106 
HISTORY OF THE EARTH. 
ancient transactions and events are omitted in the history. In the 
first verse of Genesis the general proposition is enunciated, that 
tlie heavens and the earth are the workmanship of the Divinity. 
The sacred writer, passing over myriads of centuries, then comes 
down at once to the era, when at the close of some mighty revo¬ 
lution that had just occurred, when “ the earth was without form 
and void,” God was about to descend once more in creative en- 
ergy upon our planet, to reform its disorders, rebuild its desola¬ 
tions, and especially to give being to that nobler race of living 
creatures, for whose instructions this record was drawn up. The 
narrative is here resumed, and in giving an account of the trans¬ 
actions of six successive days, he appears to mingle with that par¬ 
ticular history, some notices of events of a far more ancient date; 
just as in the prophecies, reference is had in the first instance to 
occurences soon to take place, and afterwards to others of greater 
importance, in which, the prediction is to receive its full and per¬ 
fect accomplishment 
If any one then shall raise an outcry against geology, as hostile 
to the truths of Revelation, he will only make it evident that he 
shares the Ignorance and folly of the inquisitors who dictated to 
Galileo the celebrated confession, in which he renounces the doc¬ 
trine that the sun is immoveably fixed in the heavens and the 
earth in motion, as a pestilent heresy. 
“ I, Galileo Galilei , son of Vincent Galilei,by birth a Floren- 
“tine, aged seventy years,—declare ; that inasmuch as the Holy 
•‘office had in a regular and lawful manner enjoined upon me to 
“ abandon the false opinion that the sun is the centre of the system 
“ and immoveable, and that the earth is not the centre of the unl- 
“ verse, and that it is in motion, and inasmuch as I ought not 
“ afterwards to have either held, defended, or taught, this doctrine, 
“in any manner whatever,in conversation or by writing, and not- 
“ withstanding, after it had been declared tome that the aforesaid 
“doctrine is contrary to the Holy Scriptures, I have written and 
“caused to be printed, a book, wherein I treat of that condemn- 
“ ed doctrine, and bring arguments of great weiglit in favour of it, 
“ without giving any refutation of them, I have therefore been 
“ adjudged to be strongly suspected of hercs}', and as having be- 
“lieved that the sun is in the centre of the universe and motion- 
“ less, and that the earth is not the centre, and that it moves— 
“ therefore, wishing to remove fiom the minds of ) our Eminen- 
“ ces, and of every orthodox Cliristain, this violent suspicion, 
“with such good reason entertained against me, with a sincere 
“heart, and faith unfeigned, I abjure, condemn, and detest, the 
“above mentioned errors and heresies, and I swear, that in fu- 
“ ture I vvill not say or affirm anything, either in conversation or 
“ by writing, which shall afford ground for such suspicions 
“ against me.” 
Such was the humiliating abjuration exacted of Galileo, of an 
opinion now regarded by the w'hole civilized world, not only as 
