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Show ! Science and the i Catholic Church 1 , .. 1 I Some More About "Historian's" Knowledge of the "Dark f Ages" Church's "Persecution" of I Galileo Exploded. 1 i 3 J (rorMiu'-d from Last Week.) 1 If ln ur last Ispuc, the writer replying j (l ;,.!, -Hi's communication regard- ,, ;ii;itu:i of the church in the 1 rat!:' of iu- ation during the Middle I f(, s-imply stated facts. There was j Ji0 colnritv of th'-se facts, nor any at- f -. mi't t special pleading. The down- i .,11 of th 1 Ionian empire and the en- I j'soa.-jit!" tit -f the northern barbarians I (,n its lst civilization tested the power I an(j vitality of ihe ehureh at the com- I Ti.di 'in-nt of the sixth century. The I Ftrapple for supremacy between the i n.ap' Norsemen swayed by fanatio- fcni ami intolerance, and the church 1 ir d, ff-iisv nf Christian truths was se- I vf-rc. During the contest schools and I c:h r institutions of learning were de- ! Ftroved. leaving the church at this crit- j,ul period, and after her victory over' Hip north' i-a barbarians, devoid of I f hools. libraries and other instruments I of civilization, ller first efforts were I t revive Wrning and encourage edu- ration. Historian's judgment of that j j.. rioil is warpd. But enough has been j ,i.i to show that the church, by her I ,mh"rity. did 'not retard progress or ; (i;;iose the general diffusion of knowl- ! The case of Galileo, introduced by our S rir in his postscript, has been so I often rep-ated. and so well told that it I jrmks like spoiling a good story to give 1 the facts of the case. Jefferson wrote 1 that "error was harmless where truth I vas free to combat it." For nearly four I ov.turics truth has been combatting I tiu- false notions entertained of the at- tm:i of the church in regard to Galileo, I n-.'.d we have yet men who, like His- 1 jr;;o). l.-liee that Galileo was perse- i e;;ufl by the church for enlarging the I domain of science. Th" real facts in the case are, Galileo taimht that the earth had two mo- ti.;-.s. i. e.. the earth moved on its J t.sis every twenty-four hours and 1 jti'nuui the sun every year the diurnal i-.n,l annual motions. In this he 1 appealed to the Bible to confirm J and corroborate his heliocentric the-. I ory. The church authorities requested I liim to conduct his investigation on a j 1-. i-iitiiic basis, leaving the Scriptures Kit. For refusing to comply with this e: l,r he fas cited before the Inquisi-, 1 tien in 1615. No censure was passed j 0:1 him or his doctrine by this court of I inquiry. The request already made was I repeated, namely, that he speak as a j ii:a;he:natician, confine himself and his 1 (i.s..,v 1 i"s to scientific proofs. This J did not suit Galileo, and the following 1 r. ifiiti, he went to Rome and in- I sisted, lirst. that his doctrine was 1 ti-'iiinnst rated, and, secondly, that it I as supported by the Scriptures. Paul I V.. u;,,, vhs Supreme Pontiff at the I t:r!i-. r- f.-rred the matter again to the j laqtiisiUon. which decided against Gal- !!. continued its previous decision and I -k"d linn that he abstract all Scrip- tjral ! f. r nee from his investigation, i ar.,3 .! !,,,. what mathematical proofs 5 h" ren d in fa .or of his discoveries. I Those who try to distort the real j forts say. that Galileo was condemned I for hn.a. iiin- his theory. Nothing j ""lid ! naoe absurd. The heliocentric I ,i:"v 'as taught in Rome by Xich-, I "i s :1:s. ,, cardinal in the church, j j h. v.,:s b.,rn in 1401 and died in 1464. This v, ph. years before Galileo was j Wr.. .p-rnicus taught the same in : y-- 1. .0 ard .le Vinci in the year 1510 . I ;!. t .. theory of the fall of j . tie earth's motion. It was I ' '. . ;.ted at that early date. J V."h: . ! ipaiiico be condemned for I" ";;:. was taught and accepted l"ra ! ::.- !iis time? Nicholas Cu-S Cu-S l': i-. - v.. oi-,1 m 1464, is elevated to hi- -t dignity the church could )u ''.. i of his learning. Coper-' Coper-' ' ' - ,! it publicly in Rome in j ' M .- ..:skcd by the pope to assist i:i : o:. ; - tho -alendar. Leonard da I Vr" ' d,.-s it in 1510. He also is re- I Va!'l' i j.is learning. Galileo teaches I i! i !':. a:,.) there are people foolish vmil; i i , ..-'k-ve that the church con- h;.i. f..r teaching that same the- ' ' ' f-r hi -h she honored long before j h,N "i,, ,- ,-hildren of the church, j Tb"''' --.s y, condemnation, nor even J a - He was simply asked not j v, tne Scriptures, and to I Kvu, siu.ii. s as a mathematician "a , kntitic basis. He did so j I"' ii-v,'i;t(...Ii years subsequent to 1616, U!'"'- ih.