VIRTUOUS LIVING - Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University

your nature. We have set you at the world’s centre that you may from theremore easily observe whatever is in the world (see Shutte 2001:44-45).Artists and architects also promoted the Christian humanist concept of churchbuildings. Medieval architecture, with its elongated structure, had as its primefunction, to lead the faithful in an altar-focused service. The altar carried themagnificence of the divine presence. Only the view from the altar commanded acentral and single focal point. The Renaissance church, however, had a circular shapewith a central altar. Thus humans enjoyed the beauty that surrounded them with asomehow unfathomable feeling of being the central natural activity. Andrea Palladiooffered another mystic significance of the Renaissance cathedral. The onecircumference of the church meant that there was no beginning and there was no end.Each point was distinguishable from the other by the same equal distance from thecentre, yet all parts participated in the shape of the whole. This shape demonstratedvery well the concept of unity, infinite essence, uniformity, and the justice of God forall (cf Lee 1984:5; Hale 1966:127).Out of the Christian humanist movement was born the spark of reformation. Leeremarks:Humanism, therefore, made possible the rise of more fervent and extremedissent and criticism. The result, in a metaphor common to the period, wasthat Erasmus’s egg, when hatched by Luther, produced a different breed ofbirds (Lee 1984:6).A mixture of religious and nationalistic sentiments mocked the events that flowed outof this connection. The defiance of papal authority (Pope Hadrian VI –1522-23) byMartin Luther in 1522 was followed by the conquest of Rome by King Charles V ofGermany in 1527 (cf Hay and Law 1989:124-125).1.1.1.2.2 Secular humanismSecular humanists sought to influence every sphere of political formation. Theymanaged to involve themselves in nearly every sphere of civic life by filling most ofthe official government posts, as well as by business entrepreneurship.39