THE DOGMA OF EVOLUTION 



til they were openly promulgated by Galileo. His 

 trial for heresy, in 1633, first proved how essential to 

 the Aristotelian philosophy of the day and to the dog- 

 mas of the Church was the belief that the earth is the 

 immovable centre of the universe. This trial was the 

 dramatic beginning of the persistent conflict between 

 the scientific attitude which relies on observation and 

 reason as the criteria of truth and the opposing con- 

 viction which holds that truth is revealed by the in- 

 spiration of faith. 



The leaders of scientific thought, in the sixteenth 

 century, believed that the question involved an or- 

 ganized revolution of method. If the earth, and all it 

 contained, were merely a part of a universe subject 

 solely to mechanical laws and forces, then a death- 

 blow had been given to the dogma of the Church, 

 founded on the inspiration of the Scriptures and on 

 the interpretation of Aristotelian philosophy, that 

 the world was fashioned for man by a Creator and 

 Ruler of the universe who could, and frequently did, 

 supersede natural law. 



While the verdict of heresy apparently crushed the 

 new movement, it actually focused attention on the 

 deeper aspects of the controversy and created a wider 

 acceptance of Galileo's ideas than they had pre- 

 viously enjoyed. Galileo warns his adversaries not to 

 oppose the interpretation of his observations and ex- 

 periments with the authority of Aristotle. Descartes, 

 on learning the decision of the trial, laid aside the 



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