宗教改革:近代科学产生的宗教背景

The Religion Reformation Movement:The Religious Background of the Origins of the Modern Science

从文化的角度来看,宗教改革及其所带来的转变构成了近代科学产生和发展的重要背景之一。宗教改革主张的政教分离,在很大程度上为自然科学发展扫除了体制障碍,人们可以按照自己的理解思考世界,为自然科学培育了批判探究和独立思考的精神,坚定了自然界存在秩序的信念。宗教改革所强化的认识自然就是认识上帝的观念,成为人类去探索自然界奥秘的宗教动机。宗教改革对于认识自然界可以给人类带来内在精神与外在财富的满足的强调,与自然科学的研究功能不谋而合。基督教所颂扬的发现人性、尊重人性、改造人性,经历宗教改革的洗礼而得到进一步彰显,个体入世工作的自身认知和社会外部认同,都形成了对从事自然科学研究的一定支撑。尽管宗教改革并没有从根本上消除科学与宗教的对立,有时甚至强化了这种对立,但是,它所涉及的上帝观、自然观和人性观三个层面的重大转变,都直接或间接地为近代科学之树的破土而出松动了土壤,输送了营养,并与其他的人文背景一起为近代科学之树的萌生和发展提供了必要的环境。

From the view of culture,the Religion Reformation and the changes brought about by itself constituted one of the important background of the origin and development of the modern science.The separation of State and Church that the religious reform advocated,had swept away the system obstacles in the development of the natural science to a great degree.Thus allowing people to think the world according to their own understanding,and it has cultivated the Critical Inquiry and the independent thinking spirit for the natural sciences and strengthened the belief of the existing orders in Nature.To recognize nature is to know God which enhanced by the Reformation had become the religion motivation of the human being exploring Nature.The emphasizing of being satisfied with knowing Nature can bring inherent spirit and external wealth,which was coincide with the research function of the natural science.It was the discovery of human nature,the respect for human nature and the transformation of human nature that the Christian glorified,got the further reveal at a baptism of the reformation.The individual's own cognitive and social external recognition on the Society-entry profession supported the Research of the Natural Science.Although the Reformation can't eliminate the fundamental opposition between science and religion,and sometimes even strengthened this kind of antithesis,the significant transformations from the aspects of the God view,the natural view and the human nature view which the Reformation involved——has provided the essential environment with other humanistic background for the origin and development of the modern science.