登陆注册
14812400000001

第1章

PREFACE

The fifteenth century may be regarded as a period of transition from the ideals of the Middle Ages to those of modern times. The world was fast becoming more secular in its tendencies, and, as a necessary result, theories and principles that had met till then with almost universal acceptance in literature, in art, in education, and in government, were challenged by many as untenable.

Scholasticism, which had monopolised the attention of both schools and scholars since the days of St. Anselm and Abelard, was called upon to defend its claims against the advocates of classical culture; the theocratico-imperial conception of Christian society as expounded by the canonists and lawyers of an earlier period was forced into the background by the appearance of nationalism and individualism, which by this time had become factors to be reckoned with by the ecclesiastical and civil rulers; the Feudal System, which had received a mortal blow by the intermingling of the classes and the masses in the era of the Crusades, was threatened, from above, by the movement towards centralisation and absolutism, and from below, by the growing discontent of the peasantry and artisans, who had begun to realise, but as yet only in a vague way, their own strength. In every department the battle for supremacy was being waged between the old and the new, and the printing-press was at hand to enable the patrons of both to mould the thoughts and opinions of the Christian world.

It was, therefore, an age of unrest and of great intellectual activity, and at all such times the claims of the Church as the guardian and expounder of Divine Revelation are sure to be questioned.

Not that the Church has need to fear inquiry, or that the claims of faith and reason are incompatible, but because some daring spirits are always to be reckoned with, who, by mistaking hypotheses for facts, succeed in convincing themselves and their followers that those in authority are unprogressive, and as such, to be despised.

This was particularly true of some of the Humanists. At first sight, indeed, it is difficult to understand why the revival of classical learning should lead to the danger of the rejection of Christian Revelation, seeing that the appreciation of the great literary products of Greece and Rome, and that, even in the days of the Renaissance, the Popes and the bishops were reckoned amongst the most generous patrons of the classical movement. Yet the violence of extreme partisans on both sides rendered a conflict almost unavoidable.

On the one hand, many of the classical enthusiasts, not content with winning for their favourite studies a most important place on the programmes of the schools, were determined to force on the Christian body the ideals, the culture, and the outlook on the world, which found their best expression in the masterpieces of pagan literature;while, on the other, not a few of the champions of Scholastic Philosophy seemed to have convinced themselves that Scholasticism and Christianity were identified so closely that rejection or criticism of the former must imply disloyalty to the latter. The Humanists mocked at the Scholastics and dubbed them obscurantists on account of their barbarous Latinity, their uncritical methods, and their pointless wranglings; the Scholastics retorted by denouncing their opponents as pagans, or, at least, heretics. In this way the claims of religion were drawn into the arena, and, as neither the extreme Scholastics nor the extreme Humanists had learned to distinguish between dogmas and systems, between what was essential and what was tentative, there was grave danger that religion would suffer in the eyes of educated men on account of the crude methods of those who claimed to be its authorised exponents.

Undoubtedly, at such a period of unrest, the Church could hardly expect to escape attack. Never since the days when she was called upon to defend her position against the combined forces of the Pagan world had she been confronted with such a serious crisis, and seldom, if ever, was she so badly prepared to withstand the onslaughts of her enemies. The residence at Avignon, the Great Western Schism, and the conciliar theories to which the Schism gave rise, had weakened the power of the Papacy at the very time when the bonds of religious unity were being strained almost to the snapping point by the growth of national jealousy. Partly owing to the general downward tendency of the age, but mainly on account of the interference of the secular authorities with ecclesiastical appointments, the gravest abuses had manifested themselves in nearly every department of clerical life, and the cry for reform rose unbidden to the lips of thousands who entertained no thought of revolution. But the distinction between the divine and the human element in the Church was not appreciated by all, with the result that a great body of Christians, disgusted with the unworthiness of some of their pastors, were quite ready to rise in revolt whenever a leader should appear to sound the trumpet-call of war.

Nor had they long to wait till a man arose, in Germany, to marshal the forces of discontent and to lead them against the Church of Rome.

