For a talk I have been asked to give about the story I tell in this comment about the connection between Benjamin Franklin and the 13th century Persian poet Saadi, I am hoping someone can point me to some information regarding the context within which Jeremy Taylor wrote A Discourse of the Liberty of Prophesying. I am especially interested in what motivated him to write in favor of religious tolerance, at least for other Christian denominations.
Thanks in advance.
The Wikipedia page on him is pretty in-depth, surprisingly enough.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Taylor
Short answer: it was the height of the English Civil War, and he himself was a fugitive from the Catholic oppressors from time to time. Although it doesn’t say specifically, I would guess (in fact, I would bet money) that the key triggering event was the execution of his dear friend and patron, William Laud, the Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1645 – one year before he wrote A Discourse.
The Wikipedia page has some scholarly bibliography entries, if you need to mask the shame of crowdsourced knowledge.
Thanks, Robert. Technology is strange. I could not get to Wikipedia when I posted this, and you’re right. It has precisely what I need, for now. I can worry about the scholarly dressing later.
No problem.
That will be $9,000.
The bill will be itemized, yes? I can’t wait to see it.
Of course.
Wikipedia Lookup 1@$25.00 $25
Computer Hardware Installation 1@$1000 $1000
College Education 1/100@$100000 $1000
Whiskey Charge 3@$25.00 $75
Bill Itemization Fee 1@$6900 $6900
——-
$9000
I accept PayPal and grocery bags stuffed full of $20s.
Wait a minute! Three whiskeys? Three? That seems like a bit much, don’cha think?
The time to negotiate the fee was before you accepted the work, sir.
Reminds me of the old story about the man who needed to get some heavy equipment lowered carefully into a hole in the ground. A contractor said “I’ll do it for $20,000”. The man was desperate, so he said “O.K.”. The contractor brought in a gas-powered pump, some pipe, a Bobcat and two tons of ice. He put the pipe in the hole, filled the hole with ice, pushed the equipment on top of the ice with the Bobcat and pumped the water out as the ice melted.
The contractor presented a bill for $20,000. The man, despite his agreement, said “That’s a bit much, don’t you think? Can you give me an itemized bill?” The contractor said “Sure.”
Pump and hose/pipe rental: $400.
Bobcat rental: $400
Ice: $500
Knowing what to do with the pump, ice and Bobcat: $18,700.