CHAPTER XXI

CHRISTIANITY AND NATURAL SCIENCE : BASIL, EPIPHANIUS, AND THE PHYSIOLOGUS
Lactantius not a fair example — Commentaries on the Biblical -account of creation — Date and delivery of Basil's Hexaemeron — The Hexaem- eron of Ambrose — Basil's medieval influence — Science and religion — Scientific curiosity of Basil's audience — Allusions to amusements — Con- flicts with Greek science — Agreement with Greek science — Qualification of the Scriptural account of creation — The four elements and four qualities — Enthusiasm for nature as God's work — Sin and nature — Habits of animals — Marvels of nature — Spontaneous generation — Lack of scientific scepticism — Sun worship and astrology — Permanence of species — Final impression from the Hexaemeron — The Medicine Chest of Epiphanius — Gems in the high priest's breastplate — Some other gems — The so-called Physiologus; problem of its origin — Does the title apply to any one particular treatise? — And to what sort of a treatise? — Medieval art shows almost no symbolic influence of the Physiologus — Physiologus was more natural scientist than allegorist.
Lactantius The opposition of early Christian thought to natural science has been rather unduly exaggerated. For instance, Lactantius, one of the least favorable to Greek philosophy and natural science of the fathers, should hardly be cited as typical of early Christian attitude in such matters. Nor does his opposition impress one as weighty.^ He ridicules the theory of the Antipodes,^ which he perhaps understands
*Beazley, Dawn of Modern here, too, I wonder if he is not
Geography, I, 274, says, "Angus- following Letronne, Des Opinions
tine and Chrysostom felt and Cosmographiques des Peres, with-
spoke in the same way, though in out having examined the citations,
more measured language, and Certainly no such attitude is found
nearly all early Christian writers in Basil's Hexaemeron, Hom. 3
who touched upon the matter did and 9 as the citation implies. I
so to echo the voice of authorities have not seen Marinelli, La
so unquestioned." But I cannot gcographia e i Padri delta Chiesa,
agree with this statement. He estratto dal Bollettino della Societd
goes on to imply that a majority geografica italiana, anno 1882, pp.
of the fathers, like Cosmas Indi- 11-15. copleustes, attacked the belief in " Diznn. Instit., Ill, 24.
the sphericity of the earth ; but
480
CHAP. XXI CHRISTIANITY AND NATURAL SCIENCE 481
none too well, asking if anyone can be so inept as to think that there are men whose feet are above their heads, al- though he knows very well that Greek science teaches that all weights fall towards the center of the earth, and that consequently if the feet are nearer the center of the earth that they must be below the head. He continues, however, to insist that the philosophers are either very stupid, or just joking, or arguing for the sake of arguing, and he declares that he could show by many arguments that the heaven cannot possibly be lower than the earth — which no one has asserted except himself — if it were not already time to close his third book and begin the fourth. Apparently Lactantius is the one who is arguing for the sake of arguing, or just joking, or else very stupid, and I fear it is the last. But other Christian fathers were less dense, and we already have heard the cultured pagan Plutarch scoff at the notion of a spherical earth and of antipodes. We may grant, how- ever, that the ecclesiastical writers of the Roman Empire and early medieval period normally treat of spiritual rather than material themes and discuss them in a religious rather than a scientific manner.
But in the commentaries upon the books of the Bible Commen- which the fathers multiplied so voluminously it was neces- the Bibli- sary for them, if they began their labors with Genesis, to cal account deal at the very start in the first verses of the first book of tion. the Bible with an explanation of nature which at several points was in disagreement with the accepted theories of Greek philosophy and ancient science. Such comment upon the opening verses of Genesis sometimes developed into a separate treatise called Hexaemeron from the works of the six days of creation which it discussed. Of the various treatises of this type the Hexaemeron of Basil ^ seems to have been both the best ^ and the most influential, and will be considered by us as an example of Christian attitude towards
*Migne, PG, vol. 29; PN, vol. 8. work as "a la fois plus sobre, plus "Duhem (1914) II, 394, how- concis, et plus philosophique. . . ." ever, prefers Gregory of Nyssa's
482
MAGIC AND EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE chap.
