488 SISTER M. OLIVIA 



paired but is enhanced by a vigorous expansion of its root 

 system. 



If development of the intellectual life is the essential objec- 

 tive of the school, then the acquisition of the habit of science 

 becomes the epitome of this growth. Man is most human when 

 he is the reasoning animal; and science taken in a general sense, 

 including theology, social science, mathematics and natural 

 science, is that habit which allows him to operate in this unique 

 human way, that is, reasoning from first principles. The most 

 liberalizing power we possess is this intrinsic habit of taking 

 principles gleaned by direct experience with the physical world 

 and forging ahead to a certitude that is ours, not the book's or 

 some good authority. 



Moreover, in view of the philosophical dictum, " All knowl- 

 edge comes through the senses," it becomes obvious that all 

 sciences find their roots in the sensible world and, consequently, 

 in natural science. The perennial philosophy, therefore, assigns 

 to natural science a unique role among the sciences. It is the 

 source, or origin of human knowledge and intellectual prin- 

 ciples. Since its proper object is the sensible world, it is the 

 fountain head for the other sciences. Since its development 

 requires a rigid application of the liberal arts, it becomes the 

 battlefield for logic and mathematics and the proving ground 

 for the arts of communication. From this point of view, natural 

 science becomes the very foundation of a liberal education, and, 

 conversely, a liberal or humanistic education becomes a neces- 

 sity for a comprehensive scientific approach. 



Is This Science.'* 



Objections may be raised that natural science so conceived 

 is really the philosophy of nature and not the positive sciences 

 of modern civilization. There is, however, a growing group of 

 Thomists who hold that there is but one study of nature, 

 whether it be called the science of nature or the philosophy 

 of nature. A comprehensive analysis of the writings of St. 

 Thomas concerning the division of the sciences and an evalu- 



