SECTION V
Chapter 18 - The Rise of Romanticism

Eclipse of the Age of the Enlightenment

     Anti-slavery movements found their inspiration in the general atmosphere
brought on by the Enlightenment with its proposition that ALL men should be
created equal. The Enlightenment's view of the natural rights of man serves
to this day to distinguish democracies from totalitarian states. It was during
the Enlightenment that we first see a general movement, whereby:

  *religious wars were decried as irrational,
  *torture/slavery became viewed as "cruel and inhumane".
  *the campaign against superstition succeeded in halting the witchcraft trials,
and
  *insanity began to be seriously treated as an illness (as opposed to demonic
possession). (Note, it was in 1795, when Philippe Pinel, known as the founder of 
modern psychiatry, was able to convince French authorities to remove the chains 
from patients at Salpetriere, the notorious insane asylum in Paris.)

   The American U.S. Revolution was born out of the Age of the Enlightenment,
and most of our revered American U.S. Fathers were strong followers of this
movement. (see Section XI, Chapter 2) However, the French Revolution, which
followed the American Revolution only thirteen years later in the year 1789--
was seen as an example whereby the new human individuality and freedoms
could destroy the very fabric of society!

    But, as we shall see, the French Revolution was the culmination of
powerful social and political forces that were influenced by another movement
that grew up alongside the Enlightenment-- the Romantic Movement. For the
fact is that the Enlightenment-- and its appeal of reason over emotions, had
never really caught on strong with the general public.

   Even before the French Revolution, many Western intellectuals had felt
that the Enlightenment with its appeal to rationalism had gone too far.
The Scottish philosopher and skeptic, David Hume had shocked all of Europe
in the 1760's and 70's with his application of reason to its extreme limits!
Hume argued that we can NEVER know anything of the supernatural, because
only empirical knowledge--that which we see with our senses and measure
through our experiments--is valid.

  According to Hume, the following rule should be followed in testing for truth:

"If we take in our hands any volume of school metaphysics... let us ask, 'Does
 it contain any abstract reasoning concerning quantity or number?' No. 'Does
 it contain any experimental reasoning concerning matter of fact and
 existence?' No. Commit it then to the flames, for it can contain nothing
 but sophistry and illusion."

   To Hume, our mind is not a distinct separate entity (as other religious
philosophers had argued), but a mere bundle of expressions, derived entirely
from our senses, which we use to associate cause and effect, based on
experience.  For example, we learn through experience to associate fire with
heat.  This is all there is to "knowing". Since every idea is merely a copy
of some sense perception that the mind has discovered through his personal
experience--this means that humans can NEVER know anything of the final or
"true" causes of the meaning of life and the universe.

   Even science was not sacrosanct by Hume, because man through science,
perceives only events and sequences--and must therefore INFER their causes
and laws (as opposed to REALLY knowing their causes and laws). This was
disturbing, because it meant that science could NEVER obtain PERFECT (100%)
knowledge of everything around us--nor could it be used in the spiritual
realm--such as discovering an immortal soul.

The Age of Romanticism (1780's to 1840's)

  By the latter 1700's, many of Europe's intellectuals had rebelled against
the implications of the Enlightenment, with its reduction of religious
emotion and mystery to reason and scientific inquiry. It was believed that
scientific rationalism-- in its attention to the details, was blinded to
higher spiritual truths. That "reason"--in and of itself--was not the final
test, but that we must trust to our FEELINGS in some of the great issues.

   Reaction set in, in the form of the Romantic movement. Although the
movement took on different meanings to different groups, overall Romanticism
can be viewed as a poetic revolt which emphasized man's SPIRITUALITY or
feeling, over his thinking.  The world was perceived as a living world
Spirit (Weltseele) whose presence penetrated through into all forms of life.
Science was redirected through the NATURPHILOSOPHIE movement into an attempt 
to discover this common world soul operating through the world. Artists, 
writers, and philosophers sought to tap into and experience this spirit 
through their observations on Nature.

  Romanticism reached its peak in literature and art in Europe in the period
from 1810-1830.  This period led to an outburst of tremendous creativity in
the arts. For example, during this time the poets Wordsworth and Coleridge
were joined by Shelley, Byron, and Keats to make up the most famous group of
poets in England's history. Romanticists would also include Musset and Hugo
in France, Goethe and Kleist in Germany, and Melville, Thoreau, and Hawthorne
in the United States.

  Classicism (which looked to the arts, literature, and culture of the
ancient Greeks and Romans, and its emphasis on form, proportion, and
restrained emotion), was the literary form adopted by the Enlightenment.
In artistic circles, there was a great deal of rivalry between classicists
and romanticists.  Classicists favored Michael Cervantes earlier parody of
the errant knight in his DON QUIXOTE (1600).  This tells the story of a
foolishly romantic knight, who is under the delusion that he is fighting
dragons and saving damsels in distress--when in reality he is only jaunting
with windmills. Romantic writers such as Goethe, found the classicist
writings to be generally boring, stale, and melancholy.

  The Romantic creative atmosphere, led towards the search for NEW and
creative experiences and feelings.  Romantic writers liked to write of far
off places--set in ancient castles or remote mansions--or of distance times.
Common plots revolved around characters who were driven by powerful forces
that lurked from within. Heroes and/or villains had a dark, mysterious secret 
from their past, or were descendants from royal or aristocratic families. Many 
romantic stories hinted at some interaction with a mysterious, spiritual 
world--including ghosts. The Middle Ages was a favorite time period of the 
Romantics, who wove into their stories tales of dashing knights and beautiful 
damsels in distress.

