The Enlightenment was a movement of thinkers who believed that science could explain Until then, most peoplebelieved that god controlled the universe in a"metaphysical" manner. Metaphysical means "beyond physical," and suggests that it isimpossible for humans to comprehend things that happen in our environment. Galileo was one of the first thinkers of the Enlightenment. Galileo used a powerfultelescope to discover that many moons surrounded Jupiter. He used his discoveries toprove the Copernicus' theory that the earth traveled around the sun. The church wasopposed to Galileo's discovery. Galileo was imprisoned for heresy and printers wereforbidden to print and of Galileo's writings. His students continued to discuss his teachingsand in time, the ideas of using observations and measurement were to become the root ofmodern science. The thinkers of the Enlightenment encouraged people to use science to explore nature andto question what they had always accepted without questioning. The Enlightenmentencouraged people to participate in government and to rethink old ideas like feudalism andprimogeniture. The American Revolution was seen by many as a huge achievement for theEnlightenment. Two hundred years ago, our Constitution provided for a governmentwhere nobody was above the law. People had freedoms of speech and religion, and thepress would be allowed to print any true statement. The Enlightenment also had a negative aspect. Many of the thinkers were atheists, whodid not believe in god. They often attacked religion and the faithful. Many were alsobloodthirsty in attempting to reach their goals. The French Revolution and the "Reign ofTerror" were two episodes of history that ended the period known as the Enlightenment. ...
