An Italian soap opera in two acts
“The record of imprisonment, torture, and
execution connected with the Inquisition
has been a blot on the history of the Church.
Its most famous victim was the Italian
astronomer and mathematician Galileo.”
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In 1543 Nicholas Copernicus publishes De
Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium.
A friend (without his permission) adds an
introduction in which he says that none of
this is to be takes literally. It is merely a
“supposition.”
The silence is deafening.
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It violated common sense.
It threw out 2000 years of coherent
astronomical theory.
It violated the laws of physics (as they were
then understood).
It predicted stellar parallax (which was too
small to be seen).
It contradicted some passages in scripture.
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Galileo (1564 – 1642) becomes convinced that
Copernicus was right, and discusses this with
some friends. In particular, he writes a letter to
Fr. Benedetto Castelli explaining his views. This
letter will become important later on.
He claims that the Bible must be interpreted in
the light of modern scientific findings and that
it was written in a language that was
“accommodated” to the people for whom it was
written.
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Cesare Cardinal Baronio: “The Bible tells us
how to go to heaven, not how the heavens
go.”
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December 1614 a minor cleric named
Tommaso Caccini preaches a sermon at
Santa Maria Novella in Florence denouncing
Galileo and his followers.
February 1614 another cleric from the same
city Niccolo Lorini wrote a letter to the
inquisition together with a copy of Galileo’s
letter to Castelli which had been partly
altered to make Galileo look bad.
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Originally (13th century) traveling tribunals
intended to root out and punish heretics.
The Roman Inquisition established in 1542
as part of the Church’s response to the
Protestant reformation.
It was the final tribunal of the Church
dealing with matters of heresy.
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March 1615 – The Inquisition summons
Caccini who makes all manner of wild
accusations which turn out to be rumors
from Lorini.
The Inquisition is still worried about
heliocentrism and outsources the matter to
a panel of experts.
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February, 1616: The panel returns a
damning report – Copernicanism is “foolish
and absurd” in philosophy and heretical in
theology.
Copernicus’ book is placed on the Index of
forbidden books to be “suspended until
corrected.”
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Books Catholics were forbidden to read at
pain of excommunication
Established in 1557.
Abolished by Pope Paul VI in 1966.
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February 1616: Cardinal Roberto
Bellarmino was told to meet with Galileo
and inform him of the decree of the Index
and to advise him to abandon his claim that
Copernicanism was literally true.
What exactly happened? We don’t know.
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A Neopolitan priest Paolo Antonio Foscarini
wrote a book interpreting Biblical texts in
such as way as to make them compatible
with Copernicanism. He sent a copy to
Bellarmino .
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There is no danger in saying that by assuming
the earth moves and the sun stands still, one
saves all the appearances better than by
postulating eccentrics and epicycles, that is
sufficient for the mathematician. However, it is
different to want to affirm that in reality, the
sun is at the center of the world and the earth
revolves with great speed around it. This is a
very dangerous thing, likely not only to irritate
all scholastic philosophers and theologians, but
also to harm the holy faith by rendering Holy
Scripture false.
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Furthermore – if there were an undeniable
proof of the motion of the earth then
scripture would have to be reinterpreted
carefully.
Biblical interpretation is a key issue. But
who is to do the interpreting? Why has this
suddenly become important?
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The protestant Reformation began 1517.
Council of Trent 1545 – 1563
Forbade the reinterpretation of Scripture in
ways “contrary to the consensus of the
church fathers.”
There was a paranoid concern with nonstandard Biblical interpretations.
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The phases of Venus
Satellites of Jupiter
The tides are caused by the motion of the
earth.
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March 1616: Galileo went to see the Pope.
He was warmly welcomed.
The Pope reassured Galileo that he was safe
from his enemies, “so long as I live.”
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Bellarmino gives Galileo a certificate saying
that he had not been condemned or
censored in any way but he should not hold
or defend Copernicanism.
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Galileo’s old friend Maffeo Barberini was
elected Pope Urban VIII in August 1623.
Galileo visited the Pope in April 1624 and
was treated warmly.
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It is OK to write about Copernicanism
provided:
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It is presented as a hypothesis.
That he include the argument that because God
is omnipotent we can never be certain about
ultimate causes.
Galileo returns to Florence and begins work
on his new book provisionally called “On the
Tides” was finished in 1630.
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The book now called “A Dialogue on the Two
Chief World Systems” is published in 1632.
The Pope is furious. “I have been deceived.”
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Galileo neglected to tell him about Cardinal
Bellarmino’s instructions that he not defend
Copernicanism.
The Pope’s argument about ultimate causes
was put in the mouth of Simplicius, a
blithering idiot.
The Pope is already under attack for his
handling of the 30-years war. This is the last
thing he needs!
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October 1632: Galileo is summoned for
questioning.
Galileo shows the Inquisition his certificate
from Bellarmino. They have a copy in their files
but it is substantially different and is unsigned.
(Bellarmino by this time was dead.)
They offer Galileo a “plea bargain,” but the Pope
will have none of it.
June 21, 1633: Galileo is arrested and formally
interrogated.
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Galileo is placed under house arrest in his
villa at Arcetri outside of Florence where he
dies in 1642 the year Isaac Newton was
born.
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Instrumentalism: Scientific theories are
simply useful tools for “saving the
phenomena.”
Realism: Scientific theories are true
depictions of the world. Scientific ideas
really do describe the world as it objectively
is.