule, however, the term is used in the narrower
+sense of freedom in teaching science.
+
+
+    Here it may not be amiss to mention further distinctions. As we
+    may distinguish in teaching three essentials, namely, the matter,
+    the method, and the teacher, so there is a corresponding triple
+    freedom of teaching. If we regard the matter, we meet with the
+    demand, that no one be excluded in an unjust way from exercising
+    his right to teach, that no single party should have the monopoly
+    of teaching: the right to found free universities also belongs
+    here. It is part of the freedom of teaching. As it has relation to
+    the state, we shall return to this point later on. A second
+    freedom, which might be called methodological, concerns the choice
+    of the method. This is naturally subject to considerable
+    restraint; not only because the academic teacher may frequently
+    have to get along without desirable paraphernalia, but also
+    because of the commission he receives with his appointment,
+    wherein his field and scope are prescribed. This is necessary for
+    the purpose of the university; the students are to acquire the
+    varied knowledge needed later on in their vocations of clergyman,
+    lawyer, teacher, or physician. There is frequent complaint that
+    this freedom in method is abused to a certain extent, that the
+    students are taught many fragments of science with thoroughness,
+    but too little of that which they actually need later on; they are
+    trained too much for theoretical work and not enough for the
+    practical vocation. Thus there is limitation here, too. But this
+    is not the freedom in teaching which occupies the centre of
+    interest to-day.
+
+
+The trophy for which the battle is waged is the freedom relating to the
+_subject_ of teaching; we shall term it "doctrinal" freedom in teaching:
+Shall the representative of science be permitted to promulgate any view he
+has formed? Even if that view conflicts with general religious or moral
+convictions, with the social order? Or must this freedom be curbed? This
+is the question.(19)
+
+Obviously, teaching need not always be done _verbally_, it can be done
+also by _writing_. The professor lectures in the classrooms, but he may
+also expound his theories in books; this latter the private scholar may
+also do. In this way _Plato_ and _Aristotle_ and the Fathers are still
+teaching by their writings, though their lips have long been silent. True,
+this way of teaching has not the force of the spoken word, vibrating with
+personal conviction, but it reaches farther out, with telling effect upon
+masses and remote circles. Thus, freedom in teaching includes also the
+freedom to print and publish scientific theories, hence it includes part
+of the _freedom of the press_; in its full meaning, however, the freedom
+of the press relates also to unscientific periodicals, especially
+newspapers.
+
+A counterpart to the freedom in teaching is presented by the _freedom in
+learning_. It concerns the student, and may consist of the right granted
+to the "academic citizen" to choose at his discretion, but within the
+restrictions set by his studies, his university, his teachers, and his
+curriculum.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter I. Freedom Of Teaching And Ethics.
+
+
+Now for a closer examination of the problem of freedom of teaching, from
+the point of _general ethics_, not of law. This is an important
+distinction, not seldom overlooked. The former point of view deals with
+freedom in teaching only in as far as regulated or circumscribed by
+ethical principles, by the moral principles of conscience, without regard
+to state-laws or other positive rules. The freedom in teaching as
+determined by governmental decrees may be called freedom of teaching by
+state-right. It may happen that the state does not prohibit the
+dissemination of doctrines which may be forbidden by reason and
+conscience, for instance, atheistical doctrine. There may be immoral
+products of art not prohibited by the state; yet ethics cannot grant
+license to pornography. The state grants the liberty of changing from one
+creed to another, or of declaring one's self an atheist; yet this does not
+justify the act before the conscience. The statutes do not forbid
+everything that is morally impermissible; their aim is directed only at
+offences against the good of the commonwealth. Moreover, even such
+offences may not be prohibited by statute, for the simple reason that the
+enactment of such laws may be impossible on account of the complexion of
+legislative bodies, or because of other conditions.
+
+We will now take the ethical position and try to judge the freedom of
+teaching from this point of view. First of all, we shall have to explain
+the _social character_ of teaching and the _responsibility_ attached
+thereto. We start again with the meaning of freedom of teaching. It
+demands that the communication of scientific opinions should not be
+restrained in unwarranted manner. "In unwarranted manner"; because,
+manifestly, not all bars are to be removed; no one will assert that a man
+may teach things he knows to be false. Every activity, including
+scientific activity, must conform to truth and morals. Hence there is only
+the question to determine, when is freedom in teaching morally
+reprehensible, and when not; which are the bars that must not be
+transgressed, and which bars may be disregarded? Is it allowed or not to
+teach any opinion, if the teacher subjectively believes it to be true?
+Here the views differ. However, one thing at present is clear:
+
+
+
+Freedom of Teaching is Necessary.
+
+
+Also in respect to method. Even the teacher in public and grammar schools,
+though minutely guided by the plan of instruction, must be granted, by the
+demands of pedagogy, a certain liberty; he should be free to arrange and
+to try many things. Only where individual spontaneity is given play will
+love for work be aroused, which in turn stimulates devotion to the cause
+and makes for success. This applies with even greater force to the
+college-professor, in respect to method, course of instruction, subject,
+and the results of his research. He must be free to communicate them,
+without consideration for unwarranted prejudices, or for private and party
+interests.
+
+If the scientist were condemned to do nothing but repeat the old things,
+without change and variance, without improvement and correction, without
+new additions and discoveries, all alertness and impulse would disappear;
+but his alacrity and ardour will increase, if allowed to contribute to
+progress, if assured beforehand of publicity for the new solutions he
+hopes to find, if allowed to promulgate new discoveries.
+
+This freedom is demanded, even more imperatively, by the vocation of
+science to work for the progress of mankind, primarily for the
+intellectual and through this for the general progress. The demand in
+behalf of the individual is even more urgent in behalf of science at
+large: no standing still, ever onward to new knowledge and the enrichment
+of the mind, to moral uplift, to a beautifying of life--and ultimately to
+the glorification of God! For, verily, the purpose of the whole universe
+is the glory of the Creator. Glory is given to Him by the world of stars,
+as they speed through space, conforming to His laws; glory is given to Him
+by the dewdrop, as it reflects the rays of the morning sun; glory is given
+to Him by the butterfly, as it unfolds the brilliancy of colours received
+from His hand. The chief glory of all is given to Him by the
+reason-endowed human mind, developing its powers ever more fully, the
+crowning achievement of visible creation, wherein God's wisdom reflects
+brighter than the sun in the morning-dew. And for this is needed the
+freedom of scientific progress, which would be impossible without a
+freedom in teaching.
+
+
+    And this applies not only to fixed conclusions; it must also be
+    permitted, within admissible bounds, to teach scientific
+    _hypotheses_. Science needs them for its progress; they are the
+    buds that burst forth into blossoms. Had men like _Copernicus_,
+    _Newton_, _Huygens_, not been free to propound their hypotheses,
+    the sun would still revolve around the earth, we still would have
+    _Ptolemy's_ revolution of the spheres, and the results of optical
+    science would be denied us.
+
+
+
+A Twofold Freedom of Teaching and Its Presumption.
+
+
+There cannot be any doubt that science must have freedom in teaching. But
+of what kind? One that is necessary and suitable. Yes, but what kind of
+freedom is that? Here is the crux of the question. Now we are again at the
+boundary line where we stood, when defining the freedom of science in
+general, at the parting of the ways of two contrary conceptions of man.
+
+One is the Christian idea, and also that of unbiassed reason. Man is a
+limited creature, depending on God, on truth and moral law, at the same
+time dependent on social life, hence also dependent on social order and
+authority; consequently he cannot claim independence, but only the freedom
+compatible with his position. Therefore the barriers demanded by truth and
+by the duty of belief are set to his research; hence his freedom in
+teaching can only be the one permitted by his social position; personal
+perception of truth _and_ consideration for the welfare of mankind will be
+the barriers of this freedom.
+
+This view is opposed by another, claiming full independence for both
+research and teaching, a claim prompted by the modern philosophy of _free
+humanity_, which sees in man an autonomous being, who needs only follow
+the immanent impulses of his own individuality; and this especially in
+that activity which is deemed the most perfect, the pursuit of science:
+this hypostatized collective-being of the highest human pursuit is also to
+be the supreme bearer of autonomism. As a matter of course this results in
+the claim for unlimited freedom in teaching, a freedom we shall term
+_liberal_: in communicating his scientific view the scientist need merely
+be guided by his perception of truth, without any considerations for
+external authorities or interests, provided his communication is a
+scientific one, viz., observing the usual form of scientific teaching.
+This latter limitation is usually added, because this freedom is to apply
+to the teaching of _science_ only; to the popular presentation of
+scientific views, appealing directly to the masses, such a freedom is not
+always conceded.
+
+
+    "Research," we are told, "demands full freedom, with no other
+    barrier but its own desire for truth, hence the academic teacher
+    who teaches in the capacity of an investigator is likewise not to
+    know any barriers but his inner truthfulness and propriety." "In
+    this sense we demand to-day freedom in teaching for our
+    universities. The freedom of the scientist and of the academic
+    teacher must not be constrained by any patented truth, nor by
+    faint-hearted consideration. We let the word of the Bible comfort
+    us: 'if this doctrine is of God, it will endure; if not, it will
+    pass away' " (_Kaufmann_). Whatever the academic teacher produces
+    from his subjective veracity must be inviolable; he may proclaim
+    it as truth, regardless of consequences. "The searching
+    scientist," so says another, "must consider only the one question:
+    What is truth? But inasmuch as there cannot be research without
+    communication(?), we must go a step further: the teaching, too,
+    must not be restricted. The scientific writer has to heed but one
+    consideration: How can I present the things exactly as I perceive
+    them, in the clearest and most precise manner?" (_Paulsen_).
+    "Scientific research and the communication of its results must,
+    conformable to its purpose, be independent of any consideration
+    not innate in the scientific method itself,--hence independent of
+    the traditions and prejudices of the masses, independent of
+    authorities and social groups, independent of interested parties.
+    That this independence is indispensable needs no demonstration."
+    "Nor can any limitation of the freedom of research and teaching be
+    deduced from the official position of the scientist or teacher"
+    (_Von Amira_). Just as soon as he begins his research according to
+    scientific method, _i.e._, adapts his thoughts to scientific
+    rules, customs, and postulates, he may question Christianity, God,
+    everything; neither state nor Church must object, no matter if
+    thousands are led astray.
+
+
+This freedom is pre-eminently claimed for philosophical and religious
+thought, for ideas relating to views of the world and the foundations of
+social order; because only in this province is absolute freedom of
+teaching likely to be seriously refused. In mathematics and the natural
+sciences, in philology and kindred sciences, there is hardly occasion for
+it; there only petty disputes occur, differences among competitors, things
+that do not reach beyond the precinct of the learned fraternity. Whether
+one is for or against the theory of three-dimensional space, for or
+against the theory of ions and the like, all that touches very little on
+the vital questions of mankind; but the case is quite different when it
+comes to publicly advocating the abolition of private property, to the
+preaching of polygamy: it is here where great clashes threaten. Here,
+also, there enter into the plan the social powers, whose duty it is to
+shield the highest possessions of human society against wanton attack.
+Nevertheless the demand is for unlimited freedom in teaching. What, then,
+are the arguments used in giving to this exceptional claim the semblance
+of justification? This shall be the first question.
+
+
+
+Unlimited Freedom in Teaching not Demanded.
+
+
+1. Not by Veracity.
+
+
+Veracity is appealed to first; it obligates the teacher, so it is said, to
+announce his own convictions unreservedly, for to "deny one's own
+convictions would offend against one of the most positive principles of
+morals"; hence the academic teacher could not grant to the state the right
+to set a barrier in this respect, "it would be a violation of the duty of
+veracity, which is innate to the teacher's office" (_Von Amira_).
+
+Was it realized in making this claim what the duty of truthfulness really
+demands? This duty is complied with when one is not untruthful, that is to
+say, does not state something to be his opinion when secretly he believes
+the contrary to be true; to force him to do this would of course be
+instigating untruthfulness. Truthfulness, however, does not require any
+one to speak out publicly what he thinks; one may be silent. Or is
+cautious silence untruthfulness? It is oftentimes prudence, but not
+untruthfulness. There is a considerable difference between thinking and
+communicating thought, even to the scientist.
+
+Or is the scientist _obliged_, for instance, to proclaim publicly views he
+has formed contrary to the prevailing principles of morals,--views he calls
+the "results of his research," so that mankind at last may learn the
+truth? Was _Nietzsche_ in duty bound to proclaim to the wide world his
+revolutionary ideas? Any sober-minded man might have told him he need not
+worry about this duty. Has the teacher of science this duty? How will he
+prove it? How are they going to prove that it is incumbent upon an
+atheistic college-professor to teach his atheism also to others? Or, must
+he teach that the fundamental principles of Christian marriage are
+untenable, if this has become his personal opinion? Is it, perhaps,
+impossible for him to refrain from such teaching in the lectures he is
+appointed to give? This view will mostly prove a delusion. A conscientious
+examination of his opinion would convince him that he, too, had better
+abandon it, since it is merely an aberration of his mind. But let us
+assume that he could neither correct his views nor refrain from
+proclaiming them, that he would declare: "I should lie if, in discussing
+the question in how far this or that public institution is morally
+sanctioned, I were to halt before certain institutions; for instance if,
+having the moral conviction that monarchy is a morally objectionable
+institution, I omitted to say so" (_Th. Lipps_).
+
+Well, he has the option to change his branch of teaching, or to resign his
+office; he is not indispensable, no one forces him to retain his office.
+Indeed, he owes it to _truthfulness_ to leave his post the very instant he
+finds he is not able to occupy it in a beneficial way; he owes it to
+_honesty_ to yield his position, if he has lost the proper relation to
+religion, state, and the people, to whom his position is to render
+service.
+
+
+2. Not the Duty of Science.
+
+
+"Nevertheless," we are told, "the representatives of science have the duty
+of freely communicating their opinions; they are called by people and
+state to find the truth for the great multitude, that is not itself in the
+position to pursue laborious research. Where else could it get the truth
+but from science?" "The multitude participates in truth generally in a
+receptive, passive manner; only a few pre-eminent minds are destined by
+nature to be the dispensers and promoters of knowledge" (_Paulsen_), and
+with this vocation of science a restriction of its freedom of speech would
+be incompatible.
+
+The idea has something enticing about it. It also has its justification,
+if the matter at issue concerns things outside of the common scope of
+human knowledge, such as the more precise research of nature, of history,
+and so on. But the idea is not warranted when applied to the higher
+questions of human life. Here it is based on the false premise that man
+cannot arrive at the certain possession of truth without scientific
+research. We have demonstrated previously how this notion involves a total
+misconception of the nature of human thought.
+
+
+    There is, beside the scientific certainty, another true certainty,
+    a natural certainty, the only one we have in most matters, and a
+    safe guide to mankind especially in higher questions, nay, in
+    general much safer than science, which, as proved by history, goes
+    easily astray in such matters. Long before there was a science,
+    mankind possessed the truth about the principles of life; and it
+    possesses this truth still, through common sense and, even more,
+    through divine revelation, which offers enlightenment to every one
+    regardless of science. Here apply the words of the poet:
+
+    "Das Wahre ist schon laengst gefunden
+    Hat edle Geisterschaar verbunden
+    Das alte Wahre, fasst es an!"
+
+
+Nevertheless, it is claimed, science remains the sole guide to truth and
+progress. Must not truth be searched for and struggled for always anew?
+There are no patented truths for all times--each age must sketch its own
+image of the world, must form new values. And it is for science to point
+out these new roads. Therefore, full swing for its doctrines. "Science
+knows not of statutes of limitations or prescription, hence of no
+absolutely established possession. Consequently real, scientific,
+instruction can only mean absolutely free instruction" (_Paulsen_). We may
+be brief. Every line bears the imprint of that sceptical subjectivism
+which we have met so often as the philosophical presumption of modern
+freedom of science. It is the wisdom of ancient sophistry, which even
+Aristotle stigmatized as a "sham-science," "a running after something that
+invariably slips away." A freedom in teaching with such a theory of
+cognition can never be a factor of mental progress, least of all when it
+seeks to rise above a God-given, Christian truth to "higher" forms of
+religion. This, however, is often the very progress for which freedom in
+teaching is intended--the unhindered propagation of an anti-Christian view
+of the world.
+
+
+3. No Innate Right.
+
+
+Very well, we are told, leave aside the appeal to the province of science;
+but it cannot be denied that man has at least an innate right of
+communicating his thoughts in the freest manner. The first right of the
+human individual, a right which must not be curtailed in any way, is his
+right to free development according to his inner laws, provided the
+freedom of the fellow-man is not thereby injured. Hence every man has the
+right of freely uttering his opinion, in science especially, because the
+free right of others is thereby not infringed upon in any matter
+whatsoever.
+
+This is the claim. It is again rooted in the autonomy of the human
+subject, the main idea of the liberal view of life, and, at the same time,
+the principal presumption of its freedom of science. It leads to the
+_individualistic theory of rights_, which declares freedom to be man's
+self-sufficient object, viz., freedom in all things regardless of the weal
+and woe of others, no matter if the sequel be error, scandal, or
+seduction, if only the strict right to freedom be not violated.
+
+
+    "Act outwardly so," says the philosophic preceptor of autonomism,
+    "that the free use of thy free will may be consistent with the
+    liberty of others according to a general law." "This liberty,"
+    continues _Kant_, "is the sole, original right of every man by
+    virtue of his humanity." And _Spencer_ concurrently teaches:
+    "Every one is free to do what he wants, as long as he does not
+    infringe upon the liberty of others."
+
+    This is termed the "Maxim of Co-existence." Accordingly any one
+    may say and write anything at will, no matter if people are led
+    astray by his errors. Even the government must in no way limit
+    this freedom, except where rights are violated; to defend religion
+    and morals against attacks, to guard innocence and inexperience
+    against seduction, is, according to this theory, not allowed to
+    the state. _W. von Humboldt_ writes: "He who utters things or
+    commits actions, offending the conscience or the morals of other
+    people, may act immorally: but unless he is guilty of
+    obtrusiveness, he does not injure any right." Hence the state must
+    not interfere. "Even the assuredly graver case, when the
+    witnessing of an action, the listening to certain reasoning, would
+    mislead the virtue or the thought of others, even this case would
+    not permit restraint of freedom."
+
+
+We are dealing here with that misconception of the social nature of man
+which has always characterized liberalism. It knows only of the right and
+liberty of the individual; of his duties to society it knows nothing, not
+even that men should not injure the possessions of others, but rather
+promote them; nor does it know that men are placed in a society that
+requires the free will of the individual to yield to the common weal of
+the many. To liberal thought human society is only an accidental
+aggregation of individuals, not connected by social unity. The autonomous
+spheres of the single individuals are rolling side by side, each one for
+itself: wherever it pleases them to roll, there they are carried by the
+autonomous centre of gravity, whatever they upset in their career has no
+right to complain. This principle of freedom was given free rein in the
+economical legislation of the nineteenth century. Free enterprise, free
+development of energy, was the rallying cry; the result was devastation
+and wreckage.
+
+
+
+Unrestricted Freedom of Teaching Inadmissible.
+
+
+Hence the claim for absolute freedom in teaching is not warranted; on the
+contrary, its chief arguments are borrowed from a philosophy that is
+unacceptable to the Christian mind. Is it even admissible? Though not
+warranted, is it permissible at least from the viewpoint of ethics? It is
+not even this. The claim is ethically inadmissible, because the
+_religious, moral, and social_ institutions, especially the _Christian
+faith_ and the Christian morals of mankind, would be seriously injured. In
+other words: The claim that it is permissible to proclaim scientific
+theories which are apt to do great _damage_ to the foundations of
+religious, moral, and social life, especially to Christian conviction and
+morals, is ethically reprehensible.
+
+A few remarks in explanation. We merely speak here of the freedom in
+teaching relating to the philosophical-religious foundations of life; that
+it cannot be the subject of serious objection in other matters we have
+previously mentioned. Nor do we yet inquire what social powers should fix
+the needed limitations, whether state or Church should regulate them; we
+are merely investigating, from the viewpoint of ethics, what barriers are
+set by the law of reason, and would have to be set even in the absence of
+state laws, because of the important influence exercised by scientific
+doctrine upon the social life--the social welfare of mankind is the
+consideration beside the truth that is decisive in considering freedom in
+teaching.
+
+The teacher or writer may himself be of the opinion that his pernicious
+errors are not dangerous; he may fancy them even of utmost importance to
+the world; hence he thinks he has the right, even the duty, to communicate
+them to the world. And do we not hear them all assure us that they desire
+only the truth? We do not wish to sit in judgment on the good faith of
+them individually; we make no comment when a man like _D. F. Strauss_,
+looking back upon the forty years of his career as a writer, vouches for
+his unwavering and pure aim for truth; and when even _Haeckel_ asserts
+this of himself. Every fallacy has made its appearance with this avowal.
+
+
+    But, by way of parenthesis, there is no reason to boast in a
+    general way of the sincere aim at truth and the pure mind for the
+    ideal, alleged to prevail in the modern literature of our times,
+    especially in philosophical literature. He who stands upon
+    Christian ground knows that the denial of a personal God, of
+    immortality and other matters, are errors of gravest consequence.
+    Furthermore, if one is convinced of the capability of man to
+    recognize the truth, at least in the most important matters, and
+    if one knows that God has made His Revelation the greatest
+    manifestation in history, and proved it sufficiently by
+    documents--indeed, had to prove it; that He will let all who are of
+    good will come to the knowledge of the truth; then it remains
+    incomprehensible how modern philosophy considered as a whole is
+    said on the one hand to be guided by a sincere desire for truth,
+    while on the other hand it clings with hopeless obstinacy to the
+    most radical errors.
+
+    Such talk of general sincere searching for truth is apt to deceive
+    the inexperienced. He who has obtained a deeper insight into
+    modern philosophy, he who steadily watches it at work, will recall
+    to mind only too often the word of the Holy Ghost: "For there
+    shall be a time when they will not endure sound doctrine, but
+    according to their own desires shall they heap to themselves
+    teachers ... and will indeed turn away their hearing from the
+    truth and shall be turned unto fables" (2 Tim. iv. 3).
+
+
+Even if the teacher is himself convinced of the truth and inoffensiveness
+of his theory, it does not follow by any means that society is obliged to
+receive it. Indeed not. The state prohibits cults dangerous to the common
+weal: it does not intend to suffer damage just because the adherents of
+such cults may be in good faith. And if some one thinks himself called to
+deliver a people from its legitimate ruler, let it be undecided whether
+his purpose is good or not, he will nevertheless be restrained by rather
+drastic means from proceeding according to his idea. This proves that the
+principle of "no barrier but one's own veracity" is not conceded in
+practical life. The teacher and author, this is the sense of our thesis,
+must ever be conscious of the grave responsibility of science, against
+whose power the unscientific are so often defenceless; his great duty will
+be to make use of this power with utmost compunction, to teach nothing
+whereof he is not fully convinced, nor to announce for truth anything he
+is still investigating.
+
+As we turn to the demonstration of our proposition, a start from the
+_definition of scientific teaching_ suggests itself; manifestly this must
+be decisive for the measure of its freedom. No doubt, its purpose
+obviously is: to promote the weal of mankind by communicating the truth,
+by guarding men against errors, especially against those which would most
+harm them, by elevating and increasing the blessings of this life: for
+knowledge guides man in all his steps, it is the light on his way.
+
+Science is not self-sufficient. It is an equally false and pernicious
+notion to make science a sovereign authority, throning above man, who must
+pay homage, and subordinate his interests to it, but which he must not ask
+to serve him for his own ends in life. There are such notions of science
+and also of art. Art, too, it is sometimes claimed, should serve its own
+ends only; the demand, that it should edify, or promote the ideals of
+society, is deemed a desertion of its purposes, "the furtherance of
+worldly or heavenly ideals may be eliminated from its task" (_E. von
+Hartmann_). These are the excrescences of unclarified cultural thoughts.
+Since man and his culture is more and more replacing the divine Ideal,
+this culture itself has grown to be the overshadowing ideal of the Deity,
+without whom evidently man cannot live. The Egyptians worshipped Sun and
+Moon; modern man often burns incense before the products of his own mind.
+It is a reversal of the right proportion. Science and its doctrine are
+activities of life, results of the human mind. Activities of life,
+however, have man for their end, they are to develop and perfect him: man
+does not exist for the clothes he wears--the clothes exist on account of
+man; the leaves exist for the sake of the tree that puts them forth, nor
+can grapes be of more importance than the vine that has produced them.
+
+Hence, where science does not serve this end, where it in consequence
+becomes not a blessing, but an injury to man, where it tears down, instead
+of building up, there it forfeits the right to exist; it is no longer a
+fruitful bough on the tree of humanity, but a harmful outgrowth. Like
+every organism actively opposes its harmful growths, society, too, must
+not tolerate within its bosom any scientific tendencies which act as
+malign germs, perhaps attack its very marrow.
+
+From the true object of science, as above stated, it follows that it is
+wrong to disseminate doctrines that are apt to injure mankind in the
+possession of the truth, which may even imperil the authenticated
+foundations of life. For nobody will deny that firm foundations are needed
+to uphold and support the highest ideals of life; they can no more
+withstand a constant jarring and shaking than can a house of frame and
+stone. Such foundations are, first of all, the moral and religious truths
+and convictions about the Whence and Whither of human life, about God and
+the hereafter, the social duties toward the fellow-man, obedience to
+authority, and so on. If man is to perform burdensome duties as husband
+and father, if, as a citizen, he is to do justice to others and yield in
+obedience to authority, he must have powerful motives; else his impulses
+will take the helm, the sensible, moral being becomes a sensual being who
+reverses the order and drives the ship of life towards the cataract of
+ethical and social revolution. And these motives must rest deeply in the
+mind, like the foundation that supports the house; they must become
+identified with it, as the vital principle penetrates the tree, as the
+instinct of the animal is part of its innermost being. If new notions are
+continually whizzing without resistance through the mind, like the wind
+over the fields, repose and permanence are impossible in human life. To
+jolt the foundations invites collapse and ruin.
+
+It is the duty of self-preservation, for which every being strives, that
+society guard these foundations of order against subversion and capricious
+experimentation. Of the Locrians it is told that any one desiring to offer
+a resolution for changing existing laws, was required to appear at the
+public meeting with a rope around his neck. He was hanged with it if he
+failed to win his fellow-citizens over to his view. This custom pictures
+the necessity of erecting a powerful dam against the inundation by illicit
+mental tidal waves, that endanger the stability of the order of life.
+This, of course, does not oppose every new progress. In building a house,
+firm foundations do not prevent the house from growing in size; but the
+foundations are a necessary preliminary to a suitable construction. Under
+no circumstances must a man be permitted, in his individualistic mania for
+reform, to lay an impious hand at the fundamental principles of life; and
+the scientist must bear in mind the fact that it is not the task and
+privilege of his individualistic reason to put the seal of approval on
+these principles as if the truth had never before been discovered.
+
+To _Christian_ nations the immutable truths of Christianity are these safe
+foundations. They are vouched for by divine authority, they have stood all
+historical tests of fitness; they sustain the institutions of family and
+of government, they determine thought, education, the ideas of right and
+wrong--a venerable patrimony of the nations. Shall every _Nietzsche_, big
+or little, be free to attack them? Experiments may be made with rabbits,
+flowers, or drugs; but it would violate the first principle of prudence
+and justice to allow every Tom, Dick, and Harry, who may have the
+neological itch, to experiment on the highest institutions of mankind.
+
+_Primum non nocere_ is an old caution to the physician; for many medical
+practitioners and surgeons not an untimely admonition. It is asserted, and
+vouched for by proof, that patients are made the subjects of experiment
+for purposes of science; not, indeed, rich people, but the poor in
+hospitals and clinics (comp. _A. Moll_, Arztliche Ethik, 1902). Every
+conscientious physician will turn with moral abhorrence from such action.
+Indeed, man and his greatest possession, life, is not to be made the
+victim of scientific experiment. If this holds good as to the physical
+things of life, then how much more of the ideal things of mankind!
+
+
+
+"Every One to Form His Own Judgment"?
+
+
+But, then, cannot every one decide for himself as to the teachings of
+science, and reject whatever he thinks to be false? Then would be avoided
+all damage that might result from a freedom in teaching. Science does not
+force its opinion upon any one. With due respect for the discernment of
+its disciples, science lays its results before them, leaving it to them to
+judge and choose, whatever they think is good.
+
+Such words voice the optimism of an inexperienced idealism. To be sure,
+were the devotee to science, be he a student at a university or a reader
+of scientific works, a clear-sighted diagnostician, who could at once
+perceive error, and, moreover, if he were a mathematical entity, without
+personal interest in the matter, the argument might be listened to. But
+any one past the immaturity of youth, he, especially, who has earnestly
+commenced to know himself, is aware that unfortunately the opposite is the
+case.
+
+First the lack of ability to _distinguish error from truth_. Even when
+recognized, error is not without danger; it shares with truth the property
+to act suggestively, especially when it repeatedly and with assurance
+approaches the mind. And often error does pose with great assurance, as
+the result of science, as the conclusion of the superior mind of the
+teacher, perhaps of a famous teacher! It is taken for granted that
+whatever serious men assert in the name of science must be right; or, if
+not that, there is the overawing feeling that there must be some
+justification for the confidence of the assertion. Authority impresses
+even without argument, and impresses the more strongly, the less there is
+of intellectual independence. The latter is at lowest ebb at the youthful
+age. That which in hypnotic suggestion is intensified into the morbid: the
+effective psychical transfer of one's own thought into some one else,
+occurs in a lesser form through the influence of the morbid scepsis of our
+times; it is a poisonous atmosphere, affecting imperceptively the
+susceptible mind which remains long in it.
+
+
+    For this reason the religious savant, who has to do a great deal
+    with infidel books, must be on his watch incessantly, even though
+    he has the knowledge and the intellect to detect wrong
+    conclusions. Thus we find that great scholars often display a
+    striking fear of irreligious books. Of Cardinal _Mai_ it is told:
+    "He said--and this we can vouch for--'I have the permission to read
+    forbidden books; but I never make use of it nor do I intend to do
+    so' " (_Hilger_, Der Index, 1905, 41).
+
+    The learned _L. A. Muratori_ wrote a refutation of a heretic book.
+    In the preface he thought it necessary to apologize for having
+    read the book. He said: "The book got into my hands very late, and
+    for a long time I could not get myself to read it. For why should
+    one read the writings of innovators except to commit one's self to
+    their folly? I seek and like books which confirm my faith, but not
+    those which would lead me away from my religion. But when I heard
+    that the book was circulated in Italy, I resolved to muster up my
+    strength for the defence of truth and religion, and for the safety
+    of my brethren."
+
+    _Saint Francis of Sales_, with touching simplicity, gives in his
+    writings praise to God for having preserved him from losing his
+    faith through the reading of heretical books. Of the learned
+    Spanish philosopher _Balmes_ is preserved a saying that he once
+    addressed to two of his friends: "You know, the faith is deeply
+    rooted in my heart. Nevertheless, I cannot read a fallacious book
+    without feeling the necessity of regaining the right mood by
+    reading Holy Writ, the Imitation of Christ, and the writings of
+    blessed _Louis of Granada_."
