第 45 节
作者:
点绛唇 更新:2021-02-21 16:25 字数:9322
and Greek antiquities; disappeared from the scene and
their place was taken by serious men who spent twenty hours
a day administering those holy duties which had been placed
in their hands。
The long and rather disgraceful happiness of the monasteries
came to an end。 Monks and nuns were forced to be up
at sunrise; to study the Church Fathers; to tend the sick and
console the dying。 The Holy Inquisition watched day and
night that no dangerous doctrines should be spread by way of
the printing press。 Here it is customary to mention poor
Galileo; who was locked up because he had been a little too
indiscreet in explaining the heavens with his funny little
telescope and had muttered certain opinions about the behaviour
of the planets which were entirely opposed to the official views
of the church。 But in all fairness to the Pope; the clergy and
the Inquisition; it ought to be stated that the Protestants were
quite as much the enemies of science and medicine as the Catholics
and with equal manifestations of ignorance and intolerance
regarded the men who investigated things for themselves
as the most dangerous enemies of mankind。
And Calvin; the great French reformer and the tyrant
(both political and spiritual) of Geneva; not only assisted the
French authorities when they tried to hang Michael Servetus
(the Spanish theologian and physician who had become famous
as the assistant of Vesalius; the first great anatomist); but
when Servetus had managed to escape from his French jail and
had fled to Geneva; Calvin threw this brilliant man into prison
and after a prolonged trial; allowed him to be burned at the
stake on account of his heresies; totally indifferent to his fame
as a scientist。
And so it went。 We have few reliable statistics upon the
subject; but on the whole; the Protestants tired of this game
long before the Catholics; and the greater part of honest men
and women who were burned and hanged and decapitated on
account of their religious beliefs fell as victims of the very
energetic but also very drastic church of Rome。
For tolerance (and please remember this when you grow
older); is of very recent origin and even the people of our own
so…called ‘‘modern world'' are apt to be tolerant only upon such
matters as do not interest them very much。 They are tolerant
towards a native of Africa; and do not care whether he becomes
a Buddhist or a Mohammedan; because neither Buddhism nor
Mohammedanism means anything to them。 But when they
hear that their neighbour who was a Republican and believed
in a high protective tariff; has joined the Socialist party and
now wants to repeal all tariff laws; their tolerance ceases and
they use almost the same words as those employed by a kindly
Catholic (or Protestant) of the seventeenth century; who was
informed that his best friend whom he had always respected
and loved had fallen a victim to the terrible heresies of the
Protestant (or Catholic) church。
‘‘Heresy'' until a very short time ago was regarded as a
disease。 Nowadays when we see a man neglecting the personal
cleanliness of his body and his home and exposing himself
and his children to the dangers of typhoid fever or another
preventable disease; we send for the board…of…health and the
health officer calls upon the police to aid him in removing this
person who is a danger to the safety of the entire community。
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; a heretic; a man
or a woman who openly doubted the fundamental principles
upon which his Protestant or Catholic religion had been
founded; was considered a more terrible menace than a typhoid
carrier。 Typhoid fever might (very likely would) destroy the
body。 But heresy; according to them; would positively destroy
the immortal soul。 It was therefore the duty of all good and
logical citizens to warn the police against the enemies of the
established order of things and those who failed to do so were
as culpable as a modern man who does not telephone to the
nearest doctor when he discovers that his fellow…tenants are
suffering from cholera or small…pox。
In the years to come you will hear a great deal about
preventive medicine。 Preventive medicine simply means that our
doctors do not wait until their patients are sick; then step
forward and cure them。 On the contrary; they study the patient
and the conditions under which he lives when he (the patient)
is perfectly well and they remove every possible cause of illness
by cleaning up rubbish; by teaching him what to eat and what
to avoid; and by giving him a few simple ideas of personal
hygiene。 They go even further than that; and these good
doctors enter the schools and teach the children how to use
tooth…brushes and how to avoid catching colds。
The sixteenth century which regarded (as I have tried to
show you) bodily illness as much less important than sickness
which threatened the soul; organised a system of spiritual
preventive medicine。 As soon as a child was old enough to spell
his first words; he was educated in the true (and the ‘‘only
true'') principles of the Faith。 Indirectly this proved to be a
good thing for the general progress of the people of Europe。
The Protestant lands were soon dotted with schools。 They
used a great deal of very valuable time to explain the Catechism;
but they gave instruction in other things besides theology。
They encouraged reading and they were responsible
for the great prosperity of the printing trade。
But the Catholics did not lag behind。 They too devoted
much time and thought to education。 The Church; in this matter;
found an invaluable friend and ally in the newly…founded
order of the Society of Jesus。 The founder of this remarkable
organisation was a Spanish soldier who after a life of unholy
adventures had been converted and thereupon felt himself
bound to serve the church just as many former sinners; who
have been shown the errors of their way by the Salvation Army;
devote the remaining years of their lives to the task of aiding
and consoling those who are less fortunate。
The name of this Spaniard was Ignatius de Loyola。 He
was born in the year before the discovery of America。 He had
been wounded and lamed for life and while he was in the hospital
he had seen a vision of the Holy Virgin and her Son; who
bade him give up the wickedness of his former life。 He decided
to go to the Holy Land and finish the task of the Crusades。
But a visit to Jerusalem had shown him the impossibility
of the task and he returned west to help in the warfare
upon the heresies of the Lutherans。
In the year 1534 he was studying in Paris at the Sorbonne。
Together with seven other students he founded a fraternity。
The eight men promised each other that they would lead holy
lives; that they would not strive after riches but after righteousness;
and would devote themselves; body and soul; to the service
of the Church。 A few years later this small fraternity
had grown into a regular organisation and was recognised by
Pope Paul III as the Society of Jesus。
Loyola had been a military man。 He believed in discipline;
and absolute obedience to the orders of the superior dignitaries
became one of the main causes for the enormous success of the
Jesuits。 They specialised in education。 They gave their
teachers a most thorough…going education before they allowed
them to talk to a single pupil。 They lived with their students
and they entered into their games。 They watched them with
tender care。 And as a result they raised a new generation of
faithful Catholics who took their religious duties as seriously
as the people of the early Middle Ages。
The shrewd Jesuits; however; did not waste all their efforts
upon the education of the poor。 They entered the palaces
of the mighty and became the private tutors of future emperors
and kings。 And what this meant you will see for yourself
when I tell you about the Thirty Years War。 But before
this terrible and final outbreak of religious fanaticism; a great
many other things had happened。
Charles V was dead。 Germany and Austria had been left
to his brother Ferdinand。 All his other possessions; Spain and
the Netherlands and the Indies and America had gone to his
son Philip。 Philip was the son of Charles and a Portuguese
princess who had been first cousin to her own husband。 The
children that are born of such a union are apt to be rather
queer。 The son of Philip; the unfortunate Don Carlos; (murdered
afterwards with his own father's consent;) was crazy。
Philip was not quite crazy; but his zeal for the Church bordered
closely upon religious insanity。 He believed that Heaven had
appointed him as one of the saviours of mankind。 Therefore;
whosoever was obstinate and refused to share his Majesty's
views; proclaimed himself an enemy of the human race and
must be exterminated lest his example corrupt the souls of
his pious neighbo