   As the Romantic and Enlightenment movements co-existed side by side, it
is not surprising that many people were influenced to various degrees by both 
movements.  Arguably, one could be a Romanticist in terms of imagination and 
entertainment, and an empiricist in terms of one's outlook on the nature of 
the REAL world (ie a person who knows the difference between their fantasies 
and reality.)  Emerson is an example of an individual who was probably 
influenced by both Romanticism and the Enlightenment.  Per Emerson, 

   "You can build your dream castles in the clouds, as long as their 
    foundations are on the ground."

  However, the appeal of Romanticism was so great, that it tended to spill
over into the realm of philosophy as well-- to suggest that one could
approach ultimate truths in the REAL world, in the same manner that one
seeks after new fantasies and dreams.--Indeed, as we shall see, some Romantic 
philosophers went so far as to argue that one's mental "will" could influence 
and shape the physical world around us.

  Although the rationalism of the Enlightenment still operated in the
background, many new philosophers became more attracted to Romanticism-- and
its promise that looking inwards towards one's FEELINGS could be a valid method
for discovering spiritual truths. Many romantic philosophers began to look
down on the use of scientific empiricism and toleration espoused by such
Enlightened philosophers as John Locke.  According to the German romantic
philosopher Fredrich Schelling (1775-1854), "I mistrust Locke". This was the
view shared by many of the Romantic philosophers.

  As we have seen, Rousseau spearheaded the Romantic movement in France.
His writings, in turn, influenced the philosopher Immanuel Kant in Germany.

 Immanuel Kant--Bridge Philosopher from the Enlightenment to Romanticism

    Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) represents an important bridge philosopher
between the Enlightenment and Romanticism. Kant agreed with Enlightenment
philosophers that the EXTERNAL world can be learned through observation,
measurement, and the principles of inductive logic.   Kant was a competent
physicist, astronomer, geologist, and mathematician, in his own right. In his
CRITIQUE OF PURE REASON, Kant demonstrated how earlier proofs--such as the
Argument from Design--were only a play with words--and in themselves, could
really prove nothing. (See Chapter VIII, Chapter 1)

  However, Kant was greatly shocked upon reading Hume's assertion that
one can ONLY acquire knowledge through DIRECT experience.  Kant would later
say that upon reading Hume, he was "lulled out of his deep slumber" to work
on a new philosophy--one that proved that there is knowledge outside of our
direct realm of sensory experience.

  Per Kant, all humans are born with certain INHERENT knowledge--knowledge
that is acquired BEFORE any experience. (This was termed "a priori" knowledge
by Kant.) As proof of this mechanism, Kant pointed to the fact that our minds
are actively "hammering out order from chaos"--organizing impressions and data
not in any random order, but in an orderly and sequential fashion.

  To Kant, the mind's ability to take in and organize data was evidence of
some "innate" knowledge in and of itself--which we possess outside of our
direct field of experience. The mind receives sensory data from the world,
and then imposes order through the categorization of this data--producing
the "experience"  of the world of objects.  In addition, there are "forms" of
time and space, that are not learned, but are inherent to the structure of our
minds. These forms within our mind are the modes by which we interpret and
understand all sensory data. That is, we have knowledge of an object, not
merely from the sensations we receive from it, but from its transformation
into an IDEA in our minds.

   Unfortunately, per Kant we are limited from getting beyond this "thing in
itself"--ie the mechanism of our mind--to understand this realm beyond our
senses (called "noumenal" world by Kant).  Therefore, we are still limited
in ONLY "knowing" that which is within our sensory realm of experience.

  Yet, per Kant, there is surely a mystical/spiritual realm that EXISTS behind
that of our senses--even though we can not directly prove this. Our FEELINGS
(ie our conscience and intuition) are indications that this is so. Per Kant,
all of us are born with a sense of "right or wrong" (ie morality) which is a
universal principal, as opposed to being derived from our culture or experience.
Likewise, our sense of duty tells us that it is reasonable to assume that there
is a God behind our world of senses, who stands by, ready to reward us for our
good deeds. Although we cannot absolutely prove this, nevertheless, per Kant,
it is reasonable to assume that this is true.  (See Section VIII, Chapter 2).
Thus, to Kant, Rousseau was right, when he said that the feelings from our
heart, should be trusted over the logic in our heads.

   Kant earned the hatred of his native German theologians, when he argued
that religion CANNOT be based solely on logic--but instead can be individually
judged through our "innate" sense of right or wrong. Sympathetic to Rousseau
and to the French Revolution, Kant wrote that the Church had became corrupt--
that the Church had abandoned its moral duty to help and console those in
need--and had instead become a tool by reactionary governments to hold onto
power.  Kant was also in favor of establishing democratic governments, which
he believed would subdivide the greed and spoils enjoyed currently by a small
wealthy class among the large base of the people.  Kant hoped that in a
democracy there would be fewer temptations to get rich off by exploiting poor
natives through European imperialism in the Americas, Africa, and Asia. That
is, in a shared democracy, the riches now would work out to such a small
amount per man, woman, and child, that there would not be such a strong
financial incentive to exploit these native populations.

   Kant's philosophy closed one door towards mystical/religious speculation
by insisting that our senses are important in learning about the universe
around us. On the other hand, Kant simultaneously reopened another door, by
speculating that there were some forces operating beyond our direct range of
experience-- which could therefore be tapped into using more mystical means.

