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Galileo and the Church: Lessons Learned

Galileo and the Church: Lessons Learned. George V. Coyne, S.J. Vatican Observatory. Historical Precedents to Galileo’s Times. 384 -321 BC: Aristotle’s Natural Philosophy, physics not just mathematics 130 AD: Ptolemy’s Almagest, pure math, fictitious mathematical spheres

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Galileo and the Church: Lessons Learned

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  1. Galileo and the Church: Lessons Learned George V. Coyne, S.J. Vatican Observatory

  2. Historical Precedents to Galileo’s Times • 384 -321 BC: Aristotle’s Natural Philosophy, physics not just mathematics • 130 AD: Ptolemy’s Almagest, pure math, fictitious mathematical spheres • 1519: Martin Luther’s break with Rome • 1543: Copernicus’ De Revolutionibus • 1546: 4th Session of the Council of Trent

  3. Main Issues Lurking • Copernicanism (heliocentrism) apparently threatened Aristotle’s Natural Philosophy and Holy Scripture • Meaning of Hypothesis • Pure mathematical expedient, Pythagorean tradition • Physics, best scientific explanation, modeling

  4. Galileo’s Telescopic Observations:SidereusNuncius(1610) • First new data in ~ 2000 years • Challenge to Aristotle & Ptolemy: Moon’s surface, sunspots, Jupiter’s moons, phases of Venus • What about Scripture? “The Scriptures teach us how to go to heaven and not how the heavens go.”

  5. 1616: JUDGMENT OF THE HOLY OFFICE • Sun-centered universe is absurd in philosophy and formally heretical since it contradicts Holy Scripture. • That the earth moves about the sun is absurd in philosophy and at least erroneous in faith

  6. Who judged? • The Holy Office, Cardinals • The Consultors of the Holy Office, Theologians

  7. PRESENT THE PRINCIPAL CHARACTERS

  8. THE FUTURE ? • Who can tell? • But there are indications: • Authority • Religious fundamentalism • Scientism

  9. The Church and Galileo: Then and Now and ? • Urban VIII (1633): Galileo gave scandal to the whole Christian world • John Paul II (1979): Galileo suffered much at the hands of the Church • John Paul II (1992): From the Galileo case one can draw a lesson . . .

  10. THE FUTURE • Authority in the Church and authority in Science • Public opinion and the community of scholars • Evolution and Intelligent Design: What would Galileo say today? • Chance or necessity? God?

  11. The great British intellectual and Roman Catholic Cardinal, John Henry Newman, stated in 1868: “The theory of Darwin, true or not, is not necessarily atheistic; on the contrary, it may simply be suggesting a larger idea of Divine Providence and Skill.”

  12. Lessons Learned • Science and religion are independent areas of human culture; best serve that culture when they dialogue in mutual respect • Church must listen to and dialogue with the sciences • The limitations of science • There is no science in Scripture • Faith and reason: conflict?

  13. Retreat

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