Science and Religion​—The Birth of a Conflict

THE 70-year-old astronomer was on his deathbed, struggling to read. In his hands were the proofs of a document of his, ready for publication. Whether he knew it or not, his work would revolutionize mankind’s view of the universe. It would also trigger a heated controversy within Christendom, the effects of which are still being felt today.

The dying man was Nicolaus Copernicus, a Polish Catholic, and the year was 1543. Copernicus’ work, entitled On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, put the sun, not the earth, at the center of the solar system. In one stroke Copernicus replaced the extremely complex, earth-centered system with one of elegant simplicity.

At first, there was little indication of the clash that was to come. For one thing, Copernicus had been discreet when sharing his ideas. Additionally, the Catholic Church, which had adopted the earth-centered view, seemed to be more tolerant of scientific speculation at the time. Even the pope himself urged Copernicus to publish his work. When Copernicus finally did publish it, a fearful editor wrote his own preface, presenting the sun-centered, or heliocentric, concept as a mathematical ideal, not necessarily an astronomical truth.

The Conflict Becomes Heated

Next on the scene was Italian astronomer, mathematician, and physicist Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), also a Catholic. Using telescopes that he built incorporating the newly invented lens, Galileo saw the heavens in unprecedented detail. His observations convinced him that Copernicus was correct. Galileo also saw spots on the sun, today called sunspots, thus challenging another cherished philosophical and religious tenet​—that the sun is not subject to change or decay.

Unlike Copernicus, Galileo was bold and zealous in promoting his ideas. And he did so in a more hostile religious environment, for the Catholic Church had by then become openly opposed to the Copernican theory. Hence, when Galileo argued that not only was the heliocentric concept correct but it harmonized with Scripture, the church smelled heresy.a

Galileo went to Rome to defend himself but to no avail. In 1616 the church ordered him to stop advocating Copernicus. Galileo was silenced for a time. Then in 1632 he published another work in support of Copernicus. The very next year, the Inquisition sentenced Galileo to life imprisonment. Out of consideration for his age, however, they quickly commuted the sentence to house arrest.

Many view Galileo’s conflict with the church as a great triumph of science over religion and, by extension, over the Bible. However, as we shall see in the next article, this simplistic conclusion ignores many facts.

[Footnote]

Science and the Bible​—Do They Really Contradict Each Other?

THE seeds of the clash between Galileo and the Catholic Church were sown centuries before Copernicus and Galileo were born. The earth-centered, or geocentric, view of the universe was adopted by the ancient Greeks and made famous by the philosopher Aristotle (384-322 B.C.E.) and the astronomer-astrologer Ptolemy (second century C.E.).a

Aristotle’s concept of the universe was influenced by the thinking of Greek mathematician and philosopher Pythagoras (sixth century B.C.E.). Adopting Pythagoras’ view that the circle and sphere were perfect shapes, Aristotle believed that the heavens were a series of spheres within spheres, like layers of an onion. Each layer was made of crystal, with the earth at the center. Stars moved in circles, deriving their motion from the outermost sphere, the seat of divine power. Aristotle also held that the sun and other celestial objects were perfect, free of any marks or blemishes and not subject to change.

Aristotle’s great scheme was a child of philosophy, not science. A moving earth, he felt, would violate common sense. He also rejected the idea of a void, or space, believing that a moving earth would be subject to friction and would grind to a halt without the application of constant force. Because Aristotle’s concept seemed logical within the framework of existing knowledge, it endured in its basic form for almost 2,000 years. Even as late as the 16th century, French philosopher Jean Bodin expressed that popular view, stating: “No one in his senses, or imbued with the slightest knowledge of physics, will ever think that the earth, heavy and unwieldy . . . , staggers . . . around its own center and that of the sun; for at the slightest jar of the earth, we would see cities and fortresses, towns and mountains thrown down.”

Aristotle Adopted by the Church

A further step leading to the confrontation between Galileo and the church occurred in the 13th century and involved Catholic authority Thomas Aquinas (1225-74). Aquinas had a profound respect for Aristotle, whom he referred to as The Philosopher. Aquinas struggled for five years to fuse Aristotle’s philosophy with church teaching. By the time of Galileo, says Wade Rowland in his book Galileo’s Mistake, “the hybridized Aristotle in the theology of Aquinas had become bedrock dogma of the Church of Rome.” Keep in mind, too, that in those days there was no scientific community as such. Education was largely in the hands of the church. The authority on religion and science was often one and the same.

The stage was now set for the confrontation between the church and Galileo. Even before his involvement with astronomy, Galileo had written a treatise on motion. It challenged many assumptions made by the revered Aristotle. However, it was Galileo’s steadfast promotion of the heliocentric concept and his assertion that it harmonizes with Scripture that led to his trial by the Inquisition in 1633.

In his defense, Galileo affirmed his strong faith in the Bible as the inspired Word of God. He also argued that the Scriptures were written for ordinary people and that Biblical references to the apparent movement of the sun were not to be interpreted literally. His arguments were futile. Because Galileo rejected an interpretation of Scripture based on Greek philosophy, he stood condemned! Not until 1992 did the Catholic Church officially admit to error in its judgment of Galileo.

Lessons to Be Learned

What can we learn from these events? For one thing, Galileo had no quarrel with the Bible. Instead, he questioned the teachings of the church. One religion writer observed: “The lesson to be learned from Galileo, it appears, is not that the Church held too tightly to biblical truths; but rather that it did not hold tightly enough.” By allowing Greek philosophy to influence its theology, the church bowed to tradition rather than follow the teachings of the Bible.

All of this calls to mind the Biblical warning: “Look out: perhaps there may be someone who will carry you off as his prey through the philosophy and empty deception according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary things of the world and not according to Christ.”​—Colossians 2:8.