HIGHER CRITICISM IN THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 12016, 12 July 1902, Page 1 (Supplement)

HIGHER CRITICISM IN THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH.

That the." time-spirit,".which hats compelled a. restatement of the Presbyterian faith and" it- readjustment,; among religious thinkers everywhere, of; so much of the theological .doctrine that was once accepted as fundamental !is also peiitrating the Roman Catholic Church has been apparent for some time to; close observers. ;• The. cases of -Dr. St. ' George .--Mivart- and of lir. Zahhi ; are taken as indications, at least, of serious unrest',;- and the recent appointment of the Roman Biblical Commission is construed to mean that the Pope finds it no longer,advisable to resist the demand for a thorough investigation of the claims of the; higher criticism. In the opinion of " Austin West," which nom-de-plume is believed to cover the real name. of one prominent in the councils of, the Roman Catholic Church, the full significance of this papal commission is hardly . as yet understood. , To comprehend its" true meaning, lie declares,'- it is essential that we should be acquainted with the present . condition of ! religious , thought in the French Church, and • with the record of the' Abbe. Alfred Loisv, who has been for some time the recognised intellectual leader of the radical school among the French Roman Catholics. : In the opening sentences of .an article in the- Contemporary Review (April), this writer states: —. - v-v " For nearly eighteen months - past there has been, pending in Rome before the- Congregation of the Index avnd that of the In-quisition-—commonly known as the . ' Holy. Office'—a case of exceptional interest, fraught with weighty consequences for the future of Biblical criticism within the Roman communion. : ! Abbe .Alfred Loisy, D.D., of Paris';-.who' for some .years has figured among the!!roil rank of living, exegetes in the Roman Catholic Church,; and whose scholarly attainments in every branch of Semitic lore have won'him more than European fame, has been;accused before the Roman tribunals by .Cardinal • Richard; as - one , who by l" his active s sympathies . with modern critical science is a troubler of the Catholic Israel." " 'For! twelve years Dr. Loisy held the chair of -Biblical';exegesis in . the Institut Catholique in Paris ; btiij lie was compelled to withdraw from that institution, on -account of the ! objectionof ■ its board! of •managers to his views on Biblical-inspiration. On his retirement from professorial work Dr. !Loisy was- offered a- chaplaincy •at - a nunnery in; Neuilly-sur-Seine, which lie* accepted. During this period of comparative seclusion, lie redoubled . his ' intellectual activities; contributing.- essiys •;and .'articles !to - the leading ecclesiastical reviews' of •/ France. I.' About eighteen months ago the abbe was appointed lecturer .oh!, the comparative history .of re- ! ligions at the.-" Ecole - Pratique des llantes Etude 3;" 'iri Paris; and he still holds this influential position. .* Dr. Loisy's Conclusions, in regard-to Biblical criticism! are summed up by the writer in the Contemporary Review as follows : —- , ! " (1) That the Pentateuch, as we now*possess it,! cannot be the work of Moses. '' " (2) That the early chapters of Genesis—probably, the first elevendo not contain an exact'and real; history of the origins'of- t;he world or of man but rather the religious philosophy of j that history. At the same time these| chapters may contain traditional memories, of historic.d significance. , -. : ' '' (3) That the whole of the Old Testament literature! (and various parts of single books) does not'.possess''a uniform historical character, all ; the historical books—even, those of the Now Testamenthaving been edited 011 freer principles than those now in vogue in historical composition.; Hence, as a legitimate results of liberty in the-,composition a. corresponding ; liberty ! in the interpre- | tation. The form of an inspired document I being historical does not involve necessarily a. real!historical character; e.g., Our Lord's I Gospel .parables of the Good ; Samaritan, | Dives; and Lazarus, etc. ft is the nature : . and content which determine the character I of inspired records ; it is the character which | should guide some exegesis in its interprej tat ion/ ; 1 " (4) The history of. religious doctrine as I set forth in the Bible bespeaks .i vital development', in all its component , parts,' of the doctrine' itself; e.g., the Idea of God, of human destiny, of moral laws. ,!.!"; . "(5) The Sacred Books,, in all that pertains to natural science, present 110 conti'ast to the quasi-scientific conceptions which prevailed in the. ancient world; and these conceptions. moreover, have, left their traces not in Bible literature only. but likewise in Bible beliefs." ' " ' It was ;this "case of Abbe Loisv." more than any other ! single influence, maintains the writer in the Contemporary Review, that impelled the Pope to appoint a Biblical coinmission, whose personnel' represents. the most broad-minded thought in the Roman Catholic : Church. The writer concludes : — . " Be its future what -it may, the international Biblical commission is of memorable importance in the third longest pontificate of history. It-serves to mark a new epoch in the history of Roman Catholicism. it owes much to the loyalty and persevering labours of the Abbe Loisy, of whose denunciation to Rome it is the immediate sequel. Already these are omens ;of, a; coming agitation against the commission by adversaries; scarcely yet recovered from their astonishment. .But the Catholic savant finds his consolations. in history, as Boethius found them in divine philosophy. He can have no misgivings whatever as to ultimate results. The modern scientific movement within the Roman communion has come to stay and to increase; . and the mature decision of Leo XIII. cannot but be regarded as a providential check upon that blind theological fanaticism, within* even as without the Church, which, with Canute-like arrogance, elects rto sit by the shore with its face to the sen, cursing the inevitable."■incomingtide." ■ . -