  Kant's philosophy of transcendental epistemology gave rise to transcendental
metaphysics. Followers of Kant claimed to follow his methods, but then abandoned
all of his constraints when inferring truths beyond the realm of our senses.
Heinrich Jacobi (1743-1819) believed our intuitions were the source of
spiritual truth.  J. G. Fichte (1772-1854) modified Kant's philosophical
model of the human mind imposing its categories upon experience--to argue
that every object in the universe was a "product of the mind".  This implied
that the laws of nature could be affected by human "will"--that our own
perceptions affected and gave shape to the reality of the world around us.

  Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) also praised the irrational powers that lay
hidden in the recesses of the "will".  In Schopenhauer's THE WORLD AS WILL AND
IDEA, he wrote, "Consciousness is the mere surface of our minds, of which, as
of the earth, we do not know the inside but only the crust...The intellect
may seem at times to lead the will, but only as a guide leads his master;
the will is the strong blind man who carries on his shoulders the lame
man who can see."

    Romantic philosophers stressed the spiritual, metaphysical side of nature--
often abandoning the empirical, scientific view of knowledge espoused by Kant
and other rational philosophers.  To Romantics, the universe was no gigantic,
mechanical clock set in motion by an impersonal Deity according to rational
laws--but instead a living Spirit, a boundless Will whose presence can be
experienced by humans. To understand the REAL world, one must therefore also
explore the realms of our FEELINGS and IMAGINATION, the inter-workings of our
spiritual selves, and how this relates to nature, humankind, and God.

Increase in Mysticism and Pseudo-science.

   With the Romantic movement promoting FEELINGS and the spiritual side of
nature--mysticism and the pseudo-sciences exploded to new popular heights.
This movement had of course predated Kant, with philosophers such as Rousseau
in France.  Even in Paris, during the height of the Enlightenment, Mesmer had
set up a salon in Paris in the 1770's promoting magnetism as a special
"healing" force. (Although Mesmer claimed that his magnetism was curing his
patients of such ailments as blindness, and mental diseases, modern
psychologists believe that his effects were all superficial-- ie all "cures"
were in reality effected by psychological techniques now known as hypnotism
and suggestion.  See Section VII, Chapter 3). There were, of course, many
other pseudo-sciences around other than Mesmerism: Other examples include
Lavater who taught that one's facial characteristics could predict character,
and the Rosicrucians and their presentations of spiritual apparitions.

  Mesmer taught his popular pseudo-science, around ten years BEFORE the French
Revolution-- sometimes in the very same hallways where Voltaire had performed.
Mesmerism is believed by scholars to have had a powerful influence on other
groups--notably that of Christian Science. (see Section IX, Chapter 3).

  Following Kant, the new intellectual bent towards mysticism became popular
among many German philosophers. Of these, probably the philosopher Hegel
went the furthest with this new thinking.-- Known sometimes as the
"philosopher's armchair" approach, this method attempted to "discover"
reality through the power of the mind! For example, using this technique,
Hegel inferred that there could logically be only seven planets and no more.
When Hegel "logically" deduced that there were only seven planets, he was
THEN in perfect agreement with science--that is until the eighth and ninth
planets--Uranus and Pluto were later discovered.

  Some historians have described Romanticism as a new ALLIANCE of philosophy
with theology, while de-emphasizing science. According to the article,
"History of Western Philosophy" in the ENCYCLOPAEDIA BRITANNICA (1973), German
idealists such as Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel brought to Romanticism its
"intensely serious, its quasi-religious and its dedicated character."
According to the same article, "It was not accidental that all [three] of
the great German Idealists were university professors, whose fathers were
Protestant pastors or who had themselves studied theology." (p 269)

Hegelian Philosophy

  George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) was the most influential of the
nineteenth century Romantic philosophers.  His philosophy would later have
a far-reaching effect across his native Germany, and the rest of Europe.

  Hegel believed that the role of the philosopher was to approach the
"Absolute" by letting it into one's consciousness, and recognizing it as
a Spirit that is present and developing itself throughout the march of
human history.  Hegel saw all previous history and human affairs as events
in one of many chapters in a book written by God-- in which everything could
ultimately be understood in the end result, to have had a "purpose" in
God's grand scheme of the universe.

  Hegel saw the forces of history as the conflict between two powerful
opposing ideas.  The dominant idea--or "thesis"--has weaknesses that lead
to a counter-movement that holds an opposing idea-- or "antithesis".  Out of
the conflict of these two ideas, both are merged together to generate a
new and more comprehensive idea or "synthesis."  Through this "dialectic
mechanism", Hegel saw mankind moving PROGRESSIVELY towards a more perfect
state of living--and an Absolute Ideal.

  Per Hegel, the role of religion is to reach and experience the Absolute
in which all opposites are merged together in one. God's being pervades all
material within the universe, becoming in man's subconscious the Absolute
Idea--ie thought realizing itself as a part of the Absolute, rising into a
heightened sense of awareness and knowledge.

  Hegel believed that knowledge acquired through the dialectical method,
made the final truths of religions "scientific". (Hegel would later complain
that few people frequently misunderstood what his philosophy was all about.
Modern commentators find Hegel's writings vague and therefore open to
different interpretations.)

  Hegel viewed all society as evolving closer to an Ideal state through the
divinely-directed mechanism of the dielectric--whereby the interests of
every individual would eventually become perfectly aligned with the interests
of society. Hegel, as did most other Romantic Idealists, worshiped the power
of the state, which elevated man from the status of animal to a noble creature.
Per Hegel, "The State is the Divine Idea as it exists on earth."