Date and
delivery of Basil's Hexaem- eron.
The
Hexacm- eron of Ambrose.
the natural science and, to some extent, the superstition of the ancient world.
Basil died on the first day of January, 379 A. D., and was born about 329. When or where the nine homilies which compose his Hexaemeron were preached is not known, but from an allusion to his bodily infirmity in the seventh homily and his forgetfulness the next day in Homily VIII we might infer that it was late in life. To all appearances these sermons were taken down and have reached us just as they were delivered to the people, to whose daily life Basil frequently adverts. The sermons were delivered early in the morning before the artisans in the audience went to their work and again at the close of the day and before the evening meal, since Basil sometimes speaks of the ap- proach of darkness surprising him and of its consequently being time to stop.^ One of the surest indications either that the sermons were delivered extemporaneously, or that Basil was repeating with variations to suit the occasion and present audience sermons which he had delivered so often as to have practically memorized, occurs in the eighth homily where he starts to discuss land animals, forgetting that the last day he did not get to birds, but is presently brought to a realization of his omission by the actions of his audience and, after a pause and an apology, makes a fresh start upon birds. The Hexaemeron was highly praised by Basil's contemporaries and was regarded as the best of his works by later Byzantine literary collectors and critics.
Basil's work, however, was not the first of its kind, as Hippolytus and Origen, at least, are known to have earlier composed similar treatises, and still earlier in the treatise
* Homily I was delivered in the morning, II in the evening; III was in the morning and speaks of a coming evening address. At the close of Homily VII Basil urges his hearers to talk over at their evening meal what they have heard this morning and this eve-
ning. If we regard Homily VI as the morning address referred to, we shall have Homily V left to cover an entire day. Homily VI, however, is the longest of the nine. In any case Homily VIII is clearly preached in the morning, and IX at evening.
XXI CHRISTIANITY AND NATURAL SCIENCE 483
of Theophilus To Aiitolyciis we find a few chapters ^ de- voted to the six days of creation. In one of his letters Jerome states that "Ambrose recently so compiled the Hexaemeron of Origen that he rather followed the views of Hippolytus and Basil." ^ This Latin work of Ambrose is extant and seems to me to follow Basil very closely. At times the order of presentation is slightly varied and the work of Ambrose is longer, but this is due to its more verbose rhetoric and greater indulgence in Biblical quotation, and not to the introduction of new ideas. The Benedictine editors of Ambrose admit that he has taken a great deal from Basil but deny that he has servilely imitated him.^ But a striking instance of such servile imitation is seen in Ambrose's duplicating even Basil's mistake in omitting to discuss birds and then apologizing for it, reminding one of the Chinese workman who made all the new dinner plates with a crack and a toothpick stuck in it, like the old broken plate which he had been given as a model. It is true that Ambrose does not first discuss land animals for a page as Basil did, but makes his apology more immediately. The opening words of the eighth sermon in the twelfth chapter of his fifth book are, "And after he had remained silent for a moment, again resuming his discourse, he said . . ." Then comes his apology, expressed in different terms from Basil's and to the effect that in his previous discourse upon fishes he became so immersed in the depths of the sea as to forget all about birds. Thus the incident which in Basil had every appearance of a natural mistake, in Ambrose has all the earmarks of an affected imitation. It is barely possi- ble, however, that Origen made the original mistake and that Basil and Ambrose have both imitated him in it. On the other hand, we are told that the Hexaemerons of Origen
* Bk. II, caps. 10-17. ment of the work of creation,
* Epistola 65, ad Pamniachium. continues to comment on the text Augustine's De Gcncsi ad litteram, up to Adam's expulsion from which Cassiodorus (Institutes, I, Paradise.
i) esteemed above the commen- ^ Migne, PL, 14, 131-2. The most
taries of Basil and Ambrose upon recent edition of the Hexaemeron
Genesis, is a som.ewhat similar of Ambrose is by C. Schenkl.
work, but, after a briefer treat- Vienna, 1896.
484
MAGIC AND EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE chap.
