The Religious Foundations of Francis Bacon’s Thought Eric Voegelin Institute Series in Political Philosophy: Studies in Religion and Politics Other Books in the Eric Voegelin Institute Series in Political Philosophy The American Way of Peace: An Interpretation,by Jan Prybyla Art and Intellect in the Philosophy of Étienne Gilson, by Francesca Aran Murphy Augustine and Politics as Longing in the World,by John von Heyking Eros, Wisdom, and Silence: Plato’s Erotic Dialogues, by James M. Rhodes Faith and Political Philosophy: The Correspondence between Leo Strauss and Eric Voegelin, 1934–1964, edited by Peter Emberley and Barry Cooper A Government of Laws: Political Theory, Religion, and the American Founding,by Ellis Sandoz Hans Jonas: The Integrity of Thinking,by David J. Levy Lonergan and the Philosophy of Historical Existence, by Thomas J. McPartland The Narrow Path of Freedom and Other Essays,by Eugene Davidson New Political Religions, or an Analysis of Modern Terrorism, by Barry Cooper Robert B. Heilman and Eric Voegelin: A Friendship in Letters, 1944–1984,edited by Charles R. Embry Transcendence and History: The Search for Ultimacy from Ancient Societies to Postmodernity,by Glenn Hughes Voegelin, Schelling, and the Philosophy of Historical Existence, by Jerry Day The Religious Foundations of Francis Bacon’s Thought S t e p h e n A . M c K n i g h t University of Missouri Press Columbia and London © Copyright 20006 by The Curators of the University of Missouri University of Missouri Press, Columbia, Missouri 65201 Printed and bound in the United States of America All rights reserved 5 4 3 2 1 10 09 08 07 06 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data McKnight, Stephen A., 1944– The religious foundations of Francis Bacon’s thought / Stephen A. McKnight. p. cm. — (Eric Voegelin Institute series in political philosophy) Summary: “Presents close analysis of eight of Francis Bacon’s texts in order to investigate the relation of his religious views to his instaura- tion. Attempts to correct the persistent misconception of Bacon as a secular modern who dismissed religion in order to promote the human advancement of knowledge”—Provided by publisher. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8262-1609-0 (alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8262-1609-9 (alk. paper) 1. Bacon, Francis, 1561–1626. 2. Bacon, Francis, 1561–1626.— Religion. I. Title. II. Series. B1198.M42 2006 192—dc22 2005022339 ™This paper meets the requirements of the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, Z39.48, 1984. Designer: Kristie Lee Typesetter: Phoenix Type, Inc. Printer and binder: The Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group Typeface: Adobe Garamond and Old English Publication of this book has been assisted by a generous contribution from the Eric Voegelin Institute. For Alen, Kim, Emma, Jeffrey, and, most of all, for Becky Contents Acknowledgments ix References and Abbreviations xi Introduction.Bacon’s Religion Obscured: The Problem of Reading in the “Future Indicative” 1 Chapter 1. The New Atlantis 10 Chapter 2. The Great Instauration 45 Chapter 3. The New Organon 72 Chapter 4. Themes and Images in Bacon’s Early Writings 103 Conclusion. Four Key Baconian Themes: Instauration, Providence, Vocation, and Charity 151 Notes 161 Bibliography 175 Index 189 Acknowledgments I would like to acknowledge two sources of funding that assisted with the preparation of this book. The Earhart Foundation generously provided a summer research grant, which allowed me to complete the research and prepare the initial full draft of the book. I should also like to acknowledge support from the Volkswagen Foundation. I am one of four principal inves- tigators of a project on “Mysticism and Modernity,” which was funded under the foundation’s program “Key Themes in the Humanities.” The grant permits collaborative research by an international team of senior scholars and postdoctoral fellows, who have an opportunity to meet annu- ally to report on their work in progress. I was, therefore, able to present my work to this international team as I was preparing this book. The grant also provided for some research assistance as I was preparing the manu- script for publication. I also want to express my gratitude to three colleagues from the fields of religion and the history of science who read the manuscript and made helpful suggestions for improvement. They are Jay Malone, Eugene Webb, and Steven Matthews. Finally, I want to thank my wife, Becky, who has patiently and expertly prepared each of the manuscripts from the first working draft to the final published version.