For centuries, the name of Galileo Galilei has been associated with one of the most famous conflicts between science and the Catholic Church. On October 31, 1992, Pope John Paul II supported the recognition of the errors made in the condemnation of the Italian scientist and spoke in favor of his rehabilitation.
The statement was made in the Vatican to participants in the plenary session of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. The occasion was the presentation of the conclusions of the more than ten-year study of the “Galileo“ case.
The commission has been working for more than a decade
As early as 1979, during the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Albert Einstein, John Paul II called on theologians, scientists and historians to examine the case without prejudice. On July 3, 1981, a special papal commission was created.
The work was divided into four areas, dedicated to the historical, theological, scientific and cultural aspects of the dispute. On October 31, 1992, Cardinal Paul Poupard presented the results to the Pope. "These errors must be frankly acknowledged," he said in a summary of the conclusions, quoted by the Washington Post.
John Paul II described Galileo as a "sincere believer" and said that he understood better than his theological opponents the need to distinguish between the Bible and the way it is interpreted. According to the pope, many theologians of the era failed to distinguish the scientific study of nature from religious teaching.
The condemnation in 1633
Galileo defended the heliocentric model, according to which the Earth moves around the Sun. In 1633, he was brought before the Roman Inquisition for his book "Dialogue on the Two Chief Systems of the World."
The tribunal declared him "highly suspected of heresy." The scientist was forced to recant his views, and his prison sentence was commuted to house arrest. Galileo spent the last years of his life under surveillance and died in 1642 at the age of 77.
His book remained on the list of prohibited publications until 1835. Thus, the 1992 decision came 359 years after the Inquisition's verdict and became a symbolic attempt to overcome the historical conflict.
The lesson of science and faith
In his speech, the pope did not present the case solely as a dispute about the structure of the universe. He defines it as a lesson about the limits of different fields of knowledge and the danger of scientific questions being resolved through hasty theological assessments.
“The tragic mutual misunderstanding“ between science and faith, says John Paul II, is now a thing of the past. With these words, the pope supports a historical rethinking of Galileo's conviction and places the case in the broader conversation about the relationship between scientific inquiry and religious belief.
Sources: washingtonpost.com, elpais.com, history.com