Still she spins

The Pope was reminded of unflattering statements about Galileo

The centuries-old dispute between science and religion has resulted in a scandal under the walls of the Vatican. Today, Benedict XVI was scheduled to deliver a ceremonial speech at the opening ceremony of the 705th academic year at Rome's La Sapienza University, founded in 1303 by the Holy See itself. However, the brainchild of the Catholic Church fiercely resisted the Pope's plans. 67 teachers, among whom there are famous Italian physicists, sent a letter to the rector of the university, in which they demanded to cancel the visit of Benedict XVI. “We do not want to see Ratzinger in the temple of science, because we consider him too reactionary,” the appeal says.

The La Sapienza teachers explain their position by the fact that on March 15, 1990, while still a cardinal, Joseph Ratzinger, speaking in Parma, stated that “the church’s trial of Galileo was reasonable and fair.” According to Italian professors, such statements “offend and humiliate scientists who devote their lives to the development of science and progress.” “In the name of the secular nature of science, we insist that this visit be cancelled,” the teachers’ letter emphasizes. In addition, university students obtained permission to hold a protest demonstration on the day of the pontiff’s arrival. Picketers in Ratzinger-obscurantist masks, gathered at the entrance to the university, were waiting for Benedict XVI. In this situation, the Vatican “considered it appropriate to postpone” the Pope’s visit until better times. And now, instead of himself, Benedict XVI will send only the text of his speech to principled scientists.

These events discouraged not only the Holy See, but also the secular authorities in Italy. Prime Minister Romano Prodi yesterday expressed his disappointment at the cancellation of the Pope's speech. “I condemn actions and statements that have caused unacceptable tension in society,” Prodi said. “This does not honor the traditional civilization and tolerance of Italy.” “Every voice should be heard in Italy, and not least the voice of the Pope,” says Romano Prodi.

As you know, Galileo Galilei was accused of recognizing the “false teaching” of Nicolaus Copernicus that the Sun, and not the Earth, is at the center of the world and that the latter moves, making a revolution around the Sun in one year. The scientist was kept in custody, and then under pressure was forced to renounce the “heresy instilled in him by the devil.” However, during the papacy of John Paul II, the Roman Catholic Church rehabilitated both Galileo Galilei (in 1992) and Nicolaus Copernicus (in 1993).

Despite this, Benedict XVI appears to be in no hurry to abandon his reputation as a "reactionary". Moreover, the Pope continues to breed his opponents even among young people. Thus, recently an article was published in the official publication of the Vatican, Osservatore Romano, in which Harry Potter, a famous character in JK Rowling’s novels, is called “the wrong type of hero.” According to the author of the article, professor of literature at the University of Florence Edoardo Rialti, despite the positive aspects described in the stories about Harry Potter, “the basis of this story is witchcraft, positioned as a positive ideal.” Joseph Ratzinger himself called JK Rowling's work "a temptation that undermines the soul of Christianity", while his predecessor John Paul II said that he did not see anything anti-Christian in the Harry Potter books.

Nina GUGUSHVILI