Gutenberg Press

The Gutenberg press was invented in 1439 by Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg. A German goldsmith, Gutenberg discovered the concept of movable type printing which facilitated the printing press itself. His first published project was the Gutenberg Bible, a beautiful book and also one of the most important ever printed.

It was important because it showed clearly that the Roman Catholic Church had not been telling the truth about the Bible and its contents. People read printed Bibles and found out that they'd been lied to. This sense of injury led to the Reformation and to Protestantism as well. And Protestantism is just what it sounds like. A protest.

Eventually, nearly a hundred years later, Martin Luther nailed his Theses to a church door and set off a revolution. Religious wars that concluded only in 1648 followed as the power structure attempted to retain its footing despite information pouring from printing presses throughout the West.

But the press changed the world irrevocably. No longer could that day's power elite insist on rhetorical fantasies, developed for their own support, and pretend they were other than doctrine. Reality could finally be communicated, and gradually the factual artifices that had structured society collapsed.

One way or another, the press led to a resurgence of critical thinking. The Renaissance benefited tremendously from printed material. The Reformation and sundry religious movements were sparked by the Gutenberg press. The Age of Reason, with its emphasis on factual discourse was a result. The British parliamentary system was in part established because of the opening-up of society as a result of the press. On and on.

The free-flow of information provided by the Gutenberg press led to a tremendous efflorescence in Western societies. In politics, historical analysis, scientific thought, in almost every aspect of human endeavor, the information spawned by the press changed the world and made it a freer and more innovative place.

Now it is the turn of the Internet.