William Whiston

William Whiston (December 9th, 1667 - August 22nd, 1752) is a theologist, a historian and a mathematician English. It is undoubtedly better known for its translation of works of Flavius Josèphe, the such judaïques Antiquités, for its book a new theory of the Earth and for its Arianisme.

Youth and beginning of its career

William Whiston is born with Norton, close to Twycross, in the Leicester. His/her father, Josiah, are the Recteur of this village, and his mother, Katherine Rose, the girl of preceding Pasteur. Fourth among nine children, it does not follow the courses of the public school, because of its delicate health and also because it is used as copyist with his father who lost the sight. It is thus the latter which ensures its education to its entry the college of Tamworth at the 17 years age. His/her father will die shortly after. Two years later, in 1686, it enters in Clare College of Cambridge like “sizar”, i.e. exempted of a certain part of the registration fee and operation, because of its precarious financial position. It is registered in mathematics, obtains its B.A in 1690, its Master in 1695, and is elected “Fellow”, i.e. part-time lecturer, in 1691 and 1693. But its fragile health obliges it soon to resign of its tasks of teacher.

In accordance with the wishes of his/her father who wished that it enters the Ordres, it is ordered Pasteur presbytérien by William Lloyd with Lichfield in 1695, and it becomes Chapelain of John Moore, bishop of Norwich. The following year it publishes its principal work: has New Theory off the Earth from its Original to the Consummation off All Things , translated into French under the title Nouvelle Theory of the Earth, since creation until the consumption of all things . It attempts to it to prove that the creation of the world in six days, as well as the sign the Bible, is perfectly in agreement with the reason and philosophy. It is pressed on the physics of Newton and the last projections of the Géologie to corroborate the biblical account. It obtains the congratulations of Newton, to which it book is dedicated, and of Locke, which arranges the author with the number of “those which, if they do not add anything to our knowledge, bring at least new matters to our reflection”.

It becomes, with Edmond Halley, one of the first partisans of the periodicity of the Comet S, when it advances that the comet of 1680 is that which caused just the Déluge at the time of a passage above the Earth. That enables him to precisely date this event at November 18th from year 2349 before our era. It supports that the comets are responsible for the catastrophes which the Earth throughout its history knew, and which they are guided by the divine will. This work was a great success; it had six editions, was translated into French and German, and more or less directly influenced the scientists of the time, like Buffon. Whiston perhaps took as a starting point the work of Thomas Burnet Sacred Theory off the Earth published four years earlier.

In 1698 it obtains the vicariate of Lowestoft and is replaced near the bishop of Norwich by Samuel Clarke. The following year, it Marie with Ruth Antrobus, girl of the headmaster of the college of Tamworth, which will give him eight children. In February 1701, he resigns of his vicariate to become assistant of Newton in Cambridge, and, in May 1702, he succeeds to him like professor lucasien of mathematics. Always occupying as much theology than mathematics, it publishes this year Exposé chronology of the Old Testament, and harmony of the four evangelists , then the following year, Nouvelle edition of Euclide, with a choice of theorems of Archimedes and corollaries for the students of Cambridge. It is devoted to research with his young colleague Roger Cotes, named in 1706 first professor plumien thanks to the recommendation of Whiston. It is them which introduce the first courses of experimental physics in Cambridge.

Arianism and continuation of its career

In 1707 he is lecturer of Robert Boyle, and, during several years, he will continue to write, preach, teach mathematics and theology with great success. But the study of the apostolic Constitutions convinces it that the Arianisme was the belief of the initial Church. For Whiston, to be formed an opinion and to publish it are almost simultaneous processes; it publishes Sermons and tests on various subjects , where it exposes its opinion hétérodoxe on the Dogme of the Trinité, also advancing that Jesus-Christ had really had brothers and sisters. Clarke gives him the council vainly to keep silence on these delicate matters. Its heterodoxy becomes notorious, and it is quickly an object of scandal for the majority of his colleagues. October 30th, 1710, in front of his refusal to recognize that it is in the error, one withdraws his professorship to him, and its expulsion of the university is marked in a solemn way. It is looked at then like a victim of religious intolerance, and it is only shown burning to make parade of its opinions. It will pass the remainder of its life in ceaseless polemics, theological, mathematical, chronological and different. Its arianism will prevent it from becoming member of the Royal Society, probably because of the opposition of Newton, which is then the president. One allows him nevertheless to make frequent conferences there.