+
+
+What then must happen when the needed training is lacking? when one easily
+grasps the objections to the truth, but cannot find the answer? when one
+is not in a position to ascertain whether the asserted facts are based on
+truth, whether something important is kept back, whether there are stated
+positive facts, or mere hypotheses, or perhaps even idle suppositions? If
+one is not capable to recognize wrong conclusions, to note the ambiguities
+of words? Our present treatise cites proof of it. How many earnest men,
+who in good faith are the warm advocates of freedom of science, are aware
+how ambiguous that term is; how a whole theory of cognition and view of
+the world is hidden behind it? How many can at once see the ambiguity of
+phrases like "Difference between knowledge and faith," of "experiencing
+one's religion," of "evolution and progress," of "humanism," of "unfolding
+personality"? And of the self-conscious postulate that science cannot
+reckon with supernatural factors, how many perceive that it is nothing but
+an undemonstrated supposition? We are told that all great representatives
+of science reject the Christian view of the world; who knows at once that
+such assertion is untrue? We read that the Copernican theory was condemned
+by Rome, even prohibited up to 1835, and this cannot fail to make an
+impression; but the part omitted in the story, who will at once supplement
+or even suspect it?
+
+Then there is the great _want of philosophical training_. Formerly a
+thorough philosophical education was the indispensable condition for
+maturity, and considered the indispensable foundation for higher studies.
+All this has changed; frequently there is not even the desire for
+philosophical training. Of course, modern philosophy in its present state
+does not promise much of benefit. "Students of medicine and law remain for
+the larger part without any philosophical education, and among those of
+the other two faculties but few students do better than come into a more
+or less superficial touch with philosophy" (_Paulsen_). The consequence
+is, they cannot scientifically get their bearings in respect to ultimate
+questions, and easily lose their faith, succumbing to errors and sophisms.
+
+Imagine a young man, untrained; in books, in the lecture room, in his
+intercourse, everywhere, he is courted by a disbelieving science, with its
+theories, its objections, its doubts,--tension everywhere that is not
+relieved, accusations that are not explained; how is he to bring with a
+steady hand order in all this? To clinch it, he hears the obtrusive
+exhortation to form forthwith his own conviction by his own reasoning!
+
+
+    He is, moreover, likely to be informed as follows: "The university
+    is a place for mental struggle, for incessant investigation of
+    inherited opinions. For years and years the student was fed with
+    prescribed matter which he had to swallow believingly, ... at last
+    the moment has arrived when he can choose and decide for himself.
+    True, this freedom of mental choice--and it is the essence of
+    academic freedom--has also its anguish. But how magnificent it is,
+    on the other hand, when the gloomy walls of the classroom vanish,
+    and the bright ether of research dawns into view with its wide
+    horizon! He who cannot grasp and enjoy this moment in its grandeur
+    and exquisiteness, he who prefers to the free life of the colt on
+    the vast prairies the dull existence in a narrow fold ... he has
+    taken the wrong road when he came to the gates of the Alma Mater
+    to study worldly science--he should have remained at the restful
+    hearth of the pious, parental home, in the shadow of the old
+    village-church" (_Jodl_).
+
+
+What a lack of earnestness and of knowledge of man, what lack of the sense
+of responsibility! Of young men, without thorough philosophical and
+theological preparation, it is demanded to doubt at once their Christian
+religion, despite all compunctions of their conscience, and to argue the
+dangerous theses of an anti-Christian view of the world. They are
+expected, as if they were heirs to the wisdom of all centuries, to judge
+and correct forthwith that which their teachers call the result of their
+long studies--for they are not supposed to follow them blindly, they are
+expected to sit in judgment over theological tendencies and philosophical
+systems, and to struggle through doubts and aberrations, untouched by
+error, to display a mental independence which even the man of highest
+learning lacks. Such a knowledge of human nature might be left to itself,
+if the wrecks it causes were not so saddening.
+
+
+    "How terrible is the power of science!" a voice of authority
+    warned a short time ago. "The unlearned are defenceless against
+    the learned, those who know little against those that know much;
+    the unlearned are incapable of independently judging the theories
+    of the learned; error in the garb of knowledge impresses them with
+    the force of truth, especially when it finds an ally in their evil
+    lusts. No wielder of state-power can lay waste, can destroy, as
+    much as an unconscientious, or even merely careless, wielder of
+    the weapons of knowledge. Exalted as is the pursuit of knowledge,
+    and as knowledge itself is if guided by strong moral sentiment and
+    earnest conscience, so degraded it becomes if it tears itself from
+    the self-control of conscience. This fatal rupture will happen the
+    instant science deviates but a hair's breadth from the truth it
+    can vouch for upon conscientious examination.... Sacred is the
+    freedom of science keeping within the bounds of the moral laws;
+    but transgressing them it is no longer science, but a farce staged
+    with scientific technique, a negation of the essence of science"
+    (Count _A. Apponyi_, former Hungarian Minister of Education,
+    officiating at a _Promotio sub auspiciis_, 1908).
+
+    In the year 1877, at the Fiftieth Congress of Natural Scientists
+    in Munich, Prof. _R. Virchow_, founder and leader of the
+    Progressive Party in Germany, sounded a warning to be
+    conscientious in the use of the freedom in teaching, and in the
+    first place, to announce as the result of science nothing but what
+    has been demonstrated beyond doubt: "I am of the opinion that we
+    are actually in danger of jeopardizing the future by making too
+    much use of the freedom offered to us by present conditions, and I
+    would caution not to continue in the arbitrary personal
+    speculation, which spreads itself nowadays in many branches of
+    natural science. We must make rigid distinction between that which
+    we teach and that which is the object of research. The subjects of
+    our research are problems. But a problem should not be made a
+    subject of teaching. In teaching, we have to remain within the
+    small, and yet large domain which we actually control. Any attempt
+    to model our problems into doctrines, to introduce our conjectures
+    as the foundation of education, must fail, especially the attempt
+    to simply depose the Church and to replace its dogma without
+    ceremony by evolutionary religion; indeed, gentlemen, this attempt
+    must fail, but in failing it will carry with it the greatest
+    dangers for science in general.... We must set ourselves the task,
+    in the first place, to hand down the actual, the real knowledge,
+    and, in going further, we must tell our students invariably: This,
+    however, is not proved, it is _my_ opinion, _my_ notion, _my_
+    theory, _my_ speculation.... Gentlemen, I think we would misuse
+    our power, and endanger our power, if in teaching we would not
+    restrict ourselves to this legitimate province."
+
+
+And is nothing known of the inclinations and passions, especially of the
+youthful heart, to which truth is so often a heavy yoke, constraining and
+oppressing them? Will they not try to use every means to relieve the
+tension? Will they not gravitate by themselves to a science that tells
+them the old religion with its oppressive dogmas, its unworldly morals, is
+a stage of evolution long since passed by, and that many other things,
+once called sin by obsolete prejudices, are the justified utterances of
+nature? Will they not worship this science as their liberator? He who once
+said "I am the truth," He was crucified; a sign for all ages. Base nature
+will at all times crucify the truth. _F. Coppee_, a member of the French
+Academy, led back by severe sickness to the faith of his youth, relates
+the following in his confessions: "I was raised a Christian, and fulfilled
+the religious duties with zeal even for some years after my first Holy
+Communion. What made me deviate from my pious habits were, I confess it
+openly, the aberrations of youthful age and the loathing to make certain
+confessions. Quite many who are in the same position will admit, if they
+will be frank, that at the beginning they were estranged from their creed
+by the severe law which religion imposes on all in respect to sensuality,
+and only in later years they felt the want to extenuate and justify the
+transgressions of the moral law by a scientific system." "Having taken the
+first step on the downward road, I could not fail to read books, listen to
+words, see examples, which confirmed my notion that nothing can be more
+warranted but that man obey his pride and his sensuality; and soon I
+became totally indifferent in respect to religion. As will be seen, my
+case is an everyday case."
+
+Only exalted moral purity can keep the mind free from being made captive
+and dragged down by the passions.
+
+In a college town in southern Germany a Catholic Priest some time ago met
+a college girl who belonged to a club of monists. They started upon a
+discussion, and soon the college girl had no argument left. But as a last
+shot she exclaimed, "Well, you cannot prevent me from hating your God."
+
+Prof. _G. Spicker_ relates in his autobiography instructive reminiscences
+of his college years. Religiously trained in his youth, and in his early
+years for some time a Capuchin, he left this Order to go to the
+university. Previous to this he had been led to doubt by the perusal of
+modern philosophical writings, and at Munich he sank still more deeply
+into doubt. Prof. _Huber_ advised him to hear the radical _Prantl_. In his
+dejection he went to a fellow-student in quest of comfort, and received
+the significant advice: "Indeed, _Huber_ is right: you are not a bit of a
+philosopher; you still believe in sin, that is only a theological notion;
+go and hear _Prantl_, he'll rid you of your fancies." Of the impression
+_Prantl's_ lectures made upon the susceptible young students he relates:
+"They were especially overawed by his passionate enthusiasm, his trenchant
+criticism, his sarcastic treatment of everything mediocre and superficial,
+and, chiefly, by his self-conscious, authoritative, demeanor. Like a
+tornado he swept through hazy, obscure regions, whether in science, art,
+poetry, or religion. Even by only attending the lectures one became more
+conscious of one's knowledge and looked down with silent contempt upon
+semi-philosophers and theologians." In regard to himself he admits that a
+few weeks sufficed to destroy the last remnants of his former religious
+persuasion: "_Huber's_ prophecy was completely fulfilled, the last stump
+of my dogmatic belief was smashed into a thousand splinters."
+
+_Vae mundo a scandalis!_ What a responsibility rests especially upon those
+who become the scandal for inexperienced youth!
+
+In the upper classes of a largely Protestant college in northern Germany
+the professor of mathematics, some years ago, asked the question, who
+among the students had read _Haeckel's_ "Weltraetsel." All except four or
+five rose to their feet. Upon his further question, who of them believed
+in what is said in the book, about half of the classroom rose. "The
+immature youth who read the 'Weltraetsel,' " so says _A. Hansen_,
+"unfortunately conclude: '_Haeckel_ says there is no God, therefore we may
+boldly live as it suits our natural immorality....' Is _Haeckel_ the
+strong mind to assume for a long future the responsibility for this
+conclusion?"
+
+One is frightened by the manner the highest ideals of mankind are often
+juggled with, what they dare offer with easy conscience to the tenderest
+youth. Prof. _Forel_ is known by his widely spread book on "The Sexual
+Question," perhaps better known even by his lectures on the subject, which
+some cities prohibited in the interest of public morals. In the seventh
+edition of his book we find published as a testimonial, also as proof of
+the good reading the book makes for early youth, a letter of a young woman
+whose opinion of the book had been requested by the author. Her answer
+reads: "You ask me what impression your book made upon me. I should state
+that I am very young, but have read a great deal. My mother has given me a
+very liberal education, and so I have a right to count myself among the
+unprejudiced girls." She assures the author: "I never thought for a single
+moment that your book was immoral, hence I do not believe that you have
+corrupted me." And such books are offered to young girls as fit reading!
+
+Some years ago a sensation was created when in Berlin a young author,
+twenty-two years of age, _George Scheufler_ by name, killed himself.
+Though of a religious training, he began at an early age to read the
+writings of infidel natural scientists and philosophers. His belief became
+weaker and weaker, and he finally abandoned it entirely. Only a few years
+afterwards, the young man, who had become a writer of repute, put a
+revolver to his heart, nauseated by the world, tortured by religious
+doubts. An organ of modern infidelity commented upon the event in the cold
+words: "The truth is probably that the undoubtedly talented author had not
+nerves strong enough for the Berlin life, hence he dies. May his ashes
+rest in peace!" Heartless words on the misfortune of a poor victim of the
+modern propaganda of disbelief.
+
+Heavy, indeed, is the responsibility courted by representatives of science
+when they sin against the holiest ideals of mankind, especially when they
+induce the maturing youth, with his susceptibilities and awakening
+impulses, to emancipate himself from the belief of his childhood, and to
+tear down the fortifications of innocence! If the teacher is high-minded,
+this cannot mitigate the perniciousness of his teaching, but only increase
+it, neither can the fact that his personal morals are without a flaw
+vindicate him. If a man by strewing poison does no harm to himself, this
+does not give him the right to injure others. If science demands the
+privilege of assuming the mental education of our people, then science
+assumes also the duty of administering these interests conscientiously,
+and the gravest responsibility will rest upon him in whose hand science
+spreads ruin.
+
+
+
+"Knowledge does no Harm"?
+
+
+"The increase and spread of knowledge" (this is a further objection) "can
+never harm society, only benefit its interests" (_Von Amira_). Hence, do
+not get alarmed: nothing is to be feared from science. The apostles of the
+enlightened eighteenth century tried to quiet their age with similar
+assertions. "It is not true," says _Lessing_, "that speculations about God
+and divine things have ever done harm to society; not the speculations did
+it--but the folly and tyranny to forbid them."
+
+If this were amended to read _true_ knowledge can never do harm, then the
+mind might be set at rest, although even then it might become dangerous to
+teach the truth without discrimination or caution. Not all are ripe for
+every truth: truth can often be misunderstood, lead to false conclusions.
+Thus, it may become certain, perhaps, that a much-worshipped relic, a
+much-visited shrine, is not genuine: nevertheless in giving such
+explanation to simple, pious people one would have to display caution in
+order to keep them from doubting even the tenets of the creed.
+
+But there is also false knowledge; can this "never do harm but only
+benefit?" Will all knowledge exert the same influence, whether the
+Christian tenets of love and mercy, or _Nietzsche's_ moral for the
+wealthy, whether young people are given to read Christian books, or those
+of _Haeckel_, _Buechner_, and _Strauss_? The story is told of _Voltaire_,
+that he sent all servants out of the room when he had friends for guests
+and philosophical discussions started at the dining-table, because he did
+not wish to have his throat cut the next night. So this free-thinker, too,
+did not think that all knowledge is beneficial.
+
+But, we are further assured, let science peacefully pursue its way; if it
+should err it will correct itself.
+
+It is true, sciences of obvious subjects, that have no direct relation to
+moral conduct of life, do, sooner or later, correct their mistakes; recent
+physics has corrected the mistakes of the physics of past ages; historical
+errors, too, are disappearing with the times. Quite different is the
+matter when philosophical-religious questions are at issue. Pantheism,
+subjectivism, "scientific" rejection of faith, are errors, grave errors,
+yet it does not follow that they will fall of themselves into desuetude;
+they may prevail for a long time, may return with the regularity of
+certain diseases. Their error is not tangible, and the desires of the
+heart incline to them by the law of least resistance. From the earliest
+ages to this day the same philosophical errors have returned, in varied
+form.
+
+But let us assume that this would be the case; that these errors, too,
+would disappear after some time, disappear for good. Is it demanded that
+the errors in the meanwhile ought to have free play? Shall the surgeon be
+allowed to perform risky experiments on the patient, because later on he
+will realize that his act was objectionable? Will the father hand to his
+son an improper book, consoling himself that truth must prevail in the
+end, even though defeated temporarily?
+
+These are delusions of the abstract intellectualism of our times, which
+sees all salvation and human perfection merely in learning and knowledge,
+and forgets that knowledge signifies education and benefit for mankind
+only when attached to truth and moral order. Not knowledge, but knowledge
+of the truth, and moral dignity, make for civilization and perfection;
+knowledge no longer controlled by truth and ethics becomes the hireling of
+the low passions, and fights for their freedom.
+
+
+
+"The Vehicle of Truth."
+
+
+Back of the urgent demands for unrestricted freedom in teaching stands
+invariably a thought that operates with palsying effect upon the minds: to
+wit, that science is the embodiment of truth, a genius carrying the
+unextinguishable beacon of light: to silence it would be to resist the
+truth.
+
+Our first thought when we began our dissertation of the Freedom of Science
+was, that science is not the poetical being so often described: it is an
+individual activity, a product of the human mind, sharing its defects and
+weaknesses. For this reason science is not the infallible bearer of the
+truth; least of all in the higher questions of life, where its eyes are
+dimmed, and where inclinations of the heart still further obscure its
+strength of vision. And this is admitted, even to the point of despairing
+of the ability to find the truth on these questions, and if one is not
+ready to admit this, the fact is made apparent by a glance at the
+countless errors exhibited in the history of human thinking.
+
+Is error to have the same right that truth has? If wholesome beverage may
+rightly be offered to anybody, can, with the same right, poison be given?
+May one follow his false sense of truth, calling it science, and teach
+anything he thinks right?
+
+Moreover, is not this science, which, according to its exponents, need not
+regard anything but its own method, entirely a _special kind of science_?
+Indeed it is, as we have learned to know it. We have learned to know this
+free science, with its autonomous subjectivism, that shapes its changing
+views according to personal experience; this feeble but proud scepticism;
+we have learned of those ominous imperatives, that banish everything
+divine from the horizon of knowledge--a science with its torch turned
+upside down. And its aim--negation. The beautiful thought is frequently
+expressed that science, especially the science of our universities, is to
+act as the leader in the mental life of the nation, "a universal
+Parliament of science, which would represent the authoritative power so
+urgently needed by our discordant and sceptical age, an age that has lost
+faith in authority."
+
+The idea is beautiful, it is sublime; it coincides with a conception of
+the divine Spirit, who has already realized it, though, it is true, in
+another manner. The divine Spirit has founded in the bosom of mankind such
+a centre of mental life; namely, the Church. She, and only she, bears all
+the marks of the universal teacher of truth. By virtue of divine aid the
+Church alone has the prerogative of infallibility, as necessary to the
+teacher of the nations; human philosophy is not infallible, least of all a
+science that despairs of the highest truth, nay, that often deals with it
+as the cat does with the mouse. A teacher of the nations must possess
+unity of doctrine. The Church has this unity, her view of the world stands
+before us in perfect concord; while discord reigns in the philosophy of a
+free mankind, one thought opposed to another. The Church is holy, holy in
+her moral laws, holy in her service of the truth; she never shirks truth,
+not even where truth is painful; the Church never surrenders the truth to
+human passions. The Church is Catholic, general, for the learned and the
+unlearned; she is apostolic, with faithful hand she preserves for all
+generations the spiritual patrimony of the forefathers. And the
+unbelieving science of liberalism, where is its holiness, when its eye
+cannot bear the sight of heaven? when it numbers among its admirers all
+the unholy elements of humanity? Where is its catholicity, its reverence
+for traditions, its historic sense, the indispensable requirement for the
+teacher of centuries? The ruins of overthrown truths, amongst which wanton
+thought holds its orgies, bear witness to the unfitness of infidel science
+to be the teacher of mankind.
+
+
+
+Serious Charges.
+
+
+The science of our day must often listen to charges of the gravest nature.
+They are uttered not only by servants of the Church, but in public
+meetings, legislative bodies, and in numerous articles by the press:
+science, we are told, has become a danger to faith and morals, it has
+become the teacher of irreligion, a leader in the war against
+Christianity. The force of the accusation is felt and attempts are made to
+ward it off. And then we are assured that science is not the enemy of
+religion, nor of the precious possessions of society.
+
+It is clear, without further proof, that science in itself cannot be a
+social danger; hence the charge cannot apply to science in general, but
+only to that special brand of science cultivated in an _anti-Christian_
+spirit. The assurance from its champions, that their intentions are the
+best, may often be a proof that they do not realize the scope of their
+doctrines; nevertheless, it cannot be denied that this science has become,
+through its principles, as taught in lectures and in print, the greatest
+danger to the religious-moral possessions of our nations and to the
+foundations of public order, hence an unlimited freedom for the activities
+of this science means unlimited freedom for a destructive power that
+spells ruin to our mental culture.
+
+Can the principles of this science be anything but a danger? Their sharp
+antagonism to the principle of authority, must it not undermine the
+respect for state authority, must it not strengthen the elements of social
+disorder? Its contempt of sacred traditions, must it not become a danger
+to everything existing? "If all mankind were of one opinion," it teaches,
+"and but one single man were of a different opinion, then mankind would
+have no more right to impose silence on him than he to silence all of
+mankind, if he could," must not such an individualism become the fertile
+soil of revolutionary ideas? Its ethics without religion tells every one
+that his own individuality is the court of last resort for his moral
+doings, that moral laws are subject to change, and must such views not
+become a danger to moral order? Finally, the separation of mankind from
+God and its eternal destiny, must it not necessarily lead the whole of
+life to materialism? and from the scullery it is not far to the sewer.
+Through its antagonism to Christian faith this science becomes the chief
+factor in dechristianizing the nations.
+
+It is objected that this accusation is not true, because science addresses
+itself to _professional circles_ only; the people, of course, cannot
+digest these things, therefore religion is to be preserved for the people.
+
+Why this distinction? The principles of liberal science of to-day are
+either true or they are not true. If not true, why profess them? If they
+are true, as is vehemently asserted, then why should the people be
+excluded from a true view of the world? Have the people not an equal right
+to the truth in important questions, equal right to light and happiness?
+Ah, the consequences of this doctrine of freedom are feared; it is feared
+the people's natural logic would take hold of these principles and draw
+from them its conclusions. And by that very fear these principles stand
+condemned of themselves. The truth can stand its consequences, as does the
+Christian view of the world; and the more zealously its consequences are
+pursued, the more blessed the fruits. It is otherwise with error.
+Therefore, if the principles of liberal science cannot stand their
+consequences, they must be erroneous. "Consider chiefly to be good that
+which enhances when communicated to others," is a wise maxim of the
+Pythagoreans. Anything spelling damage and ruin, when communicated to
+others, is not good, but evil.
+
+Nor is it true that science confines itself to professional circles. Any
+one who does not lead the isolated existence of pedantry knows that this
+is not the case. What the professor of our day teaches in the lecture
+room, finds its way into the minds of his students, and from there into
+preparatory and public schools; ideas committed by the scientific writer
+to paper and print, go into all the world, and, transformed into popular
+speech, become the common property of the millions. The flood of books,
+pamphlets, and leaflets attacking and vilifying the Christian tenets of
+faith is ever swelling, and day by day tons of this literature are spread
+without hindrance over Christian countries. There is not a single book
+against the Christian truth, be its author named _Feuerbach_, _Strauss_,
+_Darwin_, _Haeckel_, _Carneri_, _Nietzsche_, or otherwise, that does not
+soon circulate in popular editions in every country, or at least has to
+lend its subject to pamphlets and booklets, which then carry these
+"results of science" to every nook and corner, to the remotest backwoods
+village. And the fruits? All those who in these days profess infidelity
+and radicalism, they all unanimously profess adherence to modern free
+science.
+
+
+
+Tell Me with Whom Thou Goest.
+
+
+In stately array they come along nowadays, free-thinkers and freemasons,
+free-religionists and representatives of the free view of the world,
+monists, agitators for "free school" and socialists, all impetuously
+active in the service of anti-Christianity, bent on reviving and spreading
+ancient heathendom. All are avowed disciples of free science, all spread
+its doctrines, and all work for the popularizing of their ideas. There
+they press on, the living proof that modern science, as far as it is
+infidel, has become, voluntarily or involuntarily, the teacher of
+radicalism, of paganism, and the leader in the battle against religion and
+Christian morals.
+
+And in its train is marching Free-thought in all its varieties. Its aim at
+destruction, its dismal designs against religion and state, have become
+manifest in its books and conventions; for instance, the international
+free-thinker conventions lately held at Rome and at Prague were plainly of
+anarchistical sentiment. In their midst we see men of science, academic
+teachers. Under their auspices are arranged "scientific lectures" to make
+known the "results of modern science," with the conviction that this will
+suffice for the overthrow of religion; they demand that "the instruction
+in public institutions be only a scientific one"; itinerant orators are
+sent to speak with preference on "Science and the Church," on the
+theocratic view of the world and free science. The doctrines of liberal
+science are adopted by freemasonry, its rallying-cry is "freedom from God,
+freedom of the human reason." And following the band-wagon of free
+science, we see a shouting and jeering multitude, its clenched fists
+threatening any one who would dare to attack this fine science, their
+liberator from the yoke of religion; they are the thousands of the common
+people, whose faith has been torn out of their hearts, and, with faith,
+also peace and good morals. We see marching there hundreds from the ranks
+of youth, who in the heedless impulse of their inexperience have cast off
+belief, and, with belief, frequently all moral discipline; they, too, look
+upon science as their liberator. The morally inferior part of mankind,
+which declares anything to be ethical that "promotes life"; which fights
+against "love-denying views" and against obsolete maxims of morals, it,
+too, follows in the tracks of free science. And wherever the issue is to
+fight Christian institutions, under the name of marriage-reform,
+free-school, or what not, there we are sure to see representatives of
+science and of universities, and to hear them hold forth for free science.
+
+Where the purpose is to kindle the fires of revolt against religious
+authority, there we are certain to meet in the first rank the modern
+teachers of science.
+
+Science and its representatives have an ideal vocation. They should be the
+hearth of the spiritual goods of the nations; new and wholesome forces
+should at all times emanate from the abodes of science, and the people
+should look up with confidence to these watch-towers of knowledge and
+truth. What a shocking contrast to this exalted ideal it is, to hear time
+and again the believing people and their leaders raise a complaining and
+indignant voice against a science that has become a most dangerous
+antagonist to their holiest goods! Is it not painful to see the devout
+mother apprehensively cautioning her son, who departs for the university,
+not to let his faith be taken from him by teaching and association? Is it
+not sad to observe that it has become the common saying: "He has lost his
+faith at the university"? Is it not regrettable to see that Catholic
+universities have become necessary to preserve the ideal goods of the
+Christian religion? It is unavoidable that such complaints are sometimes
+exaggerated. In their generality they include universities that have given
+small reason for them; honourable men and representatives of sciences who
+should not be reproached are being mixed up in these charges. But it is
+true, nevertheless, that many have given such occasion. Is it not true
+also that many remain silent instead of protesting in the name of true
+science? that they feel it incumbent upon themselves to protect such a
+procedure, for the sake of the freedom of science?
+
+
+    For a generation and longer, _Haeckel_ misused science to make war
+    upon religion, and went to the extreme in his scientific
+    outrageousness, not even stopping at forgery. Professor _W. His_
+    had already in 1875 expressed his opinion of _Haeckel_ in relation
+    to the false drawings of his embryonic illustrations in the words:
+    "Others may respect _Haeckel_ as an active and reckless leader: in
+    my judgment he has on account of his methods forfeited the right
+    to be considered an equal in the circle of serious investigators."
+    When Dr. _Brass_, a member of the Kepler Bund, recently disclosed
+    new forgeries of this kind, it should have been made the occasion
+    for a protest in the interest of science and its freedom against
+    such methods. Instead of that, however, forty-six professors of
+    biology and zooelogy published a statement in defence of _Haeckel_,
+    declaring that while not approving of _Haeckel's_ method in some
+    instances, they condemned in the interest of science and of
+    freedom of teaching most strongly the war waged against _Haeckel_
+    by _Brass_ and the Kepler Bund. Is the freedom to use methods like
+    _Haeckel's_ included in the freedom of teaching, which they
+    consider must be defended? Can it surprise any one that this
+    freedom of teaching is viewed with concern?
+
+    Much excitement was caused a few years ago by a pamphlet of an
+    Austrian professor. Another Austrian professor, of high rank in
+    science, criticized the pamphlet as "A reckless and absolute
+    negation of the foundation of the Christian dogma in the widest
+    sense of the word, proclaimed as the verdict of science and of
+    common sense. It is replete with blasphemous jokes, such as may
+    usually be heard only in the most vulgar places."
+
+    A cry of indignation was raised by the Catholic people of the
+    Tyrol against this base insult to their creed; it was shown that
+    the author of this pamphlet had misused his lectures on Catholic
+    Canon Law, to speak to his Catholic students disdainfully of the
+    Divinity of Christ, of the Sacraments, of the Church, and the
+    prime foundations of Christianity. Upon indictment by the public
+    prosecutor, the pamphlet was condemned in Court as a libel upon
+    the Christian religion.
+
+    It was expected that the representatives of science, in defence of
+    the threatened honour of science, would repudiate all community of
+    interest with a production that was merely the expression of an
+    anti-Christian propaganda. That expectation was not fulfilled; on
+    the contrary, those in authority at the Austrian universities, and
+    numerous professors of other countries, joined in a protest
+    against the violation of the rights of a professor, against the
+    attacks on freedom of science. They demanded full immunity for the
+    author of the libel. Even the state department of Religion and
+    Education expressed the opinion that the accused "had only availed
+    himself of the right of free research." Is this the freedom in
+    teaching that is to be protected by the state? And yet there are
+    those who indignantly deny that there is danger for religion in
+    this freedom!
+
+
+He who really has at heart the honour of science and of the universities,
+and is inspired by their ideals, should bear in mind that to realize these
+ideals the first thing necessary is public confidence: not the confidence
+of a revolutionizing minority,--a scrutiny of those elements that give them
+their plaudits ought to arouse reflection,--but the confidence of earnest,
+conservative circles of the uncorrupted people.
+
+
+    In academic circles the increasing lack of respect for the
+    university and its teachers is complained of. Professor _Von
+    Amira_ writes: "Thirty years ago the academic teacher was
+    reverenced by the highest society; his association was sought; he
+    had no need of any other title than the one that told what he was.
+    To-day we see a different picture, particularly as to the title
+    'professor.' To-day they smile at it. Nowadays, if a professor
+    desires to impress, he must bear a title designating something
+    else than what he really is. A literature has grown up that deals
+    with the decline of the universities. The fact of a decline is
+    taken for granted, only its causes and remedies are discussed. And
+    this is not all. Invectives are bestowed upon the institutions,
+    upon the teachers as a body, upon the individual teacher. And
+    there is no one to take up the cudgels in our defence!" A fact
+    suggesting earnest self-examination, and the resolution not to
+    forfeit still more this respect. It is not sufficient to repudiate
+    with indignation the complaints. Nor will it do to pretend a
+    respect for religion and Christianity, and a desire to see both
+    preserved, that are not really felt. What is needed is the
+    admission that the road taken is the wrong one.
+
+
+
+The Responsibility before History.
+
+
+The distressing fact is realized that the worm of immorality is devouring
+in our day the marrow of the most civilized nations. It is also known that
+its wretched victims are in no class so numerous as in the class of
+college men. Earnest-minded men and women are raising a warning cry, and
+are forming societies to stem the ruin of the nations. The alarm bell is
+ringing through the lands.
+
+
+    Remarkable words on this subject are those written not long ago by
+    _Paulsen_: "It looks as if all the demons had been let loose at
+    this moment to devastate the basis of the people's life. Those who
+    know Germany through reading only, through its comic weeklies, its
+    plays, its novels, the windows of its bookshops, the lectures
+    delivered and attended by male and female, must arrive at the
+    opinion that the paramount question to the German people just now
+    is whether the restrictions put on the free play of the sexual
+    impulse by custom and law are evil and should be abolished?"
+    _Paulsen_ puts the responsibility for it upon the sophistry on the
+    sexual instinct and the present naturalism in the view of the
+    world: "The prevailing naturalism in the view of world and life is
+    leading to astonishing aberrations of judgment, and this is true
+    also of men otherwise discerning. If man is nothing else but a
+    system of natural instincts, similar in this to the rest of living
+    beings, then, indeed, no one can tell what other purpose life
+    could have than the gratification of all instincts.... Reformation
+    of ideas--this is the cry heard in all streets; cast off a
+    Christianity hostile to life, that is killing in embryo thousands
+    of possibilities for happiness. True, even in past ages young
+    people were not spared temptation. But the barriers were stronger;
+    traditional, moral, religious sentiment, and sensible views. Our
+    time has pulled down these barriers; young people everywhere are
+    advised by all the leading lights of the day: old morals and
+    religion are dead, slain by modern science; the old commandments
+    are the obsolete fetters of superstition. We know now their
+    origin; they are but auto-suggestions of common consciousness
+    which mistakes them for voices from another world, that has been
+    deposed long since by the scientific thought of to-day."
