The Rise of Science

One of the primary traits of the Renaissance period was the recognition of the importance of critical thinking. While the "Dark Ages" consisted of what could be considered mindless chanting and storyboard pictures for simpletons, the Renaissance introduced a new wave of philosophers and scientists. What is interesting is that while the men of the Renaissance period were great critical thinkers, and based their beliefs on findings of long study and experiments, they did so in an attempt to reconcile the physical world with God. While the Church dominated the Dark Ages with their approach of religious dogma being the final authority over its subjects, the Renaissance men attempted to understand and explain the mysteries of the world, with the idea of having a more educated reason to worship and praise their God.

One of these men was Marsilio Ficino, who was a student of Neo-Platonism. Ficinio wrote several volumes on what he considered Platonic Theology. This theory was an attempt to reconcile the philosophies and science of Plato, with the beliefs of the Catholic Church. Far from trying to undermine the Church, Ficino was attempting to create rational explanations for many of the Church's beliefs. One of Ficinio's most important theories was the belief of Plato's transmigration of the soul, and how that could be linked to the Church's position on the resurrection of the soul. In this way Ficino attempted to marry the concepts of both the Church and of the Sciences. In his opinion, this would lead men to greater faith, as they became more aware of their soul and its connection to the world around them.

Others followed Ficino's example, and many more studies of the physical world were conducted. However, many of those early scientists came into conflict with the Church, as their findings disagreed with the Church's stance on many matters. One of the most famous of these is Galileo. His studies of astronomy led to a trial by the Inquisition, as his findings about the Earth and its relative position in the Universe, contradicted the official beliefs of the Church. Galileo, however, was not attempting to undermine the Church. He, like Ficino, while attempting to understand the physical world better, still had great belief in the Christian God, and remained a faithful Catholic until his death.

What I find interesting is that while these early scientists paved the way for modern science with their methodical experiments and well rounded education, they did so in the attempt to better understand nature, and by doing so having a closer relationship to God. While today science uses the same methods of study, the prevailing belief among many is that God does not exist. Instead of drawing correlations between Christian beliefs and science, today scientists seem to be more determined than ever to discount the idea of any kind of supreme being that designed the universe.

While the great Renaissance period thinkers did much to advance our understanding of the physical world around us, the work they did appears to have had unintended consequences. While they wanted to explain God and Humanity in more precise terms than was being done by the Church, they succeeded in creating an almost entire new religion, that of Science, which dominates much of the world that we live in today.