130 Harrison
they are concerned with “divinity.” In this context, “divinity” refers to
revealed theology, which was concerned with more specifi c truths of par-
ticular religious traditions. Natural theology, or theology derived from
nature, by way of contrast, was thought to be concerned with universal
features of all religious traditions. Thus John Ray’s assertion that he pub-
lished the Ornithology “To the illustration of Gods glory, by exciting men
to take notice of, and admire his infi nite power and wisdom” is entirely
consistent with his avowed omission of discussions of “divinity.”^64 The
singular benefi t of natural theology as developed from the study of nature
was that it gave rise to universal religious truths of the kind likely to lead
to religious harmony rather than division. This was in keeping with the
Enlightenment preference for a universal and rational religion.
From about the middle of the seventeenth century a new hybrid genre
of natural theology emerged, called “physico- theology,” the primary pur-
pose of which was to lay bare the evidence of divine wisdom and goodness
as it was manifested in the natural world. The advent of physico- theology
ushered in the golden age of natural history, which fl ourished in the eigh-
teenth century on account of its theological credentials. Notable works
in this genre are John Ray’s classic The Wisdom of God Manifested in the
Works of Creation (1691) and William Derham’s Physico- Theology: or A
Demonstration of the Being and Attributes of God from the Works of Creation
(1711–1712). One hundred years after the inauguration of the lectures the
impulse that had inspired them was still strong. William Paley’s Natural
Theology (1802) was perhaps the most popular work on the topic ever writ-
ten, and it was followed by the Bridgewater Treatises (1833–1840) a group
of works devoted to the subject of “the power, Wisdom, and Goodness of
God, as manifested in the Creation.” These treatises, written by authorita-
tive fi gures and informed by the latest fi ndings in the natural sciences,
were runaway bestsellers.^65
While these theologically oriented natural histories were particularly
popular in England, the vogue for physico- theology also became wide-
spread throughout Europe. Bernard Fontenelle, for many years secretary
of the Parisian Academy of Sciences, sanctifi ed the activities of that august
body with his claim that the divine wisdom was most plainly seen in the
“mechanism of the animals” and that “true physics can be elevated into
a kind of theology.”^66 His sentiments were refl ected in the writings of Do-
minique Réverend and Noël Antoine Pluche, both members of the Catho-
lic clergy who wrote classics of physico- theology that were subsequently
translated into English.^67 Dutch naturalist Bernard Nieuwentijt produced
L’existence de Dieu, démontrée par les merveilles de la nature (1725), devoted
to the standard theme of natural theology.^68 The structure and behavior