Richard Baxter, one of the most famous Puritans of the seventeenth century, is generally known as a writer of practical and devotional literature. But he also excelled in knowledge of medieval and early modern scholastic theology, and was conversant with a wide variety of seventeenth-century philosophies. Baxter was among the early English polemicists who wrote against the mechanical philosophy of René Descartes and Pierre Gassendi in the years immediately following the establishment of the Royal Society. At the same time, he was friends with Robert Boyle and Matthew Hale, corresponded with Joseph Glanvill, and engaged in philosophical controversy with Henry More. In this book, David Sytsma presents a chronological and thematic account of Baxter's relation to the people and concepts involved in the rise of mechanical philosophy in late-seventeenth-century England. Drawing on largely unexamined works, including Baxter's Methodus Theologiae Christianae (1681) and manuscript treatises and correspondence, Sytsma discusses Baxter's response to mechanical philosophers on the nature of substance, laws of motion, the soul, and ethics. Analysis of these topics is framed by a consideration of the growth of Christian Epicureanism in England, Baxter's overall approach to reason and philosophy, and his attempt to understand creation as an analogical reflection of God's power, wisdom, and goodness, or vestigia Trinitatis. Baxter's views on reason, analogical knowledge of God, and vestigia Trinitatis draw on medieval precedents and directly inform a largely hostile, though partially accommodating, response to mechanical philosophy.

Richard Baxter, one of the 17th century's most famous Puritans, is known as an author of devotional literature. But he was also skilled in medieval philosophy. In this work, David Sytsma draws on largely unexamined works to present a chronogolical and thematic account of Baxter's relation to the people and concepts involved in the rise of mechanical philosophy in late-17th-century England

Developments in medicine that took place in the 1600s were heavily influenced by the religious and politico-religious upheavals in English society. This work addresses the contending approaches to medicine at a time of dynastic flux, civil war and plague.

A review of literature and research in the history of science, medicine and technology in its intellectual and social context.

The interplay between science and religion in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries is an extremely complex historical topic which has led to an abundant secondary literature, characterized by many debates and interpretations. This reference source is intended to help students at various levels of expertise find their way and make use of this flood of secondary literature. The book, in the annotations, treats the following topics: Historiography; the Magic, Alchemical, and Prisca Traditions; Protestantism and the Rise of Modern Science; Christianity, Social Ideals, Ideology and Science; Social Institutions, Science and Christianity; Religion, Technology, Architecture and the Environment; Theology, Philosophy, and Science; Natural Theology and Natural Philosophy; Heretical Christianity, Deism, and Atheism; Science, the Bible, and Literature; Religion and Medicine; and Newtonian Studies. The major part of this book consists of an annotated bibliography of books and articles arranged alphabetically by author. This is followed by unannotated lists of bibliographies and doctoral dissertations. Three indexes are included: topical, relating each work to one or more broad topical categories; an index of persons who wrote or worked in the period under review; and an index of authors and editors of works cited in the bibliography. Initially designed for students, this guide can be used by non-specialists interested in science and religion.