DRECHSEL
156
DRESDEN
question at issue is clear and emphatic. A few, how-
ever, held opinions somewhat at variance with the
traditional view, .\mong them the most noteworthy
is SjTiesius of CjTene (about 370-413), who is the au-
thor of a ver^' strange treatise on dreams. Starting
from the Platonic anthropological trichotomy, and
from certain psychological hj^potheses of Plato and
Plotinus, he attributed to the imagination a mani-
festly exaggerated role. Above all the arts of divina-
tion, the lawful use of which he did not seem to doubt,
he extolled dreaming as the simplest and surest mode
of prophesying. We know that he had accepted the
episcopacy only on the condition that he might con-
tinue to hold certain favourite philosophic ideas; and
it is reasonable to suppose that his theories on dreams
were included in the compact.
Medieval theologians added to the reasonings of their predecessors a more careful, and to some extent more scientific, study of the phenomena of sleep; but they found no reason to depart from the moral princi- ples contained in the writings of the Fathers. Suffice it here to quote St. Thomas Aquinas, who summarizes the best teaching of the Schoolmen. To the query: Is tlivination through dreams unlawful? — he replies: The whole question consists in determining the cause of dreams, and examining whether the same may be the cause of future events, or at least come to the actual knowledge of them. Dreams come sometimes from internal, and sometimes from external, causes. Two kinds of internal causes influence our dreams: one animal, inasmuch as such images remain in a sleeping man's fantasy as were dwelt upon by him while awake; the other found in the body: it is indeed a well- known fact that the actual disposition of the body causes a reaction on the fantasy. Now it is self-evi- dent that neither of these causes has any influence on individual future events. Our dreams may likewise be the effects of a twofold external cause. This is corporeal when exterior agencies, such as the atmos- pheric conditions or others, act on the imagination of the sleeper. Finally dreams may be caused by spirit- ual agents, such as God, directly, or indirectly through his angels, and the devil. It is easy to conclude thence what chances there are to know the future from dreams, and when divination will be lawful or unlawful (II-II, Q. 95, a. 6). Modern theologians, whilst profiting by the progress of psychological re- search, continue to admit the possibility of dreams supernatural in their origin, and consequentlj' the pos- sibility of dream-interpretation depending on super- natural communications. As to ordinary dreams, they readily grant that, because the imaginative facul- ties of man acquire sometimes a keenness which they do not possess otherwise, it is possible in such cases to conjecture with a certain degree of probability some future events; but in all other cases, by far the most common, it is useless and illogical to attempt any in- terpretation. .\s a matter of fact dreams are now — we speak of civihzed peoples — seldom heedetl; only very ignorant and superstitious persons ponder over the "dictionaries of dreams" and the "keys to the in- terpretation of dreams" once so much in favour. "As idle as a dream " has become a proverb expressive of the popular mind on the subject, and indicating suffi- ciently that there is little need nowadays to revive the laws and canons enacted in past ages against divina- tion through dreams.
Bolche-Leclf.rcq, Hisloire de la Divination (Paris. 1S79); Lenor-mant, La divi-nation et la science des presages chez les Chal- deens fParis. 1875); Lehmann", Abergtaube und Zauberci (Stutt- gart, 1.S98); ScH\sz in Kirchenlejc^s.v. Traumdeuterei: L.add, Doctrine of Sacred Scripture (New York, 1883); Reynolds, Natural History of Immortality (1891).
Chakles L. Souvay.
Drechsel ("also Drexelius or Drexel), Jere- MlAS, ascetic writer, b. at Augsburg, 15 .\ugust, 1581; entered the Society of Jesus 27 July, 1598; d. at
Munich, 19 April, 1638. He was professor of humani-
ties and rhetoric at Augsburg and Dillingen, and
for twenty-three years court preacher to the Elector
of Bavaria. His writings enjoyed an immense popu-
larity. Chief among them are his " Considerationes
de ^Eternitate" (Munich, 1620), of which there were
nine editions; in addition to these Leyser printed
3200 copies in Latin and 4200 in German. It was also
translated into English (Cambridge, 1632; Oxford,
1661; London, 1710 and 1S44) and into Polish,
French, and Italian. His "Zodiacus Christianus" or
"The Twelve Signs of Predestination" (Munich
1622), is another famous book, but there seems to
have been an edition anterior to this; in 1642 eight
editions had already been issued and it was translated
into several European languages. "The Guardian
Angel's Clock" was issued first at Mvmich, 1622, and
went through seven editions in twenty years; it was
also translated extensively. "Nicetas seu Trium-
phata conscientia" (Munich, 1624) was dedicated
to the sodalists of a dozen or more cities which he
names on the title page; "Trismegistus" was printed
in the same year and place; " Heliotropium " or " Con-
formity of the Human with the Divine AVill ' ' came out
in 1627; "Death the Messenger of Eternity" also
bears the date of 1627. His fancy for odd titles shows
itself in other books also. Thus there are the " GjTn-
nasium of Patience"; "Orbis Phaeton, hoc est de uni-
versis vitiis Linguae". The only work he wrote in
German was entitled "Tugendtspregel oder Klainodt-
schatz" (Munich, 1636). He has also a "Certamen
Poeticum"; "Rosk select issimarum \-irtutum";
"Rhetorica Ccelestis"; " Gazophylacium Christi".
There are in all thirty-foiu- such books. Other works
are: "Res bellicae expeditionis Maximiliani" (1620),
and some odes and sermons.
De Backer, Bibl. de la c. de J., 1646-55; Soumervogel, Bibl. de la c. de J., Ill, ISl sqq.
T. J. C.AJUPBELL.
Dresden, the capital of the Kingdom of Saxony and the residence of the royal family, is situated on both sides of the Elbe, which is here crossed by five bridges, and is sin-rounded by pleasing heights. Including the suburbs which now form a part of it, the city con- tained (1 December, 1905) 516,996 inhabitants, of whom 462,108 were Evangelical Lutherans, 2885 Evangelical Reformed, 44,079 Catholics, 3514 Jews, etc. Dresden is the residence of the vicar Apostolic for Saxony, and is the seat of the Catholic ecclesiastical consistory and of the vicarial court. In 1907 there were in Dresden 24 ecclesiastics, including the vicar Apostolic, who is a titular bishop, 7 rectors, 4 court preachers, and 1 military chaplain. Dresden has 6 Catholic parish churches, of which 2 are only chapels, 1 garrison church, which is also used for Protestant worship, the church attached to St. Joseph's Institute, built in 1746, and 6 chapels. The most important of these edifices is the court church, one of the finest Rococo structures of Germany. It was built by the Italian master-builder, Gaetano Chiaveri, in the years 1739-51, for Frederick Augustus II (1733-63). The chtu-ch has a finely painted ceiling, a high altar with altar-painting by Raphael Jlengs, and valuable silver ornamentation; since 1S23 the members of the royal family have been buried in the crypt. Among the other" churches should be mentioned the parish church of Dresden-Neustadt, built, 1852-53, in Romanesque style and containing finely painted windows, and the chapel in the royal palace.
The Catholic schools of Dresden consist of a pro- gymnasium with 4 ecclesiastical teachers and about 70 scholars, 1 middle-class school with nearly 300 schol- ars, and 5 district schools with 3300 pupils. For girls there are also St. Joseph's Institute, founded in 1746 by Maria Josepha, wife of King Augustus III, to give poor Catholic girls food, clothing, and instruction.