+
+
+These are words of indignation of a well-meaning friend of mankind. Do
+they not rebound upon the speaker himself to become terrible
+self-accusations for him and others, who, while perhaps of similar
+well-meaning sentiment, are actually working for the annihilation of the
+moral-religious sentiment, as _Paulsen_ himself has done by his books?
+
+
+    "The old religion is dead, slain by science," is proclaimed in
+    innumerable passages of his books; the idea of another world has
+    long been disposed of by the scientific reasoning of the present
+    time, "hence a philosophy," he tells us, "which insists upon the
+    thesis that certain natural processes make it necessary to assume
+    a metaphysical principle, or a supernatural agency, will always
+    have science for an irreconcilable opponent." "It will be
+    difficult for a future age to understand," he writes elsewhere,
+    "how our times so complacently could cling to a system of
+    religious instruction originated many centuries ago under entirely
+    different conditions of intellectual life, and which in many
+    points forms the decided opposite to facts and notions which,
+    outside of the school, are taken by our times for granted." In
+    respect to morals, too, one can do without a supernatural law.
+    "According to the view presented here, ethics as a science does
+    not depend on belief.... Moral laws are the natural laws of the
+    human-historical life of time and place.... Nor does it seem
+    advisable in pedagogical-practical respect to make the force or
+    the significance of ethical commands dependent on a matter so
+    uncertain as the belief in a future life." We might cite many
+    similar expressions from his writings.
+
+    It is significant that they have to condemn their own science in
+    view of its sad consequences.
+
+
+_Paulsen_ loudly demands _restriction for the freedom of art_, for the
+industry of lewdness, for the literature of perversity.
+
+
+    He says: "The English people, admired by us because of their
+    liberal principles and free institutions, are less afraid to show
+    by the sternest means the door to salacious minds ... the feeling
+    of responsibility for preserving the roots of the strength of the
+    people's life is in England far more wide awake than with us, who
+    still feel in our bones the fear of censure and the policeman's
+    club.... But what are the things committed by our nasty trades and
+    the publications in their service other than so many assaults upon
+    our liberty? Are they not primarily an assault upon the inner
+    freedom of adolescent youth who are made slaves of their lowest
+    instincts by the industries of these merchants? Therefore admonish
+    the hangman not to be swerved by the plea of freedom."
+
+
+No one will deny approval to these words. But do they not, again, become a
+severe condemnation of the reckless freedom in teaching, that claims the
+right to assault without hindrance the truths which are the foundation of
+our nation? If art must not become a danger, why may science? If the
+artist is asked to take into consideration the innocence and weal of young
+people, if he is cautioned not to follow solely "his sense for beauty,"
+why should the teacher be allowed to follow his "sense for truth" without
+regard for anything else? If no statute of limitation and restriction
+exist for science, neither prescribed nor prohibited ideas for the
+academic teacher, why should there be any prohibited "aesthetic principles"
+for the artist? Manifestly, because here the absurdity of this freedom is
+more clearly perceptible, because it leads to shamelessness. At this
+juncture, therefore, they are constrained to concede the untenability and
+the senselessness of the unlimited human freedom, that is defended with so
+much volubility.
+
+
+    _Paulsen_ points to an age in which, similarly to our times,
+    progressive men arose and, in the name of science, discarded
+    religion and morals; they called themselves men of science, sages,
+    "sophists." "It is remarkable that the very same occurrence was
+    observed more than 2,000 years ago, when _Plato_ experienced it in
+    his time with the young people of Athens, who became fascinated by
+    similar sophistical speech."
+
+    The noble Sage of Greece had caustic words for _Protagoras_, the
+    champion of sophistry, and his brethren in spirit: "If cobblers
+    and tailors were to put in worse condition the shoes and clothes
+    they receive for improving, this would soon be known and they
+    would starve; not so _Protagoras_, who is corrupting quietly the
+    whole of Hellas, and who has dismissed his disciples in a worse
+    state than he received them, and this for more than forty
+    years.... Not _Protagoras_ alone, but many others did this before
+    and after him. Did they knowingly deceive and poison the youth or
+    did they not realize what they were doing? Are we to assume that
+    these men, praised by many for their sagacity, have done so in
+    ignorance? No, they were not blind to their acts, but blind were
+    the young people who paid them for instruction, blind were their
+    parents who confided them to these sophists, blindest were the
+    communities that admitted them instead of turning them away."
+
+
+What a responsibility to co-operate in the intellectual corruption of
+entire generations! And the corruption by dechristianizing is increasing
+in all circles, owing to the misuse of science. That the condition is not
+even worse is not the merit of this science, nor evidence of the
+harmlessness of its freedom; it is the merit of the after effect of a
+Christian past, which continues to influence, consciously or
+unconsciously, the thought and feeling even of those circles that seem to
+be long since estranged from Christianity.
+
+
+    Concerning the decline of morality in our age _Paulsen_ observes:
+    "_Foerster_ rightly emphasizes the fact that the old Church
+    rendered an imperishable service in moralizing and spiritualizing
+    our life, by urging first of all the discipline of the will, and
+    by raising heroes of self-denial in the persons of her Saints.
+    That we still draw from this patrimony I, too, do not doubt. _That
+    we waste it carelessly is indeed the great danger._"
+
+                  -------------------------------------
+
+    "It was a wonderfully balmy evening in the fall of 1905," relates
+    Rev. _L. Ballet_, missionary in Japan, "and the sun had just set
+    behind Mount Fiji. Unexpectedly a young Japanese appeared in front
+    of me, desiring to talk to me. I noticed that he was a young
+    student. I bade him enter, and we saluted each other with a low
+    bow, as persons meeting for the first time. I asked him to take a
+    seat opposite to me, and took advantage of the first moments of
+    silence to take a good look at him. But imagine my astonishment
+    when his first question was, 'Do you believe life is worth
+    living?' asked in an earnest but calm manner. I confess this
+    question from lips so young alarmed me and went to my heart like a
+    thrust. 'Why, certainly,' was my reply, 'life is worth living, and
+    living good. How do you come to ask a question that sounds so
+    strange from the lips of a young man? You certainly do not desire
+    to follow the example of your fellow-countryman _Fijimura Misao_,
+    who jumped into the abyss from Mount Kegon?'--'No, sir, at least
+    not yet. I confess, however, that I feel my hesitation to be
+    cowardice, for I have made this resolution for some time. In my
+    opinion man is purely a thing of blind accident, a wretched,
+    ephemeral fly without importance, without value. Why then prolong
+    a life in which a little pleasure is added to so much sorrow, so
+    much disappointment; a life that at any rate finally melts away
+    into nothing? I am more and more convinced that this is the
+    truth.'--'And what brought you to such views?'--'Well, science,
+    philosophy, the books which I have read for pastime or study. If
+    it were only the opinion of our few Japanese scientists one might
+    hesitate; but the science, the philosophy, of Europe, translated
+    and expounded by our writers, teach the same thing. God, soul,
+    future life, all is idle delusion. Nothing is eternal but only
+    matter. After twenty, thirty, sixty years, man dies, and there
+    remains nothing of him but his body, which will decay in order to
+    pass into other beings, matter like he was. This is what science
+    teaches us; a hard doctrine, I confess; but what is there to be
+    said against it, considering the positive results of scientific
+    research?' "
+
+
+Great responsibility is borne by a science that despoils mankind of its
+best, of all that gives it comfort and support in life! In faraway Japan
+there is not the spiritual power of Christianity to counteract the misuse
+of science; the poison does its work and there is no antidote.
+
+That the Christian nations "carelessly waste their patrimony, that,
+indeed, is the great danger."
+
+
+
+
+Chapter II. Freedom Of Teaching And The State.
+
+
+Close bonds of mutual dependence and solidarity interlink all created
+beings, especially men. Insufficient in himself, both physically and
+mentally, man finds in uniting with others everything he needs; thus do
+individuals and families join forces, generations join hands; what the
+fathers have earned is inherited and increased by new generations. Human
+life is essentially social life and co-operation--in the indefinite form
+social life within the great human society, in the definite form social
+life within the two great bodies, Church and state. Within both bodies
+human benefits are to be attained and protected against danger by common
+exertion--within the Church the spiritual benefits of eternal character,
+within the state the temporal benefits.
+
+Hence both bodies, or societies, will have to take a position in relation
+to science and its doctrine. Indeed, in civilized nations there is hardly
+a public activity of mightier influence upon life than science. The
+contemplation of this position shall now be our task.
+
+Science, as we have above set forth, addresses itself to mankind--a
+fallible science addressing itself to men easily deceived; therefore, an
+unrestricted freedom in teaching is ethically inadmissible. Hence it
+follows, as a matter of course, that the authorities of state and Church,
+who must guard the common benefits, have the duty of keeping the freedom
+in scientific teaching within its proper bounds, so far as this lies in
+their power. Hitherto we have left these social authorities out of
+consideration; the position taken was the general ethical one.
+
+The case might be supposed that the Church had provided few restrictions
+of this kind, and the state none at all; nevertheless, an absolute freedom
+in teaching would still present a condition dangerous to the community at
+large, contrary to the demands of morality; we should then have an
+unrestricted freedom in teaching, permitted by law, but ethically
+inadmissible.
+
+The distinction is important. Quite often freedom in teaching is spoken of
+as permitted by the state, as if it was identical with ethical permission.
+If freedom in teaching is permitted by the state, this evidently means
+only that the state permits teaching without interference on its part; it
+says, I do not stand in the way, I let things proceed. But this does not
+mean that it is right and proper. The burden of personal responsibility
+rests upon him who avails himself of a freedom which, though not hindered
+by the state, is in conflict with what is right. The state tolerates many
+things--it does not interfere against unkindness, nor against extravagance,
+nor deceit; nevertheless everybody is morally responsible for such doings.
+
+If, then, we take up the question, what position social authority should
+take toward scientific teaching, whether it be in the higher schools, or
+outside of them, we are considering chiefly the state. It is the state
+that enters most into consideration when freedom in teaching nowadays is
+discussed; the state may interfere most effectively in the management of
+schools and universities, for these are state institutions in most
+countries.
+
+
+
+Universities as State Institutions.
+
+
+They were not always state institutions. The universities of the Middle
+Ages were autonomous corporations, which constituted themselves, made
+their own statutes, had their own courts, but enjoyed at the same time
+legal rights. Conditions gradually changed after the Reformation. The
+power of princes began more and more to interfere in the management of the
+universities, until in the seventeenth century, and still more in the
+eighteenth, the universities became state institutions, subject to the
+reigning sovereign, the professors his salaried officials, and text-books,
+subject and form of instruction were prescribed by the minute, paternal
+directions of the sovereign, and with the mania for regulating that was a
+feature of the eighteenth century. The nineteenth century brought more
+liberty; it was demanded by the enlarged scope of universities, which no
+longer were only the training schools for the learned professions, but
+became the home of research, needing freedom of movement.
+
+Nevertheless, universities are in many countries still state institutions.
+They are founded by the state, are given organization and laws by the
+state; the teachers are appointed and given their commissions by the
+state. They are state officials, though less under government supervision
+than other state officials. At the same time these universities are
+possessed of a certain measure of autonomy, a remainder of olden times.
+They elect their academic authorities, which have some autonomy and
+disciplinary jurisdiction. Likewise the separate faculties have their
+powers; they confer degrees, administer their benefices, and exert
+considerable influence in filling vacant chairs.
+
+The state then considers it its duty to grant freedom in teaching.
+"Science and its teaching are free," says the law in some countries. No
+doubt a loosely drawn sentence; at any rate, it means that science should
+be granted the _proper_ freedom. And this freedom it must have. We have
+become more sensitive of unjustified paternal government than were the
+people of the eighteenth century.
+
+
+
+The Object of the State.
+
+
+What kind of a freedom in teaching, then, should be granted by the state?
+Unlimited freedom? This is, at any rate, not a necessary conclusion. The
+state must also grant freedom to the father for the education of his
+children, to the landowner for the culture of his fields, to the artist in
+the production of his works; but that freedom would not be understood to
+be an unlimited one, having no regard to the interests of society, but
+merely as the exclusion of unwarranted interference. Hence if the state,
+for reasons of the commonwealth, were to restrict freedom of teaching, the
+restraint could not be considered unjust. The purpose of the state must
+not suffer injury; to attain this purpose the state has the right to
+demand, and must demand, all that is necessary to the purpose in view,
+even though it entails a restriction of somebody's freedom. Now for a
+definition of this purpose of the state.
+
+Like any other society, the state seeks to attain a definite object, so
+much the more because the state is necessary to man, who otherwise would
+have to forego the things most needed in life; and but for the public
+co-operation of the many these could be attained not at all, or at least
+not sufficiently. To provide these things is the object of the state,
+viz., the public welfare of the citizens; it is to bring about public
+conditions which will enable the citizens to attain their temporal
+welfare. To this end the state must protect the rights of its subjects,
+and must protect and promote the public goods of economic life, but
+especially the spiritual benefits of morals and religion. The state,
+through its legislative, judicial, and executive functions, is to _direct_
+effectively the community to this end; therefore it is incumbent upon the
+state to care for the preservation and promotion of both material and
+spiritual benefits, for the protection of private rights, and for the
+conditions necessary to its own existence, even against the arbitrary will
+of its subjects.
+
+
+
+Protection for the Spiritual Foundations of Life.
+
+
+From this the conclusion naturally follows, that the state must not grant
+freedom to propound in public, by speech or writing, theories that will
+_endanger the religious and moral goods of its citizens and the foundation
+of the state_.
+
+We claim that the state neglects a solemn duty if it permits without
+hindrance--we will not say, the ridicule and disparagement of religion and
+morals: the less so, as freedom to ridicule and to slander has nothing to
+do with freedom in teaching--but the public promulgation of theories which
+are either irreligious, or against morals, or against the state. Even
+though they be done in scientific form, injuries to the common weal remain
+injuries, and they do not change into something else by being committed in
+scientific form. The state must seek to prevent such injuries by strictly
+enforced penalties and by the selection of conscientious teachers. The
+enforcement of the principle may not be possible under circumstances,
+legislatures may lack insight or good will, or the complexion of the state
+may not admit of it for the time being, or permanently. Then we would
+simply see a regrettable condition, a government incapable of ridding
+itself of the morbid matter which is poisoning its marrow. But if there is
+good will and energy, one thing may always be done to check injurious
+influences, and that is the awakening and employment of forces of
+opposition.
+
+
+    The University of Halle is said to have been the first one to
+    enjoy modern freedom in teaching. What, at that time, however, was
+    meant by freedom in teaching, is shown by the words of _Chr.
+    Thomasius_ in 1694: "Thank God that He has prompted His Anointed
+    (the prince) not to introduce here the yoke under which many are
+    now and then languishing, but gracefully to grant our teachers the
+    freedom of doctrines _that are not against God and the state_."
+    One hundred and fifty years later Minister _Eichhorn_ advised the
+    University of Koenigsberg that in natural sciences neither the
+    individual freedom in teaching nor of research are limited, that
+    the case is different, however, with philosophy as applied to
+    life, with history, theology, and the science of laws. "The first
+    requisite there," he said, "is a proper bent of mind, which,
+    however, can find its basis and its lasting support only in
+    religion. With the proper bent of mind there will be no desire to
+    teach doctrines which attack the roots of the very life of one's
+    own country."
+
+
+Now, what considerations make it plain that the duty of the state is as
+stated? Two: consideration for its subjects, and consideration for the
+state itself. The state must protect the highest _possessions of its
+citizens_. For that reason men are by nature itself prompted to found
+states, so as to protect better their common goods, by the strong hand of
+an authority, against foes from within and without, and to enable them to
+bequeath those goods inviolate to their sons and grandsons. Hence they
+must demand of state-power not to tolerate conditions which would greatly
+jeopardize those goods, and certainly not to allow attacks thereon by its
+own educational organs. The highest spiritual benefits of civilization,
+and at the same time the necessary foundations of a well-ordered life,
+are, first of all, morality and religion; not morality alone, but also
+religion, do not forget this. Man's first duty is the duty of worshipping
+God, of recognizing and worshipping his Creator, the ultimate end of all
+things. A profound truth was stated by _Aristotle_, when, coupling the
+duties to God with those to parents, he said that those merit punishment
+who question the duty of worshipping the gods and of loving one's parents.
+Hence the first thing to be preserved to the nations is religion; it is in
+many ways their most precious possession, too. Not only do all nations
+possess religion, not excepting the most uncivilized; but there is no
+power that influences life and stirs the heart more than religion.
+Consider the religious wars of history; while they were surely deplorable,
+they demonstrate what religion is to man. Even in individuals who to all
+appearance are irreligious, religion never fully dies out; it appears
+there in false forms, or is their great puzzle, maybe the incubus of their
+lives, giving them no rest. Only in conjunction with firm religious
+principle can morality stand fast. Nowadays they work for ethics without
+religion, for education and school without God. Theoreticians in their
+four walls, removed from all real life, are busily working out systems of
+this sort. This new ethics has not yet stood the test of life, or, if it
+did, it has succeeded in gaining for its adherents only those who are at
+odds with religion and morals. These theories must first be otherwise
+attested before they may replace the old, well-tried religious
+foundations.
+
+
+    The noted and justly esteemed pedagogue, _Fr. W. Foerster_,
+    writes: "On the part of free-thinkers vigorous complaint has been
+    made that my book so decidedly confesses the unparalleled
+    pedagogic strength of the Christian religion. The author therefore
+    repeats emphatically that this confession has not grown out of an
+    arbitrary metaphysical mood, but directly out of his
+    moral-pedagogic studies. For over ten years of a long period of
+    instructing the youth in ethics, he has been engaged exclusively
+    in studying psychologically the problem of character-forming, and
+    the result of his studies is his conviction that all attempts at
+    educating youth without religion are absolutely futile. And, in
+    the judgment of the author, the only reason why the notion that
+    religion is superfluous in education is prevalent in such large
+    circles of modern pedagogues, is, that they have no extensive
+    practical experience in character-training, nor made thorough and
+    concentrated studies." "The fact is, that all education in which
+    religion to all outward appearance is dispensed with, is still
+    deeply influenced by the after-effect of religious sanction and
+    religious earnestness. What education without religion really
+    means will become more clearly known in the coming generation."
+
+
+The state is zealous in protecting the property of its citizens, to which
+end a powerful police apparatus is constantly at work. If the state deems
+it its duty to interfere in this matter, must it not consider it a still
+higher duty to protect religion and morals, for the very reason that they
+are the property of its citizens, and even their most precious? _Pro aris
+et focis_, for home and altar, was what was fought for by the old Romans.
+Is it possible that a pagan government was more sterling and high-minded
+than the Christian state of the present? If it is to be the bearer of
+civilization, it ought to consider that man liveth not by bread alone. The
+only true mental civilization is the one which does not hamper but helps
+man in attaining his eternal goal.
+
+Modern state power is being urged from all sides to take measures against
+the corruption of morals by the novel and the shop window, and not to look
+on apathetically when the consuming fire is spreading all about, in the
+name of art. Are the dangers to the spiritual health of society any less
+if reformers, in the name of science, shake at the foundations of
+matrimony, advocate polygamy, teach atheism? Because a so-called reformer
+has lost the fundamental truths of our moral-religious order, must all the
+rest submit to an attack upon the sacred possessions of themselves and
+their descendants?
+
+
+    That the rights of the teacher are not unrestricted was set forth
+    by an American paper ("Science," No. 321) in its comment upon the
+    removal of certain professors: "There are barriers set to them on
+    the one hand by the rights of the students, and by the rights of
+    the college where he teaches, on the other. The college must
+    preserve its reputation and its good name, the student must be
+    protected against palpable errors and waste of time.... If a
+    professor of sociology should attack the institution of matrimony,
+    and propound the gospel of polygamy and of free love, then neither
+    the right to teach his views nor his honesty of purpose would save
+    him from dismissal. This is of course a very extreme case, not
+    likely to happen."
+
+    Is it so very extreme? Certainly not in regard to teaching by
+    books. Listen: "From the foregoing it is self-evident that
+    polygyny based upon the rivalry of men for women (analogous to the
+    animal kingdom) presents the natural sexual practice of mankind.
+    Whether there is to be preferred a simultaneous or a successive
+    polygyny, or a combination of both, would depend on varying
+    conditions. The ethical type of the sexual condition, viz., in
+    general the desirable biological type, is the one that would best
+    suit a polygyny based upon a selection of man." It is taught
+    further: "The monogamic principle of marriage in general is only
+    conditionally favorable to civilization, whereas it is destructive
+    of it constitutionally, hence in need of reform." "Our
+    contemporaneous sexual reform wave has not yet assumed the
+    position of this knowledge; on the contrary, notwithstanding its
+    revolutionary aspect in some particulars, it is still under the
+    ban of the traditional ideal of marriage"; continence before
+    marriage is an "absurd" proposition!
+
+    This new system of morals, fit for the barnyard, but for women the
+    lowest degradation, is now to become the ideal of men, nay, even
+    of women: "True motherly pride, true womanly dignity, are
+    incompatible with the exclusiveness of the monogamic property
+    principle. If our movement for sexual reform is to elevate us
+    instead of plunging us into the mire, then this view must become
+    part and parcel of our women." "The picture of the motherly woman,
+    of the woman with the pride of sexual modesty, instead of with the
+    exciting desire of possession ... this picture must become the
+    ideal of men, and sink down to the bottom of their soul and into
+    the fibres of their nervous system; it must animate their fancy
+    and awaken their sensual passions."(20) We stand right in the
+    midst of the world of beasts!
+
+    This perilous moral teaching is allowed also in public lectures.
+    On November 14, 1908, the "Allgemeine Rundschau" wrote: "Imagine a
+    spacious concert-hall, brightly illuminated, every one of the many
+    seats occupied, the boxes filled to the last place, the aisles
+    crowded, by a most variegated audience: men and women, young
+    maidens, youths with downy beard; gentlemen of high rank with
+    their ladies, faces upon which are written a life of vast
+    experience side by side with childish faces whose innocence is
+    betrayed by their looks, and on the platform a university
+    professor and physician, holding forth about the most intimate
+    relations of sexual life: the unfitness of celibacy, the Catholic
+    morals of matrimony, prostitution and prostitutes, the causes of
+    adultery, 'sterile marriage,' onanism, and many kinds of
+    perversities. The man is, moreover, speaking in a fashion that
+    makes one forget the admonishments of conscience."
+
+    The city council of Lausanne, in its meeting of February 10, 1907,
+    prohibited _Forel's_ lecture as an attack upon decency and public
+    morals, making reference in its resolution to _Forel's_ ideas as
+    laid down in his book. In protest, _Forel_ made a public
+    statement, saying among other things: "If the council desires to
+    be logical it would have to prohibit also the sale of my book." We
+    have no objection to make to his conclusion.
+
+
+We stated that religion is man's first duty. This applies not only to the
+individual, but also--and this is forgotten too often--to the state. Man, by
+his nature, and hence in all forms of his life, including his citizenship,
+is obliged to have religion. He remains in all conditions the creature
+which is dependent upon God. And does not the state, too, owe special
+duties of gratitude to God? It owes its origin to God: the impulse to
+found states has been put into the human nature by its Creator; the state
+owes to God the foundation of its authority: in a thousand difficulties
+the state is thrown upon His help. Therefore a public divine service is
+found with all peoples. Does the state comply with this duty by silently
+supporting a public atheism when it might do otherwise? by even becoming
+its patron, when, posing as science, it ascends to the lecturing desk to
+teach adolescing youth?
+
+Of course, free-thought is of a different opinion, especially the one of
+to-day. Its principle is: the state need not trouble itself about God and
+Religion, that is the private matter of each individual. In the eyes of
+free-thought the state is an imaginary being, hovering over the heads of
+its citizens; though they may be religious, the state itself should have
+no Religion. What absurdity! It is nothing short of nonsense to demand of
+the members of a state, the overwhelming majority of whom hold Religion to
+be true and necessary, that as a political community they are to act as if
+their Religion were false and worthless, as if to deny and to destroy it
+were quite proper. What else is the state but an organized aggregation of
+its citizens? To make of religious citizens, a state without Religion is
+just as absurd as a Catholic state composed wholly and entirely of
+Protestant citizens. This leads us to a further consideration. The state
+must protect its own foundations. Just as it must defend its existence
+against enemies from without, it must protect itself against those enemies
+from within, who, whether realizing the consequences or not, are by their
+actions actually shaking its foundations. These foundations consist of
+proper views on social and political principles, on morals and Religion.
+If the state does not intend to abolish itself, it must not permit
+doctrines to be disseminated which imperil these foundations and,
+consequently, the peaceful continuance of the state. In fact, no state
+power in its senses would permit a teacher, who directly attacks the
+validity of the state order, to continue; it would retire every professor
+of law who would dare to teach that regicide is permissible, or who would
+with the oratory of a Tolstoy preach the unnaturalness of a state
+possessing coercive power.
+
+
+    As a rule, open advocates of _Socialism_ are kept out of
+    college-chairs. And rightly so. So long as the adherents of
+    Socialism see in the state but the product of the egotism of the
+    ruling classes, and an institute for subjugating the masses, and
+    in the obtainment of political power the means of doing away with
+    this state of affairs, so long will it be impossible for the state
+    to trust the education of the future citizen to a Socialist, nor
+    can the latter, as an honest man, accept a position of trust from
+    the state, much less bind himself by the oath of office to
+    co-operate in the work of the state. Prof. _C. Bornhak_ makes the
+    following comment: "The decisive point is not freedom in teaching,
+    but the circumstance that the Socialist professor takes advantage
+    of the respect connected with a state office, or of his position
+    at a state institution, to undermine the state. A state that would
+    stand for this would deserve nothing better than its abolition."
+
+    And _Paulsen_ similarly writes: "A state that would allow in the
+    lecture rooms of its colleges Socialistic views to be taught as
+    the results of science ... such a state will be looked for in
+    vain."
+
+
+Hence it is certain the state cannot grant a freedom in teaching that
+would jeopardize the foundation of its existence. It must consequently
+recognize no freedom which, in lectures and publications, will seriously
+injure public morality and religion. Morality and religion are, first of
+all, the indispensable conditions for the continuance of the state.
+
+
+    _Aristotle_ says the first duty of the state is to care for
+    religion. _Plato_ proposes heavy penalty for those who deny the
+    existence of the gods; a well-ordered state, he claims, must care
+    first of all for the fostering of religion. _Plutarch_ calls
+    religion the bond of every society and the foundation of the law.
+    _Cicero_ declares that there can be neither loyalty nor justice
+    without regard for God. _Valerius Maximus_ could say of Rome: "It
+    has ever been the principle of our city to give preference to
+    religion before any other matter, even before the highest and most
+    glorious benefits." _Washington_, in his speech to Congress in
+    1789, declared religion and morality to be the most indispensable
+    support of the commonweal. He stated that it would be in vain for
+    one, who tries to wreck these two fundamental pillars of the
+    social structure, to boast of his patriotism.
+
+
+Without religion there can be no firm resistance by conscience against
+man's lower nature, no social virtues and sacrifices, there can only be
+egotism, the foe of all social order. No secure state-life can be built
+upon the principles that formed the basis of the French Revolution. So we
+see, generally and instinctively, the endeavour to prevent as much as
+possible anti-religious doctrines from being expounded directly to the
+broad masses of the people. This of itself is tantamount to the
+acknowledgment of their danger to the state. Yet, millions have tasted the
+fruit of an atheistic science, and the poison shows its effect; they have
+shaken off the yoke of religion; in its place dissatisfaction and
+bitterness are filling their breast, and fists are clenched against the
+existing order.
+
+
+    _Bebel_ said in a speech in the German Reichstag, on September 16,
+    1878: "Gentlemen, you attack our views in respect to religion,
+    because they are atheistic and materialistic. I acknowledge them
+    to be so.... I firmly believe Socialism will ultimately lead to
+    atheism. But these atheistic doctrines, that now are causing so
+    much pain and trouble for you, by whom were they scientifically
+    and philosophically demonstrated? Was it by Socialists? Men like
+    _Edgar_ and _Bruno_, _Bauer_, _Feuerbach_, _David Strauss_, _Ernst
+    Renan_, were they Socialists? They were men of science.... What is
+    allowed to the one--why should it be forbidden to the other?"
+
+    The notorious anarchist _Vaillant_ said: "I have demonstrated to
+    the physicians at Hotel-Dieu that my deed is the inexorable
+    consequence of my philosophy, and of the philosophy of _Buechner_,
+    _Darwin_, and _Herbert Spencer_."
+
+    The youthful criminal _Emil Herny_ read at his trial a memorandum
+    wherein he said among other things: "I am an anarchist since 1891.
+    Up to this time I was wont to esteem and even to idolize my
+    country, the family, the state, and property.... Socialism is not
+    able to change the present order. It upholds the principle of
+    authority which, all affirmations of so-called free-thinkers
+    notwithstanding, is an obsolete remnant of the belief in a higher
+    power. I however was a materialist, atheist. My scientific
+    researches taught me gradually the work of natural forces. I
+    conceived that science had done away with the hypothesis of 'God,'
+    which it needs no longer, hence that also the
+    religious-authoritative doctrine of morals, built upon it, as upon
+    a false foundation, had to disappear."
+
+
+What political wisdom would it be to honor as science any doctrine that
+becomes a social danger the moment it is taken seriously; what logic to
+denounce those as dangerous who are putting into practice a science that
+is hailed as the bearer of civilization!
+
+One may object: How is the state to determine whether scientific doctrines
+are warranted or not warranted? The state has the conviction that in its
+political offices it has no organs for the cognition of scientific truth,
+for this reason it leaves science to self-regulation. Only the scientist,
+it is said, is able to revise the scientist.
+
+Nothing but scholarly conceit can engender such ideas. Then any one would
+have the right to pin upon himself the badge of the scientist and become
+thereby completely immune. Thus, the bearers of practical political wisdom
+are declared incompetent to recognize the chief foundation of their
+state-structure; to realize, what daily experience and the experience of
+centuries teaches, that disbelief in God, even if sailing under false
+colors, undermines authority, that communism and upheaval of moral
+conceptions are tantamount to social danger. They are directed to depend
+for their information in such matters upon the latest ideas of impractical
+scientists. The fact is, the matters at issue have, with hardly an
+exception, long been decided. And where the Christian faith is concerned,
+the Church and the Christian centuries tell us clearly enough, what has
+hitherto been understood by Christianity. If the objection here advanced
+were true, then the state would not have a right to decide in the matter
+of exhibiting immoral pictures in show windows, without having argued the
+matter previously with representatives of art. The state would not be
+allowed to pronounce a death sentence because some scientists denounce
+capital punishment: the state would have to expunge "guilt," "expiation,"
+and "liberty" from its penal code, because many recent scientists, by
+rejecting the freedom of choice, have removed the dividing line between
+crime and insanity, between punishment and correction.
+
+
+
+Protection for Christianity.
