Non-periodic comets were
observed to follow hyperbolic paths. He used the concept of a
common center of gravity as a reference point for other motions.
The fact that the center of gravity of the solar system was within
the body of the sun verified that the sun was indeed at the center
of it.
Newton's "Principia Mathematica Philosophia Naturalis", was
published in 1687. The church denounced it as being against the
scripture of the Bible. Newton did not agree with the established
church on many points, such as the trinity, and was considered a
heretic. He had his own interpretations of the Bible and doubted
the divinity of Jesus. But it was accepted for dissenters like
Newton to qualify for full civil rights by maintaining an outward
conformity and taking the sacrament in the established church once
a year. Newton was given a royal dispensation from taking holy
orders as prescribed by the rules for tenure of fellows of his
college at Cambridge University. He did believe in a God who
created the universe and who had a ubiquitous presence in all
space. When Catholic King James II tried to have a Catholic monk
admitted to the degree of a Master of Arts at Cambridge University
without taking the oath of adherence to the established
Protestant church, in order to participate in the business of the
university, Newton was active in the opposition that defeated
this attempt.
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