In its primitive Christianisme restored (5 vol. 1711-1712), it justifies its opinion on the apostolic Constitutions and the arien point of view of that it withdrew some. In 1713, it establishes a reformed liturgy, and, in 1715, founds the Company of Promotion of Primitive Christianity. It gives conferences in favor of its theories in rooms and coffees of London, Bath and Tunbridge Wells, like in its London residence. In 1714, it takes part in the creation of the Commission of Longitude, and during the forty following years, it will try with perseverance to solve the problem of longitude. A sum of £20.000, considerable for the time, was offered to that which would give a simple method to determine the longitude of a ship at sea. Not sparing neither its time, nor its money, Whiston will propose several solutions, but none them will be retained. To improve its financial position, it joins Francis Hauksbee, and they give courses of Mécanique, of Hydrostatique, Pneumatique and Optique. They will be among the first to make experimental demonstrations during their conferences. Between 1719 and 1721, it draws up one of the first charts of the isoclinics of the south of the England, by-product of its research on the problem of longitude. In 1730, it publishes Mémoire on the life of Samuel Clarke , deceased the previous year.

Although regarded as heretic on many points, he believes firmly in the supernatural Christian, and he frequently takes the defense of the Prophétie S and the Miracle S, including the Onction patients and the cure of the scrofula by the king. Its aversion for the Rationalisme in religion does of him one of the many opponents with Benjamin Hoadly and its work Plain Account off the Nature and End off the Sacrament off the Lord' S Supper (1735), translated into French under the title Exposé sacrament of Cène . It is thrown in the religious controversies, supporting that the Cantique of the canticles is Apocryphe and that the Book of Baruch is not it, disputing the teaching of Athanase of Alexandria with same virulence that the orthodoxe ones had treated Arius, calling in question successfully the biblical chronology of Newton, and defending with insistence the discipline and the organization of the Church, derived from the Apostolic Constitutions , near the ecclesiastical authorities, being astonished that they do not see the things in the same way only him. In 1736, it causes a fear in any London when it announces that the end of the world will occur on October 16th of this year, because a comet was going to run up against the Earth. William Wake, the Archbishop of Canterbury, must itself contradict this prediction in order to reassure the population.

Of all its singular opinions, most known is its plea in favor of the clerical monogamy, immortalized in The Vicar off Wakefield of Oliver Goldsmith; of all its work, most useful is its translation of works of Flavius Josèphe with notes, charts and comments, still often republished nowadays. Its famous last “discovered”, or rather its resumption of Gilles Fletcher the Elder one, that it mentions in its autobiography with infinitely of kindness, is the identification of the Tatars with the Tribus lost of Israel. In 1745, it publishes its primitive New Testament . In spite of these unceasingly renewed demonstrations of its doctrines hétérodoxes, it continued to belong to the church Anglican, when in 1747, at the 80 years age, it leaves this church with the clean direction as with the illustrated direction, since it leaves the church at the time when Pasteur recites the Symbole of Athanase, and it goes to the anabaptists to make profession of faith.

Little before its death, it announces a new prophecy: according to several passages of the Holy Scriptures, the Juifs will return in their country and will rebuild their Temple in the year 1766. It will not be able to see its contradicted prediction, since it dies on August 22nd, 1752 in the house of his son-in-law with Lyndon Hall. It left its clean Mémoires in 3 volumes, which deserve more attention than they did not receive any, as much for their particular style that for the anecdotes curious and the illustrations about the tendencies morals and nuns of the time that they contain.

Works

New Theory of the Earth, since creation until the consumption of all things (1696)
Exposed chronology of the Old Testament, and harmony of the four evangelists (1702)
New edition of Euclide, with a choice of theorems of Archimedes and corollaries (1703)
Test on the Revelation of saint Jean (1706)
Course of astronomy , ( Prælectiones astronomicæ ) (1707)
Arithmetic universal of Newton (1707)
Sermons on the achievement of prophecies (1708)
Test on the apostolic constitutions (1708)
Sermons and tests on various subjects (1709)
Course of physics and mathematics , ( Prælectiones physicæ mathematicæ ) (1710)
primitive Christianity restored (5 vol. 1711-1712)
Humble address with the princes of Europe for the admission of the Christian religion in their States (1716)
Memory on the life of Samuel Clarke (1730)
primitive New Testament (1745)
Memories (3 vol. 1749-1750)
Translations of works of Flavius Josèphe

Sources and references

Books

Larousse of the XIXe century
universal Biography of Michaud

External bonds

Biography of William Whiston
Works of William Whiston
" William Whiston and Déluge" by Immanuel Velikovsky
" Whiston' S Flood"
Whiston biography At '' Chambers' Book off Days ''
Whiston biography At NNDB
Somme off Whiston' S views one biblical prophecy
" William Whiston, The Universal Flood, and have Terrible Spectacle" by Roomet Jakapi
"Fitting geomagnetic fields before the invention off least squares" by William Whiston
'' Collection off Authentick Records '' by Whiston At the Newton Project
William Whiston, 1667-1752
Collection off William Whiston portraits At England' S National Portrait Gallery

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