| Essays And Reviews |
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| 1860 books | |
| anglicanism | |
| history of the church of england | |
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Today the essay topics and conclusions may seem innocuous, but at the time, they were considered Heretical and the essayists were called "The Seven Against Christ." The book was important because of its date and its authors. Appearing the year after Darwin 's Origin Of Species , it summed up a three-quarter-century-long challenge to biblical history by the Higher Critics and to biblical prehistory by scientists working in the new fields of geology and biology. Baden Powell restated his argument that God is a lawgiver, miracles break the lawful edicts issued at the creation, therefore belief in miracles is atheistic, and wrote of "Mr Darwin's masterly volume" that the ''Origin of Species'' "must soon bring about an entire revolution in opinion in favour of the grand principle of the self-evolving powers of nature." Hardly known outside academic theological circles today, ''Essays'' sold 22,000 copies in two years, more than the ''Origin'' sold in twenty years. It sparked five years of increasingly polarised debate with books and pamphlets furiously contesting the issues. Later in in signing a counter-letter supporting ''Essays and Reviews'' for trying to "establish religious teachings on a firmer and broader foundation". Despite this alignment of pro-evolution scientists and Unitarian s with liberal churchmen, two of the authors were indicted for heresy and lost their jobs by 1862 . They appealed to the ''Judicial Committee of the Privy Council'' and in 1864 it overturned the judgement, "dismissing hell with costs", to the fury of Wilberforce. 137,000 laity signed a letter of thanks to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York for voting against the Committee, and a declaration in favour of biblical inspiration and eternal torments was drawn up at Oxford and circulated to the 24,800 clergy. Wilberforce went to the Convocation of Canterbury and in June obtained "synodical condemnation" of ''Essays and Reviews''. AUTHORS The authors of ''Essays and Reviews'' were seven liberal Anglican churchmen:
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