Cardinal Newman in the Nineteenth Century: His Relation to Science

Abstract

Scientific philosophy and false of the nineteenth century had gone to extremes. It is in the face of certain difficulties which this century presents that we look into the works of Cardinal John Henry Newman, one of the greatest men in the field of comprehensive writing and education of the complete man. He sought the deepening of life. The path which I propose to strike out in this work will be more particularly distinguished by three characteristics. 1. He shall in the first place turn our attention to the chief movements characteristic of the ages. The inquiry will show that at every point we come to the same questions, and, indeed, that one and the same central problem manifests itself through all varities of philosophy; this central problem is the problem of science. Science has no doubt given much to humanity, but it is so apt to misinterpretation that inevitable results of self-destruction follow unless it is guarded by such men as Newman. It is this material aspect of reality that we will show has reached its climax in the nineteenth century. 2. We will go into an examination of the philosophy of the life of Newman. We must examine the philosophy and life giving process of this man before we can show his reasons of attacking the century in which he lived. The spiritual process for Newman is something that has a certain actuality. We would be left in complete darkness as to what the nineteenth century involves, what its false suppositions involve and to what extreme it may go were we not to study the philosophy of life of such a man as Newman. 3. We shall endeavor here not to lose ourselves in detail but shall push cardinal Newman’s philosophy forward and show how it goes in opposition to the teachings of science, in some of it aspects at least. When the content of an age’s teachings departs too far from the end in view, which is necessary that someone must step in and check its process. It is Newman more than any one other man of the past century who accomplished this task Scientific philosophy and false of the nineteenth century had gone to extremes. It is in the face of certain difficulties which this century presents that we look into the works of Cardinal John Henry Newman, one of the greatest men in the field of comprehensive writing and education of the complete man. He sought the deepening of life. The path which I propose to strike out in this work will be more particularly distinguished by three characteristics. 1. He shall in the first place turn our attention to the chief movements characteristic of the ages. The inquiry will show that at every point we come to the same questions, and, indeed, that one and the same central problem manifests itself through all varities of philosophy; this central problem is the problem of science. Science has no doubt given much to humanity, but it is so apt to misinterpretation that inevitable results of self-destruction follow unless it is guarded by such men as Newman. It is this material aspect of reality that we will show has reached its climax in the nineteenth century. 2. We will go into an examination of the philosophy of the life of Newman. We must examine the philosophy and life giving process of this man before we can show his reasons of attacking the century in which he lived. The spiritual process for Newman is something that has a certain actuality. We would be left in complete darkness as to what the nineteenth century involves, what its false suppositions involve and to what extreme it may go were we not to study the philosophy of life of such a man as Newman. 3. We shall endeavor here not to lose ourselves in detail but shall push cardinal Newman’s philosophy forward and show how it goes in opposition to the teachings of science, in some of it aspects at least. When the content of an age’s teachings departs too far from the end in view, which is necessary that someone must step in and check its process. It is Newman more than any one other man of the past century who accomplished this task Scientific philosophy and false of the nineteenth century had gone to extremes. It is in the face of certain difficulties which this century presents that we look into the works of Cardinal John Henry Newman, one of the greatest men in the field of comprehensive writing and education of the complete man. He sought the deepening of life. The path which I propose to strike out in this work will be more particularly distinguished by three characteristics. 1. He shall in the first place turn our attention to the chief movements characteristic of the ages. The inquiry will show that at every point we come to the same questions, and, indeed, that one and the same central problem manifests itself through all varities of philosophy; this central problem is the problem of science. Science has no doubt given much to humanity, but it is so apt to misinterpretation that inevitable results of self-destruction follow unless it is guarded by such men as Newman. It is this material aspect of reality that we will show has reached its climax in the nineteenth century. 2. We will go into an examination of the philosophy of the life of Newman. We must examine the philosophy and life giving process of this man before we can show his reasons of attacking the century in which he lived. The spiritual process for Newman is something that has a certain actuality. We would be left in complete darkness as to what the nineteenth century involves, what its false suppositions involve and to what extreme it may go were we not to study the philosophy of life of such a man as Newman. 3. We shall endeavor here not to lose ourselves in detail but shall push cardinal Newman’s philosophy forward and show how it goes in opposition to the teachings of science, in some of it aspects at least. When the content of an age’s teachings departs too far from the end in view, which is necessary that someone must step in and check its process. It is Newman more than any one other man of the past century who accomplished this task