 To Hegel, struggle was the essence of spiritual existence. War was good--
for it served to purify the "ethical health of peoples corrupted by a long
peace, as the blowing of the winds preserves the sea from the foulness which
would be the result of a prolonged calm." Traditional morality ("modesty,
humility, philanthropy, and forbearance") should not stand in the way of
German "heroes" who were destined by Providence to lead the world back to
greatness. The State "must trample down many an innocent flower--crush to
pieces many an object in its path" to achieve its goals.  According to Hegel,
the State:

  "has the supreme right against the individual, whose supreme duty is to
   be a member of the State...for the right of the world spirit is above
   all special privileges..."

   A loyal and politically astute German, Hegel at one point argued that
the "Absolute" or "whole" was symbolically represented by the authority
of the German State. The German State was the highest revelation of the
"world spirit"--the "moral universe"--"the actuality of the ethical idea".
Indeed, per Hegel, the greatest progress in the spiritual development of
mankind had been from the leadership of Germans-- all the great men of
history were Germans--from Theodoric, Charlemagne, Barbarossa, Martin
Luther, to Frederick the Great.

  During the next centuries, Hegel's followers split along ideological lines
into two camps--the "Hegelian Right" and the "Hegelian Left". Romantic
philosophers on the RIGHT (such as Weisse and Fichte) found in Hegel's
philosophy an expression of the doctrine of Providence, and the justification
for authoritarian government. Romantic philosophers on the LEFT (such as
Feuerback, Bauer, and Marx) used Hegel's "dialectic mechanism" to explain
all history as an economic class struggle between the have's and the have-nots.
Hegel's references to the Absolute were de-emphasized in favor of an authority
represented by a perfect "State".

  Consequently, BOTH fascist Nazis and communists can trace important
elements of their fundamental ideologies to the authoritative, but
"progressive" philosophy of Hegel.

The French Revolution of 1789

  Many early Romanticists, following in the path of Rousseau, were in favor
of a VIOLANT social revolution to free the masses from their oppression. Even
Voltaire had warned that revolution in and of itself, would NEVER bring
about any REAL reforms, unless it had taken specific measures to deal with
the great disparity of income between the very rich and the very poor.
However, Voltaire strongly urged that reason and restraint be used over
emotion and violence in guiding society. When the French revolution came,
it more strongly followed the guidelines as established by Rousseau and
other Romantic philosophers.

  The AMERICAN Revolution--whose leaders were more strongly influenced
by the Enlightenment than by Romanticism-- began largely as a POLITICAL
revolt for independence against England.  In contrast, the French Revolution
began largely as a SOCIO-ECONOMIC revolt by commoners against the privileged
lifestyles of their nobles and king. The pent-up feelings of hostility and
rage against the social injustices imposed on the poor, found their most
satisfying emotional outlet in the writings of the Romanticists.

  In the previous century, France had emerged as a major European power.
However, its eminence had been achieved, to a great extent, through borrowing
money. At the same time, the lavish spending from France's kings and the
feudal privileges of the nobility had stood in stark contrast to the poverty
and misery of the common people.  Because ancient feudal restrictions had made
it almost impossible to raise much taxes from France's nobles and clergy, the
burden of taxation fell primarily on France's poor and labor classes.

  In desperation over their serious fiscal problems (Note: In 1789, the
French monarchy had a deficit of roughly 100 million francs, out of a total
budget of 475 million francs), the French monarchy allowed some reforms. An
Estates General meeting was assembled, modeled largely after the British
representative government, which included two estates for the nobility and
clergy-- and now for the first time included representatives from the commoner
class (mainly lawyers and professionals). Differences in opinion, led the
estate of the commoners to beak away and to create a National Assembly for
ruling France.

  The Assembly itself was divided between those who favored sweeping changes
(who sat on the "Left" side) and those who were more conservative (who sat on
the "Right" side). Thus, the terms of "Left" and "Right" which have come down
to us in modern times, originally came from the French Assembly's seating
arrangement for liberals and conservatives.

  Shortly afterwards, on July 14, 1789, a riot broke out in Paris, and the
Bastille--the hated symbol of the absolutist and despotic monarchy--was
stormed. Afterwards, it was the Left who triumphed.  During the two years the
Assembly was in existence, it nationalized Church lands, and abolished
feudal taxes and privileges. Equality before the law was proclaimed for all.

  Two of the more powerful leftest revolutionary groups were the Girondins,
and the Jacobins.  Opposed philosophically to each other, one group generally
espoused the views of the Enlightenment, while the other took up the cause of 
Romanticism. The Girondins, led by Condorcet admired Voltaire and the ideals 
from the Enlightenment.  Viewing the British constitutional system as a model 
for government, they believed in the political rights of the individual, and 
looked for constitutional "checks and balances" in the government (ie stressing 
"political" rights over "social" rights). Condorcet's constitution of 1793, 
which never went into effect, included provisions for the universal right to 
vote, and a single legislative assembly-- (ideals which were approved by 
Benjamin Franklin, who was also the U.S. ambassador to France around this time.)

  The left-wing Jacobins were led by Maximilien Robespierre.  Following
essentially Rousseau's view of democracy, their goal was SOCIAL equality,
and glorification of the power of the masses.  Rousseau (who had died in 1778)
had suggested that the ultimate source of authority over society should arise
from the "general will". In practice, this turned out to be a vague, mystical
term which could be interpreted in a myriad number of ways. For general "will"
could be interpreted to mean the majority of the citizenry (a democracy), the
strong hand of an authoritarian leader (dictatorship), or the strong hand
of a privileged ruling body (aristocracy.)

