Calvinism a life-system - pagina 174

CALVINISM AND SCIENCE.

170

and well, the Church in those days had no idea of the immense task, reserved for science, just awaking from mediaeval

its

nor

slumber,

of the "struggle for

which was to be the indispensable rule of

The Church was

task.

its

unable to

in

life,"

the execution

hail, in

the

dawn

of science,

a rosy morn, heralding to the horizon the

rising of a

new

sun, but

saw

in its glittering rather the

smouldering sparks, which threatened to set the world

on

fire

and therefore she considered herself justified and

;

duty bound to quench

in

this fire

and to extinguish these

flames wherever an outbreak occurred.

when we

place ourselves back in those times,

stand, but not without firmly principle, in

for

v6ry

its

favouring of

it.

elsewhere.

such

full

all

if

the world

had persisted

by

its

discovery of the sphere of

to

all

who were caught

by

lead

storm

Calvinism, as always happens in

by no means immediately understand bearing of its opposition, for it began by did

and yet the and

offering

in a.

leaving the duty to extirpate error, untouched in code,

in

first

this pernicious position with effectual

It is true,

cases,

the

underlying

grace, and, before long, practically,

harbour

safe

c^ under-

its

Glory, therefore, to Calvinism, which

theoretically

common

we

would have smothered nascent science

cradle,

abandoned

all

results;

a

it

condemning

This position,

in

invincible idea,

its

own

which was bound to

the course of time has led to freedom of

word found its absolute expression in the principle, that the Church has to retire to the domain oi partictilar the

grace,

and this

and that exempted from her

free

domain of

'•''common

rule lies the wide

grace".

The

result of

was that the penalties of criminal law were gradually

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