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Show PRIMITIVE TRUTHS, I MODERN UNBELIEF Intellectual Sovereignty Belongs to The Defenders of Religion Among Philosophers, Philoso-phers, Scientists and Writers. I . (Written for Intermountain Catholic.) The claim sometimes made is that men of science sci-ence and culture are and have been the great opponents op-ponents of religion, and that its greatest defenders defend-ers are inferior intellectually to the great masters i ,, unbelief. The claim still further advanced has II l.ci n that all the deep researches into the secrets f ..f nature and philosophical studies have been ! mainly con lined to the school of incredulity. In I ilic days of Voltaire these claims were so por-I por-I f-i-T.--ijtl.v- made that many inclined 1o shake off the Yoke and obligations of religion found their jus-: jus-: liticiijir.11 in 1 his supposed fact. j A brief review of the greatest writers in the ,e few centuries will show that intellectual sov-rn-ignty belongs to those who professed an abiding abid-ing faiih in i lie primitive 1 ruths revealed- to our 'tir-t parents in Paradise. Long before Spinoza, ilie father of modern unbelief, distinguished, and f-eli..larl.y laymen held lhe front rank as defenders f religious truths. Commencing with Dante in tl-e thirteenth century, we have Chaucer in the fourteenth. Erasmus and Copernicus in the fifteenth. fif-teenth. Shakespeare and Galileo in the sixteenth, iil-o Kepler and Bacon, whilst Pascal, who was born lhe same year (1G2-3) as Spinoza, was as supremely su-premely grand and consistent in defending Chris-; Chris-; ii;ut truths as Spinoza was weak, wavering and inconsistent in defense of his new unbelief." The - former took up the old religious truths and clothed ;j il;em with fresh arguments suitable 1o the time j in which lie lived, and which still remain, whilst . Spiia iza's false philosophy did not survive the cjjc in which he lived. Voltaire and Rousseau succeeded Spinoza and pi rove hard by their new discoveries and eloquence m revive lhe lost fame of their master. Their temporary success depended mainly on the versatile ver-satile character of their countrymen, who co after jievelties like their daughters go after fashions. Voltaire's patient study added some new lights to iiatural science, but his theories of natural selec-ij selec-ij 1 ion. which were opposed to the teaching of sacred. i Scripivn-0, have long since been exploded and are j im lunger entertained by men aspiring to be , ranked a- scientists. s K'm rau's eloquence only reached its sublimity jj when -j'eaking of Christian truths. The writer was once asked by one of his discijdes if he ever I T'-m the great infidel's tribute to Christ. Reoeiv-i Reoeiv-i in? a negative answer, he replied: ''It is the elos- it g parage of one of his works. The unstinted I praise bestowed upon Christ is the choicest and !"-t, Miblimc. Its language could not be sur-; sur-; pawd.'' " I lie same could bo said of Kenan's hypo-, hypo-, 'critical praise. Like Lord Byron his most elo-f elo-f client 1 1 1 1 1 sparkling truths came forth only when in his lucid moments he bore testimony acainst ii:n-elf. This is true at all limes and of all men uliu hi rive to divorce science from religion or build up a system of philosophy independent of ".. They become disturbing elements to the peace ,,f society by hading youthful but prowl, .itabitinis -ouls away from God, and subject to ; 3:o restraint. As cnira-led with ufeh wrilers, how different 'he effeeis produced by such writers as Sir Isaac Xewton and Pascal. The former, who has been I s-yed the '"lone walcber of the stars." worked his j v.'v In the sublime heights of belief through his I t-'ndv of ihe heavenly bodies of which he was a t'e"fcet master. In srudving the laws which gov- !;: the vi-ible world he devoted all his energy and j fen ins i iie establishment of religious truths. His perfect mastery of the exnet sciences was the I legacy be left to poslerilv. His profound knowl- !-'' and philosophical nrinciples are expressed in s 'ii.h- language that always indicate truth or the l L-r. ;n liyo ,,f truth as the primary object of his ro- s, ,,-,, study. He uses no newly coined ad- ' j ciivc - t.i envelop in darkness his meaning or the -n'uVi-1 h,. j reals. His knowledge of astronomy he his lugical mind from eariii 1o heaven, where 1 h.