+
+
+Hitherto we have, in respect to religion, considered chiefly the rational
+truths, which are the foundations of every religion and also common to
+non-Christian creeds; the existence of a supermundane God and of a life
+after death are the most important of them. The revealed Christian
+religion contains, beside these truths, some others, which supplement them
+and surround them like a living garland, viz., original sin, redemption,
+resurrection, the divinity of Christ, grace and the Sacraments, the
+existence of a Church with its God-given rights, indissolubility of
+matrimony, etc. Should state-power protect the Christian and Catholic
+religion by warding off attacks against it, though such attacks are made
+in scientific form? This, too, in a state in which perhaps other
+confessions are enjoying the freedom of worship?
+
+
+    It would seem superfluous to propose this question specifically.
+    If, according to the gist of our argument, religion is to be
+    protected, what other religion can be meant than the Christian
+    religion? That is the religion of our nations; none other is.
+    While the stated distinction may have more of an academic than a
+    practical interest, the discussion of this question will not be
+    idle, if only for the reason that it will shed even more light
+    upon our previous statements. Besides, there are manifest efforts
+    to dislodge Christianity from the life of our people, and with it
+    all true religion, under the pretext of opposing church-doctrines
+    and dogmatism. The war against Christianity has not since the days
+    of a _Celsus_ been waged as it is to-day.
+
+
+We premise a principle of a general nature. Of conflicting religions and
+views of the world, only one can be true; this is clear to every one who
+still believes in truth. It is equally clear that this one truth only can
+have the right to come forward and to enlist support in public life as a
+spiritual power; error has no right to prevail against truth. Hence it
+will not do to say simply: There are also the convictions of minorities in
+the state; some claim that none of the existing religions is the right
+one, others have dropped all belief in God; in our times we wish to
+concede to any conviction the right to enter into competition with others,
+provided mockery and abuse are barred. These remarks are quite true, in
+the sense that neither the individual nor the state may directly interfere
+with conscience or prescribe opinions: leaving entirely aside the question
+whether any one really could have a serious conviction of atheism. The
+foregoing is true also in the sense that public avowal of opinion must not
+be hindered by individuals. To interpret this to mean that the state must
+grant freedom to any expression of doctrine would be a grave misconception
+of the social influence which false ideas are liable to exercise. Does the
+state grant this freedom to any kind of medical practice, whether
+exercised skilfully or awkwardly, conscientiously or unscrupulously?
+
+Moral-religious error may in public life expect only _tolerance_--just as
+many other evils must be tolerated, because their prevention would cause
+greater evils to arise. This is the reason why the state may, and often
+must, grant freedom of worship even to false creeds, because its denial
+would give rise to greater harm to the public weal (_St. Thomas_, 2, 2 q.
+10, 11). Freedom of teaching, likewise, must not be granted in the sense
+of acknowledging that false doctrines and truth have equal rights; this
+would amount to an assassination of truth. Freedom can be conceded to
+error for the one reason only, that by not granting it there would be
+engendered greater evils. Consequently, if a state-power, or the organs of
+its legislative part, are convinced that the Christian religion is the
+only true one, they cannot possibly concede to contrary doctrines the
+right to pose as the truth and thus deceive minds; they may be granted the
+same freedom in teaching only because restrictive laws can either not be
+enforced at all, or not without creating a disorder that would give rise
+to greater evils. Hence the lesser evil must be carefully ascertained.
+
+With this general principle in mind, it is easily seen that a freedom
+large enough to include an open attack on the fundamental, rational,
+truths of religion and morals--this having been our subject hitherto--could
+be conceded only if disbelief and atheism had gained so much power as to
+make impossible its prohibition. In this case, however, the state should
+be conscious of the fact that it allows the undermining of its
+foundations. If, in another state, religious feeling were at so low an
+ebb, that the freedom of the Christian truth could not be obtained in any
+other way than by granting full freedom for everything, then even such
+unlimited freedom would be a good thing to be striven for; of itself a
+deplorable condition and contrary to God's intentions, but good as the
+lesser evil.
+
+But let us return to the revealed religion. In the eyes of those who are
+convinced that the Christian religion, namely, the Catholic religion, is
+the only true religion, the ideal condition would be to have the entire
+population united in its faithful confession; then matters would simplify
+themselves in our case. But this ideal hardly exists anywhere. True, in
+many countries the population is almost wholly Christian; but the
+denominations are mixed, and many have separated at heart from
+Christianity. What standards, then, should rule in this case?
+
+Looking at it specially, the demand of ethical reason is no doubt this:
+Nations and governments whose past was Christian, whose institutions and
+civilization are still Christian, and an overwhelming majority of whose
+members still think and believe in a Christian way, would fail in their
+gravest duties if they would expose or permit the Christian religion to
+remain unprotected against the attacks and the attempts at destruction by
+a false science, or by conceding to the adversaries of Christianity equal
+rights or even preference. The Christian religion will not be destroyed;
+but whole nations may lose it, and its loss will in great measure be the
+fault of those in whose hands their fate was laid. Here might be applied
+_Napoleon's_ well-known saying: "The weakness of the highest authority is
+the greatest misfortune of the nations."
+
+It remains an anomaly that a state, the members of which for the most part
+are Christians, should treat this religion with indifference, and tolerate
+that its tenets and traditions be represented as fairy-tales and fables,
+its moral law as a danger to civilization, and perhaps its divine Founder
+as a victim of religious frenzy. If the state is the expression and the
+_representative of its subjects_, then such disharmony between public and
+private life is unnatural. Moreover, the Christian religion is held by the
+majority of its citizens to be the most precious legacy of their
+forefathers; they must demand from the state _protection for their
+greatest good_. And this may be claimed with even greater right by
+provinces where the population almost unanimously clings to the creed of
+their ancestors; at the colleges in these parts the faithful people will
+be entitled to protection more than elsewhere against dangers to its
+inherited religion. It would be unnatural in this case to apply the
+thoughtless principle of dealing uniformly with all provinces of the
+state. The state is not a heap of uniform pebbles, but an organism
+composed of different parts, each desiring to retain its own peculiar
+life.
+
+
+    Do not say this presumption does not admit of application to our
+    conditions, the majority of the people of this age being long
+    since estranged from Christianity. It is true, if we turn our eye
+    only to the more conspicuous classes of society, the classes that
+    control the newspapers and mould public opinion, this view might
+    be admitted as to some countries. But if we look at the masses,
+    those not infected by half-education, then this opinion is true no
+    longer. And there are many who at heart are not so distant from
+    faith as it would seem. In public life they pose as free-thinkers,
+    but their domestic life bears frequently a Christian character.
+    And often they approach more and more the faith, the older they
+    grow. This is known to be the fact even of scientists. Instances
+    are men like _Ampere_, _Foucault_, _Flourens_, _Hermite_, _Bion_,
+    _Biran_, _Fechner_, _Lotze_, _Romanes_, _Littre_, and others.
+    _Plato_ claimed that no one who in his youth disputed the
+    existence of the gods retained this view to his old age.
+    "Christianity," observes _Savigny_ rightly, "is not only to be
+    acknowledged as a rule of life, it has actually transformed the
+    world, so that all our thoughts are ruled and penetrated by it, no
+    matter how foreign, even hostile, to Christianity they may
+    appear."
+
+
+It is a sign how deeply Christian religion has sunk its roots into the
+heart, that it remains _the_ religion even for those who have turned away
+from it. To be sure, for our nations Christianity is _the_ religion. For
+them the religion of a _Confucius_ or _Zoroaster_ does not enter into
+consideration; nor any of the products of modern religious foundations,
+which would replace Christianity with substitutions of all kinds of
+religious essences; they are on a level with the attempts at
+reconstructing sexual ethics: both are regrettable delusions.
+"Improvement" of Christian morality is tantamount to abandoning all
+morals, and desertion from the Christian religion, amongst our people, has
+always been apostasy from all religion. The Christian religion is so true,
+that no one can renounce it inwardly and then find peace in a self-made
+one. And all efforts aimed at displacing Christianity lead only to an
+abandonment of all religion.
+
+Look at the number of people from whom slander and insinuation have torn
+their old religion to be replaced by another--a freer, higher religion;
+their moral decadence soon bears testimony of the religious consecration
+which has been given to them. Woe unto those authorities who, while able
+to oppose, are indifferent, and who lend a hand in causing Christian
+thought to withdraw more and more from our mental atmosphere, to be
+replaced by another spirit, a spirit that will gradually control the
+decision of the judge, the practice of the physician, the instruction of
+the teacher, and thus more and more enter into the life of the people.
+
+
+    It is not assured to those nations of Europe, whose public life is
+    feeding to-day upon the remnants of their Christian past, that
+    they will not relapse into a state of moral and religious
+    barbarity. "Maybe civilized mankind, or our nation at least, is
+    really losing its hold more and more upon definite moral
+    standards," so complains a modern pedagogue; "possibly the
+    emancipation of sensuality will increase without end, perhaps we
+    have passed forever the stage of true humanity and of a live
+    idealism, and we shall henceforth glide downward.... These are no
+    mere, feverish dreams; there is good reason for facing these
+    possibilities with a determined eye, and no accidental or
+    philosophical optimism can ignore them" (_Muench_).
+
+    "It is quite possible," we are told by another, "that much will go
+    down in our old Europe during the next centuries; and the downfall
+    will not be restricted by any means to Church and Christianity,
+    and in the crises that will come Europe will hardly get the needed
+    support from an aesthetic heathendom, from the Monists' Union, or
+    from the evidences of science" (_Troeltsch_).
+
+    If it does not come to it, it will not be the merit of authorities
+    who let the vessel of state drift rudderless toward the rocks of
+    dechristianization.
+
+
+They do not realize that they greatly endanger thereby also the
+foundations of the state. _The foundations of our governments rest upon
+Christianity._ The Christian faith created the state, created matrimony,
+family, and the education of the youth; created the social virtues of
+loyalty and of obedience. What we have of religion is Christian, what we
+have of the religious support of morality is equally Christian;
+"Christianity, Christian faith, Christian formation of life penetrates all
+vital utterances of the Occidental world like an all-pervading element"
+(_Paulsen_).
+
+It is one of the first principles of political prudence not to shake the
+foundations upon which the state rests. States and nations are not
+ephemeral beings, existing from one day to the other, they are historical
+structures measuring their lives by centuries; past generations join hands
+with present generations, deeds and customs of the fathers live on in
+their sons.
+
+States must remain on the historical tracks on which they have travelled
+to success, at least until the new track has stood the test of
+reliability. So far anti-Christian philosophy has terribly shaken
+governments; it has not yet proved itself a state-conserving principle.
+
+It is a sad condition to see the guardians of states, devoid of historical
+appreciation, allow their people to tear themselves away from the soil
+wherein reposed the roots from which they drew life and strength. Sad,
+too, that complaints are made of college-professors who abuse freedom in
+teaching by constructing an unproved contradiction between knowledge and
+faith, by misrepresenting Christian tenets, by lowering the prestige of
+the Church, by distorting her historical picture. It would be regrettable
+for a Christian state, if the complaint were justified that for the most
+part our colleges have become places where religion is ignored; where the
+name of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of mankind, is no longer mentioned;
+where the name of God never occurs in history, in natural and political
+science; where religion is considered the most unessential factor of
+mental life, a factor that has nothing to offer, that can answer no
+question--a treatment which, by the force of suggestion, must lead young
+men to think that religion is of no account. It is a banishment which in
+its effect is little different from an attack upon religion.
+
+
+    Sadder still would it be if the following view were to prevail at
+    our colleges: "A right of the student to see protected and not
+    destroyed any views and convictions, including those of a
+    religious nature, which he may bring to the university from his
+    home surroundings, from his preliminary education, as it is
+    asserted time and again in the frequent complaints about the
+    dechristianizing of youth at the universities--does not exist and
+    cannot exist, because it would be in contradiction to the very
+    essence of the university and its tasks" (_Jodl_).
+
+    Is not this the ethical principle of the bird of prey? Is it not
+    allowed to guard the defenceless chick against the hawk? Christian
+    people send their sons to the university, and demand that the
+    education of the parental home be spared, that the inexperience of
+    youth be not misused. The state must demand that the
+    religious-moral education which it furthers in its public schools
+    be not destroyed by the higher schools. Yet, all these rights must
+    be silenced the moment the vision of the absolute freedom of
+    teaching makes its appearance, since to refrain from
+    dechristianizing the youth would be contrary to his tasks.
+
+
+If such abuse in the management of the power of knowledge, within and
+without colleges, is not counteracted by all possible means, then none
+need be surprised when a science free from religion and Christianity is
+followed by an elementary school free from religion, when in public and
+preparatory schools the free-thinking teacher is telling the pupils that
+there is no creation but only evolution, and that the gospels and biblical
+history are poetical stories such as the Nibelungenlied and the Iliad and
+Odyssey.
+
+
+    We cannot be astonished to find the following rules advocated for
+    the instruction in public schools: "Religious instruction in
+    schools should not differ from the instruction in other subjects,
+    namely, one of full freedom, bound only by recognized documents
+    and personalities of religious literature and religious science.
+    The school must teach that which is, it must present the tenets of
+    all times and all nations in so far as this is possible within its
+    modest compass.... But if the pupil should ask, What really is?
+    What position should the teacher assume toward this question? In
+    my opinion, he should speak in plain terms. He should say: There
+    are people who believe all that is taught by the different systems
+    of religion.... The child may further ask of the teacher whether
+    he himself believes. No teacher who claims the confidence of the
+    children should shirk the answer. He may confess his faith or
+    disbelief, without need of worry. It cannot hurt his prestige in
+    the eyes of the child, because, if for no other reason, either way
+    he will find himself in an equally large and good company"
+    (_Tews_).
+
+    But we hear much more radical utterances. For instance, the
+    official organ of teachers in a Catholic country urges defection
+    from the Church in the following words: "How long will
+    Social-Democracy, now so formidable, remain inactive against
+    clerical arrogance? How much longer will it shirk a duty that is
+    clear to the dullest eye? If the millions of our Social-Democrats,
+    including the women and children, would break away from Rome, the
+    priestcraft in Austria is as good as defeated. A grave
+    responsibility rests upon the Social-Democratic leaders. Should
+    they miss the moment to act, they will be judged by history!"
+    (Deutsch-oesterreichische Lehrerzeitung, June 1, 1909).
+
+    Another organ of teachers declares Christianity to be nothing else
+    but _victorious heresy_, for which Christ had to lay down His life
+    the same as _Giordano_, _Hus_, and countless others. "The subject
+    of religion as taught in the preparatory schools is for the most
+    part taken from ages whose customs and morals are--happily--no
+    longer ours." We see radicalism rampant in large circles of public
+    school teachers, demanding noisily, excitedly, and, of course, in
+    the name of modern science and enlightenment, the abolition of the
+    divine service, of prayer, and religious instruction in school,
+    giving as reason that, "as to matters of mental freedom no
+    difference should be made between a university and a village
+    school." That our people will "carelessly waste their Christian
+    patrimony, this is the great danger."
+
+
+Our argument is not that only Catholics should be professors, nor even to
+limit the teaching office to Christians. But one thing must be demanded of
+the college-teacher, that he possess the pedagogic qualifications to
+render him competent of educating the hope of the Christian people. As a
+rule this demands a religious, Christian disposition. One thing the state
+must absolutely demand of the teacher, that he have appreciation for the
+foundations of the Christian state; he who has no understanding for the
+historical forms of the life of a nation, who even regards them with
+hostility, should remain away from this vocation.
+
+In the United States the Jesuit Order has five free universities, founded
+and directed by the Order. Their professors are not all Catholics; there
+are professors of other creeds, even Jews. All work in harmony to the
+common end of the university.
+
+
+    Men who sincerely and conscientiously strive for the interests of
+    science will everywhere show not only consideration, but even
+    understanding and respect, for what is true in the ideas of
+    others. "I gaze," so writes Prof. _Smolka_, "upon the likenesses
+    of my venerable Protestant masters, under whom I studied at
+    Goettingen. Thirty-seven years have passed since I went to them, in
+    full confidence to find in their school the leaders who would be
+    free from the influence of the Catholic view of the world. To
+    their profound knowledge I owe, first of all, the emancipation
+    from the prejudices I was raised in, from the views of an
+    atmosphere devoted to Indifferentism in which I had passed my
+    youth. Prof. _Waitz_ opened my eyes to the grandeur of the
+    Catholic Church in the course of the centuries, in the repeated
+    prostration of the Papacy and its ever-following rise to
+    unsuspected heights, a fact unparalleled in the history of human
+    institutions. Prof. _Lotze_ rebuked me at the very beginning of my
+    studies at Goettingen for a slighting remark about scholastic
+    philosophy: later he imbued me with profound respect for it and
+    for the wealth of problems it embraces. These scientists,
+    Protestants without exception and in exclusively Protestant
+    surroundings, inoculated me with sincere love for scientific
+    truth, regardless of the consequences it would lead to. They also
+    introduced the youthful mind to the tried methods of scientific
+    research, indicating the boundaries where the domain of research
+    ends and the right of dogma, or arbitrary rule of subjective
+    imagination, begins."
+
+
+
+Restriction of Right.
+
+
+We need no further proof that the state is justified in restricting the
+freedom of teaching, whenever demanded by the business of the state as
+described above. Restriction of this kind can be considered unjustified
+only by a state theory of liberalism, which holds that the object of the
+state consists in merely protecting individual liberty, no matter if this
+liberty should lead to the gravest injuries so long as it does not affect
+the freedom of others; a theory which changes the state community from an
+integral organism into a conglomeration of autonomous individuals.
+_Lasalle_ scornfully termed this theory the "nightwatchman idea" of the
+state. The state has the right and the duty to exert a necessary influence
+upon the pursuit of science, especially at the universities. Against it
+the pleading of _autonomy of the college_ and its teacher will not hold.
+They have a certain autonomy, that was even greater in former times. An
+important part of it is the right to propose appointments for vacant
+chairs. It must be admitted that this method of appointment is proper; it
+vouches for the scientific fitness of the appointee, and will prove a
+protection against the exercise of undue political influence and
+ministerial absolutism, provided that this method is impartially
+exercised. But an autonomy that disputes the right of the state to protect
+its interests, where free science conflicts with it, that would demand, as
+has been asserted, that "no infringement of the freedom in teaching must
+be deduced from the official position as teacher,"--such autonomy would be
+a palpable misconception of the dependency of the college-teacher and of
+the social service of science. The rules that apply to other,
+non-judicial, officers should apply to teachers appointed by the state,
+and offences in their office, or conduct injurious to the purpose and the
+dignity of their office, should be treated similarly as in the case of
+other public servants. Nor should members of the legislature be forbidden
+to defend the rightful interests of their constituents in regard to
+schools. They are elected by the people for this purpose, and the people
+have a claim on the schools, which are supported by their taxes and to
+which some of their greatest interests are attached.
+
+
+    It has been demanded to concede to college-teachers the
+    independence and immunity of judges. This, however, would be
+    overlooking the vast difference between professors and judges. The
+    judge has to render legal decisions in concrete cases, according
+    to existing laws; in order to lessen the danger of his being
+    guided by outside considerations he is given a large measure of
+    independence. But what questions has the college-professor to
+    decide? Mathematical or physical questions? There his
+    incorruptibility is not in such danger that he must be made
+    independent of government. Religious and moral questions,
+    questions of views of the world? These he is not compelled to
+    decide. Neither state nor people have appointed him to question,
+    time and again, the fundamental foundations of human life, and to
+    render decisions which nobody requested.
+
+
+It is not clear why science, pleading its independence, should oppose
+justified restrictions. As a matter of fact _this independence does not
+exist anywhere_. Numerous are the considerations, often unwarranted, it is
+actually tied to, yea, often tied to by its own hands. He who is familiar
+with scientific doings, especially academic doings, knows numbers of such
+ties--there is the professional opinion in scientific circles; woe unto him
+who in his scientific works dares to confess a supernatural view of the
+world!--ties of the predominance of certain leaders or schools, without or
+against whose favor it is difficult to attain recognition, approval, or
+position; the ties of parties and cliques in an academic career; the tie,
+too, of that insinuating power of the state that confers much-desired
+decorations and titles.
+
+
+    "Where is this freedom of science?" asks a modern academic
+    teacher. "Some will say science and its teaching are free in our
+    country. True, it is so written on paper. But those charged with
+    keeping this principle inviolate are human. For instance the
+    monists have the chief voice in appointments to zooelogical chairs.
+    They will propose only scientists who are not opponents to the
+    monistic faith. Far be it from me to assume any _mala fides_. They
+    simply believe that only their faith is the proper one to promote
+    science. But I ask again, where is the freedom of science?"
+    (_Dahl_).
+
+    _H. St. Chamberlain_ tells of an amusing incident in his life:
+    "Many years ago, when I desired to devote myself to an academic
+    career, a chemist said to me: 'My dear fellow, since you belong to
+    the profession, I tell you as a friend that it is not enough for
+    you to be proficient: you should try, first of all, to marry the
+    daughter of one of the professors, of a privy counsellor if
+    possible.' 'This advice comes too late,' I replied, 'I am already
+    married.' My well-wisher was visibly shocked. 'What a pity! Too
+    bad! You don't realize what an influence this has here upon one's
+    career.' What trouble I had to obtain even the _venia docendi_!
+    and then I stuck fast and could not budge despite all achievements
+    until I undertook to marry the daughter of one of the
+    'head-wirepullers'; then things were fixed within three months. I
+    may have looked at him in a peculiar way, for his wife was a
+    veritable Xanthippe, and, he added with a laugh: 'You know I am
+    all day at the laboratory, from morning until late at night.' "
+    There is nothing new under the sun. In the year of grace, 1720,
+    _Johann Jacob Moser_ started his lectures in Tuebingen, but could
+    get no audience. "No wonder, even a cleverer man than I would not
+    have fared better at that time, when everything depended on
+    nepotism." The young man had crossed Chancellor _Pfaff_ by
+    rejecting a marriage arrangement (_Horn_).
+
+    One will find these things very human. Moreover, it would be
+    unwarranted to assume that they happen always and everywhere. But
+    they prove that the pursuit of science rests also on general human
+    grounds, and does not always remain aloft, in the ethereal heights
+    of pure truth.
+
+
+
+The Freedom of Teaching in History.
+
+
+When we said that it is the duty of the state to protect the common
+benefits of life against injury by freedom in teaching, and to stand guard
+over its Christian past, we stated nothing but what has been the
+conviction of the Christian nations and their rulers up into the
+nineteenth century. Absolute freedom in teaching cannot plead the support
+of history, it is only of yesterday. History shows it to be the natural
+child, not of the first awakening of the consciousness of freedom, but of
+_the de-Christianizing of the modern state_. Its official entry coincides
+with the increasing de-christianizing of public life during the nineteenth
+century, after the modern state adopted more and more the principles of
+liberal thought. A naturalistic view of the world, without faith, was
+struggling for supremacy; science had to proclaim it as higher
+enlightenment, and vehemently urged freedom in its behalf. The state
+receded step by step, confused by the commanding note in the new demands,
+by high-sounding words about the rights of science; it allowed itself to
+be talked into the belief that it must become the leader in the new
+course, and it took the banner that was forced into its hands. It has
+always been so; claims presented with impudence will intimidate, and
+assume in the eyes of many the appearance of right.
+
+
+    In so far as it signifies the removal of the religious-moral bars
+    in teaching, the freedom in teaching developed first in Protestant
+    Germany, together with the increasing change of universities into
+    state institutions. Reformation and the ensuing _Enlightenment_
+    had gradually prepared the way for it. Neither the rationalism nor
+    the pietism of the eighteenth century could have an understanding
+    for the tenets of the faith. In addition there was the confusion
+    engendered by the multiplication of Protestant denominations, none
+    supported by an overtowering spiritual authority; it led more and
+    more to the parting between science and religious confession;
+    political reasons, too, made it desirable to disregard
+    confessions. Thus the severance of science from religion increased
+    and the "freedom of teaching" in this sense was finally adopted
+    also by Catholic states as an achievement.
+
+    The enlightenment that had developed outside of the universities
+    made its entry into the halls of universities chiefly under the
+    Prussian Minister _von Zedlitz_, a champion of enlightenment and a
+    friend of the philosophers _Wolff_ and _Kant_. That the
+    universities at that time were controlled by free-thinkers is
+    illustrated by a saying of _Frederick II._ On January 4, 1774,
+    _von Zedlitz_ asked of the king whether _Steinhauss_, M.D., should
+    be denied the appointment for professor extraordinary at
+    Frankfort-on-the-Oder, for the reason that he was a Catholic. The
+    king decreed in his own handwriting that "This does not matter if
+    he is clever; besides, doctors know too much to have belief"
+    (_Bornhak_).
+
+    In the year of the Revolution, 1848, freedom of teaching became a
+    political catch-word. "The terms freedom of teaching and freedom
+    of learning, that became popular in 1848, when any phrase
+    compounded with freedom could not be often enough repeated, have
+    been ever since reminiscent of barricades, and men who have
+    witnessed those times become nervous at their mere sound"
+    (_Billroth_).
+
+    What was understood by freedom in teaching at the turning point of
+    the eighteenth century is shown by the demand of _Thomasius_ for
+    "freedom of doctrines that are not against God and the state." The
+    first move was to break away from _human_ authorities, _Aristotle_
+    and others. Thus the Kiel University, by its regulation of January
+    27, 1707, ordered that "no faculty should enslave itself to
+    certain principles or opinions, in so far as they are dependent on
+    a human authority" (_Horn_).
+
+    In Goettingen and Halle freedom of teaching also became the maxim,
+    and "_Libertas sentiendi_," as _Muenchhausen_ declared, "was open
+    to every one and not restrained by statute, except that there
+    should be taught nothing _ungodly_ and _Unchristian_." In those
+    days this restriction was looked upon as a matter of course. It is
+    known that _Kant_ was disciplined by Minister _Woellner_ in 1794,
+    because of his treatise on religion; at Koenigsberg this reproof
+    was accepted with good grace, and both the philosophical and the
+    theological faculties pledged themselves not to lecture on
+    _Kant's_ religious philosophy. As recently as the middle of the
+    nineteenth century a restriction in this sense was ordered by the
+    Prussian Minister _Eichhorn_, and the restriction was observed.
+    The Materialist _Moleschott_ was cautioned in 1845 by the Senate
+    of Heidelberg University, and in reply he resigned his post; in
+    the following year at Tuebingen _Buechner's venia legendi_ was
+    cancelled, because, as he himself stated, "it was feared I would
+    poison with my teaching the minds of my young students" (_Horn_).
+
+    In 1842, _Bruno Bauer_, the radical Bible-critic, was removed by
+    the Prussian faculties from the academic chair because of his
+    writings. _D. Strauss_ lectured on philosophy at Tuebingen, but was
+    forced to resign when the first volume of his "Life of Jesus"
+    appeared in 1835. Later on, when called by the authorities of
+    Zurich to the chair for Church history and dogmatics, an emphatic
+    protest of the people made the appointment impossible.
+
+
+While showing a regrettable indifference for attacks against religion, the
+modern states, inoculated with the principles of Liberalism, have not
+entirely forgotten their traditions. Many sections in their penal codes
+still protect religion, not only against defamation, but, as is the case
+in Austria, also against public anti-Christian propaganda, and the
+"religious-moral education" in public schools is made compulsory by law.
+Of course there is a contradiction, between the conviction of the state
+that the principles of morals and religion must be preserved, and the
+grant of full freedom to an anti-religious misuse of science, whose effect
+upon the masses is unavoidable. It is a contradiction to tear down the dam
+at the river and then erect emergency levees against the onrushing flood.
+The amazing presumption, that holds inviolate and sacred everything that
+poses under the name of science, is the fault of it all.
+
+
+
+Freedom of Teaching and Party Rule.
+
+
+In some countries the complaint is heard that a certain faction has
+obtained control of the universities, and so exercises its control that
+those who are not of its bent of mind are excluded from both teaching and
+taking part in the administration of its affairs, despite the fact that
+freedom in teaching and learning has been guaranteed by the state. It is
+the faction that professes free-thought and cultivates the freedom of
+science in this sense. This condition forces students faithful to their
+religion to study in a strange atmosphere, and they are looked upon as
+strangers. The parties so accused seek to disclaim these charges as
+unjust; for they feel that, if justified, it would disclose an unlawful
+condition of things. Nevertheless the facts are so notorious, that all
+protestations will be without avail.
+
+
+    These facts must be painful to the sense of justice, order, and
+    good-fellowship; and to this sense it is not pleasing to deal
+    further with matters which have often been the cause for indignant
+    resentment, and to go into concrete details. We shall but briefly
+    recall to mind how persistently candidates for academic positions
+    are pushed aside when they are known to be of staunch Catholic
+    mind. This is borne out by their trifling percentage among the
+    large number of college-teachers; by the high pressure that is
+    often needed to lift the embargo for a _Catholic_; by assaults
+    which not seldom resulted in physical violence. This small number
+    is glaringly emphasized by the considerable, even disquieting,
+    number of college lecturers of Jewish extraction. Furthermore,
+    there is the improper usage that the theological faculty is passed
+    over at the annual election of the rector, and likewise, that
+    teachers even of lay-faculties are excluded from academic offices
+    when they profess themselves openly as Catholics.
+
+    Catholic students have seen themselves treated as strangers at
+    more than one university; they were not given the usual
+    privileges, and were accorded rights only in the proportion that
+    their number had to be reckoned with. Their corporate bodies were
+    ignored, self-evident rights either denied or grossly violated.
+
+    As to the small number of religious-minded lecturers at colleges
+    it is not to be denied that the number of those who combine
+    fervent religious persuasion with high scientific efficacy is not
+    considerable these days. Their long suppression furnishes a reason
+    for it, but not the only one. A modern university professor
+    rightly states: "While there never has been a want of courageous,
+    determined confessors of the Catholic faith who have occupied a
+    prominent, even leading, position in the progress of science, in
+    the perfection of methods and means of scientific research, they
+    were and still are the exception. They were men of _self-reliance
+    and independent_ judgment, who were able to exempt themselves from
+    an humble submission to the powerful view of the world, which
+    emanates from the hatred of Christianity and prevails in educated
+    circles. The issue is still the same secular contrast between the
+    two views of the world, which _St. Augustine_ illustrated with
+    unsurpassed mastery as long as fifteen hundred years ago. But the
+    view of the world which has been in the ascendant in scientific
+    circles long since, has certainly nothing in common with
+    scientific research."
+
+
+Our task, however, is not to examine the facts, but to prove that such
+conditions are unlawful, no matter where and when found. We do not wish to
+discuss further the fact that a university polity, exclusively in the
+spirit of a liberalism that gradually goes over into radicalism, would
+constitute a grave danger for Christian traditions. Indifference to the
+Christian and every other religion, or to an extent direct rejection, must
+make it appear more and more inferior and obsolete in the eyes of educated
+circles; this view will then easily find its way to the people. Nor do we
+intend to enlarge upon a second point, viz., the interest of science
+itself. The kernel of liberal research in the province of the spiritual is
+a frivolous agnosticism, with a rigid bondage to its naturalistic
+postulates, with which we have become sufficiently acquainted. Principles
+of this kind are poison for true science. For this reason alone it is
+necessary that a Christian philosophy be placed by the side of a
+philosophy in fear of metaphysics, one that never extends beyond puzzles
+and problems; that a history guided by Christian principles be placed
+alongside of one inspired by anti-ecclesiastical sentiment; in general
+that a spirit of veracity assert itself, which would give an example, from
+the home of highest culture, not of vain arrogance, but of that mental
+firmness which, conscious of the limits of human knowledge, is also ready
+to believe. How can our universities remain the seats of sterling mental
+life, if the highest power of truth that has ever been, the Christian
+religion, is ignored there, and even maligned; and if in its stead is
+cultivated a philosophical-religious research which leads only to the
+negation of everything that hitherto was our ideal, and which gives birth
+to a mental anarchy, which, before the forum of history, makes it a
+principle of pauperization.
