The Sequel to the Count of Gabalis, or New Discourses on the Secret Sciences

the Barque of Peter original: "Nacelle de Pierre." This is a traditional metaphor for the Catholic Church, referring to the boat from which St. Peter fished and the idea of the Church navigating the stormy seas of the world., under the pretext of repairing it..... God, always faithful to the promise He made to her—that the gates of Hell shall never prevail against her—has also raised up on His side extraordinary men to save her by the very same means by which the emissaries of Hell sought to destroy her. A true zeal for a general Reformation has inspired several great personages to work with tireless care to restore the purity of primitive morality This refers to "Primitivism," a movement seeking to return Christianity to the perceived simplicity and purity of the early Apostolic Church.; but by a secret judgment of God, their holy efforts have been in vain. In the past, I conferred with most of these great men; I told them my sentiments, but they would not believe me: I am not surprised that they were unable to succeed. One of them first wished to undertake the restoration of the ancient vigor of Discipline In this context, church discipline refers to the strict rules governing the conduct of the clergy and the laity. and the severity of the old Canons Canons: The decrees and laws established by Church councils to regulate faith and practice.. His plan failed: one must not go so openly against the torrent of the century's corruption; the human heart must be handled differently. Another, in league with the first, applied himself to a prodigious study in order to change the face of all Theology and to discredit the Scholastic Doctors The "Scholastic Doctors" were medieval theologians, such as Thomas Aquinas, who used Aristotelian logic to explain Christian doctrine. By the 17th century, they were often criticized by reformers and early scientists for being too abstract and rigid.,