Joyce's experiment was designed to test the 'RNA World' theory, which proposes that DNA-based life evolved from a stage whereby RNA acted as both an information-storage molecule, like DNA, and as a catalyst, like enzymes, and was also capable of self-replication.
This work is the biggest injection of support for the RNA world hypothesis in a long time,' says Donna Blackmond, Chair in Catalysis at Imperial College London, UK. 'It's a demonstration of principle that indefinite replication, coupled with selection via mutation, is quite plausible for RNA. The fact that it goes on indefinitely is a big thing for showing that this really could have been how life started,' she adds.

Could this be the end of religious dogma?

lifecyce, not by a long shot. Even if they manage to grow a genuine organism in the lab, the dogmatics will respond; the three more probable alternatives are denial, some sort of twisted logic to conform the science to scripture or marching on the laboratories like the angry, frightened villagers in "Frankenstein".

unfortunately, I'm afraid your right.