+
+One point to be particularly emphasized is the _violation of rights and
+the oppression of mental liberty_, resulting from a party-rule in the
+realm of higher education. Under a government of law every one, assuming
+he possesses the necessary qualification, has an equal right to teach:
+this is elemental to freedom of teaching. The state with its institutions
+exists for the benefit of all classes, not for one certain class that has
+formed the notion that it is the sole bearer of science. Enemies of the
+state should be excluded from teaching, but not good citizens. Nor can it
+be demanded, as a necessary preliminary for academic teaching, that one
+must subscribe to the catch-phrases of any particular party, and so
+discard one's religious belief. And there is the violation of the rights
+of faithful Christian people. Since their money in the form of taxes
+maintains to a large extent the schools and their teachers, they surely
+can demand a conscientious administration of their interests, and a
+representation of the Christian view of the world, in a way becoming its
+past and its dignity; Christian people can demand that their sons receive
+an education in consonance with their Christian convictions, and that the
+universities will train officials, physicians, and teachers, in whom they
+may have confidence. If there are no other but state universities in a
+country, and these are monopolized by a free-thought party, then a
+condition of mental bondage will arise for those of a different mind. They
+are compelled either to have their sons forego the learned profession, or
+else expose them to an atmosphere wherein they see danger of a religious
+and moral nature, in ideas, association, and example. No right is left to
+them, but the right to pay taxes toward the budget of education, and then
+to look on how an irreligious party is striving to turn the higher schools
+into training camps of obligatory liberalism, and to monopolize the entire
+mental life for this purpose. Now and then there is great indignation
+against state monopolies; it is said, shall the state determine what kind
+of cigars I should smoke, and what I am to pay for them! Now, then, where
+is freedom if the majority of the Christian population is to be forced
+into taking mental nourishment it does not desire and rejects, and pay for
+it besides? If we recall to mind the past, which gave birth to the most
+venerable universities of the present, a sorrowful feeling comes over us.
+We see how far our colleges have deviated from their original purpose, how
+our governments have lost their old traditions. Promotion of the Christian
+religion and of the fear of God, was the lofty aim which their founders
+had in mind.
+
+
+    In bestowing the charter upon Vienna University, Duke _Albrecht_
+    stated that he beheld in the university an institution "whereby
+    the glory of the Creator in heaven and His true faith on earth
+    would be furthered, knowledge would be increased, the state
+    benefited, and the light of justice and truth brightened." And
+    when, in 1366, he donated property to the university, he declared
+    the object of the donation to be "that the university may increase
+    the prosperity of the entire Church."
+
+    When Leopold I, on April 26, 1677, signed the charter of Innsbruck
+    University he declared that he founded this university
+    pre-eminently for the protection and prosperity of the Catholic
+    Religion, as a means for its preservation, and also that many of
+    those who had lost the faith might be led back to religion, for
+    the honour and the glory of the Tyrol.
+
+    In the charter of Tuebingen University, _Eberhard_ of Wuerttemberg
+    states: "I believe I can do no better work, none more helpful to
+    gain salvation, none more pleasing to the eternal God, than to
+    provide with special diligence and emulation for the instruction
+    of good and zealous young men in the fine arts and sciences, to
+    enable them to recognize God, to know, to honour, and to serve Him
+    alone." "In those days there was no hesitation to assign to
+    science the loftiest vocation and to declare ... that, coming from
+    God, science should also lead back to Him as its origin.... The
+    school was charged to work for the spread and the defence of the
+    true belief. Christian truth was once queen at these universities;
+    now, she has only too often become a stranger, to be denounced at
+    times if she attempts to knock at the portals of her old home"
+    (_Probst_).
+
+
+
+Free Universities.
+
+
+Another manner, to provide proper freedom of teaching, is open to the
+modern state by incorporating free universities. Unlike the state
+institutions, they are not directly controlled by the state, but are
+independent of it in their internal affairs; they are founded and managed
+by private persons or societies. Universities of this kind are found in
+Belgium and in England, to some extent in France, but their home is
+chiefly in the United States. At the head of the free university of the
+United States is the president, with a governing body and a board of
+trustees elected from members of the university; they appoint teachers,
+prescribe schedules of study and examinations, and conduct its business.
+True, the state cannot relinquish its right to oppose a system of teaching
+dangerous to the common weal; it will also provide that those to be
+licensed to practice the professions possess the necessary education and
+training; but the state refrains from further interference in the
+management of free universities.
+
+It is no doubt difficult to establish by private means universities
+equally efficient with those of the state; in the countries of Middle
+Europe this undertaking is perhaps more difficult than elsewhere, but the
+possibility is there, and it is even realized in some places. This,
+however, is not a question to occupy us here; we merely wish to declare,
+if similar foundations are about to be undertaken, and the necessary
+conditions are present, then the state must not prevent them, it must
+grant freedom in teaching.
+
+True, the state is obliged to assist its subjects in acquiring material
+and spiritual goods, but only in so far as private means are insufficient
+thereto: the state must only act in a supplemental way. If it does that
+which its citizens themselves are able to do, then the state is needlessly
+abridging their free right. This includes the establishment of schools and
+the teaching in them. Presuming fitness, everybody has a _natural right_
+to teach others; hence, also, to found schools, whether by himself or
+jointly with others. Furthermore, instruction is a part of education, even
+at the university; it could hardly be said of the graduate of the
+preparatory school that his education is completed. Education, however, is
+a matter for the parents. Their rights would be infringed upon, if
+needlessly forced by the state to intrust their sons exclusively to the
+state colleges and to their method of teaching. How could the state's
+exclusive right to teach be proved? Does the pursuit of science belong to
+its domain? No one will care to claim this. If science were to be allotted
+to the jurisdiction of any one body, the Church would be the first to
+enter into consideration, because of her international and spiritual
+character. Or is this right to be conceded to the state because it is to
+be the bearer of culture? The state is to promote culture, but not to
+prescribe a certain brand of it. The argument that private universities
+cannot be founded and conducted in the proper way is certainly not borne
+out by the facts.
+
+Even if the state, owing to its superior facilities, could provide better
+universities than private effort, it would not be entitled to the
+monopoly; the fact of being able to do something better does not secure
+the sole privilege of doing it. Moreover, in order to attract students,
+free universities will have to emulate state universities. The right of
+the state to found universities will of course not be disputed; but this
+right must not deteriorate into a disguised monopoly, that would grant
+privileges to its own universities, and deny them to free universities in
+order to put them out of existence. At any rate, the state will always
+retain considerable influence over the studies at free universities. It
+may require certain standards in candidates for political and professional
+positions, for judges and lawyers, teachers at state schools, physicians;
+it may insist upon state examinations, or it may make its stipulations for
+recognizing the examinations and academic degrees of the free schools.
+
+By free schools of higher learning, a greater degree of freedom in
+teaching and in learning would be assured, or, speaking generally, a
+greater freedom in the intellectual life. If these higher institutions of
+learning are exclusively in the hands of the state, it cannot fail that
+the higher intellectual life will be dangerously dependent upon the state,
+or fall into the control of a dominating clique. As an example might be
+cited the restrictions placed upon jurisprudence by Prussia in the
+eighteenth century; the long-continued control of Hegelian philosophy; the
+Universite Imperiale of Napoleon; the predominance of anti-Catholic
+thought in our own schools. Universities, founded upon a positive,
+Christian basis, would surely be a comfort for thousands.
+
+No need to say that such foundations may also be undertaken by the Church.
+This right cannot be denied to the Church, just as little as to any other
+corporation. Nay, much less! Because of its intellectual and international
+character science is most closely related to the Church. The latter,
+furthermore, has an eminent, historical right; no one has done more for
+the foundation and promotion of the European universities than the Church.
+
+
+    A remarkable and at the same time _characteristic attitude_
+    towards free, particularly Catholic, universities is assumed by
+    Liberalism. The stereotyped objection to Catholic universities is
+    known; it can be reduced to this formula: At a Catholic university
+    there can be no freedom in research nor freedom in teaching; but
+    without them there can be no science; consequently, a Catholic
+    university is a contradiction. It is the same old song: there is
+    but one science, there is but one freedom--the free-thought that
+    rejects belief. If it is really so obvious that a Catholic
+    university is a contradiction to science, hence incapable to
+    foster it, why the excitement? Either such universities are
+    incompetent, or they are not. Let the experiment go on; the result
+    will tell. If the result is certain, as is claimed, very well, one
+    may serenely await it. Liberalism shows itself again here in the
+    shape of that nasty hybrid of freedom and intolerance for which it
+    is known. It is the head of Janus with its two faces: the one
+    showing the bright mien of freedom, the other the sinister scowl
+    of an intolerant tyrant. They shout for freedom, freedom they
+    demand; Church and Revelation are put under the ban, because they
+    restrain freedom. The state is denounced as soon as it wants to
+    interfere. But if others attempt research free and independently,
+    though not just so as Liberalism would like, then tyranny
+    immediately takes the place of liberty, the herald of freedom
+    resorts to oppression, and those who just now proclaimed the
+    independence of universities from the state, who protested against
+    the interference of the state in science, turn about and loudly
+    call for the help of the state, avowing that science can thrive
+    only under state control.
+
+
+
+The Church and the Universities.
+
+
+In discussing the position of the social authorities toward freedom of
+teaching, we have chiefly considered the state. Of the Church we shall say
+but a brief word. It will suffice to recall what has been said previously;
+what has been stated about the relation of the Church to freedom of
+research, applies in many respects equally to freedom of teaching. Little
+will have to be added. The Church, and the Church alone, has received from
+her divine Founder the command to preserve the doctrine of revelation and
+to proclaim it to mankind. "Going, therefore, teach ye all nations"--this
+is the commission of the Lord.
+
+For this reason the teaching of the revealed truth, Theology, is the
+privilege of the Church. But the rest of the sciences will not be exempt
+from the obligation to listen to the admonition of the God-appointed
+authority, in all cases where religious grounds are invaded. To the Church
+is intrusted the religious-moral guidance of her faithful; she cannot
+remain indifferent, when in the public teaching of science a system is
+followed detrimental to the Christian principles of the faithful. And
+whoever has entered the Church by baptism, remains subject to her
+authority in all matters within her sphere.
+
+The state must acknowledge these rights of the Church, or else forfeit its
+claim to be a Christian state; these rights, belonging to the essence of
+the Christian religion, are guaranteed by God, and are independent of
+human sanction. Hence, in case of clashes in this respect, the state must
+listen to the grievances of the Church; this will chiefly concern
+Theology, rarely other sciences. Thus it would be partially correct to say
+that the theological faculties are subject to the Church, but those of the
+rest of the sciences to the power of the state. But only partially;
+spiritual interests cannot be marked out by faculties. Interests of faith
+may be also violated in other faculties: then cases may arise which lose
+their purely worldly character, and extend into the religious sphere of
+the Church. If a professor should lecture on a matter touching closely
+upon interests of faith, for instance, Catholic Canon law or philosophy,
+and should show bias against Church and Christianity, deny its authority,
+distort and attack its tenets--then this would constitute an evident wrong
+to the Church and a flagrant violation of the interests which to guard it
+is her duty, especially in a country overwhelmingly Catholic. In that case
+the Church would be entitled to make expostulation.
+
+In rejecting the protests of the Church in such cases, as being the
+interference of a foreign power, the state would thereby prove that it
+misunderstands both, the religious vocation of the Church and the proper
+relation between state and Church. For the faithful, whom the state calls
+its subject, are also the subjects of the Church, they are the lambs and
+sheep the Church is to feed, in obedience to divine command. Church and
+state having in common the same subjects, and being closely connected for
+so long a time that it has become historical, it would be unnatural if
+they were to treat each other as strangers, such as might be expected in a
+heathen country, Japan, for instance. The nature of the case and the weal
+of the people demand harmonious action in such matters. It cannot be
+denied, moreover, that the Church commonly meets the state government to
+the extreme limit of her ability. About the divine rights of the Church
+opinions differ, but those able to fully appreciate the precious benefits
+of religion and morality will regard it as one of the greatest boons to
+humanity, that there exists within its fold an organization which protects
+with fearless, awe-inspiring majesty these benefits against all attacks,
+even against the state and its all-devouring policy of utility, and in
+this way defends the mental dignity of the human individual against
+oppression by the reckless reality of external life.
+
+
+    Just to show how an avowed free-thinker appreciates the
+    significance of a commanding spiritual force as against the state
+    we will quote the French positivist _A. Comte_, who declares: "The
+    absorption of the spiritual by the worldly power is a return to
+    barbarity; the separation of the two powers, however, is the
+    principle for mental uplift and moral dignity." "True," says he,
+    "men struggle in blind aversion against spiritual power of any
+    kind; yet it will even then prevail, though in a mistaken way.
+    Professors, authors, and newspaper writers will then pose as the
+    speculative leaders of mankind, although they lack all mental and
+    moral qualification for it" (Cours de philosophie positive).
+
+    Short-sighted perception may upbraid the Catholic Church; but a
+    far-sighted judgment will have to concede that mankind owes
+    gratitude to the Church and the Papacy. A noted Protestant writer
+    remarks: "But for the Papacy the Middle Ages would have fallen a
+    prey to barbarity. Even in our day the liberty of nations would be
+    threatened with greatest danger if there were no Papacy. It is the
+    most effective counterpoise to an omnipotent power of the state.
+    If it did not exist, it would have to be invented" (_Huebler_).
+
+
+
+
+
+FIFTH SECTION. THEOLOGY.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter I. Theology And Science.
+
+
+Now one other, the concluding point. So far our discussion has dealt
+almost exclusively with the profane sciences, and while there were often
+under discussion general principles, applying also to theology, we did not
+refer to the latter expressly for the reason that it occupies a special
+position in regard to our question. Theology is the science of the faith,
+its subjects are truths established by divine or inspired authority;
+hence, in teaching, authority plays a larger part in this than in any
+other science. For this reason much fault is found with theology, and many
+consider that it forfeits thereby its claim to rank as a science. They say
+it lacks all liberty, the results are prescribed; it lacks possibility of
+progress; nothing but rigid dogmas, rejecting all development and
+improvement; its vocation is exhausted by the incessant transmitting of
+the immutable; hence it lacks all the essential conditions of a true
+science, it has no claim to a place at the university; if it nevertheless
+has established itself at the university, as is the case in some
+countries, it must be considered as an alien body, a remnant of an
+obsolete time.
+
+A keen eye cannot fail to detect in these words the prompting voice of
+that view of the world which rejects everything supernatural, and declares
+that Christian dogmatics and morals, and ideas of sin, redemption,
+humility of faith, cross, and self-denial, do no longer correspond to
+modern man. At bottom is the struggle between the two views of the
+world--one the philosophy of modern, sovereign man, the other the
+contemplation of the world in the light of Christianity: a process of
+repulsion, psychologically easily understood, by which the one seeks to
+expel the other from the position which it desires to occupy. A closer
+examination of the matter will show this.
+
+
+
+Theology as a Science.
+
+
+Is theology a science in the proper sense? May it rightly claim a place
+among the branches of human science? This shall be the first question to
+be answered. Theology, meaning the doctrine of God, is the science of the
+Revelation, or of the faith; of the Revelation which began in the Old
+Testament and reached its perfection in Christ, the Son of God, in whom
+appeared the fulness of God, the image of the glory of God, the perfection
+of all religion; the Revelation intrusted to the Church to be preserved
+infallibly, so that by these truths, and means of salvation, the Church
+might guide and enrich the life of believing mankind. Hence, in the broad
+sense in which it is understood now, theology is the science that gathers
+the revealed truths from their sources, endeavours to grasp and to defend
+them, and to deduce new truths from them; which also studies these truths
+and the means given for salvation, in their development and effect in the
+Christian life.
+
+Thus it includes a wide range of subordinate branches, connected by a
+common object. The biblical sciences have for their subject Holy Writ; the
+sciences of introduction to the Bible deal with its external history, with
+historical criticism playing an important part; exegesis is occupied with
+the scientific interpretation of the text and uncovers the treasures of
+truth in Holy Writ, assisted in this task by hermeneutics and a number of
+philosophical-historical auxiliary sciences. Ecclesiastical history and
+its branches of patrology, history of dogma, ecclesiastical archaeology,
+and art, and other auxiliary sciences, describe the doctrine of Revelation
+in its historical course through the centuries, and its development in the
+bosom of the Church. Dogmatics (with apologetics) and morals have the task
+to explain and defend the doctrine of faith and morals, as drawn from the
+Scriptures and from tradition, to deduce new truths from them and to unite
+them all in a system. Finally, Canon law, and even to a greater degree the
+departments of pastoral theology, homiletics, liturgy, show how the
+treasures of Revelation and Redemption find their realization in the
+practical life of the Church and of the Christian people.
+
+Hence there cannot be any doubt but that theology is a science in the
+proper sense, unless a wrong definition of science is presumed. Of course,
+if we should identify science in general with empirical science, and
+scientific methods with the methods of natural sciences and mathematics,
+and refuse to recognize any results as scientific except those gained by
+observation and mathematical calculation, then, of course, theology would
+not be a science, nor would many other branches of knowledge come under
+this head; the fault, however, would lie with a narrow conception, that
+limits itself to the portion of human knowledge within its vision,
+ignoring everything that exists beyond its horizon.
+
+What are we to understand by science? It is the systematic concentration
+of the knowledge and the research of things according to their causes;
+hence of our cognition of a subject that can be proved by careful
+demonstration to be certain or at least probable. This we find to be the
+case in theology. It is the sum total, systematically arranged, of
+knowledge and researches concerning the tenets of faith, considered in the
+abstract, in their history, and in their effects on the life of the
+Church. Applying the method of natural thought, theology first studies the
+presumptions and foundations of faith, examines the sources of revelation
+by the philosophical and historical-critical method, proves the doctrines
+of faith by these sources, endeavours to grasp these truths
+intellectually, by the methods of analytical and synthetical thinking, and
+to make clear their connection. We have here the same methods as applied
+in other sciences: ascertaining the facts, definition of terms, deduction,
+induction. In respect to the history of the Church and to Canon law their
+similarity with analogous profane sciences is at once obvious.
+
+There is one _difference_: in the theological sciences there is active,
+not only rational research, but also the _belief_ in revealed truths. In
+some departments, like that of ecclesiastical history, this difference is
+less pronounced, they proceed by the method of critically establishing and
+connecting the facts; but they, too, are guided by the conviction that
+there is in the life of the Church not only natural causation, but also
+supernatural principle. Dogmatics takes faith to a greater degree as its
+point of support, in order to connect natural reason with the convictions
+of faith, and how richly natural reason may unfold itself is shown in the
+works of _St. Augustine_ and _St. Thomas_, on the great mysteries of the
+faith. As regards faith itself, we must keep in mind that it has a
+scientific foundation: the credibility of revelation is proven, it is a
+reasoning faith. It may be likened to history. The historian, on the
+testimony of his sources, believes in the actuality of human events,
+having convinced himself of the credibility of his sources; this belief
+becomes then his starting point for further researches of a pragmatical
+nature: he penetrates more deeply into the facts, and connects them
+according to their causal relations. The difference is this: the historian
+rests upon human authority, the theologian upon divine.
+
+Yet the objection is raised: theology is faith, or at least rests on
+faith. Faith, however, has nothing to do with science; faith is sentiment,
+whereas science is knowledge. That this view of faith is wrong, and the
+result of subjective agnosticism that denies to man any positive
+understanding of supernatural truths, we have shown repeatedly. Certainly,
+if faith were nothing but sentiment, no science could be built upon it;
+you cannot build stone houses upon water. But the Catholic faith is not
+simply sentiment, it is a conviction of reason, based upon God's testimony
+that the revealed doctrines are true. In the same way that the
+historian--to use the comparison once more--believes positively in his
+historical facts, on the strength of the authority of a _Livy_ or
+_Tacitus_, or accepts as proved some events of ancient times, relying upon
+the testimony of Babylonian tablets of clay or upon the pyramids, and
+makes these events his starting point for further researches, without
+having to fear objections to his work on the ground that knowledge and
+belief are incompatible; just so the theologian believes in his religious
+truths because they are vouched for by God's testimony. This proves that
+the foundation for his further thought is not formed by uncontrollable,
+irrational sentiment, but by a conviction of reason.
+
+Hence, if by knowledge is meant nothing but a conviction of reason--and in
+this sense faith and knowledge are usually contrasted by modern
+philosophical writers--then faith is knowledge in the proper sense and a
+contradiction does not exist. If, however, knowledge is taken to be the
+understanding gained by personal insight without reliance on external
+testimony, then, of course, there is a distinction, and theology would not
+be a science, in so far as it _believes_; just as little as history would
+be a science, in so far as it believes its sources. But theology is a
+science, in so far as it makes use of experience and reason, examines its
+sources, draws from them the facts of faith, and makes them the starting
+point for its investigations.
+
+
+    Theology also has mysteries among its subjects, namely, truths
+    whose actuality is cognizable, but whose contents, while not
+    indeed inconsistent, yet remain obscure and incomprehensible to
+    us. But even this does not impair its scientific character. Other
+    sciences share with it this lot of human limitation. Instances are
+    plentiful in natural science where the existence of natural forces
+    of one kind or another is proven; of which it is able to form some
+    idea, but cannot fathom; they remain a puzzle to science,
+    sometimes presenting the greatest difficulties. For instance,
+    ether, gravitation, electricity, the nature of motion, and so on.
+    The noted physicist _J. J. Thomson_ says: "Gravitation is the
+    secret of secrets. But the very same holds good of all molecular
+    forces, of magnetism, electricity, etc. There are in animated
+    nature even more things we cannot understand. We could say that of
+    the processes of living organisms we understand practically
+    nothing. Our knowledge of indigestion, of propagation, of
+    instinct, is so small that we can almost say it is limited to the
+    enumeration of them. What we do know and understand is not one
+    thousandth part of what would be necessary for a knowledge in any
+    degree complete. 'If we raise an arm,' says _Pasteur_, 'or put our
+    teeth in action, we do something that no one can explain.' "
+
+
+
+Theology and Progress.
+
+
+With a very superficial conception of theology we might easily arrive at
+the opinion that it lacks a characteristic of science, which, in our time
+especially, is insisted upon, namely, progress. For it must adhere to
+dogmas and not go beyond them. Hence, seemingly, there is nothing to do
+for theology but to transmit unchangeable truths, perhaps in different
+aspects, but nevertheless the same truths.
+
+It must be admitted that one kind of progress is barred in theology, as
+also in other sciences; to wit, the progress of incessant remodelling and
+reshaping, the continuous tearing down of the old facts, the eternal
+search after truth without ever gaining its possession.
+
+
+    This is often the progress demanded. "The new tuition," it is
+    said, "starts from the premise that the truth is to be searched
+    for" (_Paulsen_). "Science is not a perfected doctrine, but a
+    research, ever to be revised" (_Harnack_). It is particularly
+    demanded of theology that it procure a FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF
+    CHRISTIANITY, and substitute for it thoughts which modern age has
+    adopted and which it calls scientific thinking. "There remains the
+    task," they say, "of expressing faith and its objects so as to
+    coincide with the conception formed by scientific thinking of the
+    natural and historical reality" (_Paulsen_). Hence miracles, the
+    divinity of Christ, and mysteries of any kind, must be eliminated;
+    even the notion of a personal God will have to be changed to a
+    pantheistic notion: "After the great revolution in our cosmic
+    theories we can no longer think of God, the eternal holy Will that
+    we revere as First Cause of all things, as the 'first mover'
+    throning outside and above the universe, as _Aristotle_ and
+    _Thomas_ did" (_Paulsen_).
+
+
+Such a progress is impossible in theology, at least in Catholic theology,
+and in any other that still aims to be the theology of the Christian,
+revealed religion. It cannot be expected from theology, nor from any other
+science, that it will degrade itself to a fashionable science, that takes
+for its level not truth but the variable imperatives and moods of the
+times, and, destitute of character, changes with each varying fashion. The
+science of faith cannot assume this position, so much the less as it must
+be aware that its truths often clash with the inclinations of the human
+heart, and that its vocation is to lift up mankind, not to let itself be
+dragged down. This kind of progress therefore is barred. This, indeed, is
+not progress, but a hopeless wavering from pillar to post, a building and
+tearing down, acquiring without permanent possession, searching without
+finding.
+
+_True progress_ can be shown in theology as in any other science.
+
+The _possibility_ of progress is manifest, particularly, in
+Church-history, in the biblical and pastoral sciences: they are closely
+related to the profane-historical, philological, social, and juridical
+branches of science, hence theology shares in their progress. It would
+seem that dogmatics would have to forego progress. Its progress certainly
+cannot consist in changing the revealed doctrines, nor in interpreting
+differently in the course of times the formulas of creed; here the rule
+is, _veritas Domini manet in aeternum_. The development of dogmatic
+knowledge consists rather in the following: the revealed truths are in the
+course of the centuries more and more clearly perceived and more sharply
+circumscribed, more surely demonstrated, more and more extensively
+appreciated in their connections, relations, and deductions. The sources
+of Divine Revelation flow the richer the more they are drawn from; their
+truths are so substantial, so abundant in relation to knowledge and life,
+that, the more research advances, the less it reaches its limit. "No one
+gets nearer to the realization of truth than he who perceives that in
+divine things, no matter how far he progresses, there remains always
+something more to be examined" (_Leo the Great_).
+
+Consider the progress in mathematics. No one will say the mathematician is
+doomed to stagnation because he cannot change the multiplication table or
+the geometrical propositions. The increasing mathematical literature, with
+its big volumes, contradicts this notion: but its growth of knowledge is
+not the zigzag progress of restless to and fro, it is the solid progress
+from the seed to the plant.
+
+
+    As early as the fifth century _St. Vincent_ of Lerin described the
+    progress in dogmatical knowledge: "Sed forsitan dicet aliquis:
+    Nullusne ergo in Ecclesia Christi profectus habebitur religionis?
+    Habeatur plane et maximus. Nam quis ille est tam invidus
+    hominibus, tam exosus Deo, qui istud prohibere conetur? Sed ita
+    tamen, ut vere profectus sit ille fidei, non permutatio. Siquidem
+    ad profectum pertinet, ut in semetipsum quaeque res amplificetur;
+    ad permutationem vero, ut aliquid ex alio in aliud transvertatur.
+    Crescat igitur oportet et multum vehementerque proficiat tam
+    singulorum quam omnium, tam unius hominis, quam totius Ecclesiae,
+    aetatum ac saeculorum gradibus, intelligentia, scientia,
+    sapientia, sed in suo duntaxat genere, in eodem scilicet dogmate,
+    eodem sensu eademque sententia.... Quodeunque igitur in hac
+    Ecclesiae Dei agricultura fide Patrum satum est, hoc idem filiorem
+    industria decet excolatur et observetur, hoc idem floreat et
+    maturescat, hoc idem proficiat et perficiatur. Fas est etenim, ut
+    prisca illa coelestis philosophiae dogmata processu temporis
+    excurentur, limentur, poliantur, sed nefas est, ut commutentur,
+    nefas, ut detruncentur, ut mutilentur."
+
+
+The _proof for the actual progress_ of theology is furnished by its
+history. It shows how theology has gradually grown from the first seed of
+the divine Word, placed by the hand of God's Son into the soil of
+humanity, until it became a great tree, rich in branches and leaves. The
+holiest men of the Christian centuries, equipped with the choicest mental
+forces, enlightened by the light of grace, have worked on its growth;
+toiling and praying, they filled libraries with their books.
+
+
+    It is not our intention to outline here a sketch of this
+    development. A few hints may suffice. Hardly had the faith taken
+    root in the civilized nations of the old times when researches
+    were begun. A long list of Holy Fathers and ecclesiastical authors
+    were the bearers of the first development. Drawing upon Greek
+    philosophy in aid and to deepen their thought in the mental battle
+    against the ancient pagan view of the world, against Judaism and
+    heresy, they elucidated more and more the tenets of faith and
+    morals, and endeavoured to draw ever more fully from their
+    spiritual contents. We encounter among the shining host men like
+    _Tertullian_, _Cyprian_, _Clement of Alexandria_, _Origines_,
+    _Cyril of Jerusalem_, _Basil_, _Gregory of Nyssa_, and many
+    others, up to the powerful dogmatist of the old time, _Augustine_,
+    who treated scientifically and often extensively the great dogmas
+    of faith. Truly a voluminous theological literature with a
+    plethora of genius and truth. The great edition of the Greek and
+    Latin Fathers by _Migne_ numbers 382 volumes in quarto, each of
+    1,500 pages or more in close print. Comparing with these 382
+    volumes the modest book of the Bible, which had been their
+    foremost source, the progress of these centuries becomes manifest.
+
+    Soon the way was broken for systematizing the tenets of the faith,
+    especially by _St. John Damascene_ (eighth century). Scholasticism
+    completed the work: it created a systematical whole and connected
+    theology and philosophy, especially the Aristotelian, into a
+    harmonious union. Its pioneers were _St. Anselm_ and still more
+    _Petrus Lombard_ (died 1160). Then, in the Middle Ages, when
+    universities began to flourish, there followed the great
+    theologians _Alexander of Hales_, _Bonaventure_, _Albert the
+    Great_, _Scotus_, and chief of all _Thomas of Aquin_ (died 1274),
+    in whom scholasticism reached its perfection, and undeniably one
+    of the greatest minds known in the history of science;
+    distinguished by an astonishing prolificness, still more by a
+    wealth and depth of thought combined with the greatest simplicity
+    and lucidity in presenting truths, he will for ever remain
+    unapproachable. The decline of scholasticism during the fourteenth
+    and fifteenth centuries was followed by a new bloom, when the life
+    of the Church, rejuvenated by the Council of Trent, gave birth to
+    new forces in theology. The mighty tomes of men like _Suarez_,
+    _Lugo_, _Gregory of Valencia_, _Ruiz_, _Banez_, _Billuart_, and
+    others joined the volumes of their predecessors and continued
+    their work. At the same time the various departments of the
+    science were branching off more and more, and became independent.
+
+    _M. Canus_ created the theory of theological cognition as an
+    introduction to dogmatics, _Bellarmin_ and _Th. Stapleton_ founded
+    the newer controversial theology. Moral Theology became in the
+    sixteenth century a separate science and was developed by men like
+    _Lugo_, _Laymann_, _Busembaum_, _Alphons of Liguori_. Similarly a
+    new period of research began in the biblical sciences. Not that
+    the first foundations were laid at that time; there had been
+    _Origines_, who had become the founder of biblical text criticism
+    by his "Hexapla"; the Antioch school of exegetes, _Chrysostomus_,
+    _Hilarius_, and especially _Jerome_. But it was fostered with
+    renewed zeal. The great Antwerp and Paris polyglots furnished
+    aids, men like _Maldonatus_, _Salmeron_, _Toletus_, _Cornelius_,
+    _a Lapide_, wrote their exegetic works. To the seventeenth century
+    belongs the creation of the propaedeutics, by _Richard Simon_ and
+    _Bernard Lami_. The monumental work, "Cursus sacrae scripturae"
+    (since 1885), containing so far thirty-six volumes, demonstrates,
+    among other things, that there has been in recent years no
+    standstill in the research in Holy Writ. In the province of
+    ecclesiastical history, too, with its branches and auxiliary
+    sciences, new life was awakened at that time. In the sixteenth
+    century, when the defence of the creed by the witnesses of a
+    former age became urgent, patristics and history of dogma enjoyed
+    their first rise. _Petavius_ was prominently connected with them.
