2
T H E TORCH OF REASON, S IL V E R T O N , O REGON , AUGUST 9, E. M. 300 (1900.)
ulations of the Church with bitter
mockery, and had spoken a lto ­
gether too frankly of her dogma«.
Against
the au thor of Candle-
o
maker«, who «coiled at the m um ­
mery of relics and the hypocrisy of
ecclesiastics, who com pared C hrist
to a C entaur, who had attacked
u ith a ll b is _>tre; iiu t t i t he fou n d ation
p illar of the C hurch, the holy
A ristotle, «he m ight have been in a
necessarily defensive a ttitu d e th a t
does not excuse her proceeding, but
shows it in a m ilder light. In
G alileo’s case, on the contrary, it
concerned a scholar, who w ithout
m aking an attack on the teaching
of the C hurch, w ithout deviating
in any way from the objects of hi«
physical and astronom ical studies,
merely wished to lay before the
world the results of hi« investiga­
tions.
Shortly after (1608) Galileo
learned th a t a Dutch optician,
Jo h an n Lippershey in M iddleburg,
had, by the com bination of several
lenses, produced an in stru m en t
with which the heavenly bodies
could be seen more distinctly. This
led him to make for him self a tele­
scope (1609) in order to extend the
field of vision, and to gain a deeper
insight into the construction of the
universe, as well as into the pe­
cu liarities of the heavenly bodies,
th an had thus far been possible to
Copernicus, Tycho B rahe and hi«
friend Kepler. The hoped-for re­
su lt was a tta in e d ; he im m ediately
discovered the satellite« of Ju p iter,
described in his Sidereus N uncius
(1610), the moon-like phases of
Venus and M ercury predicted by
Copernicus, and finally the su n ­
spots (October, 1610), which proved
the revolution of the «un on it«
axis, already taught by Copernicus.
These discoveries were so m any
confirm ations of the Copernican
system; the planets were clearly
shown to be dark bodies, which,
like the moon and earth, received
their light from the sun; and the
satellites of J u p ite r were brought
to view a« a m in iatu re model of
the solar system .
I t was not long, however, before
the discoveries effected through
G alileo’« telescope were branded as
mere h allucinations and delusions.
Then did the m aster pour forth his
troubles to Kepler, his friend to the
north of the Alps: “ You are the
first and alm ost the only one who,
w ithout having seen for himself,
gives full credence to my sta te ­
m ents. W hat will you say of the
first teacher« of P ad u a, who, when
I m ade them the offer, would
neither look at the planet« or the
moon through the telescope, nor
even exam ine the latter? Men of
this class regard philosophy as a
book like the Aeneid or the O dys­
sey, and believe th a t tru th is not
to be sought either in the world or
in n atu re, but only in a com parison
of texts. How you would have
laughed, when at Pisa the first
teacher in the university there en- patron, the A rchduke Leopold of the lo th of Septem ber, 1632. He
deavored, in the piesence of the A ustria, with a note which con- was not for a moment in doubt
grand duke, to draw the new h ea v -jta in e d the following w o rd s: “ Be- th a t he was now delivered over to
en ly bodies from the sky with cause I am now aw are th at it is fit- the mercy of the Jesuits, and that
logical dem onstrations, as though tin g to believe and to obey the de- in spite of all hi« intercession he
with magical conjurations!”
cisinns of the superior«; they being m ust expect the worst. He wrote:
Soon after, a Dominican m onk, directed hv a higher intelligence to “ I hear from a reliable source th at
Caccini of Florence, in a sermon which my m ind is too base to soar the .Jesuit fathers have inspired
on a text which seemed m ade for alone, I regard th is work, which I those in a u th o rity with the con-
b o b r o r -imne t » ' ■
t o you, so far as i t
the occasion, Ï e men oi u au iee ,
the e two-fold more abom inable and more harm -
why stand ye g azin g u p in to the assum ption of th
heaven?” thundered against the movement of the earth , even though ful to the Church th an the writings
m an who dared attack the infalli­ it contains one of the argum ents of L u th er and Calvin. . . .’
bility of the orthodox in terp re ta­ which I brought forw ard in coi- Concern for his future, aud the
tion of the Bible as the result of roboration of th a t view, merely as journey, in those days so tiresome,
mere star-gazing. He was joined a poem or ra th e r as a dream ; as had so weakened him th a t the am ­
by F ath er L orini, his friend and a such ycur highness may receive it. bassador feared for his life. For
member of the same order, who But even poets a t tim es place a we m ust consider th a t the prospect
added a denunciation of the e r­ value on one or an o th er of their of torture and the stake never once
roneous teachings of the Florentine fancies, so likewise do I place some left the sick old m an in the prison
of the lnq u isitio u . The burning of
physicist, addressing it to the Holy value on this, my d ream .”
N aturally such utterances a l­ G iordano B runo (1600) arid Lucilio
Office in Rome. It was well re­
ceived, and im m ediately prelim ­ ways reached the ears of the pious V anini [1619] were still fresh in
in ary and secret proceedings were fathers, and roused them to re­ memory, and Galileo had no desire
instituted against the offender. newed fury. At this tim e Kepler, to be a hero of the faith. He had
W ith th a t began the evar m em or­ in Prague, although in the service no longing for the m a rty r’s crown,
of his apostolic m ajesty, also ac­ nor was he a philosopher, whom it
able trial of Galileo.
