true nature. Philosophy should take its independent stand upon 

 the content of all empirical disciplines and thus attempt to formu- 

 late its theory of the universe. But this the thought of the Mediae- 

 val Ages failed to comprehend. 



The history of Mediaeval philosophy may be divided into two 

 periods. Roughly speaking, the year 1200 may be taken as the 

 dividing date. At the threshold of the first period stands Augus- 

 tine, 354-430, the Des Cartes of his day, whose theological views 

 became a dominant factor in the theology of the Christian church 

 for many centuries. Augustine held that true philosophy was not 

 to be despised, for Reason is God's first-born Son. Revelation and 

 Reason are at one in their conclusions; belief is, chronologically, 

 prior to knowledge however, though knowledge is the ultimate goal. 

 It was this last tenet in the teaching of Augustine, expressed in the 

 phrase, credo ut intelligam, which had so powerful an effect when, 

 after the dissolution of the Roman Empire, Scholasticism arose, the 

 avowed purpose of which was to defend and develop the doctrine 

 of the Church. The Church had now come to be considered as the 

 sole depository of the truth. Outside her there is neither salvation 

 nor science. The dogmas, as formulated, became fixed and per- 

 manent. They are truth. It is no longer necessary to search for 

 knowledge. Under such conditions, there is only one thing for 

 philosophy to do. It cannot perform its proper function, and when 

 Scotus Erigena and Anselm commenced their work, they conceived 

 their task to be that of defending by the aid of philosophy the 

 doctrines of the Church. Like Augustine, Anselm held that one 

 rrust first believe in order to understand. But he went even further 

 than Augustine in his superstitious reverence for the dogmas of the 

 Church. No Christian cught ever to doubt the beliefs and tradi- 

 tions of the Holy Catholic Church. He must strive as humbly as 

 possible to understand her teachings, if he succeed, let him thank 

 God; if he fail, all the more reason for humility and reverence for the 

 wonderful body of Truth vouchsafed to the Church. 



It is not difficult to see that such an attitude of mind is directly 

 opposed to the truly scientific, which commences its investigations 

 without presupposition, which sees in every fact of life something 

 to be reckoned with, and which, when in that form of science 

 called philosophy, endeavours to explain all the facts by compre- 



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