Basil's
medieval
influence.
and Basil differed fundamentally in this respect, that Origen indulged to a great extent in allegorical interpretation of the Mosaic account of creation/ while Basil declares that he "takes all in the literal sense," is "not ashamed of the Gospel," and "admits the common sense of the Scriptures." ^ At any rate, Basil's Hexaemeron seems to have sup- planted all such previous treatises in Greek, while its west- em influence is shown not only by Ambrose's imitation of it so soon after its production, but by Latin translations of it by Eustathius Afer in the fifth, and perhaps by Dionysius Exiguus in the sixth century. Medieval manuscripts of it are fairly numerous and sometimes of early date,^ and include an Anglo-Saxon epitome ascribed to Aelfric in the Bodleian Library, Bartholomew of England * in the thir- teenth century quotes "Rabanus who uses the words of Basil in the Hexaemeron" for a description of the empyrean heaven which I have been unable to find in the works of
*Fialon, £tude sur St. Basile, 1869, p. 296.
"" Homily IX.
* For example, in the catalogue, published in 1744, of MSS in the then Royal Library at Paris there are listed five copies of Eustathius' Latin translation, dating from the ninth to the fourteenth century — 2200, 4; 1701, i; 1702, i; 1787A, 2 ; 2633, I ; and fifteen copies of the Hexaemeron of Ambrose — 1718; 1702, 2; 1719 to 1727 in- clusive ; 2387, 4 ; 2637 and 2638.
I have not noted what MSS of the Hexaemerons of Basil and Ambrose are found in the British Museum and Bodleian libraries. Some other medieval copies of Basil's in Latin translation are : BN 12134, 9th century Lombard hand; Vendome 122, nth cen- tury, fols. I v-60; Soissons 121, I2th century, fol. 97, Eustathius' prologue and a part of his trans- lation; Grenoble 258, 12th cen- tury, fols. 1-45, "Eustathii trans- latio. . . ."
The Hexaemeron of Ambrose, since written originally in Latin,
is naturally found oftener. The oldest MS is said to be CU Corpus Christi 193, large Lom- bard script of the 8th century which closely resembles BN 3836. Other MSS are: BN 11624, nth century; BN 12135, 9th century; BN 12136, i2-i3th century; BN 13336, nth century; BN 14847, I2th century, fol. 163; BN nouv. acq. 490, i2th century; Vatican 269-273 inclusive, io-i5th centu- ries ; Alenqon 10, 12th century ; Vendome 129, 12th century, fols. 48-126; Semur, 10, 12th century; Chartres 63, 10- nth century, fols. 3-46; Orleans 35, nth century; Orleans 192, 7th century, part of the first two books only ; Amiens fonds Lescalopier 30, 12th cen- tury; le Mans 15, nth century; Brussels 1782, loth century; CLM 2549, I2th century; CLM 3728, loth century; CLM 6258, loth century; CLM 13079, 12th cen- tury ; CLM 14399, I2th century ; Novara 40, 12th century; and many other MSS of later date in these and other libraries.
* De proprietatibus rerum, VIII, 4-
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CHRISTIANITY AND NATURAL SCIENCE
485
either Rabanus or Basil. Bede, in a similar, though much abbreviated, work of his own, states that while many have said many things concerning the beginning of the Book of Genesis, the chief authorities, so far as he has been able to discover, are Basil of Caesarea, whom Eustathius trans- lated from Greek into Latin, Ambrose of Milan, and Augus- tine, bishop of Hippo. These works, however, were so long and expensive that only the rich could afford to purchase them and so profound that only the learned could read and understand them. Bede had accordingly been requested to compose a brief rendition of them, which he does partly in his own words, partly in theirs.^
The general tenor of Basil's treatise may be described Science as follows. He accepts the literal sense of the first chapter religion. of Genesis as a correct account of the universe, and, when he finds Greek philosophy and science in disagreement with the Biblical narrative, inveighs against the futilities and follies and conflicting theories and excessive elaborations of the philosophers. On such occasions the simple state- ments of Scripture are sufficient for him. "Upon the essence of the heavens we are contented with what Isaiah says. ... In the same way, as concerns the earth, let us resolve not to torment ourselves by trying to find out its essence. ... At all events let us prefer the simplicity of faith to the demonstrations of reason." ^ These three quotations illustrate his attitude at such times. But at all other times he is apt to follow Greek science rather implicitly, accepting without question its hypothesis of four elements and four qualities, and taking all his details about birds, beasts, and fish from the same source.