+    How these sciences have been fostered in the nineteenth century is
+    indicated by the names of _Mai_, _De Rossi_, _Hergenroether_,
+    _Hefele_, _Pastor_. There remains to be mentioned the gradual
+    establishment of the science of Canon law, of the
+    pastoral-theological departments which have attained an
+    independent position since the close of the eighteenth century,
+    and since then produced a voluminous literature. The fear of a
+    standstill in theological research seems unwarranted in the light
+    of its history. The errors of the present time will prevent a
+    standstill. The more vehement the attacks by natural science and
+    philosophy, by philology and archaeology, the more they seek to
+    shake the foundations of the Christian religion, the stronger
+    theology must grow by the combat. The solid progress of our times
+    in knowledge and methodics will not remain without influence; nor
+    can the empirical, the historical-critical method, the theory of
+    evolution, and so on, fail to exert their stimulating influence
+    upon theology.
+
+    The progress that Catholic theology has made since the days of the
+    Fathers, the vast amount of mental work it has performed, is
+    perhaps made most clear by a glance at the "Nomenclator literarius
+    theologiae catholicae," by _H. Hurter_ (2d ed., 3 vols.; the 3d
+    ed. is in 6 vols., 5 being ready). It gives in concise briefness
+    the biographical data and the more important works of Catholic
+    theologians of greater repute. Counting the names there presented,
+    we find not less than 3,900 from 1109 to 1563; about 2,900 from
+    1564 to 1663; about 3,900 between 1664 and 1763; finally, from
+    1764 to 1894 about 4,000 theological authors; hence in the period
+    from 1109 to 1894 nearly 14,700 theologians. That these 14,700
+    scientists--and their number is not exhausted by this figure--should
+    have written their works without offering in them any new
+    knowledge, would surely be a bold assertion! In addition consider
+    the long rows of tomes which some of them wrote. Perhaps it would
+    not be wholly amiss to refer to the restless zeal of many of them,
+    as recorded by their biographers. _Baronius_ (died 1607) could
+    truthfully assert before his death, that for thirty years he had
+    never had sufficient sleep; he usually slept only four or five
+    hours. _Pierre Halloix_ (died 1656) likewise was content with four
+    or five hours of rest. _Dionysius Sanmarthanus_ (died 1725) gave
+    only four hours to sleep and devoted less than half an hour daily
+    to recreation; likewise _Fr. Combefis_ (died 1679), during the
+    last forty years of his life. _A. Fr. Orsi_ (died 1761) contented
+    himself with three or four hours of sleep; _Fr. Clement_ (died
+    1793) and _H. Oberrauch_ (died 1808) are said to have slept but
+    two hours daily. _J. Caramuel de Lobkowicz_ (died 1682) persevered
+    for fourteen hours every day at his books; _Chr. Lupus_ (died
+    1681) even for fifteen hours daily. The theologian _Lessius_ is
+    characterized by "_Parcissimus erat temporis, laboris pertinax_";
+    the same holds good of hundreds of others of these men.
+
+    A science, enumerating its disciples by so many thousands, with
+    the greatest intellects among its workers, which has commanded so
+    much zeal and work for centuries, should be safe from the reproach
+    of having back of it a history of stagnation.
+
+
+
+Theology and Freedom of Science.
+
+
+To many it seems obvious that theology lacks at least the other predicate
+of science, freedom; because it is bound to dogmas and ecclesiastical
+authorities, at least Catholic theology is.
+
+Although this claim is pressed persistently and with confidence, we may
+dispose of it very briefly. The freedom missed in theology, and demanded
+in its behalf, is none other than the liberal freedom of science, the
+nature of which we have had sufficiently long under the searchlight, so
+that there remains nothing to be added. We have proved sufficiently that
+this freedom is not a freedom from unnatural fetters, but a dissolute
+subjectivism, that claims the right not to be bound to any unchangeable,
+religious truths. We admit that the Catholic theology does not possess
+_THIS_ freedom. Convinced of the truth of the doctrines established by
+divine testimony, and by the infallible voice of the Church, theology sees
+not freedom but a sin against truth in the license to assert the contrary
+of what it has recognized as the truth.
+
+There is but one freedom which science may claim: it is freedom from
+hindrance in reaching the truth in its legitimate domain. If this truth is
+transmitted to science infallibly, by the highest instance of wisdom--and
+of this every theologian is convinced--how can science be said to be
+hindered thereby in attaining the truth? Restrained it is, but only by
+truth: truth, however, can only be a barrier to license, but not to
+precious freedom. This restraint theology shares with the rest of the
+sciences. The physicist is tied to the facts brought forth by the
+experiments of his laboratory; the astronomer is tied to the results
+reported to him by the instruments of his observatory, the historian is
+tied to the events disclosed by his sources. Moreover, all sciences are
+tied to their methods. In this way, and in no other way, the theologian,
+too, is tied to the facts given him by Revelation, and to his method.
+Every science has its own method. The astronomer gains his facts by
+observation and calculation, the mathematician arrives at his facts by
+calculation and study; the historian, by human testimony; the theologian,
+however, by divine testimony, at least as to fundamental truths. That they
+are transmitted to him not by his personal study, but by external
+testimony, does not matter; the historian too draws from such sources. Nor
+can theological knowledge be less certain because vouched for by divine
+authority: it makes it the more certain. Or is there no divine authority,
+and can there be none? This is exactly the silent presumption, which is
+the basis of the charge against theology. But where is the proof for it?
+It can only be demonstrated by denying the existence of a supermundane
+God; for, if there is an Almighty God, there can be no doubt that He can
+give a Revelation and demand belief.
+
+Perhaps it may be said further, the theologian is not permitted to doubt
+his doctrines, hence he is prohibited from examining them; he surely
+cannot be _unprepossessed_.
+
+We can refer to what we have previously said. Unprepossession demands but
+one thing, namely, not to assume something as true and certain that is
+false or unproved; it demands strong proofs for anything that needs proof.
+We may safely assert that there is no other science more exacting in this
+respect than Catholic theology, both of the present and of the past. It
+has not a single position that is not incessantly tested by attacks as to
+its tenability. Any one not unacquainted with theology, who knows the
+works of _St. Thomas_ and of the later theologians, with their exact
+methods of thinking, who observes the conscientious work in Catholic
+biblical-exegetic, historical-critical field, must be convinced of the
+serious atmosphere of truth prevailing here. Unprepossession does not
+demand to doubt, time and again, that which has been positively proved, to
+rediscover it by new research. Positive facts are no longer a subject for
+research; in their case research has fully achieved its end. Methodical
+doubt, proper in scientific examination, is proper also in regard to
+religious truths.
+
+Furthermore, the latitude of the theologian is much larger than presumed
+by those who derive their information solely from modern assertions about
+dogmatic bondage. One may safely assert that the freedom of movement of
+the mathematician is more limited by his principles, his train of thought
+more sharply prescribed, than is the case with the theologian. Of course
+the theologian is bound by everything he finds infallibly established
+directly by revelation and by the authority of the Church; or indirectly
+by the concurring teaching of the Fathers or the theologians; he is bound
+also by non-infallible decisions, especially those of congregations,
+though not absolutely and not irrevocably.
+
+But this is only the smaller part of his province. In many departments,
+like the one of ecclesiastical history, there are almost no restrictions
+to his research, except those imposed by historical facts. Canon law and
+similar departments dealing with the laws of the Church, coincide in
+method and liberty of research with the profane science of law. Of all
+departments of theology, the dogmatical is the one most affected by the
+authority of faith. Yet even here a great deal is left to unhampered work.
+Many a void has to be filled, many a question solved, which the theology
+of the past has never taken up; even the defined truths still offer a
+large scope for personal work, in regard to demonstration, or to the
+philosophic-speculative penetration of the dogmas and their
+interpretation.
+
+As a fact, the reader of theological literature, both old and new, will,
+in a multitude of cases, meet with unrestrained individuality.
+
+
+
+Ecclesiastical Supervision of Teaching.
+
+
+The _Encyclica_ against Modernism (September 8, 1907) gave rise to fears
+that any free movement would henceforth be impossible for Catholic
+theology. These fears referred chiefly to the disciplinary measures,
+prescribed by the Encyclical for the purpose of supervising theological
+teaching in each diocese. Then came the papal Motu Proprio, of September
+1, 1910, which, among other things, required the teacher of theology to
+confirm by oath his confession of the Creed and his intention to repudiate
+modernistic errors. Since then many a complaint has been heard about
+espionage and coercion. Similar complaint, about an imminent debasement of
+the Church, has been raised whenever important measures in the discipline
+of the Catholic Church were published, and they emanated primarily from
+the camp of the enemy.
+
+It is not to be denied, however, that such an energetic call for
+watchfulness and action, issued from the highest ecclesiastical
+watchtower, like the one referred to, may lead in some cases to anxiety
+and false suspicions. This is no doubt regrettable; but it is an incident
+common to human legislation and will surprise no one who has any
+experience of life. A glance at these decrees will show that they are
+nothing more than an urgent injunction, and the exercise of that
+supervision of religious life and teaching which pertains to the authority
+of the Catholic Church, and which has been practised by her at all times.
+The language is urgent, it has a severity which is softened in the
+execution. Its explanation lies in the eminent danger of the modernistic
+movement to the continuance of Catholic life. Modernism, as described and
+condemned by the Encyclica, is nothing less than the absolute destruction
+of the Catholic faith, and of Christianity.
+
+The Protestant theologian, Prof. _Troeltsch_, wrote after the publication
+of the Encyclica: "As viewed from the position of curialism and of the
+strict Catholic dogma, there existed a real danger. Catholicism had gotten
+into a state of inner fermentation, corresponding to the same condition
+caused by modern theology within the Protestant churches."
+
+The danger of Modernism is often enhanced by a deceptive semblance of the
+right faith, and by the pretence to urge only the righteous interests of
+modern progress against obsolete forms of thought and life, now and then
+also by its secret propaganda. Hence this intervention by a firm hand, and
+this only after having waited a long time. They were measures of
+prevention, like those taken to stave off a serious danger; the tidal wave
+receding, their urgency disappears automatically.
+
+
+    The German bishops stated in their pastoral letter of December 10,
+    1907, that in some Catholic lay-circles there was uneasiness about
+    the Encyclical, fearing that it might endanger scientific
+    endeavour and independence in thought and research, and that the
+    Church intended to prohibit or render impossible co-operation in
+    solving the problems of civilization. "May they all recognize,"
+    they said, "how groundless such fears are! The Church desires to
+    set bars only to one kind of freedom--the freedom to err." If the
+    rules and precepts of the Church do sound harsh sometimes, it is
+    because the Church adheres unconditionally to the principle: The
+    truth above all. "The Church has at no time opposed the true
+    progress of civilization, but only that which hinders its
+    progress: heedlessness, haste, the mania for innovation, the
+    morbid aversion against the truth that comes from God. But we
+    Catholic Christians can join free and unhampered, with all our
+    strength and talent, in the peaceful strife of noble, intellectual
+    work and genuine mental education."
+
+    The fears of too great a pressure by the ecclesiastical
+    authorities have been given trenchant expression in most recent
+    times by a man who, while standing outside of the Catholic Church,
+    has always shown himself well disposed towards it, namely, the
+    noted pedagogue, _Fr. W. Foerster_ of Zurich. _Foerster_ has won
+    merit and distinction by his manly and spirited defence of the
+    Christian view in pedagogical science and mental culture. In the
+    book referred to he again describes urgently the worthlessness and
+    fatality of modern individualism, that knows a good deal about
+    freedom but nothing of self-discipline, nor of authority or
+    tradition, and which represents most superficial amateurism in the
+    domain of religion and morals. Then he turns to criticize Church
+    practice; and his criticism becomes a sharp accusation. His main
+    charge is "fatal restraint of the spirit of universality." "Some
+    groups in the Church," he asserts, "of mediocre learning, have
+    established a clique rule, under which the others, the more
+    creative and intensive souls, become the victims of intolerance,
+    espionage, and false suspicion"; "universality, which unites the
+    different mental tendencies, has given way to separation";
+    "everywhere a one-sided denunciatory information of the leading
+    circles by accidentally ruling groups and factions; anxious
+    intolerance for everything unusual, disciplinary austerity and
+    unintelligent pedantry, individualistic and unchristian spirit of
+    distrust and mutual espionage"; "levelling of the mental life";
+    "one is tired," we are told, "of the spirit of incessant
+    disciplining"; "of the invariable cold and disdainful forbidding
+    and repression." In the Middle Ages and earlier times it was
+    different; then "universality was the ruling spirit, the working
+    of the many into a unit full of life; this policy was changed for
+    no other reason than because of the struggle of the Church against
+    Protestantism." "The greatest harm that Catholicism suffered by
+    the great rupture of the sixteenth century is most likely seen in
+    the tendency of the Church to view thenceforth religious freedom
+    within Catholic Christianity with an anxious, even hostile eye."
+
+    Readers of the literature of the day will recognize here views
+    often met with during the last years, and the same excited note,
+    which is quite in contrast to the even temper that ordinarily
+    characterizes _Foerster's_ books. But what the reader will not find
+    stated are the proofs for these enormous accusations.
+
+    Undeniably, things have happened in the wide range of
+    ecclesiastical authority that cannot be approved. But where are
+    the facts that would justify charges of such sweeping nature? A
+    Protestant author can hardly be presumed to possess such a direct
+    and positive insight into the ecclesiastical practice of the
+    higher and the highest order, to give convincing strength to his
+    bare assertion. Or is the number of dissatisfied voices that make
+    these charges sufficient proof in itself? If the ecclesiastical
+    authority be allowed, now and then, to emerge from its passiveness
+    to take measures against dangerous doctrinal tendencies, is it not
+    to be expected, as a matter of course, that some minds become
+    disgruntled and complain about oppression and clique rule? Or must
+    that right be denied the Church altogether? _Foerster_ says
+    himself: "The spirit of dignity and responsibility has never ruled
+    all parts of the hierarchy in the same measure as now, and rarely
+    if ever were there found in its leading circles so many men
+    leading an almost holy life as at present." And yet we are asked
+    to believe that it was reserved exactly for this worthy hierarchy,
+    and for these saintly men, to forget the traditions of the Church
+    in the most irresponsible manner. One will have to say: "If
+    _Foerster_ would examine without bias the situation and apply
+    consistently in respect to authority the principles that he
+    himself defends, he would be convinced that the Church could not
+    have acted any differently than it did in regard to the
+    regrettable events of the last years, and that it has ever been
+    the aim of the Church, before the sixteenth century as after, to
+    guard carefully the purity of traditions of faith against any
+    attack" (Prof. _G. Reinhold_ in a review of _Foerster's_ book).
+
+    The Church has never known a universality that did not oppose
+    doctrinal errors. The Middle Ages did not know it; one need only
+    read the many condemnations from Nicholas I. to Innocent VIII.;
+    nor was such a universality known to the great Councils of ancient
+    Christianity up to the Nicaean, which hurled its anathema against
+    numerous teachings that opposed no dogmas defined at that time;
+    nor did the Holy Fathers know such a universality, nor the
+    Apostles, with their strict admonitions of unity of faith. The
+    reply is made, the "Church must not yield the least of its
+    fundamental truths," that "its centralizing power ought to remain
+    within the region of the most essential"; whereas she actually
+    exercises it in the domain of the incidental. The ecclesiastical
+    supervision of teaching has never limited itself to the most
+    essential, nor would this practice ever accomplish the object to
+    preserve pure the doctrine of faith. Furthermore, what is the
+    "most essential" what is the "incidental"? _Foerster's_ book does
+    not inform us about this most important question. The views
+    against which the Church has made front in the last years, do they
+    relate only to the incidental? Does this apply to the doctrines of
+    a _Rosmini_ and _Lamennais_, who are referred to in passing? No
+    well-informed theologian will assert this.
+
+    We shall hardly be wrong in assuming that the charge of
+    overstraining the ecclesiastical authority is based upon a
+    presumption of a philosophical nature, which is in evidence in
+    several other passages of the book--on the view, namely, that in
+    religion the intellectual moment should recede before the
+    mystical, before anticipation and inner experience. Hence the
+    severe censure of "the narrow autocracy of the intellectual
+    interpretation" against the "preponderance of the intellectual
+    contemplation" in the Church, which is said to have become so
+    prevalent as to exert unavoidably a paralyzing effect upon the
+    entire religious life. Here we have the result of the notion that
+    theory of life, religion, and faith, depend but little on rational
+    knowledge. This notion is also in accord with the argument about
+    the impossibility of an independent scientific ethics. We have
+    discussed this elsewhere. We demonstrated that religion and faith
+    relate to positive truths that can be realized, and that can
+    therefore be accurately defined; they must be so defined. Of
+    course this realization need not be a scientific one, it can be of
+    the natural kind that is not clearly conscious of its reasons.
+    _Foerster_, too, touches upon this important distinction when
+    quoting _Saitschick_: "The inner perception overtowers feeling and
+    logical reason--here, too, lies the source of a light shining
+    brighter, stronger, and incomparably more true than any light of
+    reason"; and again, when his advice is, to foster to a greater
+    extent the "inner perception." What is felt here vaguely has long
+    since been expressed much more lucidly in Christian philosophy.
+
+    Certainly a view that fails to lay, first of all, absolute stress
+    on the protection of the _doctrine_ of faith cannot understand the
+    Catholic point of view; it will assume only too easily that the
+    supervision relates to incidentals. It will also engender a
+    criticism against which the Church may rightly protest, because it
+    starts from presumptions that do not apply to the Church.
+
+    No one will be astonished to find a Protestant author lacking the
+    clarified conception of the supernatural character of the Church
+    that is possessed by the Catholic; to see him view the Church
+    almost invariably in the light of a human organization, similar to
+    the Protestant denominations which he may cite before the court of
+    his individual reason and force to bow under the yoke of his
+    criticism. The Catholic has a better understanding of the words:
+    "I am with you all days, even unto the consummation of the world."
+    There will be foreign to his mind the idea that the Church has
+    since the days of Reformation, for now nearly four centuries,
+    deviated from the right way, and degenerated more and more to a
+    separatistic and insignificant community; a church able to forget
+    its traditions to the extent of grossly misconceiving its proper
+    sphere of authority, and fettering itself in a narrow spirit to
+    incidentals, could not keep his confidence any longer.
+
+
+
+The Oath Against Modernism.
+
+
+The _Motu Proprio_ of September 1, 1910, decreed that teachers of
+theology, and also Catholic priests generally, had to bind themselves by
+oath to reject modernistic heresies, and to accept obediently the
+ecclesiastical precepts. Dispensed from this pledge were only the
+professors of theology at state institutions, to spare them difficulties
+with state authorities.
+
+This anti-modernist oath at once became the signal for a storm of
+indignation, than which there has been hardly a greater one since the days
+of the Vatican Council. A cry was raised for freedom of science, for the
+exclusion of theological faculties, even for another "Kulturkampf." The
+General Convention of German college professors, held at Leipzig January
+7, 1911, issued a declaration to the effect that "All those who have taken
+the anti-modernist oath have thereby expressed their renunciation of an
+independent recognition of truth and of the exercise of their scientific
+conviction, hence they have forfeited all claim to be considered
+independent scientists." Interpellations were made in legislative bodies,
+it was demanded that the option of taking the oath should be taken away
+from university professors, because "the dignity of the universities would
+be lowered if their members had the opportunity to bind themselves by such
+an oath."
+
+Even threats were made by statesmen, hinting at reprisals by the state,
+because its interests were being jeopardized, while, on the other hand,
+there were those who declared: "If the Catholic Church thinks it necessary
+for her ecclesiastical and religious interests to put her servants under
+oath, it is her own business; neither the state nor the Evangelical Church
+have a right to interfere" (Prime Minister _Bethmann-Hollweg_, in the
+Prussian Diet, on March 7, 1911).
+
+The agitation of the minds will soon subside, as on former occasions of
+this kind; and, with calm restored, people will find, as _J. G. Fichte_
+told the impulsive _F. Nicolai_, one hundred and thirty years ago, that
+the fact has only just been discovered that the Catholics are Catholic.
+
+Yes, indeed, the Catholics are Catholic, and desire to remain
+Catholic--this and nothing else is the gist of the anti-modernist oath. It
+does not oblige to anything else but what was believed and adhered to
+before. It obliges to accept the doctrines of faith; but they are the old
+truths of the Catholic Church, propounded and believed at all times, and
+the necessary inferences from them. Even the proposition that truths of
+faith can never be contradicted by the results of historical research, or
+by human science in general, is as old as faith itself. In addition, the
+oath avows obedient submission to Church precepts; but this has been
+demanded for centuries by the _professio fidei Tridentina_, a pledge by
+oath to which every professor of theology has been before obliged:
+_Apostolicas et ecclesiasticas traditiones reliquasque eiusdem Ecclesiae
+observationes et constitutiones firmissime admitto et amplector_. This was
+the opinion of all competent judges on this theological question. "We are
+convinced," declared correctly a prominent theological institution, "that
+there is not assumed by this oath any obligation new in subject, and no
+obligation not already existing. The oath is but the affirmation of a duty
+already imposed by conscience" (the professors of Theology of Paderborn,
+December 12, 1910). The Breslau faculty said, in the same sense: "The
+faculty does not see in the so-called anti-modernist oath any new
+obligation, nor one exceeding the rule of faith ever adhered to by the
+faculty." And this declaration was fully approved of by Rome.
+
+
+    Cardinal _Kopp_, at the session of the German Upper House on April
+    7, 1911, commented on these statements as follows: "Against the
+    opinions of these circles (having a different opinion of the oath)
+    I set the testimony and the statement of the most competent
+    people, to wit, the professors of university faculties and also
+    those at episcopal seminaries. Those who have taken the oath, as
+    well as those who have refrained from it by the privilege granted
+    them by the Holy See, they both declare positively that the oath
+    does not contain any new obligations, nor does it impose new
+    duties on them; hence that, on the contrary, they are not impeded
+    in the pursuit of their tasks as teachers and of their scientific
+    work of research. Now, gentlemen, I do not think it would be
+    proper to insinuate that these earnest men, appointed by the
+    Government, or at least in office by its consent, would make this
+    declaration against their conviction and not in full sincerity."
+
+
+No wonder, therefore, that of the hundreds of thousands of Catholic
+priests hardly a handful have refused the oath.
+
+
+    Nor is there anything new in the obligation to swear and subscribe
+    in writing to a confession of creed. Very often in the course of
+    the centuries decrees of creed and symbols had to be subscribed to
+    in writing. In the days of Jansenism, when priests were required
+    to swear to and sign a statement, many Jansenists tried to dodge
+    this oath, and the Jansenist _Racine_ complained that this demand
+    was unheard-of in the Church. Thereupon the learned theologian
+    _Tournely_ and others cited a number of examples of this kind from
+    the history of the Church.
+
+
+Therefore the anti-modernist oath has not created anything new.
+Consequently it has not changed anything in regard to the freedom of
+theological research. It is the same as before; nor has the oath changed
+anything in the quality of theological professors, they merely promise to
+be what they must be anyway; nor can, for instance, the oath induce the
+Catholic priest, in teaching profane history, to present the history of
+the Reformation in a different light than before, and thus render him
+unfit to teach history; the oath has created no new, confessional
+differences, hence has given no justified cause for excitement--provided
+one has the needed theological comprehension of the oath. If one has not
+this insight, and will not trust to information from a competent source,
+then it will be the act of prudence to leave the test to the future; and
+we can await this test serenely.
+
+
+    We referred above to the declaration of German college teachers,
+    to the effect that all who have taken the oath have thereby
+    expressed their renunciation of independent cognition of truth.
+    These stereotyped ideas we have so often heard, with the same
+    haziness and inconsistency. "Because they have thereby expressed
+    the renunciation of independent cognition of the truth," namely,
+    by the acceptance of certain doctrines. But is not every one who
+    clings to his Christian belief bound by this very fact to certain
+    doctrines? Does every one who still prays his Credo express the
+    renunciation of his independence? If the argument quoted is to
+    mean anything at all, it means the full rejection of all Christian
+    duty to believe; indeed, this is the real sense of this
+    "independent recognition of truth," as we have already seen. But
+    cannot some one, because of his conviction, renounce this
+    independence and believe, and in this conviction accept the
+    doctrines of the Church? If this conviction is his, and he affirms
+    it by oath, how can any one see in this oath a want of freedom,
+    nay, a renunciation of truth? If an atheist solemnly declared his
+    intention to be and to remain an atheist, he would hardly be
+    accused of lack of character by the advocates of modern freedom of
+    thought. The judge, the military officer, the member of a
+    legislature, the professor, who must all take the oath of
+    allegiance,--all of these will have to be protected against the
+    insinuation of disloyalty to truth. If a man affirms by oath his
+    unalterable Catholic faith, he is without any hesitation accused
+    of untruthfulness. The government has been urged to forbid this
+    spontaneous exercise of Catholic sentiment. The inconsistency of
+    modern catch-phrases can hardly be given more drastic expression.
+    In order to guard the freedom of thought the government is to
+    forbid one from pledging himself to his own principles; in order
+    to remain an independent thinker a man must be forced by penal
+    statute to confess unconditionally the brand of free science
+    prescribed by a certain school and by no means have an opinion of
+    his own; in order to be free in his research the teacher in
+    theology must be tied to the catch-phrases of liberal philosophy.
+    This is modern freedom, a hybrid of freedom and bondage, of
+    sophistry and contradiction, of arrogance and barrenness of
+    thought, which will exert its rule over the minds as long as they
+    are guided by half-thinking.
+
+
+
+Bonds of Love, not of Servitude.
+
+
+People to whose mind Catholic thinking is foreign will never be able to
+appreciate the energetic activity of the Church authority.
+
+On close examination, however, they will not deny that, _if_ the Christian
+treasure of faith is to be preserved undiminished, _if_ in the hopeless
+confusion and the unsteady vacillation of opinions in our days there is to
+be left anywhere a safe place for truth and unity of faith, this cannot be
+accomplished otherwise than in the shape of a strong authority that has
+the assurance of the aid of God.
+
+
+    The Catholic theologian may be permitted to point in exemplifying
+    this fact to the recent history of Protestantism and of its
+    theology. Protestantism does not acknowledge a teaching authority:
+    its theology demands complete freedom of research and teaching,
+    making the most extensive use of both. The result is the
+    demoralization of the Christian faith, which is speeding with
+    frightfully accelerated steps to total annihilation. The very
+    danger which Modernism threatened to carry into the Catholic
+    Church has overwhelmed Protestant theology: the metaphysical ideas
+    of a modern philosophy penetrated it without check, and killed its
+    Christian substance. The measures against Modernism were sharply
+    criticized by many Protestants who, at the same time, laid stress
+    upon the fact that nothing of the sort could happen among
+    themselves. Indeed it could not, at least not consistently with
+    Protestant principle. But there is not a single fact in all
+    history which demonstrates more clearly the necessity of the
+    Catholic authority of faith, than just the condition of
+    Protestantism at the present time. On the part of believing
+    Protestants this is admitted, if not expressly, then at least in
+    practice. To stem the destructive work of liberal theology they
+    resort to authority; invoke Evangelical formulas of confession,
+    the traditional doctrine, sometimes even the aid of the state;
+    neological preachers are disciplined by censures, even by
+    dismissal, against the loud protest of the liberals. Such action
+    is easily understandable; one cannot hear without sadness the cry
+    for help of pious Protestantism, a cry that grows more desperate
+    every day; one cannot help regretting its forlorn situation in
+    view of the millions of souls whose salvation is jeopardized, who
+    are in danger of being despoiled of the last remains of their
+    Christian faith. Yet it must be admitted that this cry for
+    authority and obedience signifies the abandoning of the Protestant
+    principle, and the involuntary imitation and therefore
+    acknowledgment of the Catholic principle--for the Catholic an
+    incentive to cleave the more closely to his Church.
+
+
+Many to whom the Catholic way of thinking is foreign, look upon the duty
+of obedience which ties the Catholic to his Church as a sort of servitude;
+to the Catholic it is the tie of love, uniting free people to a sacred
+authority. Many look upon the Church of Rome as a tyrannical curia, where
+Umbrian prelates are cracking their whips over millions of servile and
+ignorant souls; to the Catholic the Church is the divinely appointed
+institution of truth, that possesses his fullest confidence. He knows that
+history has given the most magnificent justification to the Catholic
+principle of authority. Opinions have come and gone, systems were born and
+have died, thrones of learning rose and fell; only one towering mental
+structure remained standing upon the rock of God-founded authority in the
+vast field of ruins with its wrecks of human wisdom. And its ancient
+Credo, prayed by all nations, is the same Credo once prayed by the
+martyrs.
+
+
+
+
+Chapter II. Theology And University.
+
+
+"He is not for our turn, and he is contrary to our doings"; thus spoke in
+bygone ages the children of this world. "Let us therefore lie in wait for
+the just.... He boasteth that he hath the knowledge of God and calleth
+himself the Son of God" (Wisdom ii, 12 _seq._). Centuries later the
+children of the world treated in the same manner God's Son and His
+doctrine. And in these days, when the science of the faith is to be driven
+from the rooms of the school, let us recall that in olden times the
+children of the world planned similarly.
+
+In the days when the private and public life of Europe's nations was
+permeated with the Christian faith, and their ideas were still centred in
+God and eternity, then the science of the faith was held to be the highest
+among the sciences, not only by rank but in fact.
+
+And when, in the budding desire for knowledge, they erected universities,
+the first and largest of them, Paris University, was to be the pre-eminent
+home of theology, and wherever theology joined with the other sciences it
+received first honours. Thus it was in the days of yore, and for a long
+time. The secular tendency of modern thought led to the gradual
+emancipation of science from religion; unavoidably, its aversion for a
+supernatural view of the world soon turned against, and demanded the
+removal of, the science representing that view. Reasons for the demand
+were soon found. Thus the removal of theology from the university has
+become part and parcel of the system of ideas of the unbelieving modern
+man; the liberal press exploits the idea whenever occasion offers.
+Resolutions to this effect are introduced in parliaments and diets,
+meetings of young students are echoing the ideas heard elsewhere. No
+wonder that the Portuguese revolution of 1910 had nothing more urgent to
+do than to close the theological faculty at Portugal's only university.
+
+What are the _reasons_ advanced? Many are advanced; the main reason is
+usually disguised; we shall treat of it when concluding. In the first
+place we are again met by the old tune of free science, which has been in
+our ears so long; the rooms of the colleges, it is said, are destined for
+a research which seeks truth with an undimmed eye, and not for blindfolded
+science confined to a prescribed path.
