Science vs. religion? Galileo and PBS

Sharon and I just watched a show on PBS dealing with Galileo, the famous scientist and philosopher. It was pretty much as I expected – Galileo was persecuted by the church for his scientific beliefs and died a broken man. The show made it appear to be a war between religion and science with Galileo as the hero. However, many crucial facts had been left out which change the picture quite a bit.

Starting end of the Middle Ages, the dominant model of the universe in Europe came from Aristotle. He had written about the earth as the center of the universe. People today think that this was an egotistical attempt to make humanity think better of itself. But Aristotle placed the earth at the center because that was the lowest place in the universe, not the most important. There were concentric circles above the earth representing the moon, the stars, the planets, and heaven. These heavenly bodies were more pure than the earth, which was seen as the focus of evil in this system.

When Copernicus came along and placed the sun in the center of the universe, it changed how people saw themselves. Instead of demoting the human race, he elevated humanity. Galileo was a firm disciple of Copernicus and, therefore, argued for a sun-centered universe.

Galileo’s view put him in conflict with Aristotle’s model. This was a problem because many church leaders had bought into Aristotle’s philosophy, and they were concerned with the metaphysical, spiritual, and social consequences that would come about if this philosophy was rejected. Actually, a majority of church intellectuals were on the side of Galileo; they had no argument with Galileo’s theories as science. He got in trouble, not because the Bible conflicted with observation but because he differed with the church over what authority should be used to interpret it.

Galileo did not help himself when he turned to writing his theories. He was provocative, using caricatures of the pope to make him look silly in various debates included in the writings.

It is true that Galileo was detained and was forced to renounce the sun-centered universe theory. But he was given his own rooms and servants. He did not die a broken, lonely man in exile. Instead, he returned to his own home with his pensions from the church preserved.

This is just one more illustration that the "war" between science and Christianity often comes from poor interpretations rather than from the Bible itself. It also demonstrates how modern communicators love to perpetuate the old idea that science and faith are incompatible.