Underground Rivers - University of New Mexico

Chapter 13 -- Hydrotheology/Theohydrology
John Ray (1628-1704), a devout Anglican, was a forerunner of
Linnaeus in biological taxonomy. Born the son of a blacksmith,
Ray became professor of Greek at age 20 and later a professor
of mathematics. Three Physico-Theological Discourses (1693)
ponders the wonder of the earth.
The Sea, what infinite Variety of Fishes doth it nourish! How
doth it exactly compose itself to a Level, of equal Supercies,
and in the Earth make one spherical Roundness? How doth is
constantly observe its Ebbs and Flows, and still retain its
Saltiness, so convenient for the maintenance of its Inhabitants,
serving also the Uses of Man for Navigation, and the
Convenience of Carriage?
Ray's Three Physico-Theological Discourses refuted Burnet's
view of mountains as blemishes on the earth’s surface. Among
such other benefits to humanity, mountains provide boundaries,
produce springs and rivers and contain caves providing refuge for
Christians.
To Ray, the hydrologic cycle was a unifying concept that incorporated a remarkable range of
facts. In light of his own observations and the findings of Perrault and Mariotte, Ray supported
the pluvial theory by correlating the relative size of watersheds to the magnitudes of their
respective streams and rivers.
Anglican clergyman William Derham (1657-1735) presented the
wonders of nature as proof of God’s existence in two works:
Physico-Theology, or A demonstration of the Being and
Attributes of God (1713) and Astrotheology (1714).
Physico-Theology, even more popular than Ray's Wisdom of
God, strove to show, how all facets of physical geography
interactively give evidence of "the most indulgent Creator."
Derham cited a spring in his own parish which he perceived
undiminished even when all the ponds in the country and all the
adjoining brooks had been dry for months. Likewise then spring
never increased in the rainy seasons, except for a few hours
after violent rains. Had the spring, he judged, originated from
rain or vapors, there would be change corresponding to such
causes.
Praise be to God for the underground stream.
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