Humanity's yearning for liberation from all forms of discord has led thinkers in every age to bend their efforts toward contributing to the much desired result. Blind, indeed, have been the gropings of many leaders of thought who cherished the hope that they might advance mankind toward the goal of complete, righteous liberation. There are, however, numbers who have given impetus to better methods of thinking, and who have thus influenced subsequent ages: two of such may be mentioned here,—namely, Aristotle and Bacon. When Aristotle, "the father of philosophy," formulated the inductive and deductive methods of reasoning, he explained to humanity the implements of thought, the means with which to work in arriving at knowledge, the tools with which they could at least progress toward adequate reasoning. He used many new terms with which to facilitate thinking, among them the word "principle." But Aristotle dealt exclusively with the supposed mind of man, leaving out of consideration God, the infinite divine Mind—an omission which placed around his life-work the boundary inevitably encircling the finite.
In the centuries intervening between Aristotle and Bacon the deductive method prevailed. Bacon revived and popularized the inductive method to such an extent that he awakened a desire for free inquiry, investigation, experiment, and verification, one result of which was, however, that an overemphasis was placed upon the corporeal senses. Whenever the beliefs of the physical senses are registered in thought, materialism holds sway. The Baconian philosophy ushered in an age of materialism.
It is not in a system of profane philosophy, however masterly; it is not in the attainments of the physical senses, that mankind finds emancipation; as the centuries have proved beyond the necessity for argument. Rather is emancipation found in rising above these to acquaintance with God, who revealed Himself at Sinai as the "I AM THAT I AM."
