Encyclopedia of sacred theology - pagina 631

Chap. IV]

cist,

IN

THE ORGANISM OF SCIENCE

607

own domain,

medicus, and philologist faces, each in his

same way

which the theologian faces these in his. All these conflicts arise from the fact that re-creation has begun, indeed, potentially, but can be completed with the parouIf re-creation were completed now, every conflict sia alone. Since now it is not of this nature would be inconceivable. in the

in

finished, either in ourselves or in the

we have

to deal with natural

cosmos, of necessity

and supernatural

data.

Both

these reflect themselves in our consciousness, and this gives

the conflict in our consciousness which conflict is ended only in so far as we succeed in tracing the real connection between these two series of data. And this is by no means accomplished by ignoring any data that present themselves to us, from both series, or from either of the two. This might give us an ostrich wisdom but no human science. In no particular should the naturalist, for instance, be imWith the aid of all possible means at his command, peded. he must prosecute his observations, and formulate what he has observed. If, on the other hand, he undertakes to construct a system from his discoveries, or commits himself to hypotheses by which to interpret his observations, the leaving out of account of the factor of Revelation is equivalent to the work of one who, in the biography of his hero, rise to

;

ignores his correspondence or autobiography. plies, therefore, to

Whatever

ap-

the origin and end of things cannot be

determined by the laws he has discovered, since every law, carried logically to its extreme in this matter of origin and end, leads ad absurdum, and involves us in antinomies that cannot be solved. If a law is to apply to a kingdom,

when

it

is

able,

assumed that with

this

kingdom has

being.

Neither

is

he

his discovered law, to react against the possibility

Since he knows, while he himself is affected of re-creation. by palingenesis, that (in order to realize the re-creation) a higher law in God is bound to modify the operation of the law which dominates the natural life. If he does not acknowledge this, he denies in principle the very possibility of re-creation, is without the photismos, and is unable to draw any conclusion. If, on the other hand, standing himself at

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