Dogmatic theology starts with the supposition that the existence and authority of God and the immortality of the human soul—the ‘Praeambula fidei,’ as they are called—have been rationally proved, with certainty, in philosophy. On these facts, and on the ethical and speculative insufficiency of this ‘natural revelation,’ it grounds a presumption that a ‘positive’ revelation has come from behind the veil: from the presumption it proceeds to a demonstration of the historical fact.[1] This is the work of the first treatise or chapter. The second treatise argues for tradition as the organ of revelation (against the Anglicans); the third discusses the constitution of the Church and the prerogatives of the Pope; the fourth is a small but interesting treatise on faith, giving a much more rational explanation of it than an ordinary Catholic is conscious of.
After these fundamental treatises the ground is prepared for argument on supernatural motives: God, the Trinity, the Incarnation, and the Sacraments are discussed in voluminous treatises, and each question is solved by texts of Scripture and quotations from the early Fathers. Scripture and tradition are also confirmed, wherever it is possible, by an argument from reason. It is assumed throughout that every dogma must stand the negative test of reason,
- ↑ More will be said of this Rationalistic method of Catholic theology, so contrary to common repute, in the last chapter. The author has treated the question more fully in the Westminster Review, July 1896.
