Pope says science no threat to faith

[tocqueville]

By Philip Pullella
Fri Feb 10, 1:36 PM ET

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Science made such rapid progress in the 20th century that people may sometimes be confused about how the Christian faith can still be compatible with it, Pope Benedict said on Friday.

But science and religion are not opposed to each other and Christians should not be afraid to try to understand how they compliment each other in explaining the mystery of life on Earth, he told the Vatican's doctrinal department.

The Pope made his comments at a time of heated debate, mostly in the United States, about intelligent design arguments challenging evolution. A Pennsylvania court ruled in December that intelligent design could not be taught as science in school.

"The Church joyfully accepts the real conquests of human knowledge and recognizes that spreading the Gospel also means really taking charge of the prospects and the challenges that modern knowledge unlocks," he said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060210/sc_nm/religion_pope_science_dc

[rodeodance]

1. 'science helps the hand of God"--was the way it was resolved in 1800s

if not before.

[tocqueville]

6. that's why God will scientifically remove the fundies... nt

[Smarmie Doofus]

2. Well, perhaps; but it's a big threat to superstition. nt

[neuvocat]

3. Maybe I had this guy all wrong.

He seems rather progressive despite what I've heard about him previously.

[Posteritatis]

9. Like all human beings

He's on in some areas and off in others. Easy as it is to look at someone and decide they're either entirely good and pure or entirely one of the enemy, I'd prefer people used things like "thought" instead and accept the existence of shades of gray.

There's a reason I tend to have more respect for the Catholic Church than most of the other major denominations.

[DarkTirade]

4. Anyone who decides that...

a book full of parables is more accurate than scientific facts needs to see a shrink.
Plain and simple. If you can't see that a story in the bible just MIGHT be a parable rather than a 100% accurate story, then you've got issues. I'm glad the catholic church is finally starting to go towards the right direction.
Now if only they'd deal with the damn child molestation problems...

[tocqueville]

7. FYI science and molestation

1) the Catholic Church has that above described stance since Galileo, since they lost so big on it. The Galileo scandal made that everybody started to read his books, which was not the intention. Since the 50s the jesuite Teilhard de Chardin gave a modern stand to the Catholic Church about science, evolution, genesis etc.. no Pope has changed that... Benedict repeats this stuff because he wants to get at the US fundies. Competition. Laura Bush has been his guest 2 days ago... coincidence ?

2) child molestation is happening in all Churches and is probably as frequent if not more (involving girls) in the Protestantic fundie Churches, Evangelicals, Mormons you name them etc... But it's popular to bash catholics in the US, since the White Protestant Anglo-Saxons control the media... At least the Caths skip bestiality which is more common in other rural denominations...

[DarkTirade]

8. I was half joking...

I know the catholic church has wised up a bit about the science stuff. Now it's the american fundies that need to slapped in the face.

[MatrixEscape]

5. What I think we fail to see, and will never know, ...

being in the bootstrap dilemma of trying to think our way through anything, spiritual or material, is that we have reasons to have faith and we also have faith in reason.

Of course, the underpinnings of our acculturation is based on the reality of mind as substitution for actuality. In order to survive in the context of a pre-ordained, mind-dominated structure, we must accept this sacrifice as practical because the risks far outweigh our essential need to be unitive and functional as unique manifestations..

However, we tend to end-up making a complete translation to mental abstraction-as-buffer, trading the primordial/somatic nearly completely, (expect when there are glitches and indicators on that level) for a-verbal continuity and pre-conceptual, symbolic existence.

I have presented an impossibility that has dangerous proportions there. That may not be obvious at first glance. In fact, I would go so far as to criticize it with great scrutiny. Any approach towards understanding or practicing it both futile and leads to potential, unparalleled disappointment, (you don't want this) and if taken too far, a dance with insanity.

In that case, the presentation of such ideas, and they can go on, are self-negating and provide no benefits, whatsoever, in their expression.

And yet ... from there ... something is then possible, whereas, right now, free will and determinism are also abstract notions that are not only highly debatable, contrasting, and irreconcilable, they can both be logically proven false and true by an expert logistician.

We have a ring-pass-naught that proves to be yet another form of faith, that is logic and reason. Before the angry pundits of the two come to sweep this under the rug and rise and rally to shore up the walls of the mind, let me say that I am not debating or challenging the validity of the formal rules of logic or the sound clarion call to what we call reason. I am certainly offering the blasphemy that questions the scope of their context.

In this case, I am including all ideas, concepts, symbols, words, etc., i.e., mind stuff, in that scope, with emphasis on all spiritual and mystical concepts as well. That is the insidious aspect of the myth: Placing certain ideas and symbols of the mythical mind up to the top of the hierarchy and then labeling them as other/separate/above/beyond, etc. There is reason for that phenomenon, but much confusion as to its nature and the leverage it provides.

[NNadir]

10. Popes, in general, should avoid discussing science at all.

It's rather like having George W. Bush discuss science.

As far as I am aware, one needs no scientific training to become Pope. It's rather like having the cabinet maker comment on dentistry.

[Swede]

11. He's making progressive statements.

People listen to the pope.

[NNadir]

12. If people listen to the Pope, that's a shame.

In any case, I am merely remarking that he is unqualified to speak on scientific issues.

I very seldom confuse religion with progress.