We explain what a dogma is and its different meanings in philosophy, religion and law. Furthermore, its relationship with a doctrine.
What is a dogma?
A dogma is a set of beliefs or propositions that must be accepted without question since they constitute a truth accepted without criticism or examination.
There are dogmas at the base of different discourses and institutions, which we call doctrines. Among them are religions, the legal system or even some paradigm systems on which sciences are based.
History and etymology of the word “dogma”
The word “dogma” comes from ancient Greek dogma (δόγμα), which translates to “philosophical opinion” or “principled opinion.” From the term comes the word “dogmatism”, which describes different philosophical currents, such as Cartesian or Christian Wolff.
The Roman reception of the term contrasted the “dogmatists” with the “skeptics” due to their consideration of the truth. For Aristotle or the Epicureans (who were all dogmatists), truth was something they could work with, while for skeptics, truth had to be questioned.
Since the Council of Trent in 1545, the religious authorities of Christianity began to use the word “dogma” to refer to all truth recognized by the Church as revealed by God. Currently Anyone who is governed by a series of undisputed, rigid and immovable premises is called dogmatic.
Dogma in religion
In general, religions are dogmatic in nature, since they offer a set of truths about the world and God that must be accepted as true.
These truths are the support of your belief systems. Some examples of religious dogmas are:
- Catholicism. Dogmas are truths transmitted by God to the apostles of Jesus Christ or through the sacred scriptures, which must be accepted as divine word. The existence of God as a sacred trinity, composed of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, is one of the most widespread Catholic dogmas.
- Protestantism. Catholic dogmas were rejected or replaced by dogmas such as those of Lutheranism, which distanced itself from Catholicism with respect to its interpretation of the Bible and regarding the infallibility of the Pope and his authority over all Christians.
- Judaism. Dogmas are those truths inscribed in the Old Testament, a book that for them is called the Torah. For them there is only one God, their own, who cannot be represented by symbols or idols, and who has chosen the people of Israel as the chosen people.
- Islam. The dogmas appear in the Aqidah, equivalent to the Catholic Creed. An example of this is that Muhammad is the last divine prophet but not the only one: Adam, Moses and Jesus were also prophets.
Dogma and doctrine
A dogma is a fundamental truth, a statement that cannot be proven but must be accepted, while A doctrine is the set of ideas, teachings or basic principles supported by an ideology, religion or legal system.
A doctrine is made up of a set of dogmas and norms that constitute a system in themselves.
Instead, Dogmas are specific and irrefutable truths, which are part of a doctrine. For example, Catholic doctrine is constituted by its particular religious dogmas, different from Jewish doctrine.
Dogma in law
Every system of law, that is, Every legal discipline is made up of a set of legal dogmas (or types), extracted from positive legal norms through abstraction procedures and logic, to form a system of legal values.
Some National Constitutions have an initial section called “dogmatic” which contains the basic fundamental laws that support the rest of the legal apparatus or legal doctrine.
An example of these legal dogmas are the general principles of law, a general set of normative statements that serve as the basis for laws, or that in any case collect their content in the abstract.
Generally, These dogmas are formulated as an axiom often in the Latin language (when they come from Roman law), as Nullum crime, nulla poena sine praevia lege (“There is no crime nor will there be punishment, if there is no law beforehand”) or Confessio est regina probatio (“Confession is the maximum of evidence”).
Continue with: Theocracy
References
- Defez, A., Muñoz, J., & Velarde, J. (2000). Dogma, dogmatism and skepticism. Compendium of Epistemology, 188-191.
- Ayala-Fuentes, M. (2008). Relativism and dogmatism: Causes and consequences. Person and bioethics, 12(2), 118-131.
- “Dogma” on Wikipedia.
- “Dogmas of the Catholic Church” on Wikipedia.
- “Legal dogmatics” on Wikipedia.
- “Dogma, dogmatism” in Filosofía.org.
- “Dogma” in the Language Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy.