-hcld the Creator in his observation and study ' the perfect harmony of the celestial bodies. bie ,,f Xewt on's bioirranhers summarizes his ."inneni as follows: "Had a natural and blind I ,;!;-,., without contrivance and design, placed the 4 r ' v: 1 1 in the center of the moon's orbit , and Ju-l Ju-l r in ihe cenier of this system of satellites, and ' -mi in the cenier of the planetary system, the would have been a body like Jupiter and the ' "h. that is. without light and heat.'' And con-!-'-.:i:,.nly be (Xewton') knows no reason why there i- nly on" body qualified to cive light to all the but bi-eause ihe author of the system thought i' e, nvenient. and because one wa:- sufficient to ' "in and enlighten a1! the rest." He then con-' con-' -1- in Newton's words: "To mike such a svs-' svs-' :i v.i'h all its motions required a cause whi'-h v-' 'W-t i and conqvired tofrether the quantities ' ' uiaiter in the several bodies of the sun and l ' i! t-. -d the gravitated tK-.-,ver-, rosr.lt ing from . . . :iie several di- taiH-es 'of the primary :ibtn-' :ibtn-' - f'.'otn ih,. Mm. and of the secondary ones from Mini. .lupiter and lhe earth, and the velocities v 'h which those planet could revolve about those ; ' 'iitiiies ,,f matter in the central bodies; and to c mparo and adjust all these things togelher in so -;vat a variety of bodies, argues that cause to be, '! blind and fortuitous, but very well skilled in J: atb'-mtitics and geometry." ' To the above simple yet telling argument from I 'hi'-ih mailer Xewt on borrows and adds another f""iii ihe hypothesis of innate gravity. He wrote: r"r if ihere is innate gravity, it is impossible 1 for the matter of the earth, and all lhe plan-and plan-and stars. 1o fly up from them "and become rveulv sjiread through all the heavens without a 1 tq-eniatural power; and certainly that which can ii-v-r be hereafter without a sunei natural power '"uld never be heretofore without the same power." The same be.rical arguments borrowed from the Tiiiverse and celestinl bodies that led Xewton from 1be natural to lhe supernatural when directed to ibe oll jirojihecies which were verified in Christ, is convinced him of the divinity of the God-man, and the overruling of Providence in the affairs of this world and man's destiny. Pascal, like Xewton, though traveling over a different road, arrived at the same conclusion. Both were lovers of truth, directed all their energy, research and knowledge of the exact sciences to the primitive truths of religion, which were so intimately interwoven with the history and tradition of the human race since time began. Voltaire's life work was in experimenting and laving down theories, which would, if verified, upset the account of creation as given in Genesis. ILis dreamy notions or unscientific hypotheses have long since been discarded. Kousseau's fascinating language led his deluded followers to the hope of. reaching bights that were inaccessible and of enjoying en-joying an earthly paradise overflowing Avith a superabundance su-perabundance of riches and pleasures. His fairyland fairy-land and castles in the air were a mockery. Those who have followed as time went on witnessed not only the greatest excesses and disorders, but communism com-munism in the ascendancy and revolutions the natural na-tural result of disappointed hopes. Who have been the greater benefactors of humanity? The contrast between Pascal and Xewton and Voltaire and Kous-eeau Kous-eeau confines the battle to laymen. The former appeal to the dignity of the soul, on which is impressed im-pressed the image of its Maker; the latter fall back upon the material world, and make man all-sufficient for his wants and nature his God. Hut as Pascal wrote: "All the material world, the firmament, firma-ment, the stars, the earth and its kingdoms, are not equal to the least amongst spirits for a spirit knows all these things and itself; ami the body knows nothing. All material thiinyin one, and all spirits in one, and all their productions are not worth as much as the least impulse of the love of God: this belongs to an order infinitely more exalted." |
