Questions about the origin of the universe were part of theology, since they clearly had theological implications. But beyond that, theology also included studies of the natural world. Today, we call this “science,” but from the Middle Ages through the eighteenth century, it was called “natural philosophy” or “natural theology.” The best way to understand its significance is to look back to Platonic humanism, where the physical world was studied as a vehicle to lead us back to God. In other words, understanding the physical universe was a means of understanding bigger philosophical and
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