Show What Science is Doing for Modern Thought One of the most important influences influ-ences now at work is doubtless that of science which is of course as old as human curiosity and is only new in its results That the effect of tine great advance in scientific thought has been to modify considerably most forms of religious beliefs cannot can-not be denied and in spite of the many attempted reconciliations of the two it is not difficult to see that some of the leading dogmas of Christianity are doomed Fortunately Fortu-nately one of the rewards of the freedom that js given to science is alack a-lack of venom in its attack and on the other side there is an absence of bitterness in those whose opinions it unavoidably alters There are of course exceptions modern science has not expelled arrogance from the world and enlightenment has not wholly driven out bigotry Yet in the calmness with which the controversy is carried on we see how widespread is the belief that dogmas are less essential than the truth which all men alike are seeking As Professor Asa Gray puts it No sensible person now believes what the most sensible people peo-ple believed formerly Settled scientific belief must control religious reli-gious belief It is one of the time honored jests which the late Lord Beaconsfield thrust into his last I novel that the religion of sensible people is what sensible people never tell They may not but their tolerance toler-ance of new truths and the altered position of ecclesiasticism declare all that need be known The present interest in science is distinctly part of the revolutionary movement which demands with restless curiosity why everything should be as it is This is the ques tion that is put to every existing institution and science often gives a servicableanswer The answer is a leveling one to all conventionalities conven-tionalities because science concerns itself only about facts and it is heard now because science can only exist where thought is free Freedom Free-dom of thought is a powerful solvent sol-vent and it is especially destructive to all the conventionalities which exist by means of the common agreement that they shall not be examined We see that in politics the divine right of kings is questioned ques-tioned and in the uniform tendency of modern times toward democracy the assumption of government by those who are governed In social matters we perceive similar movement move-ment toward the emancipation of the individual All knowledge advances ad-vances from vague generalities to the comprehension of particulars and as human beings have succeeded in understanding themselves they have thrown aside the convenient habit of dividing the rest of the world into vast homogeneous classes clas-ses and have recognized the dignity and importance of each individual of the race Popular Science Monthly |