+
+No need to waste words on this. Just one more reference may be permitted
+us, namely, to the study of law. There is hardly another science with less
+latitude than the science of law. Its task is not to doubt the
+justification of state laws, but to look upon constitutions and statutes
+as established, to explain them, and by doing so to train efficient
+officials and administrators of the law. When explaining the civil code
+the teacher of law has small opportunity for pursuing "free search after
+truth"; neither will his pupil be tested at examinations in the maxims of
+a free research that accepts no tradition; he will have to prove his
+knowledge of the matter that had been given to him. Yet no one has ever
+objected to the teaching of jurisprudence at the university. Therefore the
+objection cannot be valid that theology is restricted to the established
+doctrines of its religion and has to transmit them without change to its
+future servants. It should be borne in mind that our universities are not
+intended for research only, but also, and chiefly, for training candidates
+for the professions.
+
+
+    This disposes at the same time of the objection that theology has
+    to serve ecclesiastical purposes outside of and foreign to
+    science. Religious science, like any other science, serves the
+    desire that strives for truth. True, it serves also for the
+    practical training of the clergyman for his vocation. But shall we
+    eliminate from science the interests of practical life? Then
+    medicine and legal science would also have to be excluded, and for
+    these there would be planted only sterile theories, and the
+    universities transformed into a place of abstract intellectualism.
+
+    Again it is argued that religion and faith are not really
+    cognition and knowledge, but only the products of sentiment, and
+    hence theology has no claim to a place among the sciences; that
+    religion can only be a subject for psychology which lays bare its
+    roots in the human heart, and a subject for the history of
+    religion, to trace its historical forms and to study its laws of
+    evolution--sciences which belong to the philosophical faculty.
+
+    Thus we come back to the principles of an erroneous theory of
+    knowledge. No need to demonstrate again that the Christian belief
+    is built upon the clear perception of reason, and that it is not a
+    sentimental but a rational function.
+
+
+But has not the Church her theological seminaries? Let theology seek
+refuge there! We answer the Church herself desires this; she does not like
+theological faculties, they are in her eyes a danger to the faith.
+
+Now, _if_ the Church would be deprived of her authoritative influence upon
+the appointment of professors at theological faculties and upon the
+subject of their teachings, consequently, _if_ there would be jeopardized
+the purity of belief of the candidates for priesthood, and through them of
+the people, then, we admit, the Church would rather forego theological
+faculties at state-universities. This could not be done without
+considerable injury to the public prestige of the Church, to her contact
+with worldly sciences and their representatives and disciples, even to the
+scientific study of theology. In the latter particularly by the loss of
+the greater resources of the state, and by the absence of inducement to
+scientific aim, which is more urgent for theologians than for others at
+college. Neither would the state escape injury, because of the open slight
+and harm to religion, and of lessening its contact with the most
+influential body in Christian countries. But if the Church is assured of
+her proper influence on the faculties, she has no reason for an unfriendly
+attitude toward them. The object the Church seeks to achieve in her
+seminaries is the clerical education of her candidates, their ascetic
+training, the introduction into a life of recollection and prayer, into an
+order of life befitting priests; this cannot be sufficiently done in the
+free life at the university.
+
+This is not a bar to scientific instruction by the theological faculty.
+Seminary and faculty supplement one another. We see very frequently, at
+Rome and outside of Rome, the theological school separated from the
+seminary with the approval of the Church. But all these objections do not
+give the real reason, the roots lie deeper.
+
+When the Divine Founder of our Religion stood before the tribunal of Judea
+He said: "My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this
+world, servants would strive for me." This was the whole explanation of
+why He stood there accused. The guardian of the doctrine of her Master may
+use these words to explain the fact that, in the eyes of many, she stands
+to-day accused and defamed. The mind of modern man has forsaken the world
+of the Divine and Eternal; no longer is he a servant of this kingdom. His
+ideals are not God and Heaven, but he himself and this world; not the
+service of God, but human rights and human dignity. This view of the
+world, which cannot grasp the wisdom of Jesus Christ, and which takes
+offence at the Cross, also takes offence at a science that confesses as
+the loftiest ideal _Jesum Christum, et hunc crucifixum_.
+
+The real kernel of the question is: Does the Christian religion in its
+entirety still serve the purpose of to-day--or does it not? is it to remain
+with us, the religion wherein our fathers found the gratification of their
+highest mental aims, the religion that gave Europe its civilization and
+culture, that created its superior mental life, and still rules it to this
+hour? Or shall religion be expelled by a return to a heathendom which
+Christianity had overthrown? "We do not want Him to rule over us"--there is
+the real reason for the modern antipathy to Catholic theology. Else,
+whence the excited demand for its removal? Because it is superfluous? Even
+if this were the fact, there is many a category of officials, the little
+need of which can be demonstrated without difficulty, yet no one grows
+excited about it; many expenditures by the state are rather superfluous,
+yet there is no indignation. No, the matter at issue is not so much the
+scientific character of theology, nor misgivings about its progress or its
+freedom; the real question is this:
+
+
+
+Do we Desire to Remain Christians?
+
+
+For _if_ we still recognize the Christian religion as the standard for our
+thought, _if_ we are persuaded that it must remain the foundation of our
+life, then there can be no doubt that its facts, its truths, and standards
+of life require scientific presentation; then it cannot be disputed that
+this science is entitled to a place alongside of the science of law, of
+chemistry, or Indology. Indeed, then it must assume the first place in the
+system of sciences.
+
+
+    Surely a science ranks the higher, the higher its object and its
+    sources, the surer its results, and the greater its significance
+    for the most exalted aim of mankind. The subject of theology is
+    God and His works, the ultimate causes of all things in God's
+    eternal plan of the universe, the "wisdom of God in a mystery, a
+    wisdom which is hidden, which God ordained before the world, unto
+    our glory" (1 Cor. ii. 7). Therefore it is wisdom; for "the
+    science of things divine is science proper" (Augustinus, De
+    Trinit. xii, 14). A science, having as its subject Greek
+    architecture, geography, or physical law, may claim respect, yet
+    it must step back before a science of Religion, that rises to the
+    highest sphere of truth by a power of flight that participates in
+    the omniscience of the Holy Ghost; for such is the faith. For this
+    reason its results, in so far as they rest on faith, are more
+    certain than the results of all other sciences.
+
+    Finally, the aims of life which theology serves are not physical
+    health or advantages in the external life, but the knowledge of
+    God, the spread of His kingdom on earth, and the eternal goal of
+    all human life.
+
+
+So long as the Christian religion is the valued possession of the people
+of a country, and the roots of their lives rest more in Christianity than
+in mathematics, astrophysics, or Egyptology, so long is the science of
+religion entitled to a seat at the hearth of the sciences; and the people,
+then, have the right to demand that the servants of religion get their
+education at the place where the other leading professions get their
+training. If the state considers it its duty to train teachers of history
+and physics for the benefit of its citizen, then it is still more its duty
+to help in the education of the servants of religion, who are called upon
+to care for more important interests of the people and state than all the
+rest of the professions. Let us consider the task of universities. As
+established in the countries of central Europe, they are destined to
+foster science in the widest sense, and to educate the leading
+professions: to be the hearth for the sum total of mental endeavour, this
+is their vocation; hence all things that contain truth and have
+educational value should join hands here. To eliminate the science of the
+highest sphere of knowledge would be tantamount to a mutilation of the
+university. Here all boughs and branches of human knowledge should be
+united into a large organism, of unity and community of work, of giving
+and taking Theology needs for auxiliaries other sciences, such as profane
+history and philology, Assyriology and Egyptology, psychology and
+medicine. In turn it offers indispensable aid to history and other
+branches of science, it guards the ethical and ideal principles of every
+science, and crowns them by tendering to them the most exalted thoughts.
+Here is the place of education for the judge and official, for the
+physician and teacher; hence it should be the place also for the education
+of the servant of the chief spiritual power, religion.
+
+
+    The university should unite all active mental powers that lift man
+    above the commonplace. But is there any stronger mental power than
+    religion?
+
+    It is the oldest and mightiest factor in mental life; it is as
+    natural to man as the flower is to the field; his mind gravitates
+    to a religious resting place, whence he may view time and
+    eternity, where he may rest. Therefore religion demands a science
+    that inquires into its substance, its justification, its effect on
+    thought and life. Man strives to give to himself an account of
+    everything, but most of all of what is foremost in his mind. A
+    system of sciences without theology would be like an uncompleted
+    tower, like a body without a head.
+
+    The history of theology dates back to the very beginning of
+    science and culture. If we trace the oldest philosophy we find as
+    its starting point theological research and knowledge. _Orpheus_
+    and _Hesiod_, who sang of the gods, and the sages of the oldest
+    mysteries, were called theologians; _Plutarch_ sees in the
+    theologians of past ages the oldest philosophers, in the
+    philosophers, however, the descendants of the theologians; _Plato_
+    derives philosophy from the teachers of theology. Even more
+    prominently was religious study and knowledge responsible for
+    Hindoo, Chaldean, and Egyptian philosophy.
+
+    Was it reserved for our age to discard all the better traditions
+    of mankind? Shall victory rest with the destructive elements in
+    the mental education of Europe? Against this danger to our ideal
+    goods, theology should stay at the universities, as a bulwark and
+    permanent protest.
+
+
+
+Theological Faculty in State and Church.
+
+
+For this reason the theological faculty has a birth-right at the
+university, whether state school or free university. Where it is joined to
+a state university, theology automatically becomes subordinate to the
+state, in a limited sense. More essential is its dependency upon the
+Church, because, being the science of the faith, theology is primarily
+subject to the authority and supervision of the Church. For the Church,
+and only the Church, is charged by its Divine Founder to teach His
+religion to all nations. Hence no one can exercise the office of a
+religious teacher, neither in the public school nor at college, if not
+authorized to do so by the Church. It is a participation in the ministry
+of the Church; and the latter alone can designate its organs. Whoever has
+not been given by the Church such license to teach, or he from whom she
+takes it away, does not possess it; no other power can grant it, not even
+the state. Nor can the state restore the license of teaching to a
+theologian from whom the Church has withdrawn it; this would be an act
+beyond state jurisdiction, hence invalid.
+
+In granting the license to teach, the Church does so in the self-evident
+presumption that the one so licensed will teach his students the correct
+doctrine of the Church, as far as it has been established; and he binds
+himself to do so by voluntarily taking the office, and more explicitly by
+the profession of the creed. If he should deviate from the creed later on,
+it is the obvious right of the Church to cancel his license. In this the
+Church only draws the logical conclusion from the office of the teacher
+and from his voluntary obligation. He holds his office as an organ of the
+Church, destined to lecture on pure doctrine before future priests.
+Whether or not he has honestly searched for the truth when deviating
+therefrom, this he may settle with his conscience; but he is incapacitated
+to act still further as an organ of the Church, and it is only common
+honesty to resign his office if he cannot fulfil any longer the
+obligations he assumed. The professor of theology is therefore in the
+first place a deputy of his Church. Also he is teacher at a state
+institution and as such a state official; he is appointed by the state to
+be the teacher of students belonging to a certain denomination, he is paid
+by the state, and may be removed by the state from his position as
+official teacher. But withal the right must not be denied to the Church to
+watch over the correctness of the Christian doctrine, and to make
+appointment and continuance in the teaching office dependent upon it.
+
+
+    Indeed, this demand was urged by Prof. _Paulsen_, notwithstanding
+    his entirely different position: he says: "The
+    Catholic-theological faculties are in a certain sense a concession
+    by the Church to the state; of course they are also a service of
+    the state for the Church, and a valuable one, too; but they rest
+    in the first place upon a concession made by the Church to the
+    state, with a view to the historically established fact, and to
+    peace. Naturally, this concession cannot be unconditional. The
+    condition is: the professors appointed by the state must stand
+    upon ecclesiastical ground, they must acknowledge the doctrine of
+    the Church as the standard of their teaching, and they must
+    receive from the Church the _missio canonica_. The Church cannot
+    accept hostile scientists for teachers. Hence for the appointment
+    an agreement must be reached with ecclesiastical authority. The
+    universities are not merely workshops for research, they are at
+    the same time educational institutions for important public
+    professions; in fact, they were founded for this latter purpose:
+    they are the outcome of the want for scientifically educated
+    clergymen, teachers, physicians, judges, and other professionals.
+    And this purpose necessitates restrictions: the professor of
+    Evangelical theology cannot teach arbitrary opinions any more than
+    his Catholic fellow-professor can; the lawyer is also restricted
+    by presumptions, for instance, that the civil code is not an
+    accumulation of nonsense, but, on the whole, a pretty good order
+    of life. Just as little as we should dispute the lawyer's standing
+    as a scientist on this account, so little shall we be able to deny
+    this standing to the Catholic theologian who stands with honest
+    conviction on the platform of his Church." "We want the Catholic
+    theological faculties to be preserved; of course, under the
+    presumption of freedom of scientific research within the limits
+    drawn by the creed of the Church."
+
+    In a similar sense the Bavarian minister of education, Dr. _V.
+    Wehner_, said, on Feb. 11, 1908, in the course of a speech in the
+    Bavarian Diet: "Thus the Catholic professor of theology is bound
+    to the standards of creed and morals as established by the Church.
+    The decision as to whether a Catholic professor of theology
+    teaches the right doctrine of the Church is not for the state to
+    give, but for the Church alone." "The business of the professors
+    at theological faculties is to transmit the teachings of the
+    Church to future candidates for the priesthood, and this is what
+    they are employed for by the state. That the Church does not
+    tolerate a doctrine to differ from her own is to me quite
+    self-evident." Hence we may conclude, "The attacks directed here
+    and there in recent times against the continuance of Catholic
+    theological faculties need not worry us in any way. Nor are they
+    likely to meet with response at the places where the decision
+    rests. Times have changed. Even non-Catholic governments are no
+    longer blind to the conviction that an educated clergy must be
+    reckoned among the most eminent factors for conserving the state"
+    (_Freiherr von Hertling_). Even during the heated debates on the
+    anti-modernist oath in the Prussian Diet and upper house, the
+    importance of the theological faculties was acknowledged by the
+    speakers, none of whom demanded the removal of these faculties,
+    though outspoken in their criticism of the oath. Prime minister
+    _Bethmann-Hollweg_ declared on March 7: "Catholic students will
+    get their training at the Catholic faculties the same as hitherto,
+    even after the anti-modernist oath is introduced. The state never
+    will claim for itself the authority to determine in any way which,
+    and in what, forms doctrines of faith shall be taught to Catholic
+    students. This is no affair of the state. If, and this is my wish,
+    the Catholic faculties will retain that value to teachers,
+    students, and the total organism of the universities, which is the
+    natural condition of their existence, then they will continue to
+    exist for the profit of both, the Catholic population and the
+    state. Should they lose this value, however, an event I do not
+    wish to see, then they will die by themselves. But I do not see
+    that it is demanded by the interest of the state to abolish
+    without awaiting further development these faculties with one
+    stroke, thereby harming our Catholic population, whose wants and
+    needs deserve as much consideration as those of any other part of
+    the population."
+
+    There is no warrant for the view that theology is subject to a
+    foreign power, and therefore it cannot claim a place in a state
+    institution. In its external relations the theological faculty is
+    subject also to the state, serving the public interests so much
+    the better the more continually the priest by his activity
+    influences the life of the people. By the way, why this urgent
+    demand for state control in the pursuit of a science by a party
+    that otherwise is striving zealously to put the university beyond
+    the influence of the state? To be a state institution or not can
+    only be an extrinsic matter to the university itself. Or has the
+    science of medicine not enough intellectual substance and
+    consistency to thrive at a free university? Is science as such a
+    matter of state? Therefore, why find fault with theology because
+    it will not be entirely subordinated to the state? Nor is it
+    proper to call the Church a "foreign" power. It is certainly not a
+    foreign power to theology; neither to the Christian state, that
+    has developed in closest relation to the Church, which owes its
+    civilization and culture to the Church, shares with her its
+    subjects, and is based even to-day upon the doctrines and customs
+    of the Church.
+
+
+Against Christ there arose the Jewish scribes and denounced His wisdom as
+error; the scribes have passed away, we know them no longer. To the
+Neoplatonics Christianity was ignorance, even barbarity; Manicheans and
+Gnostics praised as the higher wisdom Oriental and Greek philosophy
+adorned with Christian ideas. They belong to history. When the people of
+Israel came in touch with the brilliant civilization of Egypt, Assyria,
+and Greece, they often became ashamed of the religion of their
+forefathers, and embraced false gods; to-day we look upon their fancy of
+inferiority as foolishness, and we rank their religion high above the
+religious notions of the pagan Orient.
+
+Thus has truth pursued its way through the centuries of human history,
+often unrecognized by the children of men, scolded for being obsolete,
+nay, more, driven from its home and forced to make room for delusion and
+error. Delusion fled, and error sank into its grave--but truth remained.
+Thus the Church has endured, and thus the Church will live on, with her
+doctrines and science misunderstood and repulsed by the children of a
+world unable to grasp them; they will pass away and so will their
+thoughts, yet the Church will remain, and so will her science. "She was
+great and respected"--this is the familiar quotation from a Protestant
+historian--"before the Saxon had set foot on Britain, before the Frank had
+passed the Rhine, when Grecian eloquence still nourished in Antioch, when
+idols were still worshipped in the temple of Mecca. And she may still
+exist in undiminished vigor when some traveller from New Zealand shall, in
+the midst of a vast solitude, take his stand on a broken arch of London
+Bridge to sketch the ruins of St. Paul's" (_Lord Macaulay_).
+
+Then, perhaps, another observer, leaning against the pillars of history,
+and looking back upon the culture of this age, will realize that only one
+power of truth may rightly say: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my
+words will not pass away"--Christ and His Church.
+
+
+
+Law and Freedom. An Epilogue.
+
+
+The great Renovator of mankind, in whom the pious Christian sees his God,
+and in whom the greater part of the modern world, though turned from
+faith, still sees the ideal of a perfect human being, hence also of true
+freedom, once spoke the significant words: "_Et veritas liberabit vos_,
+and the truth shall make you free" (John viii. 32). As all the words that
+fell from His lips are the truth for all centuries to come, so are these
+words pre-eminently true.
+
+There is in our times a strong tension felt between freedom on the one
+hand, and law and authority on the other; true freedom and true worth it
+sees too exclusively in the independent assertion of the self-will, and in
+the unrestrained manifestation of one's strength and energy, while law and
+authority are looked upon as onerous fetters. Our times do not understand
+that freedom and human dignity are not opposed to law and obedience, that
+no other freedom can be intended for man than the voluntary compliance
+with the law and the standards of order.
+
+All creatures, from the smallest to the largest, are bound by law; none is
+destined for the eminent isolation of independence. The same law of
+gravitation that causes the stone to fall, also governs the giants of the
+skies, and they obey its rule; the same laws that rule the candle-flame,
+that are at work in the drop of water, also rule the fires of the sun and
+guide the fates of the ocean. The heart, like all other organs of the
+human body, is ruled by laws, and medical science, with its institutes and
+methods, is kept busy to cure the consequences of the disturbance of these
+laws. Every being has its laws: it must follow them to attain perfection;
+deviation leads to degeneration.
+
+Thus the decision of the worth and dignity of man does not rest with an
+unrestrained display of strength, but with order; not with unchecked
+activity, but with control of his acts and with truth. The floods that
+break through the dam have force and energy, but being without order they
+create destruction; the avalanche crashing down the mountain side has
+force and power, but, free from the law of order, it carries devastation;
+glowing metal when led into the mould becomes a magnificent bell, while
+flowing lava brings ruin. Only _one_ dignity and freedom can be destined
+for man, it consists in voluntarily adhering to warranted laws and
+authorities.
+
+For him who with conviction and free decision has made the law of thought,
+faith, and action his own principle, the law has ceased to be a yoke and a
+burden; it has become his own standard of life, which he loves; it has
+become the fruit of his conviction, _truth_ has made him free. Ask the
+virtuoso who obeys the rules of his art whether he considers them fetters;
+indeed he does not, he has made them his principles. Let us ask of the
+civilized citizen whether he feels the laws of civilization to be a yoke;
+he does not, he obeys them of his own free will, they are his own order of
+life. Unfree, slaves and serfs, will be those only who carry with
+resentment the burden of the laws they must obey. Unfree feels the savage
+people fighting against the laws of civilization; unfree the wicked boy to
+whom discipline is repugnant. It is not the law that makes man unfree, it
+is his own lawlessness and rebellion.
+
+Nor does submission to the God-given law of the Christian belief make man
+low or unfree; to those to whom their belief is conviction and life, the
+suggestion that they are oppressed will sound strange. On the contrary,
+they feel that this belief fits in harmoniously with the nobler impulses
+of their thought and will, like the pearl in the shell, like the gem in
+its setting. Man experiences this when his belief lifts him above the
+lowlands of his sensual life to mental independence, and frees him from
+the bondage of his own unruly impulses, that so often seek to control him.
+
+
+    Freiheit sei der Zweck des Zwanges
+      Wie man eine Rebe bindet,
+    Dass sie, statt im Staub zu kriechen,
+      Frei sich in die Luefte windet.
+
+
+(Freedom be the aim of restraint, just as the vine is tied to the trellis
+that it may freely rise in the air, instead of crawling in the dust.) This
+is the freedom of mind, knowing but one yoke, the truth; the freedom that
+does not bow to error, nor to high sounding phrases, nor to public
+opinion, nor to the bondage of political life; neither is true freedom
+shackled by the fetters of one's own lawless impulses. _Et veritas
+liberabit vos._
+
+
+
+
+
+INDEX.
+
+
+Accusations of the Church, 142 _et seq._
+
+Achievements of liberal research, 291
+
+_Adickes, E._, 92, 264, 269
+
+Agnosticism, 43, 46, 48
+
+_Amira, K. von_, 11, 17, 309, 326
+
+_Ampere, A._, 212 _et seq._, 223, 224
+
+Anthropocentric view of the world, 19
+
+_Apponyi, A., Count_, 323
+
+_Arago_, 119
+
+_Aristotle_, 4, 5, 7, 52, 345, 349
+
+_Arnest, Archbishop_, 150
+
+Atheism, 19, 79, 287
+
+_Augustine, St._, 4, 27, 76, 80, 82 _et seq._, 110, 135, 159, 179, 246,
+            260, 273
+
+Authority of Faith, 81, 112, 125 _et seq._
+---- private, 82
+---- Protestant, 397
+---- rejection of, 33, 40
+
+Autonomism, 25, 29, 33
+
+Autonomy of the College, 360
+---- of Reason, 36
+---- of the Teacher, 361
+
+Autotheism, 23
+
+_Bacon, F._, 205, 216
+
+_Baer, M. von_, 221
+
+_Balmes, J._, 320
+
+_Barrande_, 219
+
+_Baumgarten, O._, 246, 254
+
+_Baur, F. Ch._, 258
+
+_Beaumont, L. de_, 218
+
+_Bebel_, 350
+
+_Becker, K._, 146
+
+_Bellarmin, Cardinal_, 185, 192
+
+_Benedict XIV._, 96
+
+_Berkeley_, 35
+
+_Bernouilli_, 205
+
+_Bertholon_, 119
+
+_Bertrin, G._, 247
+
+_Berzelius, J._, 217
+
+_Bessel, F. W._, 209
+
+_Bethmann-Hollweg_, 394, 405
+
+Bible, 281, 283
+
+Bible-Criticism, modern, 254 _et seq._
+
+_Billroth, Th._, 363
+
+_Biot, J._, 116
+
+_Bischof, K. G._, 219
+
+_Boissarie, Dr._, 247 _et seq._
+
+_Boniface VIII._, 149, 181
+
+_Bornhak, C._, 349, 363
+
+_Boscovich_, 197
+
+_Bourdaloue_, 211
+
+_Bousset, W._, 254, 285
+
+_Boyle, Robert_, 205
+
+_Brahe, Tycho de_, 191, 202
+
+_Branco, W._, 116
+
+_Brass, A._, 333
+
+_Braun, K._, 82, 117, 119, 281
+
+_Brewster, D._, 118
+
+_Broda, R._, 50
+
+_Buechner_, 115, 364
+
+_Buckland, W._, 219
+
+_Buffon, G. de_, 206
+
+_Cabet, Etienne_, 111
+
+_Cantor, M._, 210
+
+_Caprivi_, 19
+
+Cardinals, 98
+
+_Carneri, B._, 251
+
+_Cassirer_, 50
+
+Catholic, not free in research, 108
+
+Catholic Universities, 370
+
+_Cauchy_, 210
+
+Causation, Natural, 34, 235 _et seq._
+
+Certainty, scientific, 137
+
+Censorship of Books, civil, 172
+
+---- ecclesiastical, 171
+
+_Chamberlain, H. St._, 26, 36, 251, 361
+
+_Charles Borromeo, St._, 175
+
+_Cherbury, Herbert of_, 28
+
+_Chevreul, M. E._, 217
+
+Christ, 31, 143, 246, 401, 407
+---- Divinity denied, 251
+
+Christian Religion, State Protection for, 352 _et seq._
+---- Truths, 21
+---- View of the World, 14 _et seq._, 27, 30, 55
+
+Christianity, 21, 24, 51
+---- compared with Paganism, 267
+---- free, 285
+---- Origin of, 259
+---- _vs._ Paganism, 253
+---- without Christ, 252, 282
+
+Church, the, 14, 30, 39, 50, 63 _et seq._, 70, 90 _et seq._, 106, 125,
+            179, 235, 275 _et seq._
+---- Accusations of the, 142 _et seq._
+---- and Medical Science, 181
+---- Catholic, alone enduring, 298
+---- Episcopal, 298
+---- founder of Schools and Universities, 145 _et seq._
+---- not a foreign Power, 406
+---- the Mother of Civilization, 145 _et seq._
+
