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Creationism dismissed as 'a kind of paganism' by Vatican's astronomer
The Scotsman ^ | May 5, 2006 | IAN JOHNSTON

Posted on 05/05/2006 8:21:56 AM PDT by Right Wing Professor

BELIEVING that God created the universe in six days is a form of superstitious paganism, the Vatican astronomer Guy Consolmagno claimed yesterday.

Brother Consolmagno, who works in a Vatican observatory in Arizona and as curator of the Vatican meteorite collection in Italy, said a "destructive myth" had developed in modern society that religion and science were competing ideologies.

He described creationism, whose supporters want it taught in schools alongside evolution, as a "kind of paganism" because it harked back to the days of "nature gods" who were responsible for natural events.

Brother Consolmagno argued that the Christian God was a supernatural one, a belief that had led the clergy in the past to become involved in science to seek natural reasons for phenomena such as thunder and lightning, which had been previously attributed to vengeful gods. "Knowledge is dangerous, but so is ignorance. That's why science and religion need to talk to each other," he said.

"Religion needs science to keep it away from superstition and keep it close to reality, to protect it from creationism, which at the end of the day is a kind of paganism - it's turning God into a nature god. And science needs religion in order to have a conscience, to know that, just because something is possible, it may not be a good thing to do."

Brother Consolmagno, who was due to give a speech at the Glasgow Science Centre last night, entitled "Why the Pope has an Astronomer", said the idea of papal infallibility had been a "PR disaster". What it actually meant was that, on matters of faith, followers should accept "somebody has got to be the boss, the final authority".

"It's not like he has a magic power, that God whispers the truth in his ear," he said.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; Philosophy
KEYWORDS: apostacy; apostate; astronomy; catholic; catholicshurch; christian; christianity; creation; creationism; crevolist; genesis; intelligentdesign; paganism; pope; romancatholic; vatican
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To: trashcanbred; PatrickHenry
I mean does anyone know the time dilation factor for God?

I think that is a divide by zero. :-)

141 posted on 05/05/2006 1:47:12 PM PDT by RadioAstronomer (Senior member of Darwin Central)
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To: Dataman
Well, what an idiot.

Sure great not to be chained to some bloated, human-tradition-choked sect.

Dan
Biblical Christianity BLOG
Pyromaniacs

142 posted on 05/05/2006 1:47:55 PM PDT by BibChr ("...behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD, so what wisdom is in them?" [Jer. 8:9])
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To: PatrickHenry
Yes. It's an outrage!

Thousands marching in DC, news at 11.

143 posted on 05/05/2006 1:49:59 PM PDT by RadioAstronomer (Senior member of Darwin Central)
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To: RadioAstronomer
I did not know that. I did a cursory google search and came up zippo... is there an article that discusses this? I will do a search later too... I am trying to keep my promise and enjoy this weekend sans laptop.
144 posted on 05/05/2006 1:50:07 PM PDT by trashcanbred (Anti-social and anti-socialist)
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To: VadeRetro
I'm not even thinking about it.

I never did think about it. :-)

145 posted on 05/05/2006 1:50:36 PM PDT by RadioAstronomer (Senior member of Darwin Central)
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To: trashcanbred

http://tf.nist.gov/cesium/fountain.htm

:-)

Been there. Cool place.


146 posted on 05/05/2006 1:51:54 PM PDT by RadioAstronomer (Senior member of Darwin Central)
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To: trashcanbred; RadioAstronomer
I mean does anyone know the time dilation factor for God? I would imagine God's clock doesn't run at the same rate as ours right? Not trying to give the CRID'ers any backing but time dilation is a real observable phenomena right? This is one example I think they can argue their point with a modicum of success.

Being everywhere, it's probably incorrect to speak of God as being in motion with respect to anything. And nothing is in motion with respect to God. Thus, by definition, there is no time dilation factor for God. He is the ultimate privileged frame of reference.

147 posted on 05/05/2006 1:54:50 PM PDT by PatrickHenry (Unresponsive to trolls, lunatics, fanatics, retards, scolds, & incurable ignoramuses.)
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To: PatrickHenry
Being everywhere, it's probably incorrect to speak of God as being in motion with respect to anything.

He could trade places with himself.

148 posted on 05/05/2006 2:00:08 PM PDT by VadeRetro (Faster than a speeding building; able to leap tall bullets at a single bound!)
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To: King Prout
soma?

Of course. See the works of R. Gordon Wasson.

And for the more adventurous, see The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, by Allegro.

