Systems of Scriptural Interpretation-Allegorical School of Órigen-St. Augustine De Genesi-Literal School-Controversy about the Antipodes-Cosmas-Virgilius-Rise of the Copernican System-Condemnation of Foscarini and of Galileo-Influence of Theology on the Progress of Science-Opinion of Bacon-Astronomy displaces the Ancient Notion of Man's Position in the Universe-Philosophical Importance of As- trology-Refutation by Geology of the Doctrine of the Penal Nature of Death-In- creasing Sense of Law-Reasons why apparently Capricious Phenomena were es- pecially associated with Religious Ideas-On Lots-Irreligious Character attributed to Scientific Explanations-Difference between the Conception of the Divinity in a Scientific and Unscientific Age-Growth of Astronomy-Comets-Influence of Para- celsus, Bayle, and Halley-Rise of Scientific Academies-Ascendency of the Belief in Law-Harsher Features of Theology thereby corrected-The Morphological Theory of the Universe-Its Influence on History-Illegitimate Effects of Science-Influence on Biblical Interpretation-La Peyrère-Spinoza-Kant-Lessing-Moral Develop- ment accompanies the Intellectual Movement-Illustrations of its Nature--Moral Genius-Relations of Theology to Morals-Complete Separation in Antiquity-Origi- nality of the Moral Type of Christianity-Conceptions of the Divinity-Evanescence of Duties unconnected with our Moral Nature-History of Religious Terrorism- Patristic Conception of Hell-Origen and Gregory of Nyssa-Faint Notions of the Jews and Heathens on the Subject-Doctrine of Purgatory-Scotus Erigena--Ex- treme Terrorism of the Fourteenth Century-Destruction of Natural Religion by the Conception of Hell-Its Effect in habituating Men to contemplate the Sufferings of others with complacency-Illustration of this from Tertullian-and from the History of Persecution and from that of Torture-Abolition of Torture in France, Spain, Prussia, Italy, and Russia-Relations between the prevailing Sense of the Enormity of Sin and the Severity of the Penal Code-Decline of the Medieval Notions of Hell due partly to the Progress of Moral Philosophy, and partly to that of Psychology- Apparitions and the Belief in Hell the Corner-stones of the Psychology of the Fathers -Repudiation of Platonism-Two Schools of Materialism-Materialism of the Middle Ages-Impulse given to Psychology by Averroes-and by the Mystics of the Four- teenth Century-Descartes-Swinden, Whiston, Horbery-Change in the Ecclesiasti- cal Type of Character-Part taken by Theologians in ameliorating the English Penal Code-First Impulse due to Voltaire and Beccaria-Bentham-Elimination of the Persecution is the result, not of the personal Character of the Persecutors, but of the System their relative Importance-These Sentiments gradually converted into Dogmas, under the Names of Justification by Works and Justification by Faith-Dogmas unfaithful Expressions of Moral Sentiments-The Conception of Hereditary Guilt-Theories to account for it-The Progress of Democratic Habits destroys itIts dogmatic Expression the Doctrine that all Men are by Nature doomed to Damnation-Unanimity of the Fathers concerning the Non-salvability of unbaptised Infants-Divergence concerning their Fate--The Greek Fathers believed in a LimboThe Latin Fathers denied this-Augustine, Fulgentius-Origen associates the Doctrine with that of Pre-existence-Pseudo-baptisms of the Middle Ages-The Reformation produced conflicting Tendencies on the subject, diminishing the Sense of the Efficacy of Ceremonies, increasing that of imputed Guilt-The Lutherans and Calvinists held a Doctrine that was less superstitious but more revolting than that of Catholicism-Jonathan Edwards-Dogmatic Character of early Protestantism-Rationalism appeared with Socinus-Antecedents of Italian Rationalism-Socinus rejects Original Sin-as also does Zuinglius-Rationalistic Tendencies of this ReformerRapid Progress of his View of Baptism-The Scope of the Doctrine of the Condemnation of all Men extends to Adults-Sentiments of the Fathers on the Damnation of the Heathen-Great Use of this Doctrine of Exclusive Salvation in consolidating the Power of the Church-and in abbreviating the Paroxysms of the ReformationThe Protestants almost all accepted it-Pretest of Zuinglius-Opposition between Dogmatic and Natural Religion resulting from the Doctrine-Influence on Predestinarianism-Augustine-Luther De Servo Arbitrio-Calvin and Beza-Injurious Influence of the Doctrine of Exclusive Salvation on Morals-and on the Sense of Truth -Pious Frauds--Total Destruction in the Middle Ages of the Sense of Truth resulting from the Influence of Theology-The Classes who were most addicted to Falsehood proclaimed Credulity a Virtue-Doctrine of Probabilities of Pascal and CraigRevival of the Sense of Truth due to Secular Philosophers of the Seventeenth Century-Causes of the Influence of Bacon, Descartes, and Locke-The Decline of Theological Belief a necessary Antecedent of their Success Page 353 RATIONALISM IN EUROPE. CHAPTER I. ON THE DECLINING SENSE OF THE MIRACULOUS. MAGIC AND WITCHCRAFT. THERE is certainly no change in the history of the last 300 years more striking, or suggestive of more curious enquiries, than that which has taken place in the estimate of the miraculous. At present, nearly all educated men receive an account of a miracle taking place in their own day, with an absolute and even derisive incredulity which dispenses with all examination of the evidence. Although they may be entirely unable to give a satisfactory explanation of some phenomena that have taken place, they never on that account dream of ascribing them to supernatural agency, such an hypothesis being, as they believe, altogether beyond the range of reasonable discussion. Yet, a few centuries ago, there was no solution to which the mind of man turned more readily in every perplexity. A miraculous account was then universally accepted as perfectly credible, probable, and ordinary. There was scarcely a village or a church that had not, at some time, been the scene of supernatural interposi tion. The powers of light and the powers of darkness were regarded as visibly struggling for the mastery. Saintly miracles, supernatural cures, startling judgments, visions, prophecies, and prodigies of every order, attested the activity of the one, while witchcraft and magic, with all their attendant horrors, were the visible manifestations of the other. I propose in the present chapter to examine that vast department of miracles, which is comprised under the several names of witchcraft, magic, and sorcery. It is a subject which has, I think, scarcely obtained the position it deserves in the history of opinions, having been too generally treated in the spirit of the antiquarian, as if it belonged entirely to the past, and could have no voice or bearing upon the controversies of the present. Yet, for more than fifteen hundred years, it was universally believed that the Bible established, in the clearest manner, the reality of the crime, and that an amount of evidence, so varied and so ample as to preclude the very possibility of doubt, attested its continuance and its prevalence. The clergy denounced it with all the emphasis of authority. The legislators of almost every land enacted laws for its punishment. Acute judges, whose lives were spent in sifting evidence, investigated the question on countless occasions, and condemned the accused. Tens of thousands of victims perished by the most agonising and protracted torments, without exciting the faintest compassion; and, as they were for the most part extremely ignorant and extremely poor, sectarianism and avarice had but little influence on the subject.' Nations that were completely 1 The general truth of this statement can scarcely, I think, be qucstioned, though there are, undoubtedly, a few remarkable exceptions. Thus the Templars were accused of sorcery, when Philip the Beautiful wished to con |