claimed by the pope … to be his devoutnson, the son’s all-too-serious sin,neven suspicion of it, would fall toonheavily on the father’s shoulders.”nThe immediate objectives may havenbeen achieved, but the Church’s strategynhas proved disastrous in the long run,ndiverting attention from the real issuesnand exposing the Church to centuries ofnridicule. While many Christians justlyndenounce the methods used by thenInquisition, it remains true thatnGalileo’s philosophy (apart from hisnscience) did subvert religious faith. Fornthe orthodox, Galileo’s debt to Copernicusnis far less troubling than his borrowingsnfrom the pagan philosophies ofnLucretius, Democritus, and Epicurus.nRedondi concludes that Galileo’s wasn”the anxious faith of the heretic, a faithnthat is always searching and never satisfied.”nFor Copernicus, the heliocentricnsystem served as a mystical symbol,nwith the sun representing the glory ofnGod the Father. But Galileo usedn”Ockham’s razor” of explanatory simplicitynto pare away from Copernicanismnall of its author’s spiritualnpassions, leaving behind only the formulaenneeded to make predictionsnabout matter in motion. Redondi indeednidentifies Galileo as a probableninfluence upon Rene Descartes, whonregarded the world as a matter-motionnmachine wholly explicable without referencento spirits, angels, or miracles.nLike Descartes, Galileo helped to turnnWestern civilization away from the aweinspiringnGod of Scripture, toward thenrationalized Clockmaker God ofnDeism.nAs a set of equations, Galileo’s scientificnworld view provides a set of toolsnfor the mind to use. But as a philosophicncosmology, it fails to provide a transcendentnmetaphor that can shape thenmind through contemplation. Galileannman exerts ever-more technical powernwhile dwindling into spiritual sterility.nThree centuries after Galileo, it isnpast time to give Ptolemy his due. Bynany scientific standard, Ptolemy’s geocentricnsystem is useless. But that uselessnessnneed not repel us if we remembernwith Leszek Kolakowski thatn”science . . . does not deal with realitynat all, its meaning being utilitarian.” Letnthose who wish to make predictionsnabout the motions of planets or stars cullntheir equations from Copernicus, Kep­nler, Newton, or Einstein. While scientistsnfret about “saving the appearances,”nthe reality beneath all seemingnbreaks through in prayer—and poetry.nTo appreciate the abiding truth capturednin the Ptolemaic world view, readnagain Dante’s Commedia or Milton’snParadise Lost, both depicting a Ptolemaicnuniverse. As a Catholic who livedn300 years before Galileo, Dante hadnlittle choice in the matter. But innMilton we confront a militant Protestantnwho had himself visited Galileo innFiesole and had probably accepted thenscientific validity of Copernicanism.nYet the poet speaks truer than thenscientist when he nonetheless uses anPtolemaic setting for this planet’s dramanof human sin and divine redemption.nBesides, all poetry shares withnPtolemaic astronomy the attribute ofnsublime uselessness (W.H. Auden:n”Poetry makes nothing happen”).nAn increasing number of scientistsnnow in fact share the view of Britishnphysicist Steven Hawking, who believesnthat an “anthropic principle”ngoverned the mysterious “Big Bang”nin which the universe began. Man doesnsomehow define the “target” at whichnthe universe was “aimed.” For locatingnthe nub of the universe, Ptolemynproves a better guide than Galileo.nBryce Christensen is editor of ThenFamily in America.nPilgrim’s Progressnby Don FedernLovesong: Becoming a Jew by JuliusnLester, New York: Henry Holt;n$17.95.nLike many black intellectuals of hisngeneration, Julius Lester went searchingnfor his roots. Unlike the vast majority,nhe found them in a most extraordinarynplace.nMAN AND MIND:nA CHRISTIAN THEORY OF PERSONALITYnMAN AND MIND:n. ,.__-n,.„wofPersonWhy are so many psychologists hostile tonreligious explanations of human behavior? Innwhat has been hailed as a path-breakingnstudy, nine psychologists, theologians andnphilosophers offer the reason: Thomas J.nBurke, Stephen R. Briggs, Mary Vander Coot,nPaul C. Vitz, Charles Ransford, MeroldnWestphal, William Kirk Kilpatrick, John S.nReist, Jr., and Mary Stewart Van Leeuwen.n^”••i^^lt^^fiVl&AuAyiisuks In the field ofnpsychology today.”nRichtird John .Ncuhausnrfi.lhiir. rill’ Naked Publn Squ.ircn$5.00 PAPERBOUND (Michigan residents add 4% sales tax)nVISA AND MASTERCARD ORDERS 800-253-3200, EXT. 801nHILLSDALE COLLEGE PRESSnHillsdale, Michigan 49242nnnSEPTEMBER 1988/35n