  The Jacobin constitution of 1793 provided for no separation of powers, no
limits on State power, and no guarantees of individual rights. Instead, it
sanctioned a plebiscite, which in effect ruled as a "democratic" dictatorship,
based on the general will of the people, who in theory would share in the
wealth of the country. (However in actuality, real power was relegated to
a small minority.)

  After the Bastille was first stormed in 1789, King Louis XVI still remained
on the throne.  Both the French nobility and the clergy were greatly concerned
about their loss of authority. In 1792, European tension over the new
constitution led France into war first with Austria, and then with Prussia.
Patriotism on the war effort led to concerns that the French aristocracy
were conspiring with the Austrians and Prussians, to restore the old order.
This led to even more revolts within Paris.

  In the summer of 1792, a new assembly was formed, called the National
Convention, which drew up a republican constitution.  This became headed
by Robespierre.  From Sept 1793 to July 1794, Robespierre conducted a
Reign of Terror against anyone who was perceived to be an internal threat.

   Robespierre's ideology can be seen in a later speech justifying his
terrorist tactics:

  "if the basis of popular government in peace-time is virtue, its basis
   during a revolution is virtue AND TERROR--virtue, without which terror
   is barbaric; and terror, without which virtue is impotent.  Terror is
   simply stern, swift, inexorable justice; it springs therefore, from
   virtue itself." (from Robespierre Defends the Terror, dated February 5,
1794 as quoted by Wesley D. Camp,ROOTS OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION, VII--
FROM THE ENLIGHTENMENT TO THE 1980'S, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1983)

  King Louis XVI and his queen Marie Antoinnette were imprisoned, and
(based largely on Robespierre's passionate arguments) sent to the guillotine
in 1793. Robespierre's ruthless tactics angered many in the Convention and
he himself was sent to the guillotine in 1794. After this period, the
Convention was succeeded by the Directory, which brought about a relaxation
in the Terror.

  During the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution which lasted roughly
two years, Robespierre (himself a deist) did not hesitate to execute both
religious and atheistic rivals accused of counter-revolutionary activity.
Some 20,000 individuals were estimated to have been executed during the Reign
of Terror, many of these the results of mass beheadings from the newly
invented guillotine. One of the many innocent victims, was the brilliant French
chemist, Antoine Lavoisier, who is regarded as the founder of modern chemistry.
(footnote: Lavoisier was under suspicion because of his previous membership
in the Ferme Generale, which was the tax-collecting agency of the monarchy.
He was also accused by the extremist Jean-Paul Marat of constructing a wall
around Paris in 1787, which, it was claimed, stopped the circulation of air
within the city.)

  It is an ironic commentary how the guillotine, (though unquestionably
used for a cruel and deplorable political end) was nevertheless considered
at the time, to be a RELATIVELY "humane", and civilized mode of execution--
This was because there was no torture involved-- compared to earlier
MEDIEVAL executions.

  Instead, the decapitation of the head was quick and essentially painless.
For centuries in both England and France, the wealthy had always preferred
execution by decapitation by a swordsman with a sharp sword, because it was
much quicker than any other known method of execution--including hanging.
Thus the guillotine was seen as a "simple mechanism" by which the common
public could obtain the same quick, painless execution that had previously
been reserved only for the nobility.

  The Church in France was placed under State control, along with all its
lands and privileges. French clergymen were forced to take oaths of loyalty
to the new republic constitution of France. There was an attempt early in the
Terror to abolish Christianity and to substitute the worship of Reason in its
place.  Robespierre, upon coming to power, replaced the Cult of Reason with
a deistic religion dedicated to the worship of a good, Supreme being, and to
the belief in the immortality of the soul. Finally, in 1794, the Convention
took the more tolerant step of allowing the individual to choose whatever
religion he decided.

  In 1795, the National Convention was held by more moderate to conservative
representatives.  That year, they issued a new constitution that allowed
all adult male citizens who could read or write, the freedom to vote for
electors (who in turn chose members of the Legislative Body).  Showing the
return of the conservative, aristocratic trend--only wealthy landowners
could be chosen as electors. In 1798, France became a republic.  The same
year, French armies marched on Rome and declared this area in Italy a republic.
The pope was taken as a prisoner by the French. He died shortly afterwards.

Napoleon Bonaparte

  After the emotional release from the destruction of symbols of the old
hated regime had worn off, the people yearned for a return to law and order
after the turmoil of this period.  Although everyone was now equal before the
law, there had been little economic improvement in the lives of the peasants.

    In addition, the new official ceremonies stressing such abstract
philosophical concepts as reason, liberty and a cosmic Supreme Being,
seemed cold and impersonal to the majority of people. Enlightened and
romantic philosophies could inspire intellectuals--but these seemed empty to
the common people who were used to their rituals and personal promises of
individual salvation.  Most people were ready for an official re-instatement
of the Catholic Church!

  According to Rivarol, in his DISCOURS SUR L'HOMME INTELLECTUEL ET MORAL
(1797), intellectual philosophy would never take the place of emotionalism
in religion: "The radical defect of philosophy is that it cannot speak to the
heart...Even if we consider religions as nothing more than organized
superstitions, they would still be beneficial to the human race; for in
the heart of man there is a religious fibre that nothing can extirpate."

