Dogmatization

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The act or process of proclaiming a set of beliefs or principles as absolutely certain and beyond dispute
2. Making a doctrine or set of ideas accepted as incontrovertibly true without room for questioning or doubt
3. The practice of declaring opinions or rules with firm authority and without allowing disagreement

Etymology: In ancient Greek, "dogma" meant little more than an opinion or a view that seemed right to someone. It came from "dokein," "to seem" or "to think," and it carried no sense of being beyond question. A Greek "dogma" was something a person or a council had decided, and it could be argued with. Over time, the sense hardened. In Christian writing, a dogma came to mean a doctrine authoritatively laid down by the Church, and "dogmatizare" in Late Latin meant to establish such teachings. English took up the family of words from that Latin and Greek background, and "dogmatization" names the act of turning a belief into a fixed, unquestionable doctrine. The same process can apply to any belief, whether religious, political, or scientific, once it is declared beyond debate.

Synonyms: doctrinization, formalization

Antonyms: open-mindedness, flexibility