http://www.realclearreligion.com/index.phpreal clearengen@realclearreligion.comCopyright 20072007-03-20T13:12:20-07:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 Sun, 30 Sep 2007 15:48:42 -0700gen@realclearreligion.comNone2007-03-20T13:12:20-07:00http://www.realclearreligion.com/bad_dogma_good_dogma_files/6d3b08e63525cfbd79775ad856e0cf04-0.html#unique-entry-id-0http://www.realclearreligion.com/bad_dogma_good_dogma_files/6d3b08e63525cfbd79775ad856e0cf04-0.html#unique-entry-id-0Does dogma matter?

For so long many have attempted to push dogma aside as if it did not matter.  It has become an ugly word in our relativistic age. 
 
But our rejection of dogma has led us down a path where we can no longer recognize and condemn evil.  So many on the left are tongue-tied by muslims' desire to act on Islamic dogma. 

Dorothy Sayers, in her book Creed or Chaos, proclaims that we are in "a life and death struggle between Christian and pagan.  The Christians are, it must be confessed, not very good Christians, and the pagans do not officially proclaim themselves worshippers of Mohammed or even Odin, but  the stark fact remains Christendom and heathendom now stand face to face as they have not done in Europe since the days of Charlemagne." 

Although Sayers wrote this in 1940,  her words are as if written for our day. The "pagans" of that time are today's worshippers of Mohammed. 
 
She states that in polite discussion and times of peace we can persuade ourselves that underlying dogma is immaterial.
  
"But if man goes on to translate his point of view into action, then, to our horror and surprise, the foundations of society are violently shaken, the crust of morality that looked so solid splits apart, and we see that it is only a thin bridge over an abyss in which two dogmas, incompatible as fire and water, are seathinig explosively together."  

This is precisely what is happening between the West and Islam.  Tolerance and multiculturalism seemed to work while the Islamic dogma was static in books and minds.  But Islamic dogma put into action becomes jihad. 
 
"The thing that is in danger is the whole structure of society, and it is necessary to persuade thinking men and women of the vital and intimate connection between the structure of society and the theological doctrines of Christianity."

It is no accident that historically the Church has succeeded to civilize man.  It is no accident that Christian martyrs are victims of religious intolerance and not victimizers.  It is no accident that the founder of Christianity was a victim and not a victimizer.  It is no accident that the Church seeks the conversion of souls through one's free will and not by the sword.  It is not an accident, it is dogma.  

"That you cannot have Christian principles  without Christ is becoming increasingly clear, because their validity as principles depends on Christ's authority;  and as we have seen, the totalitarian states, having ceased to believe in Christ's authority, are logically quite justified in repudiating Christian principles."

Sayer's challenges her reader to embrace orthodox christian dogma.   A return to Christian dogma will remove the scales from our eyes that have confused our notions of right and wrong and good and evil.  
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