  In 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte (who had been the French army commander and
defeated by the British under Admiral Nelson) returned to France and was
made First Consul to a new French government, replacing the Directory.
He was only thirty at the time. One of Napoleon's earliest moves was
to make a truce with the Catholic church. According to Napoleon, "The
influence of Rome is incalculable. It was a serious error to break with
this power." Napoleon's reasons were not religious in nature but purely
political:

  "How can a state be well governed without the aid of religion? Society
  cannot exist unless there is inequality of wealth, and equality of wealth
  is intolerable without religion.  When a man is starving to death beside
  another who is gorged, he cannot accept that disparity without some
  authority who says: God has decreed that there must be rich and poor in
  this world, but in the next and throughout eternity, it will be the
  other way around." (Wesley D. Camp, ROOTS OF WESTERN CIVILIATION, VOL II,
FROM THE ENLIGHTENMENT TO THE 1980's (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1983,
p 37, quoting letter from Napoleon in Paris dated August 13, 1800).

  Napoleon claimed that he personally had lost his faith by the time he was
eleven. This occurred after learning that Caesar and Cato "the most virtuous
men of antiquity would burn in eternal flames for not having practiced a
religion which they knew nothing." When he was seventeen years old, he wrote
an essay stating that Christianity was harmful for the country. He believed
instead in a code of honor and military ethics. (Paul Johnson, HISTORY OF
CHRISTIANITY, p 363)

  Napoleon remained an agnostic throughout is lifetime, although he believed
the soul might be composed of some electric or magnetic force. Still, he found
it practical to go through religious ceremonies, as he found that many
statesmen would not deal with him, unless he at least appeared to believe in
the existence of a God. In 1801, he concluded a concordat with the Papacy,
making the Catholic church once again the official church of France.

  Napoleon's dream was to establish a new empire patterned after such great
emperors as the Caesars, Alexander the Great, and Charlemagne. In 1804, a
popular vote was held within France to officially elect Napoleon as
Emperor--Napoleon won by a huge, popular landslide.

  During his coronation, Napoleon had been expected to kneel before Pope Leo
III in Rome, while the crown was being placed upon his head. Instead, Napoleon
seized the crown from the pope's hands and placed the crown on his own head.
In addition, Napoleon insulted the pope by swearing to uphold "freedom of
religious worship" during his reign.

The Napoleonic Empire

  Napoleon looked to Charlemagne as his role model. In 1806, Napoleon crowned
himself a second time, this time with the celebrated "iron crown" of Lombardy--
which had been worn by Charlemagne, Otto the Great, and other European kings.
Standing before the tomb of Charlemagne, Napoleon promised, "There will be no
peace in Europe until the whole Continent is under one suzerain, an Emperor
whose generals have become monarchs." At another time, Napoleon compared
himself again to Charlemagne, "I did not succeed Louis XVI, but Charlemagne."

  In 1806, Napoleon's French armies took on the combined forces of Russia
and Austria at Austerlitz.  On the morning of battle, the area was covered
with a thick fog.  Austrian and Russian forces took advantage of the fog
to complete their maneuvers without Napoleon's troops seeing them.  But
then suddenly  the sun broke through the mists, and Napoleon seized the
opportunity to send his troops into a what became a stunning victory. Many
people interpreted the result as a "MIRACLE".

  Again Napoleon appeared unbeatable, winning a battle against Prussia later
in the same year. He was now the unchallenged ruler of Western Europe.  A
confident Napoleon wrote to Rome, "Tell the Pope, I am Charlemagne, the
Sword of the Church, his Emperor, and as such I expect to be treated!"

  Pope Pius VII, refused to play any role in Napoleon's envisioned continental
Empire. Napoleon retaliated by sending French forces in 1808 to occupy Rome.
Pope Pius VII was arrested. During this time, Napoleon wrote his brother that,
"The present Pope has too much power...Priests are not made to rule".

  The following year, Napoleon appropriated the Papal States, and annexed
them as a part of the French Empire. Pius retaliated by excommunicating
Napoleon.  Napoleon's response? "In these enlightened days none but children
and nursemaids are afraid of curses."  The pope was held prisoner until
Napoleon's fall from power.

Decline and Fall of Napoleon's Empire

  It was after this time, that Napoleon made the greatest mistake of his
career.  Convinced now of his own invincibility, Napoleon determined to
expand even more by incorporating Russia into his Empire. He sent an army
of 600,000 men into Russia in 1812. The Russians retreated, burning everything
behind them so that the French would be hurting for food and supplies. The
strategy worked. When the French armies reached Moscow in the fall, the
freezing winter killed thousands of soldiers. Then the disastrous retreat
began. Napoleon lost some 2/3's of his troops on the way back to France.

  In 1813, a consolidated army of Austrian, Prussian, and Russian armies
defeated the weakened French army. Napoleon was forced to abdicate, and
was sent into exile on the island of Elba.  He escaped and formed a new
army, which was crushed almost immediately. In 1815, Napoleon was this
time held prisoner on the volcanic island of Saint Helena. He died in 1821.

Europe After Napoleon

  After Napoleon's defeat, France returned back to the control of the French
Burbon kings--with Louis XVIII, brother of Louis XVI now reigning on the
French throne.  Austria was given control over the German Confederation of
States (which had been a decentralized group of German princedoms before
being consolidated into Napoleon's Empire.) Likewise the northern Italian
states were under the control of Austria. During this time, the office of
Holy Roman Empire of the Germanic states was officially terminated.

  France remained a monarchy until 1848, when a new revolutionary fervor
swept the area. The King fled to England and a new republic was set up.
Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, a nephew of the late Emperor Napoleon I, was easily
elected as president of France's Second Republic.  Three years later, a vote
was taken in favor of giving Napoleon III authoritarian powers for the purpose
of restoring the French Empire.

   During this time in France, the forces of republicanism and Catholicism
clashed along ideological battle lines: For example, according to, Count
Albert de Munn, a loyal Catholic: "The church and the revolution are
irreconcilable.  Either the church must kill the revolution, or the
revolution will kill the church." (Paul Johnson, op cit.,p 465). Napoleon
III, like his great predecessor attempted to compromise between these
two opposing forces by forming an alliance with the Vatican in Rome.

