The Enlightenment Confronts the Divine

The Debate Over the Lisbon Earthquake

On the morning of All Saints Day…..

It was Saturday November 1, 1755 , roughly 9:30AM when the earthquake hit.

As a city with the majority of its citizens following the Catholic faith, people were either already in church, or getting ready to go.

Total destruction……There were 3 trembles.Tsunamis were created sending 15 to 20 foot waves upriver and over the docks of Lisbon.Fires, started mostly by cooking fires and candles, raged for a full week before being extinguished.Tremors could be felt throughout Europe and North Africa.

Immediate aftermath

Thousands fled the city, blocking roads.

Prisoners escaped from jails.

Food was unable to enter the city.

Many of the injured did not receive care.

Europeans were alarmed & reacted to the news.

15,000 to 20,000 killed.

Lisbon was the 4th largest city in Europe. As a capital city and a major center for trade, the news spread quickly and groups of people tried to reason why and how such a calamity could occur.

How did they explain this event?

Since it occurred on a holy day, the majority of people thought this was an act of God. The clergy responded with their own explanations.Many philosophes looked to nature to explain this event using reason and logic.Another new group of thinkers, the deists, believed religion and reason could be combined.Some were less concerned about the cause than about the response.

Significance of Event

The Task!Students will be given 1 to 2 primary sources to read and represent in discussion.To prepare for the discussion, besides preparing note-cards to represent your main ideas, you are to choose 1 passage/quotation that best highlight the views from your source. You will email these to me so I can prepare a class worksheet to use during our discussion and informal debate.You should also do some research about your assigned person so that you can represent their views well.Time to pass out the assignment sheet with readings.