149 posted on 05/05/2006 2:03:25 PM PDT by Coyoteman (Creationists know Jack Chick about evolution.)
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To: SoothingDave
Ditto.

~A~

150 posted on 05/05/2006 2:04:41 PM PDT by AnnaZ (Victory at all costs-in spite of all terror-however long and hard the road may be-for survival)
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To: SoothingDave
So God created a world complete with dinosaur fossils appearing to be millions of years old. Even though dinosaurs never existed and the world in only a few thousand years old.

Have you ever ran an age test on freshly created matter?

With our less than 1% knowledge of reality, especially atomic processes, it shouldn't surprise us when we find T-Rex bones with soft tissue inside. We are also still to ignorant to attempt to understand what a worldwide flood would do to the surface of the earth. What would happen when billions of tons of water is on top of a floating crust? Stretching light across the Universe, when One is outside of Time, takes no time at all.

What we are seeing before our eyes is a momentum shift regarding the pursuit of science. Rather than assuming the ocean and natural processes built the sandcastle, we are deciding to look around the island for the intelligent being that is responsible for engineering it. When a goof-ball intellectual tries to explain how watching the ocean create a mote, and try to explain how driftwood carved out the drawbridge, most people lose faith in their judgment.

Nature can change the sandcastle. Sometimes carving out a deeper rut around it to preserve it longer, but trying to explain that as evidence of building power is ridiculous. this stuff is obvious to most clear thinking, unbrainwashed individuals.

151 posted on 05/05/2006 2:06:51 PM PDT by bondserv (God governs our universe and has seen fit to offer us a pardon. †)
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To: Coyoteman
And for the more adventurous, see The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, by Allegro

I read that back in my hippy days. It was sort of like Chinese food for your brain. I thought it was really impressive, and then two hours later, it was gone.

152 posted on 05/05/2006 2:07:17 PM PDT by Right Wing Professor
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To: RadioAstronomer
Actually we have clocks so precise that they "see" a difference between the floors of a building. :-)

And delivery men so imprecise that they cannot.

153 posted on 05/05/2006 2:11:33 PM PDT by Doctor Stochastic (Vegetabilisch = chaotisch ist der Charakter der Modernen. - Friedrich Schlegel)
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To: BibChr
Sure great not to be chained to some bloated, human-tradition-choked sect.

Indeed. When you're a cult of one, you're always right.

154 posted on 05/05/2006 2:12:26 PM PDT by atlaw
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To: atlaw

Yes, because truth has always been decided by majority vote, and the majority has always been right!


155 posted on 05/05/2006 2:17:08 PM PDT by BibChr ("...behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD, so what wisdom is in them?" [Jer. 8:9])
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To: bondserv
Have you ever ran an age test on freshly created matter?

I know people who have. It tested as being freshly created. It then aged exactly as radiometric dating theory says it should. It's not rocket science. It is nuclear science though.

156 posted on 05/05/2006 2:17:36 PM PDT by Doctor Stochastic (Vegetabilisch = chaotisch ist der Charakter der Modernen. - Friedrich Schlegel)
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To: bondserv
" Have you ever ran an age test on freshly created matter?"

Yes.

157 posted on 05/05/2006 2:21:49 PM PDT by spunkets
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To: trashcanbred; PatrickHenry

I mean does anyone know the time dilation factor for God?
I would imagine God's clock doesn't run at the same rate as ours right?
Not trying to give the CRID'ers any backing but time dilation
is a real observable phenomena right?
This is one example I think they can argue their point with a modicum of success.

137 posted on 05/05/2006 2:41:41 PM MDT by trashcanbred

All of these equations assume that the "c" the speed of light has always been the same forever.

There is some empirical evidence that it has been decreasing since it has been measured.

Some hypothesis as to what that means Implications of a Non-Constant Velocity of Light


158 posted on 05/05/2006 2:36:50 PM PDT by Uri’el-2012 (Hosea 6:6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings)
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To: Doctor Stochastic
I know people who have. It tested as being freshly created. It then aged exactly as radiometric dating theory says it should. It's not rocket science.

From nothing, something? And did they create the source of the energy out of nothing. Taking credit for borrowing is considered cheating.

159 posted on 05/05/2006 2:43:21 PM PDT by bondserv (God governs our universe and has seen fit to offer us a pardon. †)
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To: bondserv

We're creating matter now? What's next, destroying it?


160 posted on 05/05/2006 2:51:17 PM PDT by RegulatorCountry
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