Moreover, while Basil may affirm that the edification Scientific
of the church is his sole aim and interest, it is evident that '^"''iP^'tX
1 , . , . of Basil 3
his audience are possessed by a lively scientific curiosity, audience.
* Bede, Hexaemeron, sive libri quatuor in principium Genesis usque ad nativitatem Isaac et electionem Ismaelis, in Migne, PL, Qi, 9-100. Bede originally in-
tended to carry his work only to the expulsion of Adam from Paradise, but subsequently added three more books. 'Homilies I, VIII, and X.
486
MAGIC AND EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE chaf.
and that they wish to hear a great deal more about natural phenomena than Isaiah or any other Biblical author has to offer them. "What trouble you have given me in my pre- vious discourses," exclaims Basil in his fourth homily, "by asking me why the earth was invisible, why all bodies are naturally endued with color, and why all color comes under the sense of sight? And perhaps my reason did not appear sufficient to you. . . , Perhaps you will ask me new ques- tions." Basil gratifies this curiosity concerning the world of nature with many details not mentioned in the Bible but drawn from such works as Aristotle's Meteorology and History of Animals. This scientific curiosity displayed by Basil's hearers is the more interesting in that artisans who had to labor for their daily bread appear to have made up a large element in his audience.-^ It is perhaps on their ac- count that Basil often speaks of God as the supreme artisan or artificer or artist,^ or calls their attention to "the vast and varied workshop of divine creation," ^ and makes other flattering allusions to arts which support life or produce enduring work, and to waterways and sea trade.* He also seems to have a sincere appreciation of the arts and admira- tion of beauty, which he twice defines.^
At the risk of digression, it is perhaps worth noting further that Basil's hearers seem to have been very familiar with, not to say fond of, the amusements common in the cities of the Roman Empire. Twice he opens his sermons with allusions to the athletes of the circus and actors of the theater,® apparently as the surest way of quickly catch- ing the attention of his audience, while on a third occasion, in concluding his morning address on what appears to have been a holiday, he remarks that if he had dismissed them earlier, some would have spent the rest of the day gambling with dice, and that "the longer I keep you, the longer you are out of the way of mischief." ^ He also alludes to the
* Homily III, i and lO.
M, 7; III, 5 and lo.
'IV, I.
M, 7; HI, 5; IV, 3, 4, and 7;
VI, 9; VII, 6. *II, 7; III, 10. •IV. i; VI, I. 'VIII, 8.
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CHRISTIANITY AND NATURAL SCIENCE
487
spinning of tops and to what was apparently the game of push-ball.-^
Taking up the contents of the Hexaemeron more in detail, we may first note those points upon which Basil sup- ports the statements of the Bible against Greek science and philosophy. He of course insists that the universe was created by God and is not co-existent, much less identical, with Him.- He also denies that the form of the world alone is due to God and that matter is of separate origin.^ Nor will he accept the arguments of the philosophers who "would rather lose their tongues" than admit that there is more than one heaven. Basil is ready to believe not merely in a second, but a third heaven, such as the apostle Paul speaks of being rapt to. He regards a plurality of heavens as no more difficult to credit than the seven concentric spheres of the planets, and as much more probable than the philosophic theory of the music of the spheres which he decries as "ingenious frivolity, the untruth of which is evi- dent from the first word." ■* He also defends the statement of Scripture that there are waters above the firmament, not only against the doctrines of ancient astronomy,^ but also against "certain writers in the church," among whom he probably has Origen in mind, who interpret the passage figuratively and assert that the waters stand for "spiritual and incorporeal powers," those above the firmament repre- senting good angels and those below the firmament standing for evil demons. "Let us reject these theories as we would the interpretations of dreams and old-wives' tales." ^
In connection with Basil's defense of the plurality of the heavens it may be noted that R. H. Charles presents evidence to show "that speculations or definitely formulated views on the plurality of the heavens were rife in the very cradle of Christendom and throughout its entire develop- ment," and that "the prevailing view was that of the seven-
Conflicts
with
Greek
science.