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 退散吧!忠犬君

    退散吧!忠犬君

    说好的进入电脑世界查杀病毒修补漏洞拯救世界的呢。为什么到了魏卫这里就变成拆BUG女主与主要程序的cp?那明明是恶毒女配的工作好不,好吧!为了回家拆cp也不是不能忍,但世界背景是末世,系统你确定你不是在故意整我?还有这莫名其妙不离不弃的男子是什么鬼?既然这样,作为一个职业恶毒女配,魏卫只想说:关门,放忠犬君。
  • 逆命仙尊

    逆命仙尊

    仙道“高考”,成绩平平,且看平凡少年苏永如何逆命而争,成就盖世仙尊。
  • 星际女贼

    星际女贼

    她是银河系的星际女窃贼,她神通广大,她聪明绝顶,她丰姿冶丽,她惊鸿艳影,她是犯罪天才,她虽然无法无天,可她又尊重生命。她在星球上都留下了潇洒的身影...
  • 中国式王牌特工

    中国式王牌特工

    本书描写了一群街头卖艺的江湖人在国难当头之时,在共产党领导下,成立王牌特工队,与日本侵略者斗智斗勇的故事,剧本人物极具传奇色彩,故事可看性非常强.满足了百姓对江湖秘密的诸多兴趣.张宝是杂牌军师长张浩的儿子,生性顽皮,喜欢恶作剧,被父亲多次皮鞭教训,但是,就是习性不改.被大家戏称为豪门浪子.张宝喜欢恶作剧,也喜欢打抱不平,喜欢两肋插刀,所以,虽然张宝被父辈轻蔑,但是,却被年轻人喜欢。张宝父亲张浩在张宝的说服下,率领部下坚决抗日.父子两个谱写了可歌可泣的抗日战歌.
  • 相公的罪妻:武动倾城

    相公的罪妻:武动倾城

    妻罪夫赎,这是他爱她的唯一宗旨。“我要娶你。”他对她说。“你愿意替我还清这世的孽债,下一世我愿意嫁给你。”她对他说。我的死亡换为一千年后的惊世传说,我的复活换为一千年前的平静生活,你的选择是什么?“我不愿独自一人名留青史,我只想与你遗臭万年。”
  • 魔域之星月情愿

    魔域之星月情愿

    自盘古开天辟地,世分三界,天界、魔界、人间互无往来相安无事。而数千年后,魔界大乱。魔宗暗风烈杀死魔王,意在带领魔界一统三界。魔王之子被侍卫誓死保护得以逃离魔戒,跌入人间。至此开启了一段跨越三界的爱恨情仇
  • 清歌为安

    清歌为安

    她是一个佣兵,意志坚强,朋友背叛,治她于死地,千年一度的重生名额落到了她的头上,穿越异世成为名门闺秀,多次月华山选拔落选,人称废物,可却是个十足的美人,她的来临会改变什么?
  • 决定一生成功的十大素质

    决定一生成功的十大素质

    《决定一生成功的十大素质》从总体上分析成为成功人士的必备素质,它们包括健康的身心、合理的情感、高超的智慧、高贵的人格、成功的形象、深厚的文化底蕴、过硬的专业素质及良好的个人修养等。这些素质涵盖一个人最基础、最必需的成功条件,它为我们从自身着眼开创成功指明了强化的方向。
  • 人族天骄

    人族天骄

    诸神一怒浮尸亿万里!他一怒诸神颤抖!万族林立,他该如何选择?曾经的记忆在次重演。他是否会化身修罗屠戮天下..一切都可以在这里得到答案
  • 愿时光,不负你

    愿时光,不负你

    温暖从小就很爱粘着自己的哥哥,她以为那是兄妹之情;温熙从小就很爱宠着自己的妹妹,他以为那是兄妹之情;一夜醉酒,她双眼迷离,喃喃念叨着他的名字:“温熙、温熙、哥哥,我好喜欢你啊,怎么办?”商场风云迭起,身世之谜被揭开,她狼狈逃离。自此,温暖改名顾瑾年。十年后,新锐婚纱设计师顾瑾年携自己的婚纱设计团队高傲归来,成为温熙的设计总监。等待着他们的,究竟是天堂,还是万劫不复的地狱?“命运的齿轮早已开始转动,丫头,我们注定就是要在一起的”“温熙,我这辈子最幸运的事,就是遇见了你。”