Nationalism Takes Hold in Italy/
Prussia Rises as a World Power

  Meanwhile in Italy, a growing movement was underway for Italian freedom
and unification.  After a series of wars, Italy become unified under Victor
Emmanuel of the House of Savoy in 1861. In the process, the Papal States
(which had been returned back to the papacy following the defeat of Napoleon)
were also seized and annexed to the new state of Italy.  By 1861, only the
city of Rome remained controlled by the Pope. Victor Emmanuel attempted to
capture Rome but was defeated by Papal and French forces in 1862. (The French
under Napoleon III saw themselves as protectorates of the Catholic papacy.)

  Under the Prussian Prime Minister Bismarck, Prussia won control of the
German states away from Austria. Bismarck had created a great stir when he
declared at the onset of his premiership: "The great questions of our day
cannot be solved by speeches and majority votes, but by blood and iron."
Bismarck's authoritarian style earned him afterwards the popular title "Iron
Chancellor". In 1870, Prussia defeated France at the battle of Sedan. Napoleon
III was forced to surrender.

  In 1871, King William I of Prussia was proclaimed German Emperor within the
Hall of Mirrors at the palace of Versailles in France. Northern and southern
Germany were united in what was called the SECOND Reiche. (The First Reiche,
was considered to be the kingdom of Otto the Great, who was crowned as Holy
Roman Emperor in 962 AD)

A Mood of Conservatism Hits England

  In England as with the rest of Europe, a mood of conservatism set in,
as the upper classes looked with horror at the French revolution, and the
prospects of it expanding to other countries--including their own. Still,
the rationalistic principles as espoused by John Locke and others had remained
a strong force within English society. Also, throughout the Enlightenment,
rationalism had filtered down even into the mainstream religions--such as the
Anglican Church, where reason and formal ceremony clearly replaced religious
fervor.

  However, many people now felt that something was missing.  A reaction of
religious hostility  towards the ideals of the Enlightenment set in. This
found expression in a return to evangelism among the working classes and poor--
and an experimentation with transcendentalism in liberal intellectual circles.

Evangelism

  England experienced great revivals of evangelism during the eighteenth and
early nineteenth centuries.

  John Wesley (1703-1791) who was to be the founder of Methodism, preached
of the "rebirth" that he had experienced at the age  of 35:

   "the 'eyes of his understanding are opened .'... He feels 'the love of
  God shed abroad in his heart."... And now he may be properly said to live...
  From hence it manifestly appears, what is the nature of the new birth. It
  is a great change...wrought in the whole soul by the almighty Spirit of
  God, when it is 'created anew in Christ Jesus' ...when the love of the
  world is changed into the love of God; pride into humility; passion
  into meekness; hatred, envy, malice into a sincere, tender, disinterested
  love for all mankind.  In a word, it is that change whereby the earthly,
  sensual, devilish mind is turned into the 'mind which was in Jesus Christ.'
  This is the nature of the new birth: "so is every one that is born of the
  Spirit".

  John Wesley, believed the rationality from the Enlightenment weakened
faith in the Bible.  For this reason he denounced the skepticism that had
developed in England and elsewhere regarding the existence of witchcraft
and ghosts. In 1769, he wrote in his JOURNAL:

   "With my latest breath will I bear testimony against giving up
   to the infidels one great proof of the invisible world: I mean that of
   witchcraft and apparitions, confirmed by the testimony of all ages."

And in another passage:

  "It is true, likewise, that the English in general, and indeed most of the
  men of learning in Europe, have given up all accounts of witches and
  apparitions as mere old wives' fables. I am sorry for it, and I willingly
  take this opportunity of entering my solemn protest against this violent
  compliment which so many that believe the Bible pay to those who do not
  believe it.  I owe them no such service.  I take knowledge that these
  are at the bottom of the outcry which has been raised, and with such
  insolence spread through the land, in direct opposition, not only to
  the Bible, but to the suffrage of the wisest and best of men in all
  ages and nations.  They well know (whether Christians know it or not)
  that the giving up of witchcraft is in effect giving up the Bible."
  (as quoted by Montague Summers, GEOGRAPHY OF WITCHCRAFT, University
  Books, 1970, p 169-70)

   Wesley's preached his message primarily to the poorer classes who belonged
to the Church of England. Although he remained a faithful member of the
established Church all his life, his revivalist movement broke off to later
form the Methodist Church.

  In America, a revivalist movement--known as the Great Awakening also took
place over during the first half of the eighteenth century. Another major
revivalist movement came at the turn of the nineteenth century--but there were
a number of small revivals between these two large movements. Jonathan Edwards
(1703-1758), was one of the famous evangelists that traveled across America.

 Believing that the recent events "proved" that people were living in the
"last days" before the Second Coming, Edwards gave the following three
examples as proof the End was near:

 (1) seeing the success of the Reformation (Protestantism) taking hold in
America,

 (2) the spread of the gospel among the heathen. (It was believed by many
that ALL men in the Western hemisphere would need to hear the word of God,
before the "End" would come), and

 (3) the American revival itself. (Jonathan Edwards, THE WORKS OF PRESIDENT
EDWARDS (London: Hughes & Baynes, 1817, Vol. V, p 221, as quoted by
George C. Bedell, Leo Sandon, Jr., Charles T. Wellborn, RELIGION IN
AMERICA, (Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc, 1982, p 39)

 Edwards sought to evangelize the whole continent of America. He thundered
for sinners to repent before the "Hands of an Angry God", before it was too
late and they were flung to hell:

  "O sinner! Consider the fearful danger you are in...It would be no wonder
  if some persons, that now sit here in some seats of this meetinghouse
  in health, and in quiet and secure, should be in hell before tomorrow
  morning."

and,

  "The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider,
   or some loathsome insect, over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully
   provoked."