- patronage of his friend Car- 1 ln 1 ;. rdinal Barberini w as ele-i ele-i j vt-d to the pontifieial throne, taking 1 n ' t'rban VIII. Emboldened by f j 'jiiil. ., violates his promise, and. if b'euts with derision the authority of v ,h,5 e!r,ir h. He- was summoned to Rome . a,1d condemned, not however, for his i thr-c-v, !,ut for his COntempt of author-' author-' ) py'.XVhat is the punishment inflicted? v ;'- not imprisoned, for he resides in I,i;''e of his friend, the Tuscan am-Utssador. am-Utssador. During his trial the con-nnr" con-nnr" nt. of which we read . so many j derated stories, consisted of a well urniKhwl room in the palace of the sH-al of the inauisition. This historical s i I narrative is taken from Drinkwater and Whewell, both non-Catholics. They are plain, simple facts, admitted by all impartial writers. The charge then, that the Catholic church assumed a hostile attitude to science because of its treatment of Galileo, has no foundation foun-dation in the real merits of the case, and "Historian," if in search of a case, could find a real one in the case of Kepler, a Lutheran, who was condemned con-demned by the Lutheran university of Tubengen, and who, after his condemnation, condem-nation, was engaged as a professor of astronomy in a Catholic university. Who opposed science when Gregory XIII reformed the calendar in 15S2? He changed the dates of the month in order or-der to account for the odd hours, min utes and seconds in the year. England, with its boasted enlightenment, refused re-fused to adopt it for seventeen years. Its refusal was based on a stubborn opposition to anything Roman, no matter mat-ter how correct it may be. Sweden adopts it a year later, and the German Ger-man states refused absolutely to do so till 1776, "preferring," as a witty writer puts it, "warring with the stars to agreeing with the pope." To judge the attiude of the Catholic church towards science or civilization in any past age, there must be some criterion from which a correct judgment judg-ment can be formed. We judge the civilization of ancient Greece and Rome, Babylon and Egypt by their col-lossal col-lossal buildings, which were monuments monu-ments of architectural beauty. They show an advanced stage of civilization in the ages in which they were built. Music, sculpture, etc., also indicate the civilization of the age which bring them forth. Judging the Catholic church in the middle ages by such cri-terions. cri-terions. Historian would be surprised at her civilizing influence. It was during dur-ing the middle ages that the large cathedrals, ca-thedrals, which today attract so much attention, were built. Those of Cologne, Co-logne, Milan, Canterbury, Spurs, and many others were built in the middle ages, and as monuments of that period, pe-riod, they prove the reverse of what Historian has conjured up in his mind regarding that epoch-. In addition to this may be mentioned some of the discoveries that date their origin to this period. In 551 two monks discovered how to manufacture silk. Their discovery was soon adopted by all Europe, and profitably, too. Water mills were invented in 555; window glass for churches and other buildings in 601; the Gregorian chant was the result re-sult of Pope Gregory the Great's musical mu-sical talent. This, in 600, was supplemented supple-mented by the gamut which felicitates its study. The organ, now in general use in all churches, dates back to 673. In 706 paper was first made from cotton, cot-ton, and from linen in 1270. Add to these clocks with balance and wheels in 10S, glass-staining, and the art of imprinting figures on it in iia, waicoc in 1306, and the mariners' compass in 1310, and the middle ages will not appear ap-pear quite as dark in the order of civilization civ-ilization as they have been represented. Nor was Galileo censured or cited by the inquisition when he invented the thermometer in 1597. Enough has been written, whilst a great deal more could be added on to show how art and science in every department de-partment of knowledge were studied and preserved by the church down through the centuries. It proves that her attitude, in every age, has been in favor of science. Science she fears not, for her au-thorative au-thorative teaching in faith and morals embrace divine truths which must harmonize har-monize with science or truths in the natural order, since truth can never contradict truth, as both emanate from the fountain of all truth, namely, God. If the Catholic church dreads anything, it is ignorance and prejudice, for whilst the former is unable to grapple with the truth, the latter is unwilling to do it |