+_Cicero_, 3, 8, 138, 269, 349
+
+_Claar_, M., 170
+
+_Clement IV._, 155
+
+_Clement V._, 149, 152
+
+_Clement VIII._, 195
+
+Cognition, human, 34 _et seq._, 43
+
+College Professors, 393
+
+_Columbus, Christopher_, 182
+
+Communistic Experiments, 111
+
+Congregations, Roman, 98, 189
+
+Copernican System, 183
+
+Copernicus, 4, 113, 174, 184, 186, 189, 194 _et seq._, 200
+
+_Coppee, F._, 324
+
+_Corneille_, 211
+
+_Cornu_, 211
+
+Cosmogonies, of Nations, 242
+
+Council, Fourth Lateran, 182
+
+Council, Vatican, 68 _et seq._, 90, 103, 106, 109, 130
+
+Craniotomy, 102
+
+Creation, disputed, 241
+
+Criticism of the Gospels, modern, 254 _et seq._
+
+_Cuvier, G._, 218, 223
+
+_Cyril, St., of Alexandria_, 87
+
+_Dalberg, J. von_, 150
+
+_Dana, J. Dwight_, 219
+
+_Darwin_, 107, 115, 157, 239, 243
+---- an Agnostic, 222
+
+_Davy, Sir H._, 119
+
+_Dawson, W._, 219
+
+Dechristianizing of the modern State, 362 _et seq._
+
+_Delitzsch, Fr._, 51, 281
+
+_Deluc, A._, 119
+
+_Denifle, H._, 151, 153 _et seq._, 182
+
+_Denthofen_, 182
+
+_Descartes, R._, 35, 118, 190
+
+_Dilthey, W._, 292
+
+Divinity of Christ, 281
+---- denied, 251 _et seq._
+
+Dogmas, 51, 67, 97, 158
+
+_Doellinger_, 103
+
+_Draper, J._, 86 _et seq._, 144, 159, 182
+
+_Drews, A._, 236, 282
+
+Dualism, 31, 63
+
+_Du Bois-Reymond_, 115, 224, 237, 240
+
+_Dumas, J. B._, 217
+
+_Dumont, A._, 219
+
+Economics, liberal, 30
+
+_Egger, F._, 99
+
+_Ehrenberg, Ch._, 220
+
+_Ehrenfels, Chr. von_, 347
+
+_Eichhorn, Minister_, 344, 364
+
+Emancipation from the Truth, 41
+
+_Emery_, 196
+
+_Epinois, de l'_, 183
+
+Episcopal Church, 298
+
+_Erdmann, J. E._, 50, 158
+
+Error, Danger of Infection by, 319
+---- to be taught with same right as truth? 328
+
+Ethics, modern, 50, 250, 325, 330, 347
+
+_Eucken, R._, 26, 50, 51, 244, 294 _et seq._
+
+_Euler_, 210
+
+Evolution, Theory of, 49, 157, 241 _et seq._
+---- Theory, held by Catholic Scientists, 223
+
+Faith, 14, 43, 51
+---- and Reason, 73
+---- Authority of, 61, 81
+---- Definition of, 61, 63, 66
+---- Doubts forbidden, 139
+---- its scientific Demonstration, 130 _et seq._
+---- Motive of, 71
+---- not blind, 61, 71
+---- Obedience of, and Freedom of Action, 105
+
+_Falkenberg, R._, 45, 158
+
+_Faraday, M._, 214, 224, 249
+
+_Favaro, A._, 183
+
+_Fenelon_, 110
+
+_Feuerbach, L._, 21, 22
+
+_Fichte, J. G._, 4, 52, 129, 178, 394
+
+_Fischer, Kuno_, 37
+
+_Fizeau, A._, 211
+
+_Foerster, F. W._, 128, 246, 268, 338, 345, 390
+
+_Fonck, L._, 86
+
+_Fonsegrive, G._, 39
+
+_Forel, A._, 325, 347
+
+_Foucault, L._, 211
+
+_Fouillie, A._, 290
+
+_France, R. H._, 240
+
+_Francis of Sales, St._, 175, 320
+
+_Franklin, B._, 119
+
+_Frauenhofer_, 211
+
+_Frederick II., King_, 178, 179, 363
+
+Freedom, Definition of, 8, 16
+---- for the Truth, 74
+---- modern Idea of, 16 _et seq._, 18, 26
+---- of Art, 336
+---- of Research, different from Freedom of Teaching, 9
+---- of Research, liberal, 229 _et seq._
+---- of Science, Necessity, 12
+---- ---- Subject to human Nature, 361
+---- of Teaching, as understood in the Past, 344, 363 _et seq._, 370
+---- ---- Danger of, admitted by modern Scientists, 323
+---- ---- Definition of, 303
+---- ---- unrestricted, inadmissible, 314
+
+Freedom of Thought, 30, 298
+---- two Kinds of, 13, 15, 55
+
+Freemasons, 22, 28, 331
+
+Free-religionists, 23
+
+Free-thinkers, 17, 22, 30, 272, 291, 331, 332, 345, 363
+
+_Fresnel, A._, 211
+
+_Friedwald_, 140
+
+_Frins, V._, 165
+
+_Fuchs, Th._, 162
+
+_Galileo_, 55, 97, 99, 101, 102, 180 _et seq._
+
+_Galle, J. G._, 208
+
+_Galvani, L._, 118, 212
+
+_Gassendi, P._, 190
+
+_Gauss, K._, 209, 210
+
+_Gebler, K. von_, 183
+
+Generatio aequivoca, 241
+
+Genesis, 281
+---- Doctrine of, 212
+---- History or Legend? 259
+---- primordial, 241
+
+_Gerdil_, 211
+
+_Gibbons, Cardinal_, 103
+
+_Giese, T._, 194, 201
+
+_Giesebrecht, F. W._, 129
+
+God, 6, 11, 14, 23, 26, 32, 44, 53, 65, 176, 235, 236, 286, 387
+
+God's Order of Life, 14
+
+_Goethe_, 178, 269
+
+_Goetz, L._, 165
+
+Gospels, 285
+---- modern Criticism of, 254 _et seq._
+
+Government, founded on Christianity, 356
+
+_Goyau, G._, 299
+
+Grace, divine, Definition of, 73
+
+_Gray, Th._, 119
+
+_Gregory VII._, 145
+
+_Gregory IX._, 181
+
+_Gregory XI._, 151
+
+_Grienberger_, 185
+
+_Grimaldi, F._, 195
+
+_Grisar, H._, 99, 190, 197
+
+_Grosse, E._, 116
+
+_Grotthuss, von_, 24
+
+_Guldin_, 211
+
+_Gunkel, H._, 259, 281
+
+_Guenther, A._, 99, 172
+
+_Haeckel, E._, 87, 114, 198, 217, 221, 222, 239, 241, 268, 303, 325
+------ denounced for Forgery, 333
+------ on Lourdes, 247
+
+_Haeser_, 154
+
+_Haller, A. von_, 7, 205
+
+_Halley_, E., 206
+
+_Hansen, A._, 325
+
+_Harnack, A._, 17, 64, 71, 117, 129, 134, 246, 256 _et seq._, 265, 282,
+            283, 284, 382
+
+_Hartmann, E. von_, 250, 282, 285, 290, 317
+
+Harvard University, 74
+
+_Harvey, W._, 205
+
+_Hauy, R._, 218
+
+_Heer, O._, 219, 223
+
+_Hefele, K. von_, 181 _et seq._
+
+_Hegel_, 4, 47, 50, 272, 294
+
+_Heis, E._, 209
+
+_Helmholtz, H. von_, 4, 215
+
+_Henslow, G._, 216
+
+_Herbart_, 4
+
+_Hermes, G._, 172
+
+_Herrmann, W._, 76, 78
+
+_Herschel_, 207
+
+_Hertwig, R._, 241
+
+_Hertz_, 4
+
+_Hettner, H._, 28, 36, 47
+
+_Hilgers, J._, 111, 169, 176, 177
+
+_His, W._, 333
+
+Historian, the Catholic, 95 _et seq._
+
+History, and the Faith, 93
+
+_Hitchcock_, 219
+
+_Hoensbroech, P._, 165, 169
+
+_Hoff, van't_, 71, 181
+
+_Holl, K._, 103
+
+_Holtzmann, O._, 283
+
+_Honorius III._, 152, 155
+
+_Hoernes, M._, 242
+
+_Huber, V. A._, 148, 324
+
+Humanists, 18 _et seq._
+
+Humanitarian Religion, 51
+---- View of Life, 55
+
+Humanity, emancipated, 22
+
+Human race, Origin of, 115 _et seq._
+
+_Humboldt, A. von_, 198, 224
+
+_Humboldt, W. von_, 38, 74, 314
+
+_Hume, D._, 35
+
+_Huxley, Th._, 222
+
+_Huygens, Chr._, 118, 204 _et seq._
+
+_Hyrtl, J._, 221
+
+Illuminati, 25
+
+Immorality, among College Men, 335
+
+Inclinations, human, 264 _et seq._
+
+Incompatibility of Science and Faith, 198 _et seq._
+
+Index of forbidden Books, 55, 169 _et seq._, 189, 196
+
+Individualism, 25, 28
+
+Infallibility, 76, 97 _et seq._, 109
+
+_Innocent IV._, 149
+
+_Innocent VI._, 151
+
+_James, W._, 48, 250, 268
+
+_Janssen, J._, 146, 149, 150, 156, 218
+
+Jesuit Order, 183, 359
+
+Jesus Christ, 252, 357
+---- Existence of, 282
+---- who was? 281 _et seq._
+
+Jews, 128
+
+_Joachim, G._ (see _Rheticus_)
+
+_Jodl, F._, 19, 21, 22, 66, 123, 130, 162, 245, 250, 288, 292, 322, 357
+
+_John XXII._, 151 _et seq._
+
+_Jones, Dr. Spencer_, 298
+
+_Joergensen_, 229
+
+_Juelicher_, 255, 283
+
+_Justin, Phil._, 277
+
+_Kahl, W._, 10, 162
+
+_Kant, I._, 4, 29, 35, 36, 37 _et seq._, 43 _et seq._, 46 _et seq._, 54,
+            63, 64, 77, 132, 167, 179, 250, 263, 269, 272, 287, 293, 313,
+            363
+
+_Kaufmann, G._, 17, 150, 153, 155, 162, 309
+
+_Kelvin, Lord_ (see _Thomson_)
+
+_Kepler, J._, 4, 125, 184, 185, 187, 191, 195 _et seq._, 201 _et seq._
+
+Kepler-Bund, 333
+
+_Kirchhoff, G. R._, 4
+
+_Kleinpeter, H._, 35
+
+_Kneller_, 7, 208
+
+Knowledge and Faith, separation of, 42
+
+_Kochansky_, 196
+
+_Kohlbrugge, J. H._, 116
+
+_Koeller_, 121
+
+_Kollmann, J._, 116
+
+_Kone, J._, 147
+
+_Kromer, Bishop_, 195
+
+_Kues, N. von_, 194
+
+_Lacharpe_, 47
+
+_Lalande_, 196
+
+_Lamarck, J. B. de_, 157, 223
+
+_Lammenais, F._, 172
+
+_Lamont, J. von._, 209
+
+_Lange, F._, 237, 239
+
+_Lapparent, A. de_, 219
+
+Lateran Council, Fourth, 182
+
+_Lavoisier, A._, 217
+
+Law, necessity of, 408
+
+Laws of nature, 11
+
+_Lehmann, E._, 243
+
+_Lehmann, M._, 178
+
+_Leibnitz, G. W._, 114, 118, 190, 196, 211
+
+_Leo, the Great_, 383
+
+_Leo XIII._, 95, 170 _et seq._
+
+_Lessing, G. F._, 326
+
+_Leverrier, M._, 48, 207 _et seq._, 238
+
+Liberalism, 29 _et seq._, 162, 364, 370
+
+License to teach, ecclesiastical, 404
+
+_Liebig, J. von_, 4, 218
+
+_Liebmann, O._, 35
+
+Life, first, whence did it come, 240
+
+_Linne, Karl_, 205
+
+_Lipps, Th._, 78, 135, 311
+
+_Locke, J._, 28, 35
+
+_Loisy, A._, 172
+
+_Loosten, de_, 283
+
+_Lossen_, 223
+
+Lourdes, 247
+
+_Luedeman_, 45
+
+_Luther_, 27, 29, 38, 195
+
+Lutheran Church, expelled Kepler, 202
+
+_Lyell, Ch._, 223
+
+_Macaulay_, 407
+
+_Mach, E._, 35
+
+_Macolano_, 187
+
+_Maedler, J._, 206
+
+_Mai, Cardinal_, 320
+
+Man, Descent of, 288
+---- free, 15, 25
+---- his Destiny, 11, 19
+---- Member of Society, 11
+
+Man, the autonomous, 24 _et seq._, 29, 33, 287
+---- the transcendental, 23 _et seq._, 37
+
+Man's Emancipation, 27
+---- Intellect, 14
+
+_Martius, von_, 220
+
+_Masaryk, T. G._, 62, 72, 136, 160
+
+_Maxwell, J._, 214 _et seq._, 224
+
+_Mayer, R._, 215, 239
+
+_Melanchthon_, 195
+
+_Mendel, G. J._, 220
+
+_Menger, K._, 62, 86
+
+_Messer, A._, 140, 235
+
+Method of modern Science, 262
+
+_Michael, E._, 146, 181, 182
+
+_Migne_, 384
+
+_Mill, Stuart_, 245
+
+Miracles denied, 246 _et seq._
+
+Modernism, 44, 45, 165 _et seq._, 389 _et seq._
+---- Oath against, 393
+
+_Moigno_, 209
+
+_Moleschott, J._, 115, 224, 364
+
+_Mommsen, Th._, 121, 128, 234, 267
+
+Monism, 31, 331
+---- Definition of, 244
+
+Monists, 331
+
+_Montanari, G._, 194
+
+Morality, 325
+---- independent of Religion, 250, 336
+---- no absolute Standard of, 50
+
+_Muckermann, H._, 220
+
+_Mueller, A._, 186
+
+_Mueller, Fr._, 243
+
+_Mueller, J._, 219
+
+_Muench, W._, 147, 356
+
+_Muratori, L. A._, 320
+
+_Mysticism_, 43, 46
+
+Nature, human, ignored, 264
+
+_Newton_, 4, 7, 118, 125, 191, 201, 203 _et seq._
+
+_Nicolai, F._, 394
+
+_Niebergall, F._, 45
+
+_Nietzsche_, 23 _et seq._, 31, 37, 53, 54, 79, 270, 273
+
+Oath against Modernism, 405
+---- binding? 46
+
+Oath of Allegiance in civil Professions, 396
+---- of the Professio Fidei Tridentina, 394
+
+Objectivism, 33
+
+_Oken_, 178
+
+_Olbers, W._, 209
+
+_Omalius, J. de_, 219, 223
+
+Oppression, of mental Liberty, by Party Rule, 366
+
+_Oresme, Bishop_, 194
+
+_Osiander_, 184, 195
+
+_Ostwald, W._, 240
+
+_Owen, R._, 111
+
+_Ozanam, A._, 212
+
+Paganism, 267, 286
+---- extolled by modern Science, 212
+---- preferred to Christianity, 267
+
+_Palacky_, 146
+
+Pantheism, 23, 41, 284
+
+Papacy, Importance of, 373
+
+Papal Charters of Universities, 148 _et seq._
+
+_Pascal_, 211
+
+_Pasteur_, 217, 222, 224, 381
+
+_Pastor, L. von_, 96, 195
+
+Patients, made Subjects for medical Experiments, 319
+
+_Paul III._, 184, 195, 201
+
+_Paul IV._, 170
+
+_Paulsen, F._, 17, 38, 39, 40, 41, 44, 49, 51 _et seq._, 64, 78, 134, 150,
+            236, 239, 252, 253, 262, 274, 276, 287, 292 _et seq._, 309,
+            312, 321, 335, 338, 382, 404
+
+_Paulus, H. E._, 258
+
+Pedagogy, 345
+
+Perception, the Nature of human, 33
+
+_Pesch, Chr._, 99
+
+_Peschel, O._, 115
+
+_Pessimism_, 295 _et seq._
+
+_Pfaff, F._, 219
+
+_Pfleiderer, O._, 256, 259, 285
+
+_Philip, the Fair_, 152
+
+Philosophical Errors, 327
+---- Training, great Want of, 321
+
+Philosophy, 7, 16, 21, 28, 36, 44, 78, 242, 275, 292 _et seq._
+
+Philosophy and the Faith, 92
+---- Scholastic, 49, 53
+
+_Piazzi, G._, 209
+
+_Pindar_, 74
+
+_Pius IX._, 99, 162, 165, 166
+
+_Pius X._, 99
+
+_Plate, L._, 206, 237, 240, 241, 243 _et seq._, 249, 287
+
+_Plato_, 52, 74, 249, 269, 275, 337
+
+_Plutarch_, 349
+
+_Poggendorff_, 209
+
+_Pohle, J._, 209
+
+_Poincare, H._, 114
+
+Pope, his Person, 98
+
+Popes, and the Universities, 150 _et seq._
+
+_Prantl, K. von_, 324
+
+Prayer, 46
+
+_Pressense, F. de_, 299
+
+Primordial Genesis, 241
+
+Progress, 159
+
+Promoting the Christian Faith, the Aim of Founders of Universities, 367
+
+Protestantism, 19, 27 _et seq._, 44, 45, 51, 54, 66, 77, 97, 117, 128,
+            129, 140, 168, 193, 195, 202, 255, 293, 298, 359, 363, 390,
+            396
+
+_Ptolemy_, 5
+
+_Pythagoras_, 4, 140
+
+_Quenstedt, F._, 7, 219, 223
+
+_Rade, M._, 282
+
+Radicalism, 332
+
+_Ramsay, W._, 7
+
+_Ranke, L. von._, 116, 179
+
+_Ratzel, F._, 115
+
+Reason, its Limitations, 7, 14
+
+Reformation, the, 27, 28, 363
+
+_Reimarus, H. S._, 258
+
+_Reinhold, G._, 391
+
+_Reinke, J._, 7, 115, 223
+
+Relative Truth, 157
+
+Religion, 16, 20, 25, 28, 51
+---- abandoned, 289 _et seq._
+---- distinguished from Science, 266
+---- of natural Reason, 28, 51
+
+Religious Instruction of Children, 45
+
+_Remus, John_, 196
+
+_Renan, E._, 54, 248, 258
+
+Research, and Faith, 59
+---- Definition of, 9
+
+Restraint, proper, of Science, 90
+
+Revelation, 29, 51, 72, 77 _et seq._, 90, 125, 297
+---- Proof of, 138
+
+Revolution, French, 29, 36
+---- of 1848, 363
+
+_Rheticus_ (_G. Joachim_), 195, 201
+
+_Rhodius_, 140
+
+_Riccioli, J._, 190
+
+Right of Christians, to be represented, 367
+---- to teach, natural, 369
+
+Rights of Teacher, not unrestricted, 346
+
+_Ritter, K._, 218
+
+_Romanes, G._, 221
+
+_Roscellin_, 158
+
+_Rosenberger_, 118
+
+_Rosmini-Serbati_, 110
+
+_Rothenbuecher_, 30
+
+_Rousseau, J. J._, 28
+
+_Rudder, P. de_, 249
+
+_Ruville, A. von_, 77
+
+_Sabatier, A._, 26, 39, 78, 262
+
+_Saint-Hilaire_, 223
+
+_Saitschick_, 392
+
+_Sarcey_, 173
+
+_Savigny, F. von_, 355
+
+Scepticism, 35, 47, 55, 293
+
+_Schafhaeutl, K. von_, 219
+
+_Scheiner, Ch._, 125, 191
+
+_Schell, H._, 136, 172
+
+_Schelling_, 4
+
+_Scherr, J._, 38
+
+_Schiaparelli, G._, 191
+
+_Schiller_, 274
+
+_Schleiermacher_, 45, 54, 290
+
+_Schmiedel, P._, 282
+
+_Schneider, W._, 116
+
+_Schoenbein_, 7, 218
+
+_Schoenberg, Cardinal_, 194, 201
+
+Schools, free, 22
+
+_Schopenhauer_, 35, 272, 274
+
+_Schwann, Th._, 220
+
+_Schwegler, A._, 28
+
+_Schweitzer, A._, 282
+
+Science, an Activity of the human Mind, 6
+---- anti-Christian, its Danger, 329 _et seq._
+---- Definition, 3 _et seq._
+---- Errors of, 115 _et seq._
+---- grave Charges against Modern, 329
+---- Limitations, 7
+---- Power of, 322
+---- restricted by accidental Conditions, 361
+---- subject to God, 6
+---- subject to Imperfections of human Mind, 6, 31
+---- subject to Truth, 6
+---- Vocation of, 279
+
+Sciences, profane and the Faith, 88
+
+Scientific Research, Methods, 158
+---- Teaching, Definition, 316
+
+Scientists, Catholic, 384 _et seq._
+
+Scripture, does not teach profane Sciences, 84
+---- Interpretation, 27
+---- Narratives not to be taken in literal Sense, 82 _et seq._
+
+_Secchi, A._, 191, 208
+
+_Sedgwick, A._, 219
+
+Seminaries, 400
+
+Sensuality, Emancipation of, Danger to Civilization, 356
+
+Sexual Perversities, 347
+---- Practice, natural, 346
+---- Questions, 325
+---- Reform, 347
+
+Sham-Science, 313
+
+Silence not Denial, 11
+
+_Smet, de_, 86
+
+_Smith, Adam_, 28
+
+_Smolko, S. von_, 359
+
+Socialism, 111, 349, 350
+
+Socialists, 331
+
+Social question, 30
+
+Sociology, 30
+
+_Socrates_, 7
+
+Soul, the, 46 _et seq._
+---- the, an illusion, 288 _et seq._
+
+_Spencer, H._, 243, 313
+
+_Spicker, G._, 22, 26, 292, 324
+
+_Spinoza, B._, 41, 179
+
+_Staegemann_, 36
+
+State, the, and Freedom of Teaching, 340 _et seq._
+
+_Steudel_, 236
+
+_Strauss, D. F._, 54, 65, 240, 258, 267, 273, 280, 283, 286, 287, 315, 364
+
+_Stuetz_, 119
+
+_Subjectivism_, 33 _et seq._
+
+Supernatural, Factors to be excluded, 235 _et seq._
+---- the, inadmissible, 31
+
+Supervision of Teaching, Ecclesiastical, 389
+
+_Sybel, L. von_, 246, 292
+
+Syllabus, the, 55, 94, 115, 162 _et seq._
+
+Tanner, A., 192
+
+_Targioni-Tozzetti_, 194
+
+Teachers, anti-Christian, 358
+---- Catholic, small Number of, 365
+---- Jewish, 365
+
+Teaching, Definition of, 10
+---- of the Church, as distinguished from Opinions of Theologians, 82 _et
+            seq._
+
+_Tews, J._, 358
+
+_Thenard, L._, 217
+
+Theocentric View of the World, 19
+
+Theologians, Catholic, of Repute, 384 _et seq._
+
+Theological Literature, Catholic, 384 _et seq._
+
+Theology and Progress, 381 _et seq._
+---- a Science, 378 _et seq._
+---- History of, 403
+
+Theophobia of Science, 234, 241
+
+Theory of Rights, individualistic, 313
+
+_Thomas, St._, 82, 84, 155, 262, 353, 388
+
+_Thomasius, Chr._, 344, 363
+
+_Thomson_ (_Lord Kelvin_), 74, 238, 249, 251 _et seq._, 381
+
+_Toland, J._, 28
+
+_Treitschke, H. von_, 129, 179
+
+_Troeltsch, E._, 28, 134, 167, 298, 356, 389
+
+Truth, relative, 49 _et seq._
+
+_Tyndall, J._, 217, 224
+
+_Ueberweg, F._, 267
+
+_Uhlich, L._, 291
+
+United States, 111, 368
+
+Universities, 150, 341 _et seq._
+---- and the Church, 371
+---- Catholic, 370
+---- free, 368
+
+University, and Theology, 398
+---- Teachers, 17
+---- vanishing Respect for, 334
+
+Unprepossession in Research, 121 _et seq._, 357
+
+_Urban IV._, 155
+
+_Urban V._, 151
+
+_Urban VIII._, 96, 186, 189
+
+_Vaillant_, _Anarchist_, 350
+
+_Valerius, Maximus_, 319
+
+_Varnhagen_, 36
+
+Vatican Archives, 95
+
+Vatican Council, 68 _et seq._, 90, 103, 106, 109, 130
+
+_Vaudin_, 119
+
+_Vierort, K. von_, 220
+
+View of life, Christian, 252
+---- of the World, anthropocentric, 19
+---- ---- Christian, 14, 27
+---- ---- humanitarian, 18, 21 _et seq._, 31
+---- ---- theocentric, 19
+
+Views of the World, various, 13, 22, 159, 294
+
+_Vigilius, St._, 180 _et seq._
+
+_Vincent, St. of Lerin_, 383
+
+_Virchow, R. von_, 116, 224, 241, 323
+
+_Vogt, K._, 30, 115, 224
+
+_Volkmann, A._, 220, 223
+
+_Volta, A._, 212 _et seq._, 224
+
+_Voltaire_, 28, 326
+
+_Vries, H. de_, 220
+
+_Waagen, W._, 223
+
+_Wahrmund, L._, 86
+
+_Wallace, A._, 119
+
+_Walsh, J. J._, 208
+
+_Walther, W._, 284
+
+_Washington, George_, 349
+
+_Wasmann, E._, 116, 223, 243, 249
+
+_Wehner, von_, 405
+
+_Weismann_, 242
+
+_Weizsaecker_, 257
+
+_Westermark_, 50
+
+_Westhoff_, 177, 74, 145, 276, 282
+
+_Wimpheling_, 156
+
+_Wobbermin, G._, 245
+
+_Wolf, R._, 207
+
+_Woellner, Minister_, 363
+
+_Wundt, W._, 24, 52, 62, 71, 137, 235, 243, 254, 288, 290
+
+_Young, Th._, 119
+
+_Zacharias, Pope_, 180
+
+_Zedlitz, von_, 363
+
+_Zeller, E._, 246, 255
+
+_Ziegler, Th._, 59
+
+_Zittel_, 116
+
+_Zoeckler_, 7, 181, 201
+
+_Zoen, Bishop_, 151
+
+_Zola_, 248 _et seq._
+
+
+
+
+
+
+FOOTNOTES
+
+
+    1 Whenever we use here the word "modern," we do not take it in the
+      sense of "present,"--the Christian view of the world is also a
+      present one, and is still of the utmost importance,--but in the sense
+      of "new" in contrast to the time-honoured and inherited.
+
+    2 The difference between the Protestant and the Catholic manner of
+      reasoning is stated by the convert, Prof. _A. von Ruville_, as
+      follows:
+
+      "My mind had harboured up to now the characteristically Protestant
+      thought that I, from my superior mental standpoint, was going to
+      probe the Catholic Church, that I was going to pass an infallible
+      judgment on her truth or untruth, and this in spite of my being
+      ready to acknowledge the truth in her. But now I became more and
+      more conscious of the fact that it was the Church who had a right to
+      pass judgment on me, that I had to bow to her opinion, that she
+      immeasurably surpassed me in wisdom. Many details, which I was
+      inclined to criticize, demonstrated this to me, for in every
+      instance I recognized that it was my understanding that was at
+      fault, and that what appeared to me as an imperfection was rooted in
+      the deepest truth. In this way I was gradually brought to the real
+      Catholic standpoint, to accept the doctrines immediately as Truth,
+      because they proceeded from the Church, and then to endeavour to
+      understand them thoroughly, and to reap from them the fullest
+      possible harvest of Truth. Formerly, with regard to Protestant
+      doctrines, I always retained my independence and the sovereignty of
+      my judgment. Why should I not have had my own opinion, when every
+      denomination and every theologian had an individual opinion? How
+      different with the Catholic Church. Before her sublime, never
+      varying wisdom, as it is proclaimed by every simple priest, I bowed
+      my knees in humility. Compared to her experience of two thousand
+      years my ephemeral knowledge was a mere nothing" (Back to Holy
+      Church, by Dr. _Albert von Ruville_, pp. 30, 31).
+
+    3 Infallible teachings are often also called dogmas. But they are not
+      always dogmas in the strict sense. In the strict sense dogmas are
+      such truths as are contained in divine revelation, and are
+      proclaimed by the infallible teaching authority of the Church to be
+      believed as such by the faithful. In a broader sense those tenets
+      are often called dogmas which are presented by revelation or by the
+      Church as infallible truths. In this sense all teachings of faith
+      clearly found in Holy Scripture are dogmas, even if not declared by
+      the Church. In this sense Protestants, too, believe in revealed
+      dogmas.
+
+    4 "They that have received the faith through the ministry of the
+      Church can never have just cause for changing their faith or calling
+      it into doubt" (Sess. III, ch. 3). The Vatican Council did not
+      thereby mean to say that an exceptional case could not happen where
+      some one, without fault of his own, might fall away from his faith,
+      either on account of insufficient religious instruction, or of
+      natural dullness or exceptional misfortunes in the circumstances of
+      life in which he may be placed. The theologians who worded the
+      decision also say that the Council did not intend to condemn the
+      opinion expressed by many older theologians, that under certain
+      conditions an uneducated Catholic might be led in such way into
+      error as to join another faith without committing a sin. (cf.
+      _Granderath_, Const. Dog. ss. oec. Concl. Vat. 69).
+
+    5 At a certain Austrian university, where the custom obtains that a
+      member of a faculty of the university, in the regular order of the
+      faculties, publishes during the year a book on some study in its
+      particular branch, the turn came to the theological faculty. One of
+      its members then issued a work on moral theology, of course with the
+      ecclesiastical Imprimatur. Upon this being discovered the senate
+      resolved not to acknowledge the book as a university publication,
+      nor to issue it as such, as is usually the custom. They believed
+      they saw in the Imprimatur a degradation of science and a violation
+      of its freedom--a procedure entirely in accord with the traditional
+      narrow-mindedness and intolerance of liberalism.
+
+    6 A clear understanding of the case of _Galileo_ has been made
+      possible only since the year 1877, when the papers of the trial were
+      published by two men of opposite religious views,--the
+      Catholic-minded historian, _de l'Epinois_, and the liberal author,
+      _K. Gebler_, who in 1876 had already published a work on "Galileo
+      Galilei and the Roman Curia," in the spirit of the anti-clerical
+      tendency of the times. Yet, in spite of his attitude, he was given
+      free permission to copy the papers--a magnanimity by which the Holy
+      See has earned the gratitude and admiration of every fair-minded
+      lover of history. In more recent times, _A. Favaro_ published, in
+      1890-1907, a work of twenty volumes containing all the papers
+      relating to the trial of _Galileo_, "Opere di Galileo Galilei,
+      Edizione Nazionale." He, too, had access to the ecclesiastical
+      archives, which he acknowledges with thanks. It may be said now that
+      the _Galileo_ case has been settled by documentary evidence.
+
+    7 After visiting _Thomson_ at Kreuznach, _Helmholtz_ wrote: "He
+      surpasses all great scientists I have personally met, in acumen,
+      clearness and activity of spirit, so that I felt somewhat dull
+      beside him." _Helmholtz_ himself (died 1894) has never expressed
+      himself about religion. Absorbed by his scientific work, he seemed
+      to have been indifferent to religion, but according to his
+      biographer his father was a decided theist, and his philosophical
+      views were held in great esteem, and partly subscribed to, by the
+      son. According to _Dennert_, _Helmholtz_ attended church now and
+      then, and even partook of holy communion. Of decided religious bent
+      of mind was _Helmholtz's_ fellow-countryman, and co-discoverer of
+      the law of energy, _Robert Mayer_. At the Congress of scientists at
+      Innsbruck, in 1869, _Mayer_ ended his address with the significant
+      words: "Let me in conclusion declare from the bottom of my heart
+      that true philosophy cannot and must not be anything else but
+      propaedeutics of the Christian religion." His letters breathe piety.
+      For a time he had the intention of joining the Catholic Church.
+
+    8 Others take refuge in the fantastic theory of an "All-Animation."
+      According to it all organisms, including trees, shrubs, grasses, are
+      possessed of a soulful sensation and feeling for the purposes they
+      serve, and for the elaborate actions they undertake: this is the
+      reason for their efficacy, not because a wise Creator had arranged
+      them thus. _R. H. France_ exclaims triumphantly: "When the powers
+      that be should ask in their dissatisfaction: 'Where has God a place
+      in your system?' we can answer calmly: 'We do not need the
+      hypothesis of a personal God.' " God is superfluous--this is the
+      precious gain which this unscientific explanation is to yield.
+
+    9 Compare Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum XI (1883, vii.).
+
+_   10 L. M. Hartmann_, Theodor Mommsen (1908), 81. The author of the
+      biography is a Jew. There is a much-circulated story, alleged to
+      come from _F. X. Kraus_. _Mommsen_ is said to have told _Kraus_,
+      inasmuch as neither the origin, nor nature, nor the spread of
+      Christianity can be explained by natural causes, and since he, in
+      his capacity of historian, could never acknowledge anything
+      supernatural, therefore the fourth volume will remain unwritten.
+
+_   11 Nietzsche_, "Thus spoke Zarathustra."
+
+   12 "_Veritati ut possetis acquiescere, humilitate opus erat, quae
+      civitati, vestrae difficillime persuaderi potest_" (De civit. Dei,
+      X, 29).
+
+_   13 Plato_, Phil. 6 c. Similarly _Pythagoras_, _Aristotle_, and
+      _Cicero_.
+
+   14 Dial. c. Tryph. 2.
+
+   15 "But for the retention of names and terms _Harnack_ leaves nothing
+      of the specific nature of Christianity," admits the Protestant
+      Professor of Theology, _W. Walther_, in his book, "Harnack's Wesen
+      des Christentums" (1901).
+
+_   16 Uhlich_, founder of a community of free-thinkers, who died in 1873,
+      thus describes his evolution from rationalism to atheism: "At the
+      beginning I could say: We hold fast to Jesus, to Him who stood too
+      high to be called a mere man. Ten years later I could say: God,
+      virtue, immortality--these three are the eternal foundation of
+      religion. And after ten more years I could issue a declaration
+      wherein God was mentioned no more." Similar progress in spiritual
+      disintegration has been shown by Liberalism in recent years: first
+      it partially abandoned Christian dogma, without however quite
+      breaking loose from it; in the eighteenth century rationalistic
+      enlightenment tore loose from all revelation, adhering only to
+      natural religion: to-day even this is lost.
+
+   17 Dr. _Spencer Jones_, an Episcopal clergyman, says in his book,
+      "England and the Holy See": "For the Episcopal Church the junction
+      with Rome, with its sharply defined dogmas, its supreme ministry,
+      and its firm leadership, is a question of life. More and more the
+      supernatural belief is replaced by individual opinions, a condition
+      which in itself causes faith to disappear. A condition like the
+      present, making it possible that in one and the same congregation
+      the most pronounced contrariety of opinions in respect to most
+      essential tenets, as well as a general confusion of minds, is not
+      only tolerated, but directly welcomed, such a condition cannot
+      endure in the long run."
+
+   18 A French author, _G. Goyau_, states with truth: "What makes the
+      (Catholic) Church lovable in the eyes of thinking minds outside of
+      the Church, is just her uncompromising attitude. They see a Church
+      steadfast, permanent, imperturbable. The stumbling block of yore has
+      become for them an isle of safety. They are thankful to Rome for
+      holding before their eyes _the_ Christianity, instead of giving them
+      the choice of several kinds of Christianity, including kinds still
+      unknown, which they undoubtedly themselves may discover, if so
+      inclined. They welcome the Roman Church as the 'Teacher of Faith'
+      and 'Conqueror of Errors,' and, to quote more of the forcible
+      language of the Protestant _de Pressense_: 'they are disgusted with
+      a Christianity for the lowest bidder, but are impressed by the rigid
+      inflexibility of Catholicism....' " (Autour du Catholicisme social.
+      I. 1896).
+
+   19 "The Independent" (New York) of Feb. 2, 1914, reports under the head
+      _freedom of teaching_ the dismissal of a professor from the
+      Presbyterian University at Easton, Pa. After quoting from the
+      charter article VIII, which provides "that persons of every
+      religious denomination shall be capable of being elected Trustees,
+      nor shall any person, either as principal, professor, tutor or pupil
+      be refused admittance into said college, or denied any of the
+      privileges, immunities or advantages thereof, for or on account of
+      his sentiments in matters of religion," the report goes on to say:
+      "it appears however, from the investigations of the committee, that
+      President _Warfield_ insists that the instruction in philosophy and
+      psychology has to be such, as, in his opinion, accords with the most
+      conservative form of Presbyterian theology."
+
+   20 Prof. _Chr. von Ehrenfels_, Sexualethik. Similar passages might be
+      quoted from numerous other books by college-professors.
+
+
+
+
+
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