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UNCREATED -- only God above the line
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Created -- all below                All below this line of creation are CREATURES = beings created by God
 

        The Lords Spiritual                                                   Humans                                      The Lords Temporal

                  Pope                                                                 In family,                                                  King
                Bishops                                                                Father                                                  Greater Nobles
                 Priests                                                                Mother                                                  Lesser Nobles
               Laypeople                                                             children                                               Craftspeople and
                                                                                                                                                         Peasants

Note: the following symbolism comes from the 20th century economist, E. F. Schumacher:
M = material beings;  M+X = material beings that are alive; M+X+Y = material beings that are alive and conscious;
M+X+Y+Z = material beings that are alive, conscious and have a "Z" factor -- say reflective self-consciousnes.

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            Feature of High Middle Ages                                                                                 moderated by

                    PATRIARCHY -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------> RETURN OF THE FEMININE
                                                                                                                        (Mary, Arthurian chivalry, troubadour poetry)

                    HIERARCHY ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------> NOBLESSE OBLIGE
                                                                                                                          (Nobility obliges; rank has responsibility)

                    FEAR OF MATTER --------------------------------------------------------------------------> USE OF MATERIAL THINGS
                                                                                                                                            AS SACRAMENTS OF LIFE

                   GROUP IDENTIFICATIONS --------------------------------------------------------------> STRONG SENSE OF COMMUNITY

                        with their dark side of                                                                                 with positive features of
                    oppositional thinking, prejudice &                                                                             bonding, mutual aid,
                    discrimination against "the other"                                                                         common understandings,
                    race or religion or region.                                                                                         common goals

                    COMMON CREED, CODE, CULT -----------------------------------------------------> MYTHIC, MYSTICAL, SYMBOLIC
                        with potential for dogmatism,                                                                     WAY OF THINKING
                            intolerance, persecution.
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                The Medieval World                                                                         The Modern World
            (1000 C.E. --- 1500 C.E.)                         *                                         (1500 C.E. -- 2000 C.E.)

        The universe still seen as sacred                                                     The universe increasingly seen as secular
        & thought of as a living organism                                                             & thought of as a great machine
        with levels of energy, life, intelligence                                                 with all aspects reduced to matter only

        (Aristotle’s "science" has                                                                     (Galileo-Newtonian science has
        natures/ functions/ goals causes                                                              pushes -- like the forces
            as central)                                                                                         in billiards -- acting on units of matter)

        Qualitative/ value-based is primary                                                             Quantitative/ factual is primary

        Hierarchy is Ideal                                                                                                 Equality is Ideal --
        Noblesse Oblige & Loyalty                                                                             Liberty, Equality, Fraternity
        (elitism, paternalism expected)                                                                         (elitism, paternalism ideally should not be)

        Group-Oriented                                                                                                     Individualism

        Status                                                                                                                        Contract
        (rights and duties flow from                                                                                 (rights and duties flow from contracts
            customary understanding of roles)                                                                             freely entered into by equals)

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Compare with the features which Michael Barnes highlights as special features of the Modern World:
    [See Michael H. Barnes, rev. ed., In the Presence of Mystery (Mystic CT: Twenty-Third Publications, 1990)]

a) Modern Science -- Galileo, Newton -- theory + math + measurements

b) Secular Democracies with ideals of human rights and equal opportunity to participate

c) Pluralism of viewpoints + Relativism + Tentative, revisable nature of knowing

d) Scriptural scholarship applied historical, literary methods to sacred scripture

e) After Hegel and Darwin, development, growth, and change seen as positive;
                                                                                what is static and unchanging seen as less desirable.

In the Modern world,
                            knowledge is also of the Particular, the Factual, the Probable, and the Changing.
 

 On this, see Bernard Longergan's distinction between classical and historical consciousness in his Method in Theology.

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Key Sciences:

1600’s -- math and geometry

1700’s -- Newtonian physics -- billiard ball model -- matter in motion

1800’s -- Hegel, Darwin -- biology and evolutionary thinking

1900’s -- Einstein’s relativity; Heisenberg quantum physics; nuclear energy, computers