   Such passions were aroused by his sermons, that it was reported that before
he would finish, there would always be "a great moaning and crying out
through the whole house. The shrieks and cries were piercing and amazing.
Several souls were hopefully wrought upon that night, and oh, the cheerfulness
and pleasantness of their countenances that received comfort!"

   There was a second great revivalist movement in America, this time more
typically along the Western frontier. With religious feelings at a high level
during these times, it is probably not surprising that these helped spin off
new Christian sects in America--including Mormonism, Christian Science,
Spiritualists, Shakerism, Millerism (from which originated Adventists and
Jehovah's Witnesses), in addition to Christian communal experiments such as
the Ebenezer Society and Bethel Community. (Discussions of some of these--
Mormonism, Christian Science, and Millerism have been deferred to Section IX,
to give a more comprehensive treatment of their doctrines and beliefs.)

The Transcendentalists

   By the nineteenth century, the movement towards romanticism found form
in a new transcendental realm--where great truths were seen to be imparted in
symbols which contained mystical meaning. Some romanticists had found it
impossible to accept the stories in the Gospels as literal historical
truths. Instead they interpreted Jesus' sayings as representing spiritual
truths--whereby Jesus now symbolized humanity's relationship to and
consciousness of God. The mystery of faith became replaced by a mystery of
beauty and nature. (Pelikan, JESUS THROUGH THE CENTURIES, p 194-8)

    Many of the transcendentalists were associated with the Unitarian Church.
The American Unitarian Association was officially formed in the United States
in 1825.  Its doctrines and members appealed to many early Americans--
including Enlightened rationalists such as Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin
Franklin--in addition to romantic transcendentalists, such as Henry David
Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Transcendentalism in the United States

  Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) captured the 'aesthetic' mystery associated
with transcendentalism, when he urged others to:

  "look upon Nature with the eye of the Artist", so that in that way he
   could "learn from the great Artist whose blood beats in our veins, whose
   taste is up springing in our own perception of beauty." (Ralph Waldo Emerson,
   EARLY LECTURES, 3 vols, (Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1961), 
1:73.)

  This spiritual quality of feeling one with Universe pervades Emerson's
writings:

  "Standing on the bare ground--my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted
  into infinite space--all mean egotism vanishes.  I become a transparent
  eyeball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being
  circulate through me; I am part or parcel of God...I am the lover of
  uncontained and immortal beauty."(Emerson, NATURE, Atkinson ed., pp 6, 9)

  In 1838, Emerson delivered an address to in the senior class of the Harvard
Divinity School which scandalize New England for the next thirty years.  In
this address, he attacked "historical Christianity" for having "dwelt...with
noxious exaggeration about the person of Jesus", when instead, "the soul knows
no persons".

  According to Emerson, one should "live after the infinite Law that is in you,
and in company with the infinite Beauty, which heaven and earth reflect to you
in all lovely forms"; the church instead demanded that "you must subordinate
your nature to Christ's nature; you must accept our interpretations, and take 
his portrait as the vulgar draw it."

   "This is not only a violation of man's spiritual goodness, but also
  a violation of the authentic portrait of Jesus. This portrait of Jesus
  had already suffered a grave "distortion" even in his own time, and
  even more so "in the following ages". The church could not tell the
  difference between prose and poetry, and those who now professed to being
  the "true" followers of Jesus threatened anyone who disagreed with them
  with the following: "This was Jehovah come down out of heaven.  I will
  kill you, if you say he was a man."

  Of course Jesus "spoke of miracles", but this was because "he felt that
man's life was a miracle...and he knew that this daily miracle shines as the
character ascends."  However, when this theme is taken up by the religious
establishment, "the word Miracle... gives a false impression; it is a
Monster," instead of being "one with the blowing clover and the falling
rain." The result was what turned into conventional Christian teachings.  As
Emerson related, "I once heard a preacher who sorely tempted me to say I
would go to church no more.  Men go, thought I, where they are wont to go,
else had no soul entered the temple in the afternoon."  These preachers,
according to Emerson, "do not see that they make his gospel not glad, and
shear him of the locks of beauty and the attributes of heaven."

  To Emerson, a true conversion to Christ symbolized the "reception of
beautiful [universal] sentiments":

  " Jesus Christ belongs to the true race of the prophets.  He saw with open
  eyes the mystery of the soul.  Drawn by its severe harmony, ravished with
  its beauty, he lived in it, and had his being there.  Alone in all history
  he  estimated the greatness of man.  One man was true to what is in you and
  me.  He saw that God incarnates himself in man, and evermore goes forth
  anew to take possession of his World.  He said, in this jubilee of
  sublime emotion, "I am divine. Through me, God acts; through me, speaks.
  Would you see God, see me; or see thee, when thou also thinkest as I now
  think."

  Emerson went on to say that the "true teacher" of Jesus should emphasis
the present form --'Jesus speaks', instead of the past-- 'Jesus spoke'.
Otherwise, "the true Christianity--a faith like Christ's in the infinitude
of men--is lost."  (Emerson, AN ADDRESS, Atkinson ed., pp 67-84, as referenced
by JESUS THROUGH THE CENTURIES, pp 202-204)