nygreenguy wrote:Miles wrote:Really! As you must be aware words often carry more than one meaning. "Dogma" is just one such word.
dogma Pronunciation [dawg-muh, dog-]
–noun, plural -mas, -mata
1. a system of principles or tenets, as of a church.
2. a specific tenet or doctrine authoritatively laid down, as by a church: the dogma of the Assumption.
3. prescribed doctrine: political dogma.
4. a settled or established opinion, belief, or principle.
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dog·ma (dôgm, dg-)
NOUN:
pl. dog·mas or dog·ma·ta
A doctrine or a corpus of doctrines relating to matters such as morality and faith, set forth in an authoritative manner by a church.
An authoritative principle, belief, or statement of ideas or opinion, especially one considered to be absolutely true. See Synonyms at doctrine.
A principle or belief or a group of them: "The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present" (Abraham Lincoln).
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Main Entry:
dog·ma
Pronunciation: \ˈdȯg-mə, ˈdäg-\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural dogmas also dog·ma·ta \-mə-tə\
Etymology: Latin dogmat-, dogma, from Greek, from dokein to seem — more at decent
Date: 1638
1 a : something held as an established opinion; especially : a definite authoritative tenet b : a code of such tenets <pedagogical dogma> c : a point of view or tenet put forth as authoritative without adequate grounds
2 : a doctrine or body of doctrines concerning faith or morals formally stated and authoritatively proclaimed by a church
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And probably the most enlightening definition:
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Dogma
Dog"ma , n.; pl. E. Dogmas (#), L. Dogmata (#). [L. dogma, Gr. , pl. , fr. to think, seem, appear; akin to L. decet it is becoming. Cf. Decent.]
1. That which is held as an opinion; a tenet; a doctrine.
2. A formally stated and authoritatively settled doctrine; a definite, established, and authoritative tenet.
3. A doctrinal notion asserted without regard to evidence or truth; an arbitrary dictum.
Syn. -- tenet; opinion; proposition; doctrine. -- Dogma, Tenet. A tenet is that which is maintained as true with great firmness; as, the tenets of our holy religion. A dogma is that which is laid down with authority as indubitably true, especially a religious doctrine; as, the dogmas of the church. A tenet rests on its own intrinsic merits or demerits; a dogma rests on authority regarded as competent to decide and determine.
Dogma has in our language acquired, to some extent, a repulsive sense, from its carrying with it the idea of undue authority or assumption. this is more fully the case with its derivatives dogmatical and dogmatism.
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Your definitions explicitly state opinion and belief. Science is definitely not any of these. Science is knowledge based, not belief. And opinion is a personal statement of belief. Principal sort of fits, but no one would call the law of thermodynamics a dogmatic belief. So, I would say your use of the definitions is in error.
And I would say, and will, you're very mistaken. First of all take a look at the definitions from the four source I presented. Stripped to their barest form they look like this .
Definitions of
Dogma
I've underline most of the defining adjectives to hopefully impress on you the serious nature of such opinions, beliefs, principles, tenets, etc..
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1st source
A
settled opinion,
A
settled belief
A
settled principle.
An
established opinion,
An
established belief
An
established principle.
2nd source
An
authoritative principle,
An
authoritative belief,
A statement of ideas, especially one
considered to be absolutely true.
A statement of opinion, especially one
considered to be absolutely true.
3rd source
Something held as an
established opinion; especially : a definite
authoritative tenet (and yes, there are such things as scientific tenets)
4th source
That which is held as an opinion; a tenet; a doctrine. (and yes, there such things as scientific and doctrines and opinions.)
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All of the forms of convictions listed above are found in science and used as important tools to advance our knowledge
And speaking of scientific opinions, which seem to rankle your sense of scientific propriety, take a look at the following.
[center]
Scientific opinion on climate change[/center]
"This article documents
current scientific opinion on climate change as given by synthesis reports, scientific bodies of national or international standing, and surveys of
opinion among climate scientists. It does not document the views of individual scientists, individual universities, or laboratories, nor self-selected lists of individuals such as petitions.
National and international science academies and scientific societies have assessed
the current scientific opinion, in particular on recent global warming. These assessments have largely followed or endorsed the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) position of January 2001 that states:
An increasing body of observations gives a collective picture of a warming world and other changes in the climate system... There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities.[1]
Since 2007, no scientific body of national or international standing has maintained a dissenting opinion. A few organisations hold non-committal positions.
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An introductory book on the philosophy of science might help your understanding of the its theory and processes.
