Imagine having an idea. Not just a good idea but an awe inspiring thought or realisation. An idea that will change not just the way we think, but an idea that will challenge the very nature of our existence and cut through to the very heart of our beliefs, which we have held for the last 2000 years.
But at this stage even you have doubts. You are understandably nervous about the implications of this revelation. You sketch out your thoughts and your inquisitive but doubting mind makes you write, "I think" on top of the page.
Imagine having this glimmer of an idea and knowing that you now had to prove it. So you begin by gathering your evidence slowly but assuredly amongst all the other things that you have to do, as well as fending off bouts of illness. And you know it will take years - more than twenty years to be a little more precise.
But then somebody tells you that someone else thinks along the same lines. The race is on. You still have doubts but you think that there is no threat to your theory. Do you have enough evidence yet?
At last you allow your thoughts to be shared. Mixed reactions greet your publication many of which are surprisingly positive but there's also lot of scorn, ridicule and contempt. Even old friends are skeptical; some even turn their backs.
However, slowly but surely, other people produce evidence to back up your ideas and your theory becomes popular eventually becoming completely accepted (by most). In fact 150 years later even one of the few last remnants of disbelievers have no alternative to succumb:
The Church of England issued an article saying that the 200th anniversary of his birth was a fitting time to apologise to [him] "for misunderstanding you and, by getting our first reaction wrong, encouraging others to misunderstand you still".
Happy Birthday Mr Darwin! (12th Feb 1809)
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