* Homily V, 10; IX, 2
*ni, 3.
\l ^■
" II, 4, et sea.
' II. I.
* III, 9.
488
MAGIC AND EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE chap.
Agree- ment with Greek
Qualifica- tion of the Scriptural account of creation.
fold division of the heavens," ^ He fails, however, to dis- criminate between the doctrine of Greek philosophy that the universe was one, although the circles of the planets are seven, and the plurality of the heavens, which Basil insists that the philosophers deny; and very probably the Jewish and early Christian notions of successive heavens full of angels and spirits developed from the spheres of the planets. Among the various early heresies described by the fathers are also found, of course, many allusions to these seven spheres or heavens. The disciples of Valentinus, for ex- ample, according to Irenaeus and Epiphanius, "affirm that these seven heavens are intelligent and speak of them as angels . . . and declare that Paradise, situated above the third heaven, is a powerful angel." ^
On the other hand, we may note some points where Basil is in accord with Greek science. He warns his hearers not to "be surprised that the world never falls; it occupies the center of the universe, its natural place." ^ He advances numerous proofs of the immense size of the sun and moon.* He accepts the hypothesis of four elements but abstains from passing judgment upon the question of a fifth ele- ment of which the heavens and celestial bodies may be composed.^ He thinks that "it needs not the space of a moment for light to pass through" the ether.^
Moreover, Basil finds it necessary to qualify some of the statements in the first chapter of Genesis. He inter- prets the command, "Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place," to apply only to the sea or ocean, which he contends is one body of water, and not to pools and lakes,'^ recognizing that otherwise "our ex- planation of the creation of the world may appear contrary to experience, because it is evident that all the waters did not flow together in one place." In this connection he
* Charles, The Book of the ' Homily I, lO.
Secrets of Enoch, Introduction, * VI, 9-1 1.
pp. xxxi, xxxix. * I, II.
' Irenaeus, I, 5 ; Epiphanius, ed. ' II, 7.
Petavius t86AB. 'IV, 2-4.
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CHRISTIANITY AND NATURAL SCIENCE
489
states that "although some authorities think that the Hyrcanian and Caspian Seas are enclosed in their own boundaries, if we are to believe the geographers, they com- municate with each other and together discharge them- selves into the Great Sea." He speaks of "the vast ocean, so dreaded by navigators, which surrounds the isle of Brit- ain and western Spain." ^ Later he contends that "sea water is the source of all the moisture of the earth." ^ He has also to meet the following objection made to the eleventh and twelfth verses of the first chapter of Genesis: "How then, they say, can Scripture describe all the plants of the earth as seed-bearing, when the reed, couch-grass, mint, crocus, garlic, and the flowering rush and countless other species produce no seed? To this we reply that many vegetables have their seminal virtue in the lower part and in the roots." ^
Basil regards the words of Genesis, "God called the dry land earth," as a recognition of the fact that drought is the primal property of earth, as humidity is of air ; cold, of water; and heat, of fire. He adds, however, that "our eyes and senses can find nothing which is completely singu- lar, simple, and pure. Earth is at the same time dry and cold; water, cold and moist; air, moist and warm; fire, warm and dry." ^ Indeed, as he has already stated in the previous homily, the mixture of elements in actual objects is even more intricate than this last sentence might seem to indicate. Every element is in every other, and we not only do not perceive with our senses any pure elements but not even any compounds of two elements only.^
Basil is alive to the absorbing interest of the world of nature and to the marvelous intricacies of natural science. He tells his hearers that as "anyone not knowing a town is taken by the hand and led through it," so he will guide them "through the mysterious marvels of this great city of the universe." ^ As he had said in the preceding homily, "A 'Homily IV, 4. ■• I V, 5.
The four elements and four qualities.
Enthusi- asm for nature as God's work.
IV, 6.