Ptolemy and his Views on the Universe
Ptolemy had a unique perspective on the universe; according to his observations, celestial phenomena such as the Moon, Sun, planets, stars, and the Earth were constant, i.e. they were not in motion (Spielvogel, 2014).
In other words, he didn't believe the planets rotated. The Ptolemaic ideas were later refuted by Kepler's ideas that the planets and heavenly bodies are in constant motion around the Sun.
The concentric bodies circling the Earth, according to the Ptolemaic view, had no weight, which is why they were still at rest (Spielvogel, 2014).
The Ptolemaic views of the universe were accepted by the church, because they were in line with the religious thoughts and ideological principles (Spielvogel, 2014).
The church and the religion as a whole believed in the existence of the universe and the heavenly bodies in it just as the Ptolemy perception. In the modern science, the Sun is at the center of the universe, and there are numerous materials objects like the planets that revolve around it through the elliptical orbits (Spielvogel, 2014).
The nowadays science also reveals that there is an infinite world rather than the finite one.
Contributions of Nicolaus Copernicus and Johannes Kepler
The modern understanding of the universe was aided by the work of Nicolaus Copernicus. He came up with the theory about the position of the Sun being at the center of the universe. It was also facilitated by the work of Kepler that proved that there is always an elliptical motion of the objects (planets) around the Sun (Spielvogel, 2014).
Galileo, on the other hand, used the telescope to observe the universe, and thereafter, concluded that the universe consists of additional components other than the planets that are continuously in motion around the Sun (Spielvogel, 2014).
Galileo's Use of Reason and Observation
Galileo uses reason and observation in physical matters that are experienced and exist before the minds and the eyes (Galilei, n.d). The physical experiences may be through demonstration. Humans often exhibit common sense provided by God to judge and establish the truth about nature and the natural existence of various things.
Reasoning and observation are developed within an individual and it is up to the person to judge and discover different happenings in the real-life situation. Galileo states that it is difficult to deny physical matters presented before the eyes (Galilei, n.d). The mind often keeps the information perceived by the eye, and it is out of this information that the truth is established.
Galileo, through reasoning and observation, formalized scientific knowledge about the universe (Galilei, n.d). Through observation, Galileo was able to establish patterns and motion of planets in the universe. Using reasoning obtained from the Bible and the physical observation, an individual is able to discover knowledge about different things in nature.
Galileo was able to determine the movement of heavenly bodies through studying the bible and translating the knowledge of scientific theories. Thereby, he had established the ideas about the complexity of the universe (Galilei, n.d).
Galileo's Resistance to Religious Theories
Galileo wanted to write the letter to disapprove the critics who dwell on the religious theories to disapprove scientific evidence obtained from observations and reasoning. Copernicus uses scientific evidence to explain the heavenly bodies and the shapes, movement, and the distances between them. Galileo applies the same analogy to explain the nature of the universe. Observation and reasoning are, therefore, essential elements in establishing knowledge about the existence of heavenly bodies. The Bible puts up the theoretical aspects of knowledge that is not based on observation (Galilei, n.d).
Galileo's View on the Bible and Religion
Galileo believes that the messages from the Bible should be respected, because it contains information formulated by reasons. The Bible contains critical information about the universe and the general information about the natural existence. In general, Galileo respects the content from the Bible, but he believes they may not be truthful. The information in the Bible cannot be substantiated through observation; they are theories that cannot prove through scientific means (Galilei, n.d).
In most cases, the Bible talks about the existence of universe without the exact knowledge about the heavenly bodies, their shapes, distances from each other, and the duration of existence.
Although Galileo treats the religious authorities and whatever they stand for appropriately, he tends to disagree with them in most of the ideas. The religion has no proof for most of the occurrences; they mainly focus on theories without making the actual observation to determine the truth.
Religion often opposes the scientific thoughts without establishing a substantial truth about the discoveries and mathematical proofs, especially those that were put in place by the scientists like Copernicus. Galileo also respects and upholds the ideas generated by the religious authorities; he often quotes the Bible, but fails to understand the concepts, since they are mere ideas presented without mathematical proofs. It has led to the defense of the Copernican mathematical principles about the movement of the planets, distances between them, and their shapes (Galilei, n.d).
In most instances, the scientists attempt to explain the true nature of the universe and all the heavenly bodies that exist in it.
References
Galilei, G. (n.d.). Letter to the Grand Duchess Christina of Tuscany, 1615. Modern History Sourcebook. Retrieved on October 17, 2017 from https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/halsall/MOD/galileo-tuscany.asp
Spielvogel, J. J. (2014). Western civilization. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.
