Many investigations of nature can and must be conducted according to
the teleological principle, without our having cause to inquire into
the ground of the possibility of purposive working with which we meet
in various products of nature. But if we wish to have a concept of this
we have absolutely no further insight into it than the maxim of the
reflective Judgement affords: viz. if only a single organic product of
nature were given to us, by the constitution of our cognitive faculty
we could think no other ground for it than that of a cause of nature
itself (whether the whole of nature or only this bit of it) which
contains the causality for it through Understanding. This principle of
judging, though it does not bring us any further in the explanation of
natural things and their origin, yet discloses to us an outlook over
nature, by which perhaps we may be able to determine more closely the
concept, otherwise so unfruitful, of an Original Being.
Now I say that Physico-theology, however far it may be pursued, can
disclose to us nothing of a _final purpose_ of creation; for it does
not even extend to the question as to this. It can, it is true, justify
the concept of an intelligent World Cause, as a subjective concept
(only available for the constitution of our cognitive faculty) of
the possibility of things that we can make intelligible to ourselves
according to purposes; but it cannot determine this concept further,
either in a theoretical or a practical point of view. Its endeavour
does not come up to its design of being the basis of a Theology, but
it always remains only a physical Teleology; because the purposive
reference therein is and must be always considered only as conditioned
in nature, and it consequently cannot inquire into the purpose for
which nature itself exists (for which the ground must be sought outside
nature),--notwithstanding that it is upon the determinate Idea of this
that the determinate concept of that Supreme Intelligent World Cause,
and the consequent possibility of a Theology, depend.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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