ABSTRACT
The worldview was centered mostly on religion, which permeated human thought and consciousness during the medieval period. Over the course of the 17th and 18th centuries, this changed dramatically, as the upper and middle classes came to see their worlds in secular and scientific terms. Few individuals abandoned their religious beliefs entirely, but the role of the church in relation to earthly affairs was greatly reduced as a "modern" worldview took shape. The cause of the scientific revolution was the development of precision instruments, including the clock. Through the medieval period, church bells tolled during the course of the day to mark certain events—dawn, midday, various times for prayers, sunset (the end of the work day), and midnight. Some ancient Greeks believed in a sun-centered system, while others accepted Aristotle's earth-centered system, around which the moon, planets, and stars revolved. Copernicus sought to reconcile competing beliefs in order to, as he expressed, understand God's handiwork.
