Catholicism and Freedom of Thought

[drdeleto]

Just ran across this useful exploration of the common claim that faith in Catholic doctrine restricts free inquiry and free thought. It strikes me as an incomplete exploration, but not a bad start. Here's a brief summary (because sometimes the author's writing is obscure, I think) of his points:

1. The rise of Catholic Christianity corresponded with a flowering of culture and learning. The secularization of society corresponds to a decline of great cultural achievement. If you accept this analysis, the claim is historically circumspect.
   
   
2. There must be standards for inquiry, including when we stop and decide we have an answer. Those standards are matters of dogma, inherited from our community and tradition. So the question is not dogma or no dogma, but which dogma we prefer.
   
   
3. If certain conclusions about the world handed down by doctrine generally seem to conform to the world as we experience it, then it is reasonable to think that the Church's methods of inquiry are reliable in other areas. (I would add that the unified philosophy of Catholicism is a major factor in this reliability; other dogmatic systems may not have that.)
   
   
4. An ancient, consistent, immutable tradition frees an inquirer from the whims of individuals trying to control knowledge. An example of the latter are academics who construct elaborate "theory" about things to restrict non-professional accessibility to knowledge.
   
   
5. If freedom of inquiry is to be confined in some way (which it must; see Point #2), then conventions that are separate from a) outside individuals (like academics), b) the state, and c) personal whim are preferable. The Catholic tradition fits this bill, and very few other thought structures do.

I'm sure many of his premises in themselves will spark some debate.