Galileo, who at the outset knew knowledged him self as favoring the m ight disgrace to give up his con­
nothing of these proceedings secretly Copernican theory, and in the same victions; he was sim ply a n a tu ra l­
begun against him , stirred up his year (1618) in which G alileo’s work ist, whose observations were not a t­
adversaries still more hy c o n tin u ­ began to stir up discussions, be tacked, but who was only forbidden
ing to rely on his ju st claim s in an m ade the im m ortal discovery o f to give them a precise in te rp re ta ­
open letter to the Dowager G rand the th ird law governing the move­ tion. He rem ained tw enty-three
Duchess. “ F irst tak e care,” he m ents of the planets. In the same days im prisoned in the palace of
writes, “ to refute the argum ents o f year, also, occurred the first rising the in q u isitio n , and was brought
Copernicus and his followers, and of the P ro testan ts in Prague, which before his judges four times. Ou
leave the concern of condem ning ushered in the T h irty Y ears’ War. the 16th of Ju n e, 1633, a decree
them as heretical or erroneous to Therefore the C hurch, at th a t tim e was issued by the Holy Office,
those to whom it belongs; but do under the direction of the Jesuits, which arranged the crim inal pro­
not hope front the discreet as well believed th a t il ought to make a ceedings and threaten ed Galileo
as intelligent fathers of the C hurch, ruthless attem p t to win back the with the rack in case he would not
and from their absolute wisdom territory lost through the R eform a­ confess the whole tru th . On the
which cannot err, th a t rash de­ tion, even though the peace and 21«t of Ju n e the last trial ex am in ­
cision to which you, urged on by prosperity of the whole of C entral ation took place, of which it is said
personal interests and passions, Europe should be destroyed there­ in the ex tan t verdict pronounced
would allow yourself to be hurried. by. There was felt only too well on the following d a y : “ As it seemed
For it is indeed beyond doubt th at the close relationship between the to us, however, th a t the whole
in regard to these or other sim ilar new astronom ical discoveries and tru th was not told by you in regard
assertions which are not directly the opposition of the P ro testan t to your purpose, we cousidered it
de fide, His H oliness the Pope has spirit to the a u th o rity of the necessary to have recourse to the
alw ays the absolute power to pro­ C hurch. It is probable th a t now, exam en rigorosum against you,
nounce them good or to condemn for the first tim e, was recognized where you answered as a C atholic.”
The form ula of ab juratio n , which
them , but it is not in the power of d istin ctly all th a t would result
any hum an being to cause them to from the belief th a t the earth could probably followed im m ediately after
be true or false or other th an they no longer, according to the views of the announcem ent of the sentence,
are de facto from th eir n a tu re .” A ristotle, be looked upon as the contains, after the acknow ledgm ent
These words, as bold as they were center of the universe, around of the justice of the sentence passed
true, were certainly not calculated which everything should tu rn and upon him , the solemn prom ise
to m ake his opponents more in ­ all other stars revolve, even as the wrung from him in face of torture:
thoughts and destiny of m ankind “ .
. . w ith an upright heart
dulgent.
On the 2 4 th
of F ebruary, 1616, should circle about the im m ovable and unfeigned sincerity I abjure,
the commission convened
by the rock of the C hurch at Rome, execrate and express my abhor-
Holv Office unanim ously arrived
a t W hen the discovery of A m erica reuce of the above-m entioned errors
the following decision: T h a t the had dem onstrated the untenable- and heresies [nam ely, th a t the sun,
declaration th a t the «un forms the ness of the old opposition to m ath- and not the earth , is the motionless
center of the universe, and is w ith­ em atics and the teaching of the center of the universe], and swear
out local m ovem ent in space, is antipodes, there was some m easure th a t in future I will never by word
“ foolish and absurd from a philo­ of u n certain ty felt as to what was or w riting assert or m aintain any-
sophical stan d p o in t,” and is “ her- to be done about the new teachings thing w hatever on account of
eticaj from a religious standpoint, and discoveries; but now all at which I m ight incur sim ilar sus-
inasm uch as it contradicts the once was seen th e aby3s which was picion.”
tenets of H oly S cripture in m any opening in place of the old, sure
T h at he at the same tim e added
places, both according to the plain geocentric foundation for school to him self, “ It moves just the
m eaning of the words and accord- and church.
sam e," » and rem ained faithful to
ing to the universal interpretation
T he Pope, from a warm adm irer th is belief to the end of his life
of the holy fathers and learned of Galileo, became a secret enemy, m ay, as has already been m en­
theologians.”
and gave the Jesu its entire liberty tioned, he safely assumed.
He had a t th a t tim e w ritten a of action in the m atter. G alileo’s
He was released two days later
work on th e phenomenon of the tria l before the Inquisition was from prison and assigned as resi­
tide and sent it (1618) to his i thereupon begun in great haste on dence, under constant ecclesiastical