VI. The Retreat of the Church after its Victory over Galileo. The easy path for the Protestant theologians The difficulties of the older Church.--The papal infallibility fully committed against the Copernican theory Attempts at evasion--first plea: that Galileo was condemned not for affirming the earth's motion, but for supporting it from Scripture Its easy refutation Second plea: that he was condemned not for heresy, but for contumacy Folly of this assertion Third plea: that it was all a quarrel between Aristotelian professors and those favouring the experimental method Fourth plea: that the condemnation of Galileo was "provisory" Fifth plea: that he was no more a victim of Catholics than of Protestants Efforts to blacken Galileo's character Efforts to suppress the documents of his trial Their fruitlessness Sixth plea: that the popes as popes had never condemned his theory Its confutation from their own mouths Abandonment of the contention by honest Catholics Two efforts at compromise--Newman, De Bonald Effect of all this on thinking men The fault not in Catholicism more than in Protestantism--not in religion, but in theology CHAPTER IV. FROM "SIGNS AND WONDERS" TO LAW IN THE HEAVENS. I. The Theological View. Early beliefs as to comets, meteors, and eclipses Their inheritance by Jews and Christians The belief regarding comets especially harmful as a source of superstitious terror Its transmission through the Middle Ages Its culmination under Pope Calixtus III Beginnings of scepticism--Copernicus, Paracelsus, Scaliger Firmness of theologians, Catholic and Protestant, in its support II. Theological Efforts to crush the Scientific View. The effort through the universities.--The effort through the pulpits Heerbrand at Tubingen and Dieterich at Marburg Maestlin at Heidelberg Buttner, Vossius, Torreblanca, Fromundus Father Augustin de Angelis at Rome Reinzer at Linz Celichius at Magdeburg Conrad Dieterich's sermon at Ulm Erni and others in Switzerland Comet doggerel Echoes from New England--Danforth, Morton, Increase Mather III. The Invasion of Scepticism. Rationalism of Cotton Mather, and its cause Blaise de Vigenere Erastus Bekker, Lubienitzky, Pierre Petit Bayle Fontenelle The scientific movement beneath all this IV. Theological Efforts at Compromise.--The Final Victory of Science. The admission that some comets are supralunar Difference between scientific and theological reasoning Development of the reasoning of Tycho and Kepler--Cassini, Hevel, Doerfel, Bernouilli, Newton Completion of the victory by Halley and Clairaut Survivals of the superstition--Joseph de Maistre, Forster Arago's statistics The theories of Whiston and Burnet, and their influence in Germany The superstition ended in America by the lectures of Winthrop Helpful influence of John Wesley Effects of the victory