So this question is kind of tough to phrase, but basically I'm wondering how we got from thinking the earth was made by a spiritual power to our current understanding of the earth's place in the universe.
Obviously people still believe the earth was made by God to this day, but I'm assuming over the past few millennia certain groups have gotten different things more right than others.
So, for example, who were the first people to understand the earth as a planet, who was the first to accurately imagine the universe, etc.
While you're waiting for responses, you may be interested in a few earlier threads, since there have been several questions on early astronomy. Hopefully these will give you a start, or some ideas for more specific questions
What is the earliest record of a person theorizing that stars are suns and planets? - /u/TheLionHearted kicks things off in Ancient Babylon
When did humans become aware that they were on planet Earth, in a solar system, and part of the Universe? - /u/siecle moves on to the Pythagoreans
When did scientists recognize the planets in our solar system as (relatively) nearby planets, and not as other stars. How did they know that these celestial bodies were planets and not stars? - /u/Das_Mime brings in the Ancient Greeks and Romans
What was the Copernican explanation for the solstices? - /u/TheLionHearted gives a quick sketch of the Ptolemaic Geocentric Model
Why did the Catholic Church hold some pre-Christian ideas so highly? For example: Aristotle's geocentric theory. - Galileo proposes heliocentrism
We all know the story about how Galileo was shunned from the scientific community, had his books burned and was jailed for discovering that the earth rotated the sun, but how much if it is true? - more on Galileo from /u/ManicMarine
How sound was Galileo's case for heliocentricism? - /u/restricteddata takes a closer look at Galileo
Examples of Aristotlian physical science overturned. /u/Erft mentions Copernicus, Brahe, Kepler
It might also be worth x-posting to /r/AskScience (astronomy) for info on early astronomical theory, and /r/AskAnthropology for info from other cultures