Catholicism in Space: Houston, Do We Have a problem?

Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate 1964 Blog ^ | 3/25/15 | Mark Gray

[marshmallow]

Twin astronauts Mark and Scott Kelly (raised Catholic in an Irish-American family) are about to embark on an important scientific experiment on Friday. Scott Kelly will begin spending a year in space on the International Space Station (ISS) while his brother stays back here on earth as a control subject. NASA will be studying how extended time in space changes Scott relative to his brother Mark. Living for an extended time outside the gravity of earth and partially exposed to the radiation of space can impact one’s bones, heart, eyes, muscles, and who knows what else.

It’s probably important to start understanding and thinking more about living in space because frankly that is where the human future may be. At some point the Catholic Church will need to think about how people can “do” Catholicism in space. During the shuttle Endeavour mission STS-134 in March 2011, Mark Kelly was part of the crew on the ISS who spoke with Pope Benedict XVI. He told Kelly and the astronauts,

“Space exploration is a fascinating scientific adventure. I know you have been studying your equipment to further scientific research and to study radiation coming from outer space. But I think it is also an adventure of the human spirit. A powerful stimulus to reflect on the origins and on the destiny of the universe and humanity.”

Indeed the destiny of human beings is among the stars as our descendants will eventually need to get off this rock to survive (…if we don’t kill each other first). The sun is about to enter its mid-life crisis. At 4.6 billion years old it has more than a half-life to go. Well before then it is expected to get a bit brighter by about 10% in 1.1 billion years. That will begin to make life......

[Alex Murphy]

Okay the first one is obviously satire, but are we positive that the Benny Hinn bit isn’t real? I mean we all remember the enema Suzanne had on TV right?

LOL! Yes, I'm positive, if only because of one tiny detail. Excuse me while I go into ubergeek mode....

He told me that there is a planet a few dozen light years - that's the distance light travels in one year, that's a light year, and it's a long way. He said this planet, and he gave me the name, Zeta Reticuli....Jesus said, 'I am going to send you there, and you are going to preach my glory.' I asked the Lord, how I was going to go there, and he said, 'Those space ships in Texas that people have been seeing, they're coming for you.'"

"Zeta 2 Reticuli" was the name given for the planet in Alien, before it was rechristened "LV-426" in the sequel. So if that's where Jesus is promising to send Benny Hinn to preach, that's not good news for Benny :)

[Legatus]

that's not good news for Benny

But it would be good news for us. I used to have a client who sent Hinn $100 a month, I remember the first time I saw a check I thought it was a joke. The second time I was just horrified.

[Fred Hayek]

First I heard of Benny Hinn I kept thinking Benny Hill.

[Legatus]

GREAT, just GREAT, now I’m gonna have THAT song living in my head for the rest of the day. lol

[Dutchboy88]

Do you have a secret camera trained on my workstation?

[Mrs. Don-o]

BWA-haha-ha-ha-haaaaa!

I'll never tell....

[Dutchboy88]

"The Catholic Church hasn't said it has a problem."

"CARA is a non-profit research center that conducts social scientific studies about the Catholic Church. Founded in 1964, CARA has three major dimensions to its mission: to increase the Catholic Church's self understanding; to serve the applied research needs of Church decision-makers; and to advance scholarly research on religion, particularly Catholicism"

Well, confuse me! Here I thought the Catholic Outer Space Research Institute for Spaghetti Concepts actually was connected to Rome...but, no, it is just intended to "...increase the Catholic Church's SELF UNDERSTANDING..." It appears some of that is needed.

[RichInOC]

Yeah, Mark is that guy.

[Mrs. Don-o]

That's CARA, Dutchboy. A separately-incorporated 501(c)(3) nonprofit consisting of Georgetown statisticians and number-crunchers, not under the formal control even of Georgetown, nor of the Archdiocese of Washington DC, nor of the Catholic Church in the USA, nor of Rome.

It's an academic research group which speculated in 1964 that the Catholic Church "ought to" think about how to operate in outer space.

Thanks for your vigorous, up-to-date analysis of this hot news item.

[Mrs. Don-o]

Sorry, my dumb error. It was not a 1964 post: it's just "called" 1964, and I was further misled by the Ray Bradbury illustration, which looks pre-Star Trek.

However, what I wrote otherwise still stands. CARA =/= "The Catholic Church".

[Dutchboy88]

"However, what I wrote otherwise still stands. CARA =/= "The Catholic Church"."

I stand corrected... Two more spaghetti ohs on my head.

[Mrs. Don-o]

You probably look cute in spaghetti-o's. Just like I have always looked tres chic with chocolate ice cream on my chin.

[Dutchboy88]

Okay, now that is cute! tres chic, taste buds on the chin AND a fancy hair-do, too.

[Mrs. Don-o]

You and I are evidently blessed with really personal sense of style.

[Larry Lucido]

Meanwhile...

Jews in Space

[LurkingSince'98]

Well that would means as a protestant you don’t need to do anything, which is about the mist unscriptural thing I’ve ever heard a Protestant utter.

AMDG

[dangus]

In fairness, the “blog” isn’t just some random dude’s opinions. It’s a publication of a research organization at Georgetown University which is authorized by the US Catholic Church to analyze priestly vocations, attendance statistics, etc.

I’m a little critical of the post because the answer (which is “no, there is no problem”) isn’t very clear. Yes, living among the stars would create a few questions of how to interpret tradition in a very untraditional context, but the traditions in question aren’t mere human tradition; there is theology behind them, and the theology will certainly guide the solutions.

Of all the questions he puts forth, the question of calendars is the most intriguing and is one that no denomination can avoid: when is Sunday? Every 7th rotation? Or every 7*24 earth-hours? When exploring the colonization of other planets, most Sci Fi looks to certain obvious issues: oxygen content, environmental poisons, temperature, available moisture. But could human beings thrive on a planet with 35-hour days?

[edwinland]

Dutchboy88: Good thing biblical Christianity doesn’t have anything to “do”. Too bad about Catholicism...no hope since it must be “done”.

edwinland: "I guess your bible doesn't have the part where Jesus says "Do this in memory of me."

Dutchboy88: I guess I missed the part about "Each week I am requiring you to go to a beautifully gilded Cathedral (with statues of my mom larger than those of me) and have the guy in the bathrobe say some words over it to turn it into my blood and body." Can you help us out here and give us that reference?

Sorry for the slow reply. I was a away for the weekend.

If you're interested in a debate over the biblical basis of the Mass, by all means make a post and start a discussion.

But your point was more specific and more comprehensive:

Good thing biblical Christianity doesn’t have anything to “do”.

That claim would appear false in light of Christ's injunction to "do this in memory of me".

If we agree that Christ was commanding us to do something, then let's move on to a discussion of just what he was commanding us to do. If you would claim that he wasn't commanding us to do something, I'd be curious for your opinion on why he said "do this in memory of me".

[Dutchboy88]

"I'd be curious for your opinion on why he said "do this in memory of me"."

Well, I'd be curious for your opinion on what "this" is. We have little to discuss until we agree on what Jesus was speaking of.

[edwinland]

"I'd be curious for your opinion on why he said "do this in memory of me"

Well, I'd be curious for your opinion on what "this" is. We have little to discuss until we agree on what Jesus was speaking of.

Excellent. So we have moved past the incorrect assertion that "biblical Christianity doesn’t have anything to “do” to a further discussion of what the "this" is that Jesus commands us to do in "Do this in memory of me", or to put it another way, just what is it that biblical Christianity asks us to "do".