Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1877-03-21
FOf the Courier
The Victories of Orthodoxy.


lox Bcnevolcnce,' one prominent
reason for belief in the gospel-its
victories and its great work--was
omitted for want of space. In this
article will be seen some of its "vic-
torics," in another its great work will
be spoken of.
In the short space of a newspaper
article, one is under many disadvant-
ages as against the lengthy discussion
in the pulpit, elaborated and finished
up with illustrations and eloquently
pictured for the mind ; with this adj
vantage, however, in favor Of the
article where the sermon
is heard by hundreds, the article is
read by thousands.
In order to be a victory there must
be a struggle. The first great battle
of which speak, was that for the
rotundity of the earth.
The ancients bequeathed to the men
of the early part Of the Christian era
a germ idea, vague though it was, of
the globular form of the earth. In
the sixth century, after the barbarian
storm had broken down the Roman
power, and ushered in modern times,
q few men ventured to express this
thought. The highest authorities of
orthodoxy of the time at once became
alarmed. The idea was contrary to
the plain teachings of scripture, and
could not be permitted. And this
thought also gave birth to the idea of
the antipodes-the existence of men
on the opposite side of the earth. Be-
levers in the gospel denounced the
idea, and if denunciations were not
sufficient, force was employed.
One Cosmas, a high church digni-
tary, wrought out and finished up a
scriptural plan of geography, and he
and others so braced and fortified it
with texts from the bible that it lived
two hundred years unmoved. 1t was
as follows: The earth was fiat, in the
shape of rectangle, about twice as
long as wide, surrounded by four
great seas at the outer shores of these
seas were great walls, to which the
vault of heaven was cemented. The
sun, moon and stars were pushed
across the vault by angels. In this
were situated also the "windows of
heaven" and rain was portioned out
to mortals by means of these win
dows. There was division of opin-
ion in regard to where the sun went
at sunset, some coiltcnding that il
was dropped into a great pit, and
others that it was taken behind q
great mountain at the north.
This was victory" aud for two
hundred years the fruit Of it was to
stifle free thought by teaching false.
hoods in science.
Bishop Virgilius, of Salzburg, de.
clarcd his belief in the globular shape
of the earth. One Boniface. power.
full defender of the faith, called upon
Pope Zachary for aid to suppress
such damnable doctrine, and Vir.
gilius is heard of no more. Here
was another victory" and physica
science was smothered for six hun
dred years; men of real learning
dared not face prison and torture BY
expressing publicly, opinions dis
agreeing with the scriptural geogra
ply of Cosmas.
i A learned father named Tostatus
invented new weapon against tn,
heresies of science, which was tn,
following syllogism: "The Apostle
were commanded to 60 into all tn
world and preach the gospel to ever,
} creature. They did not go to an,
such part of the world as the anti
podes-they did not preach to an,
creatures there; therefore no anti
podes exist"
Columbus next came upon tn
worlds stage. We know his battle
: with the superstition and ignoranc
of the time how the church authori
} ties met him with text after text a
] Salamanca. But the voyage of Ma
r gellan turned these theological "vic
tories" into defeat, and science tri
} umphed. Magellan knew the cart
/ was round, because he had seen til
other side-he had seen the men O
} the antipodes.
, The next general struggle was i
/ regard to the position Of the cart
among the heavenly bodies. Unit
about the fifteenth or sixteenth cen
fury the geocentric theory was almos
!; universally believed that is, that til
earth was the immovable center O
, the universe, and the sun and planet
, revolved around it. In the latter pal
of the sixteenth century Nichola
Kopernik, Polander, after thirt
years of fear and trembling, at las
published his book, advocating th
; COpernican theory. 1t reached hir
on his death-bed, or torture and
violent death would undoubtedl
have ended his life. Ills book wa
! CONDEMNED by the church-Frotcstan
as well as Catholic. Calico. after
, forwards advocated the Copernica
theory, and the struggles of this oil
man of science against the ignoran
powers are pretty well known. 1t
known how he was subjected to in
dignity and imprisonment, and no,
, he was at last forced to pronounc
publicly this recantation 81, Galilct
being in my 10th year, being a pris
oner and on my knees, and befor
your Eminence, having before m
: eyes the Holy Gospel, which touc
: with my hands, abjure, curse and d.
test the error and heresy of the move
ment of the EARTH"
What a "vict0ry was this TIL
Christian world almost UNIVERSAL
condemned his idea of the movemen
of the earth; Luther and MelanchtOl
as well as the Catholic Church oppos
; ed by every means in their power til
propagation of such damnable dot
trines.
But slowly have lovers of scicnc
: gathered new strength after bcin
time and again beaten back by til
: powers of ignorance and prejudic
: until now this victory is lost by tn
Church.
Want of space forbids that shout
more than mention few other 'vit
, tories Roger Bacon, for his II
searches and experiments in chemi,
try, was said to be in "league wit
the DEVIL" was imprisoned for foul
teen years, and at the age of eight,
almost in despair, he exclaimed :
"Would that had not given mysel
so much trouble for the love G
science ~ By crushing Roger Baco
instead of encouraging him, the big
otry of the Church deprived th
world of untold blessings, not onl
in his time, but in ours, and all futur
, time.
I Antonio de Dominis investigate
the phenomena Of light, and dies
, the clutches of the Inquisition.
i Andreas Versalius, the founder {
the modern science of Anatomy, wa
prosecuted and driven from his couu
, try.
u, Boyer's incubation and Jenncr
vaccination for small pox, were bot
denounced by orthodoxy. Frenc
, and English theologians condemne
, them from the pulpit.
, These are but few of the men VIII
have battled for science. Hundred
of others have risen and gone dow
, in the fight.
J Geology has had to fight its wa
up to recognition as scienc
through the most fearful or
. position, continuing step by ste
against the scriptural theory of ere
, alton.
, have said nothing of the scienc
of human government; how il
growth was hindered and delayed 70
, hundreds of wears, by the doctrine G